S Sowmya - Meenakshi Sundararajan Fine Arts Academy 7/Dec/11

[sankark]

S Sowmya - Vocal
Padma Shankar - Violin
Poongulam Subramanian - Mridangam
K V Gopalakrishnan - Kanjira
Lakshmi Vijayaraghavan - Tambura

Date: 7/12/2011
Venue: Meenakshi College For Women KRS Auditorium, Kodambakkam

Started off my season count with Sowmya y'day.

Varnam (Sami Ni) - Pantuvarali - Adi - Vinai Kuppaiyer
Ninne Bhajana - Nattai - Adi (S @ nanadhi) - Thyagaraja
Sri Balasubramanya - Bilahari - M Chapu (R, NS@abala gopa) - Dikshitar
Adi Kondar - Mayamalavagowlai - Adi - Muthu Thandavar
Kumaran Thaal - Yadhukulakambhoji Harikambhoji - Adi - Papanasam Sivan
Sri Kanthimathim - Hemavathi - Adi (RS@Sri guruguha janani, T) - Dikshitar
Kathalenum Theevinile - Khamas - Adi - Bharathi
Kavadi Chindu - ?? - ?? - Annamalai Reddiar? (ended with adi kodhaiye)
Pavamana - Madyamavathi - Adi - Thyagaraja

It was a good opener for me for the season and enjoyed the concert very much. Started about 15 mins late and was only for 2 hours or a little bit more.

Special mention about Padma Shankar - no shrill sounds, no screeching sounds and it was mellifluous throughout and her repartees at the S for Hemavati was superb. Seems an under appreciated/not very well known violinist. May her tribe increase.

Percussion was good as well, not loud thundering noises. Their tani was sprightly and more importantly not a looooong drawn out affair and the exodus was very minimal. The way they accompanied for Adi Kondar was awesome, all the more that Sowmya chose a very lovely gait and she was enjoying the song herself very much and churned out quite a few sangathis at Vedikkai Kana. I thought she would let loose a nereval at Ara Navamani Maalaigal, but no it was not to be.

On a totally tangential note, when she was singing Vedikkai Kaana guess Sowmya recalled some earlier vedikkais and let out a smile. If only some one had captured that smile for posterity, that would have made a fantastic addition to any photographs that one can reminisce about in future and wonder what was going through her mind at that time.

[CRama]

Kumaran thaal is in Yadukulakambodi. Thanks for your review. Continue your reviews.

[ganeshkant]

when she was singing Vedikkai Kaana guess Sowmya recalled some earlier vedikkais and let out a smile.

May be she thought of some pranks she played in that campus as a student.Normally Sowmya's kaLLa chirippu embellishes her presence on stage.Sure it may be photographed with tight close - ups.