Vijay Siva at the Music Academy 16th dec 2006

manoranjitham · Post by **manoranjitham** » 16 Dec 2006, 23:41

Adherence to tradition, unswerving loyalty to the values of classical carnatic music, a fairly pliable voice ,and padanthara suddha were on view in the concert of Vijay Siva at the Music Academy this evening. 16th dec 2006.

Gam Ganapathe (Hamsadhwani),Ramadayajoodave (Dhanyasi), Entha Ninne (Mukhari) Makelara (Ravichandrika) and Abhayamba (Kalyani) had been covered when the writer HAD to leave very reluctantly.

The first raga essay was Mukhari which was succint and evocative. All the krithis upto Marukelara were sung with the verve usually associated with Ariyakkudi., the typical concert style. He seemed to have done this on purpose, to keep up the tempo and make room for the elsborate Kalyani which was explored lovingly and with great depth bringing out the contours of the raga at different levels. None but Vijay could have thought of Abhayamba, the Navavibhakthi Kriti of Muthuswamy Dikshitar and its extraordinarily emotive lyrics to bring out the beauty of this raga . No looking into sheets of paper. The internalisation of the kriti and the dexterity with which it was presented spoke volumes about his dedicaion . The neraval atâ€

vijay · Post by **vijay** » 16 Dec 2006, 23:52

Manoranjitham, you missed a very Manoranjak RTP in Khamas! Chatusra Eka, Misra Nadai. Close to being a season topper for me. More on this later....

venkatpv · Post by **venkatpv** » 16 Dec 2006, 23:57

aaha... must have been a great concert!! the kalyani abhayamba vibhakti kriti is one of the best... the anupallavi madhyamakalam with the raga mudra is a beauty!

vijkrish · Post by **vijkrish** » 17 Dec 2006, 07:24

Truely a great concert! A good kalyani topped by an excellent RTP in Khamas!

prashant · Post by **prashant** » 17 Dec 2006, 08:53

Wow! Vijay - could you post the full song list and review, please?

manoranjitham · Post by **manoranjitham** » 17 Dec 2006, 09:53

I knew Khamas rtp was coming but sheer physical inability made me leave reluctantly. Well, there will be a next time. Or I will ask him to sing at a later date. so happy to note that my views are shared by some

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 17 Dec 2006, 12:42

As a newcomer to Vijay Shiva, and in my limited ability to judge, I find him to be a really great singer!

vijay · Post by **vijay** » 17 Dec 2006, 23:43

Manojanjitham pretty much summed up my thoughts but here goes anyway:

Songlist (pre Tukkada)

Gam Ganapathe - HMB - Hamsadwhani - Adi (Tisram) (N,S)
Rama Daya Judave - Bhadrachala Ramdas - Dhanyasi - Adi
Enta Ninne - Thyagaraja - Mukhari - Rupakam
Ma Kelara - Thyagaraja - Ravichandrika - Adi
Abhayamba Jagadamba - Deekshitar - Kalyani (RNST)
Mayamma - Syama Sastri - Ahiri - Adi
RTP - Khamas - Chatusra Eka Misra Nadai - 'Narada Guru Swami ("Mi" on Beat) Nannadarimpavemi'

Other Observations

Elaborate and very satisfying alaapanas in all ragas taken up for expansion. Kalyani was the highlight - a breathtaking affair for both artist and the audience! Vijay Siva's brighas stand out not only for speed but also for tonal clarity - each note is distinct even in the quickest flash of lightning. Another noteworthy feature was the spare usage of the many "light touches" that the raga tempts performers with (I have to admit, though, that I wouldn't have minded a few of them!)...varja prayogas were kept to a minimum - this was one rock-solid, no-frills, Kalyani. Similarly in Khamas, there was no trace of N3 anywhere...

Sriramkumar was a notch or two better than usual which is really heady indeed! I am still unable to decide whose Kalyani was better. Not normally a contenstant in the speed sweepstakes, RKS let loose wave after wave of sancharas, matching the vocalist in both tone and speed.

Ramabhadran was his usual unintrusive self, providing a sweet and stable platform for his brilliant charges. His tani stuck to sarvalaghu and he played the standard 2 avartha korvai he usually does for Adi 2 Kalai krithis. I wonder why Vijay Siva seldom goes in for an upapakkavavdyam....

Pallavi was the biggest disappointment - not even a trikalam! It is one thing for the laya-challenged to avoid rhtyhmic adventures and quite another for an ex-mrudangist like Vijay Siva to do so. I do agree that rhtyhmic experiments can be a distraction from the soulfulness of a krithi rendition, and this was surely the artist's intention, but isn't a Pallavi meant precisely for that purpose? What would happen to our great art form if everyone were to stick to Sarvalaghu?!

Anyway, all things considered, another excellent concert from this outstanding and consistent performer - someone all of us should be proud of and thankful for...I fervently hope that the powers-that-be will continue providing him the biggest stage despite the lack of audience enthusiasm (although to be fair, there was a half-decent turnout on this occasion).

Vijay

rshankar · Post by **rshankar** » 18 Dec 2006, 00:16

RKS and Vijay Siva are great friends, and I always felt that Sriram elevates his always excellent bowing another notch for Vijay Siva's concerts. Didn't Sriram learn vocal music from DKJ as well?

meena · Post by **meena** » 19 Dec 2006, 08:00

prashant · Post by **prashant** » 19 Dec 2006, 08:54

Sri Vijay Siva's daughter is named Kalyani - no wonder he sings this rAgA superbly!

Jigyaasa · Post by **Jigyaasa** » 04 Jan 2007, 18:31

The Ashtakam on Sharadadevi in a Ragamalika was just fabulous with most of the couplets bearing the ragamudra. I had no idea it was tuned by Sri R.K.Sriramkumar!

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 05 Jan 2007, 23:05

The first two lines of manoranjitham's post sums up my feelings about Vijay Siva's music as I sat listening to him at the Academy. His rendition was chaste but sumptuous. Each Kriti blemishlessly rendered, with Sriramkumar blending in with verve. The combination was a treat to hear. Ramabhadran helped the concert glide along smoothly.

rAmA daya jUDavE in dhanyAsi was an essay in beauty. The kalyANi alApanA was pristine and grand and the neraval was delightful. MukhAri was majestic and those who call it an azhugai rAgA would have felt otherwise, listening to sivA that day. The niraval was very appealing. In mAyammA, Siva gave us the right amount of Ahiri in the 'plea' mode. I was waiting for a tamizh composition and they came later in the concert. mAdar piRaikkaNNiyAnai, pArkkum disai ellAm (rAgamAlikai viruththam), karuNai deivamE (sindhu bhairavi) and apakAra nindai followed. What a satisfying concert it was, my very first of the season!

To my knowledge, there were no songs on Vishnu in any of his avatArs in this concert. Not that it matters, of course.
Are his sishyAs who played the two tamburas, twins?

Jigyaasa · Post by **Jigyaasa** » 08 Jan 2007, 14:45

Sorry if I haven't followed ur question but Rama is an avatar of Vishnu and Rama daya judave, Makelara and Entha ninne were all, if not 'on' Rama, addressed to him...

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 08 Jan 2007, 17:55

Tsk, tsk, my oversight! I should have said --on 'krishna'!