Vidushi R. Vedavalli at NGS - August 14, 2011

[musicapriya]

Vidushi Sangita Kalanidhi R. Vedavalli - vocal
Smt. Sumitra Vasudev - vocal support
R. K. Shriram Kumar - violin
Arun Prakash - mrudangam
Guruprasad - ghatam

performed at the NGS mini hall as part of Charsur Foundation's mid-year music festival.

It was a wonderful concert that was classically pleasing. Vocal support was great. It was heartening to see how Smt. Sumitra was following and paying extreme attention to her guru. Accompanists enhanced the concert with RKS really shining in the dhanyAsI.

Part of the song list is as follows:
marivErE gatI- Anandabhairavi (SS)
Song in hamsadhwani (had a mudra of gOpala dAsA)
a rare shrIvidyArAjagOpAlam bhajEham in jaganmOhinam (MD),
rAmAbhirAma manasu in dhanyAsI (T)
EkAmranAtham bhajEhamin in gamakakriya was the main piece,
Orumurai in kharaharapriyA (Chapu) had the tani.

The packed hall enjoyed the concert to the fullest and I left with feeling of great contentment.

Any one else who attended please provide more details.

DS

[srikant1987]

Got to attend this concert too -- again entered in between maRivERE gati evaramma :$ Chose to believe that 4 15 means 4 30, my bad.

The kharaharapriya piece was in khaNDacApu. Wonder if a khaNDacApu tani was agreed on between RV & KAP. RV will not have a k'cApu tani for EkAmranAtham, of course.

A viruttam in sAvEri (very searching), sahAna and sindhubhairavi followed, with a haMsAnandi song afterwards. The hall got extremely crowded as the sahAna began and it became difficult to absorb the music. Then there was a shlOkam in madhyamAvati to conclude the concert.

I felt RKSK shone more in the gamakakriya.

[musicapriya]

I agree, the end of the concert became less enjoyable thanks to the commotion for getting seats for the next concert but RV was quite unperturbed.

On an aside, I was quite amazed at people's hawk-eye on empty seats and how long has a seat been kept vacant etc.

[keerthi]

Was the hamsadhwani song 'birana nanu brova nIkinta'..? This one is a 2 kalai chaukam Adi talam song.

[semmu86]

Thanks for the review.. I had to leave after the gamakakriya piece to catch the Lalgudi siblings @ KGS...

[Nick H]

I was sitting right at the front, mistakenly, by the door, where comers and goers were irritating (ok, there were not many, and even I made one mid-concert trip down the stairs to visit first-door-on-left :$ ). The next day I had the sense to stay one row back to avoid interference by comers/goers. I had started the RV concert there (arrived before 4.00, so had entire hall to choose from) but a gentleman sitting by me said "let's move forward."

The sound was low. (they overcompensated, the next day, for Suguna+Suguna, when it was quite high) In fact, After a few minutes I committed to this being a mic-less concert, and tried to adjust my ears accordingly. In this respect, it was ok for me, but I would not like to have been sitting at the back.

I enjoyed it enormously. I find her neraval particularly agreeable, and I find that there is a blending of RV, Sumithra and RKSK that is particularly pleasing. I do not notice that they take turns: they seem to be part of a whole.

The behaviour of the crowd, and of the organisers in not preventing it, charging into the hall before the end of the concert, was unforgivable. It did not affect us at the front, except in that the stir was sufficient for me to look around to see what was happening.

Are concert venues to be treated, now, in the same way that drivers treat the roads?

[arasi]

Nick,
I once sat by that door and got wiser and stay away from it resolutely! It's meant for those who just want to 'show their faces', for them to say, 'I was at your concert'--and then disappear

That song in Hamsadhvani--was it vinAyakA, ninnu vinA brOchuTaku?

[srikant1987]

arasi,

It wasn't that. That song is easily recognised. (Also, it's not Kuppaiyar's: http://www.karnatik.com/c1136.shtml ) Then again what Veda mami sang MAY not be Kuppaiyar's even.

Keerthi,

If I remember correctly, it was an Adi-1 song. It still could have been the one you mention: e.g., mAyamma of SS in nATTaikuRinji has an Adi-1 and an Adi-2 version. nI madi callaga too has two versions.

[arasi]

Srikant,
You young ones know many more songs than I do, and your memories serve you in rocket speed. Remember? You are dealing with bullock cart era here!
I had missed Keerthi's post. I would not venture to say anything when Keerthi has spoken.Does he know his stuff, or what?
You all do!