Dr. Jayanthi Kumaresh - Music Academy - Dec 22, 2017

[mkausal]

Dr. Jayanthi Kumaresh presented a wonderful concert at the Madras Music Academy, with Arjun Kumar on Mridangam and Udupi Sridhar on Ghatam.

• Chalamela - Nattakurinji (Varnam)

• Gowri Manohara - GowriManohari

• Appa! Rama Bhakti - Pantuvarali

• Kamakshi - Bhairavi

• Shankaram Abhirami Manoharam - KamalaManohari

• Ragam Tanam Pallavi - Kapi

• Baaro Krishnayya - Maand

• Kavadi Chindu - Behag

• Kamakshi - Madhyamavathi

The concert started with Chalamela in Nattakurinji in one speed. Brief outline of GowriManohari and Papanasam Sivan's composition Gowri Manohara followed. The swaras were scintillating and it was just a small intro to what was in store for the next 135 minutes!

Pantuvarali aalapana was soul stirring. Appa! Rama Bhakti entho goppara.., the composition of Saint Thyagaraja was presented with great poise to aptly bring out the meaning of the sahityam. Arjun and Sridhar played nice exchanges in the swaras for a variety of patterns that Jayanthi played.

One of the all-time favorite ragas of Carnatic musicians and rasikas, is Bhairavi. The aalapana was so meditative and it was as if Goddess Saraswathi was doing a Tapas with her instrument. Syama Sastri's masterpiece Kamakshi was so soulful that the Goddess would have certainly come to the Music Academy to enjoy the rest of the proceedings. Arjun Kumar did a great job in enhancing the beauty of the song! So when Kamakshi is in the hall, she had to be served a nice treat before safely sending her off, right! Shankaram Abhirami Manoharam, a composition of Muthuswamy Deekshitar, served as the starter for her with some brisk kalpana swaras.

Kapi is one of the ragas that sound so pleasing to the listeners. A sense of great devotion was expressed all the way in Jayanthi's expansion of the amazing ragam, while showing her virtuosity and versatility on the complex instrument the Saraswathi Veena is! Tanam should be heard only on the Saraswathi Veena, and more so, by Jayanthi. Some of her glides were mesmerizing and appeared so effortless that only she can make it look so easy! She also presented Tanam in Madhukauns, a chaste Carnatic ragam Begada and haunting Kanthamani! Pallavi was in Adi Talam, that was played in different patterns before moving on to the Ragamalika swaras featuring the three ragas in the same order before ending it with a grand muktayi in Kapi. Arjun and Sridhar played brilliant Tani Avarthanam that made the RTP, a complete package!

Baaro Krishnayya was beautiful. A lovely aalapana of Behag brought the typical folk flavour that everyone seemed to have enjoyed. It was the Ganesh-Kumaresh composition that she played and popularized on many platforms.

Goddess Kamakshi was sent off safely with yet another Syama Sastri's composition Kamakshi Lokasakshi in Madhyamavathi and the concert ended 4 minutes ahead of time!

I have been attending a few concerts this season, the RTP segment was just being Naam ke vaste by quickly finishing it in 20 minutes or so. However, Jayanthi always gives the RTP.. the time it deserves and it enthralled audience for almost an hour including Tani Avarthanam! There was at least one song from each of the Carnatic Music Trinity and there was not even an iota of hurriedness in the entire 2.5 hours of presenting the Saraswathi Veena! The audience gave her a long round of applause with standing ovation at the end of the concert, something that remains etched in memory for a long long time!!

Blessed are the audience who could witness it live! Jayanthi surely keeps inspiring the students of music - the number of students who sat on either sides of the stage for an instrumental music concert in Chennai, showed the amazing inspiration she has been for all the students over the years!!

Sarve janaah sukhino bhavanthu..

Original post - https://kausalmalladi.wordpress.com/201 ... y-chennai/

[gardabha_gana]

Thanks much for the review. Thrilled to see it.

[Sivaramakrishnan]

Excellent review.
Jayanthi is one of the few great Vainikas of the country.

Spl thanks as I couldn't attend the concert.

[hema]

Excellent review. I did not know many of the Kritis, Thanks! I felt she could have announced them for the benefit of some of us.
Nevertheless, it did not matter at all! Perhaps the best that I have heard so far in the season. The returns from both the mridangam and ghatam were very good — soft and elevating. Especially the silence when she was playing, and the return that followed. Some phrases were played entirely with one pluck, and at one fret (or rather note position). Her mandara stayi phrases with a single meettu were indeed amazing — a la Balachander, I guess — this is not to undermine her creativity.

Bhairavi was the hall mark for me that day. She played svaram and sahityam differently — sometimes playing in different octaves.

I do not know about the Lord Saraswathi — having never heard her on 22nd Dec at MA, Jayanthi was an embodiment what Saraswathi means!