A Close Miss ...

Inscribed by Hariharan |3 remarks
I witnessed an accident today just outside my office ... I guess a bus trying to avoiding into a Merc crashed into couple of parked cars by the road side. Have a look ...
The bus and the crashed parked cars ..

The Merc in a horrible state

So why is this a close call ? Notice my Car (RED one) ... was parked so close to this whole game ...

Sigh !! Close call indeed :) ...

Movie Spree …

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I have been on a movie spree for the last 2-3 weeks … Actually I don’t know what caused what … Chicken and Egg situation … Insomnia and Movie watching … I guess I would like to say the Insomnia caused the movie watching spree …

I may have missed some 3-4 movies but this is all that I can remember .. not that I am going to get some award for seeing so many movies … So here goes

English
Die Hard 4
Euro Trip
Hotel Rwanda
Legally Blonde
Basic Instinct
Final Destination 1
Final Destination 2
Final Destination 3
Bourne Identity
Bourne Supremacy
Bourne Ultimatum
3:10 to Yuma
Pineapple Express
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Catch me if you can
Hitch

Tamil
Ayan
Sillundru Oru Kaadal
Vetaiyaadu Vilayaadu
Half movie of Villu and Yaaradi Ni Mohini (couldn’t tolerate anymore of it !!)

Hindi
Straight
Pa
3 Idiots
Radio
Rocket Singh

My personal record or sorts was the - 3 movies back to back (Final Destination 1,2,3)… After which I felt very very sick !! I had to take two Disprins to get the head ache off me … Then I took a long walk outside, came back, had dinner and saw one more Tamil Movie to finally call it a day !

Would give you some movie reviews when I feel like it … Lots of movies in that are like master pieces …

Until next time …

Checking off the list of Tourist Spots in Joburg

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This weekend was one where I managed to check out couple of the key tourist attractions in Johannesburg. Firstly the Apartheid Museum and then the Lions Park.
The Apartheid Museum
The Apartheid Museum deals with 20th century South Africa, at the heart of which is the apartheid story. It depicts the story of the triumph of the human spirit over adversity. Beginning in 1948, the white elected National Party government implemented the policy of apartheid which turned 20 million people into second class citizens, damning them to a life of servitude, humiliation and abuse.
Their liberation in 1994 with the election of Nelson Mandela, the prisoner who became president, is a climax in the saga of a nation's resistance, courage and fortitude.
The Apartheid Museum, the first of its kind, illustrates the rise and fall of apartheid.
The museum is a superb example of design, space and landscape offering the tourists a unique South African experience. They include provocative film footage, photographs, text panels and artefacts illustrating the events and human stories that are part of the epic saga, known as apartheid. A series of 22 individual exhibition areas takes the visitor through a dramatic emotional journey that tells a story of a state-sanctioned system based on racial discrimination and the struggle of the majority to overthrow this tyranny.
For anyone wanting to understand and experience what apartheid South Africa was really like, a visit to the Apartheid Museum is fundamental.
The Lions Park
The Lion Park offers terrific up close views and other exciting interactions with a large variety of predators and large herbivores indigenous to Africa.
The Lion Park is home to over 80 lions including the rare white lions and many other carnivores such as cheetah, wild dog, brown hyena, striped hyena, spotted hyena, black-backed jackal, side-striped jackal, and a wide variety of antelope which roam freely in the antelope area.
I got an opportunity to interact with some of the animals in the Cub World area which has a giraffe feeding platform that puts you at eye level with our tame resident giraffe creating a fun experience for all ages. Then there is the popular cub interaction which allows guests to touch the cubs and take photographs.
Was quite an experience that I would never have got in India … :)

Visit to Nelson Mandela Square

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Yeah … I am back with some more Joburg chronicles. Its been about two weeks that I last blogged … I missed blogging last weekend … I had planned to blog every weekend at least but I was unwell last weekend. The weather has been erratic here in Joburg. I have seen everything from pretty cold weather, hail storm, heavy rains to finally hot summer (which is what is normal as it is supposed to be Summer!!) So seeing this all-year weather in 2 weeks my body just gave up and I was down with cold and fever. So basically, I just took medicines and rest last weekend, as I had to be fit to handle the workload at office. Come Monday, and I was fit-n-fine and managed to get on with my work.
We had a team dinner planned by Accenture at the Lekgotla @ Nelson Mandela Square. When I heard Nelson Mandela Square I thought it was one of the squares (chouk) named after him … But it was not that … This was inside the Sandton City Center. This is a very huge and beautiful mall and inside this there is this area called the Nelson Mandela Square. I reached there to see a really huge and beautiful statue of Nelson Mandela. I managed to get some shots with him.

I had reached a bit early, so I thought that I’d check out the mall in the few minutes that I had … I went and looked inside to find another of my “firsts” … I saw my first Rolls Royce. Man !! What a beauty it was !! … And I was just awe struck by its beauty and its size …As I tried capturing some shots and I realised that it was bigger than the biggest cars that I have ever seen and I was finding it difficult to capture it in a frame. Everything about it was wonderful … and I am short of words for what I saw that day !! :-) … So it was a day that I saw a large car and a huge status of Nelson Mandela.
The dinner @ Lekgotla was also a pleasurable experience. I found the people very warm and friendly. The day culminated with the people at Lekgotla performing some South African Music which was very enjoyable with nice beats and lively songs.

Some more Joburg Stories

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So I am back with some more stories of Joburg and some more photos. So after all the rehersals to reach my client office, I reached my client office in Joburg CBD area. It’s a concrete jungle and not as interesting as my Accenture SA office but nonetheless I did manage to capture some photos around the office. Presenting to you Johannesburg CBD Area from my office balcony…
A closer look, probably ???
A left side look …
And a right side … ;)
After a week to get settled in terms of getting a laptop, getting assigned to my team and getting to know the work and the team better things are getting busier day by day. A training on the ARIS tool (Business Process Modelling Tool) kept things a little more interesting. So after all that, now it’s now down to ground work and it looks interesting and also going to be very hectic.
I did some looking around in the city. I went to the nearby flea market at the area called Bruma. I found lots of very interesting things there. It was a very lively place with stalls selling all kind of stuff. Clothes, Handicraft, carving, sculptures etc … not to mention food stalls selling all kind of interesting eatables.
Guess, I would have to go there before coming back to India to pick up lots of interesting to bring back home.
Last one !! ... showing me with my Car ...

Getting Settled in Jo'burg

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Day 1 - So, the day started with a Cab picking me up to take me to the Accenture South Africa office. I must say, it’s a very beautiful and different office from the ones that I have seen in India.

Actually the drive to the office also was very beautiful … The city is full of small mount sprinkled all over, so the roads go up and down as you travel through the city. I reached the office to finish some paperwork and some banking formalities. I had discussed hiring a car when I was in India, but I didn’t know that it would be arranged for me on day 1. So they gave me a Volkswagen Citi Sport 1.4 – a very basic car that would get me around the city with ease. But the thing was that I didn’t know the roads !! So I went about downloading the road directions from my office to my home. I got directions after some search and assistance from my office colleagues. As I started driving back home and I realised my driving discipline had been spoiled after driving in Pune City. Driving in Joburg is about strict discipline and very less room for error. The traffic is fast and requires complete focus. But as I started driving I actually started enjoying the drive. I also started learning some local driving jargons. In Joburg, Robot = Traffic Signal and Garage = Petrol Pump. So after getting lost a bit, luckily for me I managed to find my way back home. The flipsides here is the security concern that eliminates options like stopping by and asking locals for directions – as it increases the risk of your getting car-jacked (evolved from the word hijack). So I realised that there are some hitches with the map strategy to get around the city.
Day 2 - I had to drive to the centre of the city called the Joburg CBD to my client’s office on the Monday morning. So I decided that I should do some rehearsal over the weekend to reach the office. I decided to give my Map strategy another chance and it was a good start when I started to get to the area with ease. As I approached the area I realised that it was a highly crowded area with crisscross roads that confused the hell out of me. To make things worse there were many one-ways and I had lost track of my map. I also got tensed and distracted by the fact that the one-ways roads would mean - the way I come would not be the way I go back - and I realised that I didn’t have a proper map route to get back home. And moreover, I had lost my way to the office also. Somehow I used some commonsense to take some turns etc and suddenly I found that I was in front of the office. I again continued to move on and somehow I managed to get my way back on the road to home. That day I realised the map strategy would not work for me in a city like Joburg which was full with its security issues. One wrong turn and I could lose my way into one of the “unsafe” areas and become a potential candidate of mugging !! So I went straight to the shopping mall and got myself a GPS system (Global Positioning System – well, for the uninitiated it’s a device that would tell you the way to your destination)
Day 3- So then the next day I took another ride to my office to have a rehearsal with the GPS and I found the ride smooth and me feeling safer and driving at peace. So in 2 days straight I was “all set” in the new city – Stay, Travel and getting around without getting into much trouble all taken care of.
So I now had a nice home to stay in Joburg, a neat car to drive and a lady’s voice that tells me, “After 100 meters take right and then go straight on, then you have reached your destination!!” - Not bad at all !!

Off to Jo'burg

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Firstly, please accept my apologies for the inactivity in the past few days/weeks/months … whatever. So the thing is that lots of developments have been happening at my end. The career change that I was talking about has started to happen and is slowly taking shape. Ok ... as a result of all of that I am now in Johannesburg, South Africa on a project as a Banking Business Analyst. I am here to be a part of a large Core Banking Transformation Project on of the largest bank in South Africa.
So the fun part of all this is that I am here on my first ever onsite (foreign visit) to a country I would never have imagined coming on a project. But here I am. Just like many others, I also had this preconceived notion about South Africa. Whenever we think of South Africa, the pictures that comes to our mind are poverty, jungle or wildlife or some tribals and some talks of security issues. But I was pleasantly surprised by the completely different scene I saw after coming here to South Africa. So let me tell you the story as it unfolded infront of me.
I took a flight from Mumbai to Johannesburg via Dubai. The flight was at 4:30 in the morning IST and was going to reach Dubai at around 6:00 Morning local time. There was about a 4 hour stopover at the Dubai International Airport. Not the most ideal time to reach Dubai International Airport (DIA), which looked a bit sleepy to me. So was I as I had not slept a wink in my flight to Dubai. Anyways, here I was at probably one of the biggest and the busiest airports in the world so I decided to explore it as that is what I could do given that I had only a 4 hour stopover. As I walked in, I was greeted with sweets as it was the first anniversary of one of the terminals of the airports. I must say it was a pretty strange feeling as I stepped foot on my first foreign country. Different looking place and different looking people but everyone was busy with to get somewhere. So I thought it would be cool to call up folks at home to inform them that I had reached my first stopover at Dubai. I got a calling card for about USD 9 and called my wife and then my father and then I decided to call a friend in Dubai and then a cousin in Dubai and I still had loads of time on my calling card (now you know guys don’t talk much on phone !!). So I thought I’d keep it for a bit later and decided to check out the DIA. The first impression I got is that its more of a Shopping Mall and less of an airport … :) … Its full of Duty Free Shops and more shops and more shops. There are also many restaurants and lounges. And in between all of that there are some 200+ check in counters from where passengers take various flights to all over the world. I took some photos there which I am sharing with you all. After all that roaming around, I remembered that I had some more time on my card so I called my wife again and then finally I called my friend when the time in my card came to an end. It was also time for my next flight.
From Dubai I had to take a 10:15 AM flight that would reach Jo’burg at around 4:30 in the evening local time. I got into the flight and somehow I couldn’t take it anymore and so I fell asleep. I woke up with a strong headache and a weird feeling that something was not alright. It was about 12:15 and we had not taken off at all. Due to some refuelling issues the flight was delayed. I don’t know, probably the loss of sleep or the stuffiness of the aircraft I was having a bad headache. I called the hostess and requested for Asprin or someone from his family, after having which I was slightly better and the flight also decided to take off. I decided to then check out the inflight entertainment that was in offer. Found that there were some Hindi Movies. I decided to see the movie 99 as this was my chance to complete seeing the movie that had been interrupted in between when I had seen it the first time because of a corrupted file. I also remember seeing a Tamil Movie which seemed like a remake of a Hindi movie. Anyway, I was starting to get a bit bored in the delayed flight and also a bit worried at the prospect of reaching Johannesburg post sunset. The prospect of finding an stranger cabbie who waiting for me to take me home was getting me a bit nervous. Home – that I had found on my own from India through a real estate website and contacted and finalised over phone. Thought I had someone from my office go see the house and verify it, still there was some uncertainty that I was giving me some discomfort. Moreover, what if I had difficulty finding the cabbie? Anyways, after some walks around the plane, a lunch, an evening snack and couple of extra sodas, the plane landed on the Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg. So I set foot onto my second foreign country, South Africa. The immigration went off more smoothly than expected and by 8:00 PM I had collected my luggage and was off to look for my cabbie. I went outside to find no one. So I decided to make a phone call to my point of contact in Johannesburg. I had to anyways get a cell phone number so I brought a SIM and some airtime and loaded it on my cell phone. I called my contact who gave me the phone number of the cabbie. I also drew some money so that I could pay my house owner the rent and the advance for the home. I then traced the cabbie who then drove us down to our flat after getting some directions from our house owner lady. The old lady was very sweet and had arranged the house beautifully. It is a fully equipped home with all the amenities. I paid her the money and took over the house. I called home to inform that I had reached home safely. I had some ready to eat food for dinner and crashed on bed. I had slept just 2 hours in the last 36 hours so I slept off within minutes. I got up early in the morning as I had to go to the office that day to get the joining formalities done. I looked out of the window to see a view that game me a sure shot realization that I was in a foreign country. I saw a beautiful view of trees with violet flowers all over them, the kind that I have never seen in India. I am sharing the photo of the view for you all to see.
I am also sharing a photos of the house too.




Amrita Alumni Meet @ Mumbai

Inscribed by Hariharan |2 remarks
Yes .. finally after missing so many opportunities in the past to attend a Amrita Alumni Meet finally we (I and Janani – both Amrita Alumni) were able to make it to the Amrita Alumni Meet @ Mumbai …
 
We planned it in such a way that we would be able travel to Mumbai early in the morning so that we would be able to take darshan at the famous Mahalakshmi temple in Mumbai. After getting down at Dadar we took a local train to the Mahalakshmi station from where it was a 5 mins drive to the temple. We got a really good darshan with not much crowd in the temple. We then took a train back to Dadar and we headed to Preetam da Dhaba for lunch. I felt the food there was pretty good … especially I liked the soup and the Biryani .. just that it was expensive. :)
 
Finally then after a round of road side shopping we headed to Ramee Guest Link where the meet was organized. First thing, I met Gokul, who is the Manager Amrita Alumni. Its good that they have created a dedicated person to take care of Alumni affairs. Then the MBA gang started to pour in … Staring with Neerav (2005) then Govind (2003), George K (2004), Anupa George (2005) Anuj (2003) – hope I didn’t miss anyone and not to mention myself (2004) and Janani (2005). There were some Engineering and other courses folks who also turned up (I am bad with names .. Jyothish is one guy I remember). I guess lot more people didn’t turn up because of prior engagements / Onam Holidays.
 
We started with introductions by each member. Gokul updated us on the alumni activities at various locations. He also updated us on the Special Interest Groups (SIG) on the Amritians Portal. We all brain stormed on how we can get the Alumni network stronger and have more members contribute. We realized that not many people were aware of the Amritians portal and that we had to do better to get the large chunk of the 15500 alumni members to join the network @ http://www.amritians.net/. We came up with ideas on how we can use existing social networking websites (eg. Facebook, Orkut, Twitter, LinkedIn etc) to act as channels/gateways to get to the Amritians portal. Another excellent idea that came up was to use SMS message to keep members posted on the latest activities and to get confirmations on event attendance etc (coz ppl may not check mails regularly but would check SMS for sure).
 
After all the serious discussions it was time for the High tea. We got some more time for general catching up with old friends before we called it a day @ 7 in the evening. We then took a share cab back to get back home to Pune. It was about 11 pm by the time we reached home. As we retired for the day it was a satisfying feeling of having achieved a long pending Mahalakshmi temple darshan and having met old friends after a long time – All in one day. Wow !! What a day !! :)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Visit to Nagpur

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Had been to Nagpur this weekend and was it Nostalgic or what !? “Now what is Nagpur got to with Nostalgia ?”, you may wonder … Ok lemme tell you … Nagpur is where I have spent my formative years of my life … 10th Standard onwards till finishing my Engineering … Everything from my first crush to all the successes and failures in between happened there … Had to show the place to Janani … She is all impressed I am sure.

Highlights of my visit to Nagpur …

  • City has developed like crazy: Lots of more Shopping Malls, Buildings, Apartments etc … it was getting difficult to recognize places there
  • Visit to my Engineering college (Priyadarshini college of Engineering and Architecture): The college looks gorgeous with the majestic main gate (one of the biggest I have seen). The new IT Building looks like one of the buildings you normally see abroad (huge pillars and large doors etc) … People of my batch would remember the “water body” that was part of the initial college plan. You would not believe the college is now complete with an actual water body, proper landcaping, trees and greenary all over. There are couple of new buildings and overall it was awe inspiring
  • Sad news on the college front – Dr. (Mrs) R V Deshpande (or Deshpande madam as we called her !!) .. our Engineering Mathematics professor, passed away after fighting cancer for about 2 years. May her soul rest in peace.
  • On the way back from college, I saw our regular hangout the Pakodewala @ trimurti nagar … unfortunately was closed
  • City Roads seem to have taken a bit of a beating and needs some repair. When I had left Nagpur, they were in much better shape and the roads are something that the city should be proud of so its sad that there are maintenance issues. I hope the authorities take the necessary action soon to get it back in shape.
  • Visited my junior college SFS College in Seminary Hills … The drive to the college was as usual breathtaking with all the greenery and the hilly roads. Also took a drive to the Parsi Agiyari on Seminary hills .. it’s a good view from there … I used to go there when I was in junior college … Also visited the deer park and the nearby gardens. The road from the SFS College passing by the cemetery and to the Japanese Garden is now closed … Don’t know for what reason. But that used to be a good road to go into.
  • Visited the Balaji Temple on the hills … it has also changed drastically with the new enterance Gopuram and the new temples under construction. Got a good darshan there. Got back some old memoriesAlso visited the Telankhedi Mandir … no changes there except that the Samosa wala is now a big guy with a big shop and all that .. he used to be a small shop then … :) …
  • Passed by the Telankhedi lake and then went to the Ambazari lake and the garden beside the lake … learnt that boating has now stopped for the last 2 years … it was a nice view nonetheless
  • Saw some more temples that were close to my (late) Mother’s heart. I used to take her there often. (Sai Mandir on Wardha road, the Hanuman Mandir @ Ramnagar Chowk and South Indian Temple – Sarveshwara Devalaya Temple in Ramnagar)
  • Lunch @ Haldiram Thaat Baat, Breakfast @ Gokul Vrundavan and Chaat @ Bajajnagar Thelawala … Awsome …
  • Drive by Dharampeth main road was awesome .. Softcell is no longer there … :( … Sudama Theatre is now better after the renovation … Saw Kameney there … (I didn’t like it !!!)
  • Saw the house that I used to stay in … met my old landlord uncle … And met my Nagpur Music teacher … It was nice meeting her after a long time.

That is a lot for activities for a day … How I miss not taking my camera … :( .. So I have no photos to share with you all …

I left the places with a feeling of Nostalgia. Nagpur brought back sweet memories of the time that I spent at there … it will always be a pleasure to visit the place anytime … Hope there is something like a get together that can be arranged with all friends back in Nagpur for a visit … A distant dream … Lets hope … Text Color

Carnatic Music Trinity

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The contemporaries Tyagaraja (1759 - 1847), Muthuswami Dikshitar, (1776 - 1827) and Syama Sastri, (1762 - 1827) are regarded as the Trinity of Carnatic music (or Mummoorthigal) due to the quality of Syama Sastri's compositions, the varieties of compositions of Muthuswami Dikshitar and Tyagaraja's prolific output in composing kritis.

<B>Sri Muthuswami Dikshitar</B>

I have learnt a few Dikshitar Krithis ... but never delved the person behind those beautiful compositions. So I guess today is the day ...

There is this story about him that as per his guru's orders, Dikshitar went to Tiruttani (a temple town near Chennai). There, while he was immersed deep in meditation, an old man appeared and asked him to open his mouth. He dropped sugar candy into his mouth and disappeared. As he opened his mouth, he had a vision of the deity Muruga and Dikshitar burst forth into his first composition "Shri Nathadi Guruguho" in the raga Mayamalavagowla.

I know the above composition and I can tell you that it such a beautiful composition that it sound so simple while you hear it and is so difficult while actually singing it. It is also symbolic that his first composition was in Raga Mayamalavagowla which is also the raga in which all the first lessons (swara exercises - Sarali, Jantai, Daattu, etc.) in Carnatic music are set in. Guess it is why he may have choosen it for his first composition.

Muttuswami Dikshitar also undertook the project of composing in all the 72 Melakartha ragas, thereby providing a musical example for many rare and lost ragas. Dikshitar was a master of tala and is the only composer to have kritis in all the seven basic talas of the Carnatic scheme.

<B>Sri Thyagaraja</B>

Tyagaraja has composed hundreds of devotional compositions, most of them in praise of Lord Ram. If I look at the krithis that I know of the Mummoorthigal, I know larger number of krithis of Tyagaraja than krithis of the other two masters. My favourites include 'O Rama ni naa mam yemi ruchi ra' and 'RaRa Raajivalochana Rama' among others.

It is said that in 1839 during the month of April, he visited Tirupati, but when he went to the temple, it was closed. In sadness, he sang "Teratiyagaraadaa" and the temple officials gathered round in admiration when they saw the door opening by itself and the screen falling aside. He sang "VenkaTEsha ninu sEvimpa" in his happiness at seeing the Lord.

It is also said that Lord Rama appeared before him in his dream and offered him Moksha after 10 days. Lot has been written about his Rama Bhakti. I saw this interesting article here which details <a href="http://www.saintthyagarajar.com/ramabakthi.htm">Tyagaraja's Rama Bhakti</a>. I quote "Thyagaraja lived the life of a Ramabhaktha. From early dawn to late night, his daily routine which was full of service and rituals to the Lord, made him live with Rama every moment he was awake. He saw Rama as a child, as a virtuous adult, as a saviour of mankind, as a Lord of the whole cosmos. He cajoled him, taunted him, cried for him, served him, and did various other things which a person in ecstasy of devotion does."

The `Thygaraja aradhana' is celebrated every year on Pushya Bagula Panchami day when the saint attained samadhi under the auspices of Sri Thyagabrahma Mahotsava Sabha at the saint's samadhi at Thiruvaiyaru. Five of his compositions called the Pancharatna Krithis are sung in his honour at the Tyagaraja Aaraadhana in chorus by the great musicians of today as a tribute to his contribution to Carnatic Music.

<B>Sri Shyama Shastri</B>

Although Shyama Shastri did not compose as many kritis as his two prolific contemporaries, Syama Sastri's compositions are equally well known.

There is a very interesting story about him. In all his compositions Shyama Shastri addresses Goddess Kamakshi as his sister. The word SHYAMA KRISHNA SODHARI (sister of Shyama Krishna) appears in all his songs. This is why it is. Those were the days when the temple for Goddess Kamakshi was being built in Thanjavur by its Maratha ruler Thulajaji. Young ShyamaKrishna would practise the songs in his wonderful voice to the delight of the passers-by, sitting on the tower meant for the temple bell. His aunt who was fond of him used to send him milk through her little daughter. One day the girl came calling him 'ANNA' (Brother), placed the milk by his side and disappeared. Shyama noticed her angelic charm that day with the necklace of the deity adorning her neck. He at once ran home to reprimand his mother for having sent her decked with the deity's jewel. When he learnt that she had not sent her that day as she was not available he knew that Goddess Kamakshi had come to enslave him. The first song that flowed from his lips praising HER grace was "Oh, Jagadamba" in the raga Ananda Bhairavi later followed by about 300 songs all addressed to Goddess Kamakshi as Shyama Krishna Sodhari. (Notice that the goddess addressed him as ANNA!).

Himatri Sute Paahimaam is one of the beautiful Shyama Shastri krithis that I have learnt.

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Masters in Western Music

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I was reading up stuff on some western music composers and I found some really interesting stuff about them ...

Mozart

- Mozart is considered one of the greatest musical geniuses of all time, authoring over 600 works before his premature death at 35.
- He was playing the harpsichord by the age of 4, composing music at 5, and performed his first recital at age 6 for the Empress of Austria.
- Beethoven wrote his own early compositions in the shadow of Mozart, of whom Joseph Haydn wrote that "posterity will not see such a talent again in 100 years"
- Mozart excelled at nearly every kind of musical composition. He wrote 22 operas, over 40 symphonies, and composed a great amount of church and chamber music. Much of Mozart's work is still performed and enjoyed today.
- He died in poverty in 1791.

"When I am . . . traveling in a carriage, or walking after a good meal, or during the night when I cannot sleep; it is on such occasions that ideas flow best and most abundantly" -Mozart

Beethoven

- Beethoven's hearing began to deteriorate in the late 1790s, yet he continued to compose, and to conduct and perform, even after becoming completely deaf.
- Beethoven did not immediately set out to establish himself as a composer, but rather devoted himself to study and to piano performance.
- Beethoven used a special rod attached to the soundboard on a piano that he could bite-the vibrations would then transfer from the piano to his jaw to increase his perception of the sound.
- Beethoven's hearing loss did not prevent his composing music, but it made playing at concerts-lucrative sources of income-increasingly difficult. After a failed attempt in 1811 to perform his own Piano Concerto No. 5 (the "Emperor"), he never performed in public again.
- During his middle period, Beethoven said, "I am not satisfied with the work I have done so far. From now on I intend to take a new way".[57] The first major work of this new way was the Third Symphony in E flat, known as the "Eroica".
- Unlike Mozart, who, owing to extreme poverty was buried anonymously in a paupers' communal grave (such being the custom at the time), 20,000 Viennese citizens lined the streets for Beethoven's funeral on 29 March 1827

Just shows what goes behind the making of masters like these ... It's a life of hard work and struggle and an endeavor to get better everyday

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Happy Gokulashtami !!

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Live updates of the Gokulashtami celebrations at home ... Full on with Nai Appam, Uppu Appam, Avil Paayasam, Vennai, Tairu and Paal ... Yummy !! :)



Happenings in Pune ... Swine Flu Hysteria

Inscribed by Hariharan |1 remarks

At Pune … There is a mass hysteria about the Swine Flu … Why Pune … All over India … People are calling us with concern and worries asking how we are doing … etc etc … The news channels are adding fuel to the fire by flashing news after news about it (with background music that would add to the panic) and newspapers showing only the negativity of the whole issue (Photos of people standing in line for a test and people in masks .. deserted roads etc) !! But do we need to really worry so much ?? 17-18 deaths in India out of 100 crore population … more people die every day of other diseases … Ok … I am not trying to undermine the seriousness of the issue but also so much panic is also not at all required …

Take all the necessary precautions … Masks in public places … Washing hands regularly … etc … and most importantly not to unnecessarily worry … I feel the unnecessary worry would only increase the chances of you catching the flu … probably your immune system would go weaker because of worries … just believe that you won’t contract it and even if you do … it would go away with treatment … with a mortality rate of less than 1% this mass hysteria is the last thing we need.Most cases if you note the people who died either were kids (with a weak immunity) or people with other complications … What we fail to highlight are multiple cases of people who were treated and are perfectly alright now … let me highlight some cases

So lets resolve not to panic and face this problem with maturity and composure and without get into a frenzy.
Here are some interesting facts for a read …

Hope things get better soon our bodies develop immunity to this one and in the meanwhile take care … Hari

Test Email Post

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Test Post !!!

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Regards,
Hariharan Krishnamurthy

There is still activity @ http://know-hari.blogspot.com/

Career Crossroads

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Yes, I was at one recently (I mean a career crossroad) ... I knew I was heading towards one so the preparation was on for a long time ... which is probably one of the reasons for the inactivity. So I am now going to the logical next step post my stint in IT presales, getting into Domain side of the game as a Business Analyst.
I am sure there is lots to learn and long way to go ahead .. that would keep me motivated and going for a long time to come ..
Will keep you all posted as it happens ... Till then ...
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