James Bond Theme on Flute by Prabu

Yours Truly,
 Prabu
 fluteprabu@gmail.com
 fluteprabu.blogspot.com
 www.facebook.com/flautistprabu

My rendition of My Heart Will Go On From the movie Titanic

Yours Truly,
 Prabu
 fluteprabu@gmail.com
 fluteprabu.blogspot.com
 www.facebook.com/flautistprabu

Bamboo Flute in depth understanding & techniques

I have been recently studying in depth as to improving my playing, I fell back into flute playing and reading of bamboo flautists. From tones to tunes and advantages & disadvantages from styles.

My flute of choice is undoubtedly the the 8 hole bamboo flute (excluding the mouth hole) mainly used in Carnatic music, however not essentially limited to carnatic music it is a wonder of nature. Made of natural bamboo this flute is THE BEST FLUTE or even the best instrument as you don't have to tune, it is auto tuned upon completion by the maker to the specified key & octave based on the length of the flute as well as the size of the holes. Any composition of music sounds good on this flute regardless of the composition being meant for flute or not.

Myself having a stint playing the western Concert C flute feel that the Bamboo 8 hole flute gives the the player more control of the instrument as opposed to western flutes relying on finger keys. Despite the nice tone & sound produced by the western flute in my opinion the bamboo flute beats the Concert C hands down due to the level of control the holes gives the players as opposed to finger key pads. (I would like to have a flute made of stainless steel following the western flute + finger holes of the 8 hole bamboo flute though)

Most bamboo flautists encounter airy wind sounds being picked up when playing due to certain blowing techniques, this airy sound sometimes is not that bad as it helps balance the pitching. My blowing technique which I came up highly reduces this phenomenon however pitching needs to be negotiated by the player when playing higher octaves. Its a pro & con effect with no air sound when heading into the higher octaves there is a tendency for the flute to go sharp.

Fingering techniques, for ages flautists have been debating over, cross fingering vs parallel fingering. For me its a mix of both techniques to touch the right bending of notes. Its like having the best of 2 worlds and you have the advantage of striking clean clear notes from parallel fingering and nice intonation bends from cross fingering. At times it could be vice versa or both could be employed depending on the needs of the player.

Transposed fingering involves transposing of notes and the use of multiple flutes, while this can be advantages due to octave comfort of the player. The disadvantage is having to change flutes. I would not recommend this unless absolutely necessarily.

Myself, I normally only change flutes when I want to play the natural scale on the flute to the corresponding key a song or composition is composed to & NOT to use transposed fingering.

With regards to reeds & the thickness of bamboo, while there are some flautist who prefer thicker reeds for a rich warm tone when playing lower octave, this however causes airy wind distortion when playing higher octaves as such I prefer thinner reeds due to the clarity but not too thin either, somewhat medium thickness reed.

I also figured that versatility of the player has to be taken into consideration so as to not be only limited to 1 genre or type of music. I want to be a flautist who plays anything possible on my flute as opposed to being a genre based musician.

I was inspired when I wrote this & I hope this helps out fellow flautists.

My points stated are open debate as well as questions:)

Yours Truly,
 Prabu
 fluteprabu@gmail.com
 fluteprabu.blogspot.com
 www.facebook.com/flute.prabu

Soundwaves 2012 with Music Director

Have been busy with Soundwaves 2012. No time to blog & post here, have also not been active on facebook.

Here's a picture of myself & my flute with Mr Iskandar Ismail who is Singapore's music icon.

Yours Truly,
 Prabu
 fluteprabu@gmail.com
 fluteprabu.blogspot.com
 www.facebook.com/flute.prabu

Photo from Vasantha Utsavam @ Perumal Temple 09/06/2012 Part 2 Evening Singapore Indian Orchestra and Choir - People's Association

Part 2 - Playing for Vasantha Utsavam @ Perumal Temple for the second time in the same day for Singapore Indian Orchestra and Choir - People's Association

Yours Truly,
Prabu
fluteprabu@gmail.com
fluteprabu.blogspot.com
www.facebook.com/flute.prabu

Photos from Vasantha Utsavam @ Perumal Temple 09/06/2012

Part 1 of Vasantha Utsavam Morning 

Photos from Vasantha Utsavam @ Perumal Temple

Yours Truly,
 Prabu
 fluteprabu@gmail.com
 fluteprabu.blogspot.com
 www.facebook.com/flute.prabu

Soundwaves 2012 Asia Major limited discounted tickets

Dear friends,

I'll be playing for the below show "Asia Major" on 15th & 16th of June. Please come down & support me

Please approach me for discounted tickets as I have limited tickets which are discounted. SMS me @ 92230514

Yours Truly,
 Prabu
 fluteprabu@gmail.com
 fluteprabu.blogspot.com
 www.facebook.com/flute.prabu

Hey Lisa by Divine Sutra

Venu, nice single, rock on!!!

Hey Lisa is a Reggae Number from the Indian Rock Band , Divine Sutra. This single will be included in thier next upcoming album Tales of Neela Dey



Please share this with your friends on social media.

Yours Truly,
 Prabu
 fluteprabu@gmail.com
 fluteprabu.blogspot.com
 www.facebook.com/flute.prabu

Raga Remix - Jack & Rai

Following videos featuring Jack & Rai (Vocals/Guitars), Vignes(Sitar) and Murale(Drums/Percussion) @ The Asian Civilisations Museum during raga remix event.

Life in Technicolor by Coldplay

Life in Technicolor by Coldplay on day 2

Across The Universe by The Beatles

Hindu Times by Oasis

Jack & Rai, You guys are awesome. Jack, that was superb musical arrangement in such a short period of preparation time. Murale of course the ever reliable rhythmist.

Yours Truly,
Prabu
fluteprabu@gmail.com 
fluteprabu.blogspot.com 
www.facebook.com/flute.prabu

Group photo our team from Raga Remix event

Photography by Eswaran
© 2012 Lady Kash and Krissy | All Rights Reserved. (www.ladykashandkrissy.com)

You guys are the best, each and every one of you, we started out as to musical acquaintances but over last month what we built was a very good friendship and fellowship with each other. You name it, we did it all, from the fun moments, the jokes, the laughter to the way we rehearsed despite being tired. We went through it all together. I already miss you guys as at certain points we were seeing each other literally everyday. This is going to be one long musical journey for us.


Prabu 
fluteprabu@gmail.com 
fluteprabu.blogspot.com 
www.facebook.com/flute.prabu

Inspirations part 4

This song I like for its unique music arrangement, this is for all of you.
I hope this inspires you as much as it did for me.

Cheers,

Rehearsals, Practices Sessions

Usually rehearsals, jams and Practice Sessions are fun and involve many funny incidents & pleasant memories, however at times there are instances where a supposedly positive experience turns ugly or sour due to incompetence on some peoples part, the inability of others to hold their mouths & tongues, unnecessarily shooting them off.

Chances for these unpleasant experiences happening are rather low, but the chances do increase when you have the generally problematic characters around.

This one is for all those who have bad days :)

Cheers,
Prabu

Soundwaves 2012 Asia Major Asia’s Greatest Hits

I'm playing for the below show, please support me & come for the show :) Soundwaves 2012 Asia Major  Asia’s Greatest Hits
LATEST NEWS N.A.  IMPORTANT NOTICE N.A.  CONDITIONS OF SALE No replacement of tickets for GA events More conditions of sale	START SALES DATE Internet : 02 May 2012, 9am. Other Channels : 02 May 2012, 10am. EVENT DATE  15-16 Jun 2012  Fri & Sat, 8pm  DURATION Approx 1 hrs 30 mins  INTERVAL N.A. VENUE University Cultural Centre Hall, NUS TICKET PRICE (EXCLUDE BOOKING FEE) Standard - S$40, S$30  Restricted View - S$30  Please add to above price $3 Booking Fee per ticket for tickets above $20 and $1 Booking Fee per ticket for tickets $20 and below. Charges include GST where applicable.  Click for Seat Plan    DISCOUNT & CONCESSIONS Click for Details   ADMISSION RULES No admission for infant in arms and patron aged below 6 years old. Patron 6 years old and above must purchase ticket for admission.  * No Flashed Camara, Video recording and Audio recording is allowed for this event.       Share on Facebook        Share on Twitter Email to a friend   Promoter People’s Association	LANGUAGE English  SYNOPSIS SOUNDWAVES 2012 ASIA MAJOR – Asia’s Greatest Hits! For its annual cultural centerpiece Soundwaves, the People’s Association presents Asia Major, a musical celebration of Asian popular tunes. Asia Major pays tribute to the most iconic songs from countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, Philippines, Vietnam, Korea, Thailand, China and India. The concert will feature the 75-piece Singapore Pop Orchestra including musicians from the PA’s ethnic orchestras. Guest singers and dancers from the various countries will also join in this dazzling and colourful celebration. Audiences will be treated to a night of popular evergreen songs like Arirang, Sukiyaki, Loy Krathong, Bengawan Solo and Dahil Sa Iyo.  Artistic Director: Mr Dick Lee Music Director: Mr Iskandar Ismail Performed by: Singapore Pop Orchestra (Part of PA Talents)   MORE EVENT DETAILS N.A.
Soundwaves 2012 Asia Major  Asia’s Greatest Hits DISCOUNT & CONCESSIONS Through SISTIC Website, Hotline & Authorised Agents 20% Discount for PAssion Card  [Max 4 tckets per member] *PAssion Card customers will be required to show their PAssion cards for purchase of the tickets at SISTIC Authorized Agents islandwide. *For online booking, please enter the first 4 digits of your PAssion Card membership number at the password field. *For hotline booking, please quote the first 4 digit of your PAssion Card membership number. Through SISTIC Hotline & Authorised Agents 10% Discount for Group Booking (min 10 tickets)  [Applicable for purchase 10 tickets and above] 20% Discount for Group Booking (min 20 tickets)  [Applicable for purchase 20 tickets and above]

Soundwaves 2012 Asia Major  Asia’s Greatest Hits
LATEST NEWS N.A.  IMPORTANT NOTICE N.A.  CONDITIONS OF SALE No replacement of tickets for GA events More conditions of sale	START SALES DATE Internet : 02 May 2012, 9am. Other Channels : 02 May 2012, 10am. EVENT DATE  15-16 Jun 2012  Fri & Sat, 8pm  DURATION Approx 1 hrs 30 mins  INTERVAL N.A. VENUE University Cultural Centre Hall, NUS TICKET PRICE (EXCLUDE BOOKING FEE) Standard - S$40, S$30  Restricted View - S$30  Please add to above price $3 Booking Fee per ticket for tickets above $20 and $1 Booking Fee per ticket for tickets $20 and below. Charges include GST where applicable.  Click for Seat Plan    DISCOUNT & CONCESSIONS Click for Details   ADMISSION RULES No admission for infant in arms and patron aged below 6 years old. Patron 6 years old and above must purchase ticket for admission.  * No Flashed Camara, Video recording and Audio recording is allowed for this event.       Share on Facebook        Share on Twitter Email to a friend   Promoter People’s Association	LANGUAGE English  SYNOPSIS SOUNDWAVES 2012 ASIA MAJOR – Asia’s Greatest Hits! For its annual cultural centerpiece Soundwaves, the People’s Association presents Asia Major, a musical celebration of Asian popular tunes. Asia Major pays tribute to the most iconic songs from countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, Philippines, Vietnam, Korea, Thailand, China and India. The concert will feature the 75-piece Singapore Pop Orchestra including musicians from the PA’s ethnic orchestras. Guest singers and dancers from the various countries will also join in this dazzling and colourful celebration. Audiences will be treated to a night of popular evergreen songs like Arirang, Sukiyaki, Loy Krathong, Bengawan Solo and Dahil Sa Iyo.  Artistic Director: Mr Dick Lee Music Director: Mr Iskandar Ismail Performed by: Singapore Pop Orchestra (Part of PA Talents)   MORE EVENT DETAILS N.A.
Soundwaves 2012 Asia Major  Asia’s Greatest Hits DISCOUNT & CONCESSIONS Through SISTIC Website, Hotline & Authorised Agents 20% Discount for PAssion Card  [Max 4 tckets per member] *PAssion Card customers will be required to show their PAssion cards for purchase of the tickets at SISTIC Authorized Agents islandwide. *For online booking, please enter the first 4 digits of your PAssion Card membership number at the password field. *For hotline booking, please quote the first 4 digit of your PAssion Card membership number. Through SISTIC Hotline & Authorised Agents 10% Discount for Group Booking (min 10 tickets)  [Applicable for purchase 10 tickets and above] 20% Discount for Group Booking (min 20 tickets)  [Applicable for purchase 20 tickets and above]