A Sivamani – Mahaleela

Being a great musician and being a great performer are often found to be entirely different matters. It is a very rare to find both, the quality of a great performer and the qualification of a great musician in the same person. Probably one of the greatest examples of such a musician from India and around the world would be the master percussionist Sivamani.

Known for belting out music from anything ranging from a standard drum kit to a standard dinner set, Sivamani has mesmerized audiences around the world with his seemingly limitless musical capacity for years gone by.

Finally, after years of supporting some of the finest musical exports from India, Sivamani has stitched together his first solo album, “Mahaleela.”

The initial expectations running through the minds of the listeners approaching the album would be an extremely pompous album by the percussionist Sivamani. Instead the album is not created from the mind of a percussionist per se but from a well-rounded composer. As a matter of fact, on some of the early tracks on the album such as “Dancing On The Moon” and “Kriya”, Siva’s playing is entirely non-intrusive and merely helps the song along its path.

“Abbaji” a track featuring Ustad Zakir Hussain triggers the change in the mood of the album. From here on Sivamani takes on a more active role in the album, adorning a more aggressive appearance. On “Santushti” Siva displays some of his furious hand play, and he even goes onto follow the movements of a raging horse meticulously, creating a tribal war call like effect.

The point worth parroting would be the focus on a larger sound rather than making a one dimensional virtuosic percussion album. The album has some vocal numbers featuring great vocalists from the south such as Balasubramaniam and Hariharan, singers who have had a long association with the man. Siva has refrained from making the album overtly intense, rather throwing in some roomy numbers with a new-age fusion sound. There is an obvious South Indian flavour to the album, which adds that element of sweetness to the sound.

“Mahaleela” is a great experience and a walk into the mind of the genius that is Sivamani. It would definitely go down as a fine move by a musical maverick, one that many would consider long over due.