Biennale music: Flautist Murali Dazzles with Flawless Recital at General Hospital

KOCHI:
With a splendid recital, noted flautist P R Murali today dazzled at the weekly ‘Arts and Medicine’ musical show organised by the Kochi Biennale Foundation at the Government General Hospital today. The 162nd episode of the show was dedicated to the World Water Day.
The flautist who has worked with most of the celebrated music composers in the industry has also played the flute for many playback singers during his journey in music that comprises over 5,000 stage shows. He was the first musician to do orchestration and play the flute for cassette recording in Kerala in 1980.
Starting off at a young age under the tutelage of his father Shri Pachalam Ravunni Ashan, Murali participated in his first stage programme at the age of 10. He has worked with Kalabhavan, C A C, Harishree and several other music troupes in Kerala. At the age of 20 he worked in Chennai for film music recording and worked with a handful of top playback singers.
His noted achievements include orchestration for around 6300 songs, music composition for 350 songs on his own and recording and conducting in all ‘Tarangini’ music recordings. In 2000 he set up, the Murali Sangeeth Orchestra and Murali Sangeeth Academy.
“I am honoured to dedicate this performance for the World Water Day, conservation of water is necessary for the continued existence of flora and fauna. Even for the people in distress and agony, a musical performance is like a drop of water in the desert which gets absorbed as soon as it reaches the ground, KBF has made that possible”, said Murali.
Murali played over seven songs starting with, ‘ Ezhara Ponnana’ , sung by Madhuri for Devarajan Masters’s composition before moving onto P Jayachandran’s , ‘ Suprabhatham’, ‘Hridayasarasile’, ‘Kayambu’ and a Hindi number, ‘Gori Tera’ by Yesudas and a devotional song, ‘Satyanayaka’.He wound up with a soul-warming performance ‘Manjani Poonilaavu’ sung by S Janaki.
A young girl Ivania from the gathered bystanders joined Murali on the stage to sing the song , ‘Kadali Chenkadali’, which received huge applause.
‘Arts and Medicine’, the all Wednesday musical show, an initiative by the Kochi Biennale Foundation in association with Mehboob Memorial Orchestra and Lakeshore Hospital and Research Centre Limited, aims to provide soothing therapeutic music for the solace of patients.