Gayathri Girish at Music Academy on 31/12/2010

[srutibedam]

Gayathri Girish - Vocal
Anuradha Sridhar - Violin
A S Ranganathan - Mridangam
Papanasam S Sethuraman - Kanjira

Time - 4.15 p.m. to 6.45 p.m.

The Sarasijanabha Ninnu varnam set the pace and mood for what turned out to be a superlative performance for 2 hrs and 30 min.

The varnam was followed by Chaturangini raga for about 4 minutes, followed by the violin's exposition. Both vocalist and violinist exhibited their grasp of the raga with ease. The krithi, Ekamranatheswarena, was well-rendered and the sanskrit words well enunciated.

Anudinamunu kavumayya in Begada followed. One would have wished to hear Begada raga before the krithi but that wasn't there perhaps because of time constraint. Begada swara was concise. Raga in begada and lengthier swara segment, giving a more wholesome picture, would have made it a sumptuous fare. Yet it was alluring, as begada never fails to. Listeners would have observed that Gayathri's voice got blocked on a few occasions as, for instance, in the charanam in the begada krithi.

Maalmaruga Shanmuga in Vasanta followed. Once again, a dazzling swara in this glittering raga would have taken the entertainment quotient of this concert to much greater heights. But no swaram there, yet the rendition of all pieces thus far was captivating, set the mood and kept the attention arrested, as should the first few songs in a concert.

Bhairavi ragam followed. Gifted with a tristayi voice, Gayathri developed the raga with grace and poise, pulsating with resonating gamakas and assiduous upper octave expositions. Thanayuni brova and the swaras were enjoyable, as Gayathri herself savoured the swaras as she sang.

Sadanandamayi followed, a tranquil krithi in Hindolam.

Then came the highlight of the concert. Latangi raga was an aural treat. Rich sancharas with clarity and depth in the gamakas and creative flights made it an excellent raga essaying. How nice it is when a singer does full throated singing with soul-stirring kaarvais in raga alapana, brilliant akaras and vivacious brigas! Violin shadowed Gayathri closely and played subtle layers of the raga well. Thanam was followed by Matangi Mamadura Meenakshi Maragatangi Lalithangi Latangi Pandya Raja...such aesthetically appealing words for pallavi!

After swara in latangi, a dazzling array of ragas followed in beautifully crafted swaras, Kanada, Mohanam, Sriranjani, Behag, Valaji, Reetigowli, Kedaram, Hamsanandi, Lalita, Thodi, Hamsanadam, Subabantuvarali, Sahana, followed by Latangi again. The quick succession of ragas was entertainment in its purest form. There was no exodus during the thani, which was neat and concise.

Then there was a slokam in Kedaragowli, Saveri, Desh, Sivaranjani, followed by Pravisha Radhe of Jayadeva. The last piece was a delightful treat, Ponnarmeniyane in Kurunji.

On the whole, it was a well planned, well proportioned concert, with excellent team work - a rewarding experience for the listeners. The accompanists gave able support. I felt that the mridangam volume could have been slightly lower. That didn't bother much anyway, as the accoustics was generally very good. Gayathri's sahitya selection was also sober and aesthetically very appealing.

[rshankar]

Srutibedam - thanks for that review...Looks like a great selection. The pallavi, especially seems to have been another dIkshitar-esque one. The violinist is Sri LGJ's neice from CA, right?

[srutibedam]

Yes, she is.

[priyaram78]

Thanks for the detailed review. Its always a pleasure to listen to Gayathri. I miss her concerts a lot. Hope to read more reviews of Gayathri Girish in rasikas.

[srutibedam]

You are welcome. Not more than a couple of reviews, including this, of this artiste appeared this season, as far as I am aware of. At the same time, not even one concert of some other artistes have been reviewed in this forum. That includes many at the junior/sub-junior level, and surprisingly some very senior musicians also. The season is drawing to a close. Let's hope that in forthcoming seasons/non-season events, more artistes get reviewed.

[ganeshkant]

Srutibedam,

May I request you to edit ur post by splitting into small paragraphs ? It is bit difficult for me to read. Thanks.

[S.Balaji]

Accompanists:

Smt.Anuradha Sridhar - Violin
A.S.Ranganathan - Mridangam
Papanasam Sethuraman - Kanjira
Courtesy >> GG's blog :
http://gayathrigirish.blogspot.com/


Song List:(R-Raga Alapana,N-Neraval,S-Kalpanaswaram,T-Tani Avarthanam)

1.varNam - kAmbhOji - ata - vadivElu
2.EkAmranAthEshwarENa - caturangiNi - Adi - muttuswAmi dIkshitar (R)
3.anudinamunu - bEgadA - rUpakam - rAmanathapuram srinivasa Iyengar (S)
4.mAl marugA shanmugA - vasantA - Adi - pApanAsam sivan
5.tanayuni brOva - bhairavi - Adi - tyAgarAja (R,N,S)
6.sadAnandamayI - hindOlam - sankeerNa matyam - UthukAdu vEnkatakavi
7.RTP - latAngI - tisra triputa (4 kaLai) followed by Tani
8.rAgamAlikA slOkam followed by pravisha rAdhE - ashtapadI
9.ponnAr mEniyanE - tEvAram

[srutibedam]

ganeshkant,

That's done.

[rshankar]

The take of the reviewer from Hindu: http://www.thehindu.com/arts/music/article1027197.ece

[ganeshkant]

Srutibedam,

Thanks.

[ganeshkant]

Today morning listened to part of this concert in AIR.Bhairavi was good.