Musicians selected for 2005 Tour

Singers:

Kalamandalam Hyder Ali

Kalamandalam Hyder Ali, the connoisseur in Kathakali music is known for his melodious rendering of padams. The musical element in Kathakali was systematically synchronized with the histrionic demands of Kathakali as a dance form. Kalamandalam Hyder Ali was mainly instrumental in introducing two great changes to this music. He gave an ostensibly Carnatic touch to the singing of padams and also started rendering padams in independent music programs without any visual background. Hyderali has performed in all over the world including the Kennedy Center USA.

K.S. Rajeevan

Rajeevan a young Kathakali musician has already won laurels. He has been invited to perform at various cities in Europe

Chenda: Kalamandalam Raman Namboothiri

Kalamandalam Raman Namboothiri, a marvelous Chenda player is currently working as Chenda Teacher in R.L.V Music College, Thripunithura, Kerala. He hails from a family of percussionists and took to playing Chenda at a very young age. He is renowned for his stellar performances during jugalbandies of carnatic music and sopana sangeetham. He has been invited to perform at various cities in Europe and Asia. He has won many awards from local Kathakali clubs. He is known as the ‘Mela Kusalam’ ‘Percussion Champion’.

Maddalam: Kalamandalam Narayanan Kutty

Kalamandalam Narayanan Kutty , a renowned Maddalam player worked as the head of the department of Kathakali in Kalamandalam. He has performed all over the world; Asia, Europe,New Zealand & USA. A die-hard traditionalist, he is known for his powerful strokes on the maddalam, techinically referred as the 'Melakozhuppu'. His performance is marked by the tonal restraint and uninterrupted support to the chenda. The knowledge of Kathakali literature in relation to its visual interpretation adds maturity to his performance.