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YEOMAN SERVICE TO CLASSICAL DANCE AND MUSIC
Aarthi commenced with the Shanmukha Kautuvam, a traditional invocatory piece in which she offered her salutation to Lord Shanmukha, the son of the cosmic dancer Nataraja in raga Gowla, set to Adi Tala. In the Siva Sabdam, yet another traditional item, the dancer had to handle a different tala, Misra Chapu, with a cycle of seven beats. This item was in Ragamalika and is a composition of P R Venkatasubramanian. She performed this number with ease and confidence. The Lalitambika Varnam, again a composition of P R Venkatasubramanian, remained the central piece and brought out the dancer’s ability to handle forceful jatis and subtle facial expressions. The composition was well suited for young dancers. Padam Enna Tavam followed, wherein Aarthi brought out the popular episodes like naughty Krishna stealing butter from the Gopis' houses and the way he innocently showed all the three worlds in his mouth. Ayyan Padam Panivom in praise of Lord Ayyappan in raga Saramati and Adi Tala depicted Ayyappa’s fierce scuffle with the demoness Mahishi and his ultimate victory over her. This song was also composed by P R Venkatasubramanian. In the Sumanesaranjani Tillana, the dancer displayed apt footwork and bhava. Guru Kanchana Janardhanan (Nattuvangam and choreography), V Venugopal (Vocal), Ramshankar Babu (Mridangam) and P R Venkatasubramanian (Keyboard) also share the credit.
Lakshmi V N
Hemalakshmi, disciple of the renowned Guru Udupi Lakshminarayan recently performed at the Tamil Isai Sangam Fest held at Raja Muthiah Hall, Madurai. Commencing the programme with a bright Ganeshanjali in Ragamalika, Hema chose to present a soft padam ‘Devi Neeye Tunai’, a composition of Papanasam Sivan in Keeravani and Adi tala. The varnam Swami Naan Undan Adimai remained the mainstay, a wholesome feast with crusty sancharis and brisk jatis. The guru and his able daughter and disciple Madhumati Prakash formed a nice Nattuvangam duo. The jatis were nicely shared and uttered and was an audio-visual treat. The young dancer was agile in her movements, adhering strictly to the Kanchipuram style of dancing, propagated by her guru. In the padam Aayar kalaigalile of Ilan Kamban, the artiste brought out the importance and greatness of the art form. In Ododi Vanden Kanna in raga Dharmavati, Adi tala, Hema took the audience on a trip to Brindavan. Even a Purandaradasa composition found its place in Hema’s agenda where she pleasantly brought Krishna live on the stage begging pardon and making promises to be good and not to make any fuss in taking his meal. The expressions were upto the mark. The dancer was ably assisted by Shanti Jayaraman (Vocal), Viswanathan (Mridangam), Veeramani (Violin) and Subbu (Keyboard).
Lakshmi V N
Anjana Ketty, a disciple of Chandrakala Jagannathan, gave a Bharatanatyam recital at the Music Academy Mini Hall, Chennai. The danseuse commenced with a Pushpanjali in raga Natakurinji set to Chatusra Eka tala. She then slowly glided to the Sabdam, an item that is hardly performed now-a-days. Instead of a regular varnam, she chose a Tiruvaymozhi in Ragamalika as the central piece. The second half of the show included a Tiruppavai and Varanamayiram. The abovesaid numbers included crisp and relevant sancharis. Anjana’s bhava mirrored her keen interest in the art form. Her guru, Chandrakala, conducted the show with dignity. The captivating Pancharatna Tillana composed by guru K N Dandayudhapani Pillai remained the fitting finale to the grand recital which was ably supported by Jayanthi Mohan (Vocal), S S R Krishnan (Mridangam) and Sankaranarayanan (Flute).
Lakshmi V N
The flute recital of the renowned Chennai brothers Raghu and Ravi under the auspices of Vidiyal received overwhelming response from the rasikas. The concert commenced with the Tamizh Varnam Ten Madura Tamizh Meedu in ragam Valachi. The programme was crisp, enriched with popular hits to suit the taste of not only music lovers but also the common mass. Compositions of Mahakavi Subramania Bharati was a real treat. Chinnan Chiru Kiliye and Teerada Vilayaattu Pillai kept the audience spellbound. The fine accompanists Murali (Violin) and Rajagopal (Mridangam) extended their fullest cooperation to the main artistes.
Jayasri
Posted on 23rd May 2001
