Unique fusion

FINNISH COMPOSER and pianist Eero Hameenniemi has been smitten with Carnatic music ever since he heard it. Since then, he has been experimenting with improvisations in Western music, inspired by the manodharma element of Carnatic music. He even calls his ensemble "Nada".

Eero is now in Chennai and the Nada group will be performing along with mridangam maestro Karaikudi Mani's Srutilaya, on January 4 at the Narada Gana Sabha.

The Finnish group will also give a lecture demonstration on improvisation in Western music and Carnatic music at the Gokhale Shastry hall on January 3, 2001, at 6-00 p.m.

Bass clarinet player Heikki Nikula, bassist Sampo Lassila, saxophone player Pentti Lahti and drummer Markus Ketola have specially flown in from Finland for this concert.

Eero Hameenniemi has been in Chennai since November end savoring the music concerts and brushing up on his Tamil lessons and meeting old friends. He has been organising concerts of Carnatic musicians in Finland by arranging for an exchange programme between artistes of Brihaddhvani Music Research Centre of Chennai and Sibilius Academy of Helsinki.

Eero Hameenniemi met Karaikudi Mani in 1996 and in 1998, he invited Mani to be a part of the Helsinki biennale with Harishankar (kanjira), T.V. Vasan (ghatam) and Kannan (morsing), to play with the Helsinki Philharmonic. "They are still talking about that programme in Finland", he says.

During the three days of rehearsals, we understood each other perfectly and really jelled", says Karaikudi Mani. Hameenniemi named that composition "Layapriya", after Mani's house.

Friendship between the two artistes grew and more programmes followed. "I have great respect for Mani's music and wrote a piece called "Music for Mani", which was played by our group in Finland. We will have Mani joining us to perform this piece for the first time on January 4", says Eero.

In the concert at Narada Gana Sabha, compositions by the music director, Shareth, will be played as also Srutilaya's piece in Behag. Besides Sherreth on the keyboard, there will also be Narasimhan on the violin, Balasai on flute, Durgaprasad on gottuvadyam and Raja on saxophone along with the Nada group.

"I know all these musicians quite well and have worked with them before" says Eero. "All the Finnish musicians have visited India before and the drummer has actually worked in Chennai earlier. But this will be our first performance in Chennai,'' concludes Eero.

V. R. DEVIKA

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