Reviews
Ranjani-Gayatri at Brahma Gana Sabha
Vidushis Ranjani-Gayatri
@ Brahma Gana Sabha
30 December 2023
Ranjani-Gayatri
have remained the favourites of audiences across the globe for more than a
decade now. The duo’s vidwat and performing ability places them a cut above
most vocalists of their generation. In fine form this December season,
Ranjani-Gayatri opened their morning concert for Brahma Gana Sabha with
Dikshitar’s Sadachaleshawaram (Bhoopalam)
laced with fine kalpanaswaras. One of the most striking features of the concert
was Ranjani-Gayatri’s vast repertoire. From rendering a spotless, expansive
Sunadavinodini translating to Mysore Vasudevachar’s rare Devadideva, to Spencer Venugopal’s Vaa Muruga Vaa (Begada), to a Malayalam padam of Swati Tirunal (Kulir mathi vadane) rendered in sopanam
style, the sisters wowed us with all that and more. Traversing multiple languages
(Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Marathi) in a three-hour concert, and
delivering all of them with their subtle niceties and felicity of expression is
not easy.
Natakurunji
rendered to reveal the raga beauty and just when you were soaking in the ma-ga-sa
prayogas, Gayatri moved the Sa of Natakurunji to render the Ma of Nilambari
and the pa of Nilambari to come back to the Sa of Natakurunji using her forte
of graha bedham. Tyagaraja’s Manasu
Vishaya (Natakurunji) was the chosen kriti rendered with excellent
exposition of swaras by the sisters and reciprocated brilliantly by Charumathi
Raghuraman on the violin. An outstanding
tani that followed by Sai Giridhar and K.V. Goapalrishnan (KVG) heightened
the experience. Both Giridhar and KVG with their sensitive accompaniment distinctly
contributed to the success of the concert.
Post the tani,
the sisters took the concert a notch upward with their rendering of the
ragam-tanam-pallavi. Purvangam in Sindubhairavi and uttarangam in Mohana Kalyani
and Tillang, using the concept of graha bedha. The pallavi (purvangam) Venkatachala Nilayam Vaikunta puravasam and
for the uttarangam, Mohana Kalyana
Gopalam Sree (Mohana Kalyani); Ati
Lavanya tilakam anugraha karam (Tilang). Ranjani’s unhurried rendition of
Sindhu Bhairavi created a beautiful mellow. Gayatri’s effortless traversing
through her favourite graham bedham was a standout. Ranjani too, this time
ventured the graha bheda with absolute finesse, revealing her versatility. The
niraval and swaras that followed had several superhuman level sangatis and this
was brilliantly matched by violinist Charumathi Raghuraman.
Charumathi’s
accompaniment always leaves a lasting impression on the listener. Her kalpana
swaras are notable for their fluid grace and their interesting combinations, stitching
patterns with simplicity, landing beautifully at the eduppu in all sorts of combinations,
and all with a smile on her face.
A ragamalika virtuttam
followed on Lord Muruga, culminating to Papanasam Sivan’s Saravana Bhava ennum (Shanmukhapriya). With a penchant for abhangs,
they concluded the concert with a new Namdev abhang tuned by them in raga
Surya.
Capturing the audience's
attention for two-plus hours is not easy. Breaking monotony in the concert has
always been their forte. Whether through tempo, subtle nuances, or language, the
sisters have appealed to all cross-sections of the audience and continue to do
so.
Rasika Ranjani Sabha’s acoustics need a special mention, the sound balance and decibel levels were perfect creating an environment of immersive musical experience.