Reviews
Season Reviews - K. Gayatri

K. Gayatri
By Musical Musings
Gayatri Kamakoti on New Year's Eve at the Parthasarathy Swami
Sabha was accompanied by Nishant Chandran (violin), J Vaidyanathan (mridangam) and
Shivaramakrishnan (khanjira).
The hectic Chennai traffic ensured I missed the first half of the
varnam. The varnam composed by vidushi Suguna Purushottaman and set to priya-malaika
in Adi tala. The Priya (pallavi:
Karahapriya, anupallavi: Kokilapriya, cittaswaram: Ramapriya, charanam:
Shanmukhapriya, swarams in Pashupatipriya, Rishabapriya, Gayakapriya, and Rasikapriya)
She then rendered Buvinidasudane
in Sreeranjani. Tyagaraja, in this composition, says Saala Sowkhyama, and that,
for me, describes Gayatri's rendition. It was leisurely in pace and completely bounded
by the aesthetics of Sreeranjani. J Vaidyanathan on the mridangam has a
comforting, unmatched tone. Be it his teermanams or playing for kritis, he
never chooses to go extravagant and keeps it minimal. It softly blends with the
music and accentuates just the right areas.
Gayatri's kalpanaswarams at Padamule
gati, too, were good. She ended swaras at N to play with the lyrics and
make it sound like Nee Padamule Gati.
The last kalpanaswaram, however had some pauses that sounded awkward and out of
place.
Next came an alapana in Latangi raga. Nishant Chandran's sketch of
Latangi was impressive. He played some excellent fast phrases in the mandra stayi.
Marivere Dikkevaru, that followed was
enjoyable. She presented niraval and pleasing kalpanaswarams that had the
essence of Latangi.
She then presented an even more leisurely, soulful Sukhi Evaro in Kaanada.
The next piece, Kannai
tirandu paar maname in Bilahari, composed by Oothukadu Venkata Kavi, was in
complete contrast. The style of rendition and pace of the composition made it a
firecracker and a true vibe setter.
Gayatri then chose to present a composition in a relatively
lesser-heard raga Suddha Mukhari. Muraharena
Mukundena By Muthuswami Dikshitar is a beautiful composition and she did
complete justice to the nuances of the kriti.
The main piece in Madyamavati was replete with sangatis that
brought out the charm of the raga.
Nishant showcased an impressive ability to seamlessly transition
between octaves and effortlessly switch between quick and measured musical
phrases. Syama Sastry's magnum opus Palinchu
Kamakshi was the main kriti. The excellent rendition was followed by an
equally good niraval at Karunya Moorte kaapudu.
The tani avartanam by J. Vaidyanathan and Shivaramakrishnan was good and
enjoyed by many rasikas.
Gayatri ended the concert
with a Kavadi chindu and a beautiful
Khamas tillana. Towards the end, a sense of letdown crept in as the distinctive
charm of a pallavi, her forte, eluded my ears.