Ranjani Gayatri-Kalasagaram, Secunderabad- 29 Nov 2012

[revanthv552]

Yesterday, we Hyderabadis had an amazing treat from the renowned duo "Ranjani and Gayatri". The concert was held as the part of Kalasagaram's Annual Cultural Festival. The concert was wonderful from the start till the end. Everything was perfectly in balance and there was never a dull moment in the entire concert. They were accompanied by Sri B U Ganesh on the violin, Sri Neyveli Skanda Subramanium on the Mridangam and Sri Hari Babu on the Ghatam. The song list is

1. Varnam-Durbar
2. Intha Paraka-Mayamalavagowla-Anai Ayya[S]
3. Gyana Sabhayil-Saranga-Papanasam Sivan[R,S]
4. Mokshamu galadha-Saramathi-Thyagaraja
5. Sri Venkatagirisham-Surati-Dikshitar[R,N,S,T]
6. RTP-Varamu
7. Virutham-Khamboji,Saveri,Sindhubhairavi
8. Manadhirkkugandhadhu-Sindhubhairavi-Tanjavur Sankara Iyer
9. Ithara Devathala-Bahudari-Annamacharya
10. Dhanya Dhanya-Durga-Sant Ekanath

The concert began with the famous Varnam in Durbar which was sung wonderfully in two speeds setting the mood of the concert. The slow outline of Mayamalavagowla followed by the composition of Anai Ayya showed up next. The song had a small round of kalpanaswarams which was decent. This was followed by the alapana of Saranga by Ranjani. The alapana was quite long and beautiful. There was an equally enjoyable alapana by the Violinist. The krithi which was rendered is beautifully composed. Papanasam Sivan played beautifully with the words and the way they rendered the composition brought out the very beauty that underlies in the song. A round of swarakalpana at the line "Saama gana Vinodhane" was free-flowing and beautiful.

The evergreen song in Saramathi came up next. The duo began with the Anupallavi of the song. Every word was distinct and clear giving the exact feel of the bhavam of the song. The song was sung in an unhurried fashion giving it the exact treatment it deserves. This followed the alapana of Surati by Gayatri. The alapana was simply fantastic reflecting the knowledge of the singer. It was a long and elaborate treatment of the raga, exploring every note in a beautiful manner and presenting the beauty of the raga in every aspect possible. It won a thunderous applause. The famous krithi was a perfect choice for the main piece. Surati is not often heard as the main piece, but choosing the famous composition as the main piece was very well received by the audience. A detailed neraval by the sisters at the line "Alamelu Manga Sametham" showed their deep knowledge in music, exploring every aspect of the raga beautifully making the neraval was a classic. However the kalpana swaram was in madhyamakalam and was short which was later compensated by the detailed treatment of Varamu. The Thaniavarthanam followed and was perfectly enjoyable.

The detailed 45 minute Ragam Thanam Pallavi in Varamu showed up next. This was undoubtedly the best part of the concert. Everyone kept waiting for them to announce the name of the raga. They announced it and explained the structure of the raga. The pallavi chosen was "Varamulosagi Brovavayya Saaketha Puravasa Raama". The pallavi had the name of the raga which is something I enjoy. Incorporation of the raga's name in the krithi or the pallavi always is interesting. The thalam was Chatusra Triputa. There was a detailed neraval followed by a further detailed swarakalpana in the raga. The swarakalpana was long and beautiful. It was rendered in different kaalams and gathis. Then the raga malika swarams came up. Generally one of the sister chooses the ragam, does the kalpana swaram for a while and then sings the pallavi in the raga chosen. But this time they did it in a different style. Ranjani first chose "Bilahari" and rendered a detailed madhyamakala swaram. Then Gayatri chose "Ranjani" and did a detail madhyamala swaram, then it was Malayamarutham and Kaanada by Ranjani and Gayatri respectively. After that, again Ranjani did a shorter kalpana swaram in Bilahari and the cycle of Ranjani-Malayamarutham-Kaanada followed. They did the swarakalpana in the decreasing order of the length for around four cycles and returned to Varamu. I did not hear this kind of treatment before but I really enjoyed it. The beauty of every raga was unleashed slowly and was extremely enjoyable. The ragamalika swarams they sing during the RTP are not mere display of different ragas but they bring the beauty out of every raga every time I hear them. This detailed Ragam Thanam Pallavi was amazing part of the concert.

The Virutham and the Tamil composition where upon a request. The Bahudari piece of Annamacharya was beautiful. The Abhang in Durga was sung beautifully for the fact that their treatment of Abhangs is extraordinary is known to all of us. The concert concluded with the mangalam in Sowrastram.

To summarize, the concert was one of the best ones I heard off-time. The concert was extremely well planned as each composition was from a different composer and the ragas were well-chosen. The treatment was done in the right way to all the ragas and they did not compromise with the quality at any point. The entire concert was perfectly planned and very well presented. They balanced every element of the concert well including the time. Every composition was treated decently and the concert was extremely satisfying. I will not forget this Concert experience for a very long time as it was wonderful in every aspect.