Harmonica Club of Gujarat – Fun session in car

On 20 Feb 2011, the last Sunday of my visit to Ahmedabad, I had an opportunity to meet the HCG members.  After the improvisation session in the Parimal Garden, we had a fun session in the car. I would like to share some videos I recorded on Sony Cyber-shot, in car near the Parimal Garden in Ahmedabad.   (Shirish Swami)

Shirish Swami is living music

I was fortunate to have been the guest of Shirish Swami for 4 days at his lovely home in Langley, London from April 17 to 20. My stay with him was unforgettable.

Shirishbhai has immersed himself in music after retiring from his job as an electrical engineer. He is very meticulous in whatever he does - gardening, cooking, house-keeping, repairing and maintaining tools, equipment and gadgets. He shows the same meticulous approach to learning and practicing harmonica.

Shirishbhai was kind to offer me his hospitality when I informed him over e-mail that I was coming to London. I had also informed Nitin Patel, also an electrical and mechanical engineer like Shirishbhai, who is a practicing industrial photographer. Both have been settled in London for more than 30 years now. Both have child-like enthusiasm for playing harmonica. Though both live in London, they met for the first time in India through the Harmonica Club of Gujarat during their recent visit.

Shirishbhai and Nitinbhai drove long distance to Harrow to meet me and pick me up from the hotel I was staying in. I shifted to Shirishbhai's home and stayed there till my departure for India. Nitinbhai spent the whole day with us, regaling us with his humor-sprinkled tales about his tryst with harmonica. Both had discovered harmonica from their respective uncles. I too was inspired by my maternal uncles who never allowed me to touch their harmonicas when I was a kid.

Shirishbhai, who used to play harmonica during his college days, picked up the instrument just a little over three years ago when his college mate, Prafulla Patel, gifted him a Chromonica 64 on learning that Shirishbhai had no mouth organ.

Thereafter, Shirishbhai started buying harmonicas. "If only I had revived my interest in harmonica while I was still employed, I would have bought many instruments without pinching my pocket," he said. However, retirement has not dissuaded him from collecting harmonicas.

Shirishbhai has made a wish list of songs he would like to play on the harmonica and is working hard to find the scales of these songs. During my stay with him, both listened to the original tracks of some of the songs and could place the scales of 3-4 songs.

The way Shirishbhai has organized himself and the manner in which he is learning and practicing mouth organ, I will not be surprised if one day soon he comes out with his own audio compact disc.

After retirement, Shirishbhai has found an engagement worth living for.

I requested Shirishbhai to become the co-author of this blog and he was kind enough to have accepted my request.

The good Boys

During their college days, both these good boys used to compete, as who would first play this beautiful song.
I do not know , for whom they wanted to play ............................
On the screen, the left one is very notorious, hard to control and the right one , totally opposite...
This is the HCG.

Belly dance

I just noticed my big tummy moving in Jalebi Direction while playing this song. Now I can understand why the audience asked me to play the same song one more time. They really liked the belly dance , more than my playing.......
Anyway it is nice to see the rhythmic movement of Big Belly....enjoy and try the same style, People will love it !!!!!
Jiski Tummy badi, uska bhi bada nam hai, bistar pe letado gadde ka kya kam hai :-)

Tu jaane na

Aditya and Devansh on karaoke track.

Lakho hai yahan dilwale

Yogesh Bhatt, Manohar Vaidya and Sandip Patankar.

piya piya piya

Aditya, Bansi Gujjar, Manohar Vaidya and Devansh.

Ajeeb Dasta hai ye

Yogesh Bhatt and Manohar Vaidya.

Aye Mere Dil by manohar Vaidya

Guru Manohar Vaidya played this song with complete music. Many visitors of this blog know Manohar Vaidya.
He plays more than 300 songs with complete music.
By the way, HCG players with family members are organising a two day trip to Mount Abu, in the second week of March.
We will be playing at Nakhi Talao.
HCG ROCKS !!!!!!!!!!

We are the one , we are the family..........

Maang ke saath tumhara

Little wonder Aditya and Guru Vaidyaji played this lovely song. Aditya is coming up as a very matured player. His main choice of songs is the all time favorite old and golden melodious songs. We have to congratulate and thank Aditya's parents for their continuous encouragement.
His younger brother Mihir is the youngest member of HCG. He is the official DJ of our club. We all dance and play, only at his mercy.