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April 2020 Veenotsavam & Deekshithar Aradhana

Concert Reviews by Community Members

NadaVipanchi.org

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Hari Om | Sri Gurubhyom Nama: | श्री गुरुभ्यों नम:

April 2, 2020

Dear Rasikas,

Everyone is dealing with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic’s impact. At this critical

time, Nada Vipanchi wishes you safety and good health. We are amidst several

auspicious days -- Sri Rama Navami, Ugadi, Vishu, and Tamil New Year. Let us

hope our collective thoughts and prayers will help everyone stay safe and keep

good health.

sarvE janA SukhinObhavantu |

Vaggeyakara Vaibhavam is postponed to October 3, 2020. RTP-in-RTP Festival is cancelled. Likewise, all community gatherings this spring have been cancelled. Since we are socially distanced, we believe Vipanchi Buzz would help us in a small way to stay connected. This edition brings to you the concert reviews from the Veenotsavam & Deekshithar Aradhana festival, which was held on Saturday, October 19, 2019 at the Halle Cultural Arts Center, Apex, NC.

See this mini quiz to reveal sneak preview of some of the concert themes to be featured in the Vaggeyakara Vaibhavam. Vipanchi Buzz is an initiative to encourage performers, enable peer artists and

rasikas as reviewers, and spread awareness. Reviews are written by music lovers

and students who attend Carnatic music concerts and festivals. If you would like

to write concert reviews or articles for Vipanchi Buzz, please let us know at

nadavipanchi@gmail.com.

Best regards,

Nada Vipanchi

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Artists gathering after Veenotsavam & Deekshithar Aradhana

Hats off to Emcees

Hrishikesh Ram, Maya Krishnamoorthy, and Niyanthri Thyagarajan served as emcees. They introduced the artists, made thoughtful announcements, and shepherded the festival in a timely manner. Kudos to all of them.

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Vipanchi Gananubhavam Smt. Kalyani Ramani (veena) Keerthi Venkataramani (mridangam) Samarth Rao (Kanjira)

Concert review by Dr. Ravikumar Komandur Elayavilli

2019 Veenotsavam and Dikshitar Aradhana was an eventful day at RTP. The finale event was a sublime veena concert by Vidushi Smt. Kalyani Ramani. Smt. Kalyani was accompanied by Sri. Keerthi Venkataramani on the Mridangam and Sri. Samarth Rao on the Kanjira. The evening started with a wonderful varnam in the ghana ragam "Nattai" Sarsijanabha, a composition of Palghat Sri Parameshwara Bhagavathar. Next came a crisp alapana in Mohanam. She played "Rakta ganapathim", a composition of Dikshitar in Adi thalam. Her rendition of "Gurulekha etuvanti" in the raga Gowri Manohari in Khandachapu was pleasing. She also played an elite alapana and brisk swarams. Then came the melodious alapana in Gamaka kriya (Poorvi Kalyani), which was laced with wonderful gamakams. I was expecting the masterpiece of Dikshitar "Meenakshi Memudham", while she surprised with Sri. Thyagaraja's composition "Gnanamu Sakaradha" in Rupakam and played fast swarams. The next composition "Thelisi Rama" of Sri. Thyagaraja in the raga Poornachandrika was peppy. Smt. Kalyani played the chitteswarams in lightning speed. She chose to play Sri. Swati Thirunal's composition "Janani Mamava" in raga "Bhairavi" in Mishrachapu. An in-depth alapana especially her sancharas in both the lower and higher octaves brought out the character of the raga. The alapana was followed by a pleasing Tanam that lifted the moods of the audience. Tanam was captivating as it is an item that is tailored to be played in Veena. Her kalpanaswarams at both speeds were not only apt but very engaging with the percussionists as she had nice exchanges with them, which was very enjoyable. Keerthi and Samarth played a wonderful Tani. Smt. Kalyani concluded the concert with "Kurai onrum illai" a ragamalika that

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became synonymous with MS even though the composer was Sri. Rajaji. Overall it was a nice evening that served the musical appetite of the rasikas from the RTP circle.

Vipanchi Gananubhavam concert

Artwork contributed by Niyanthri Thyagarajan

Guruguha vandanam - Shivani Gadepalli presented her maiden vocal concert for Nada Vipanchi. Vinithra Sudhakar (violin) and Vageesh Nanduri (mridangam) accompanied.

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chitra gAnam - Charanya Srinivasan made history by presenting the first Chitra Veena concert ever featured in a Nada Vipanchi festival. Vageesh Nanduri accompanied her on mridangam.

See more Photos, Videos from

Veenotsavam & Deekshithar Aradhana

Photography: Sri Nambi Sridharan

Muthuswami Deekshithar’s Pilgrimage

Poster graced by Guhan Jayakrishnan

Swarveena Lahari - Smt. Vyjayanti Jandhyala's students recited a veena concert accompanied by Krithin Visvesh (mridangam)

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Guru guha vaibhavam Smt. Deekshita Venkataraman (vocal) Smt. Savita Viswanathan (violin) Kapil Ramanarayanan (mridangam) Samarth Rao (kanjira)

Concert review by Siri Rao

Smt. Deekshita Venkataraman opened with brisk but melodic Shrudda Danyasi, with the song Shri Parthasarathy. She then went on to sing a beautiful alapana in the rare raga Vagadeeshwari, and sang the song Boga Chaya with crisp swarams. Following was a very melodic, slow song, Soundararajam, in the raga Brindavani Saranga. Next, she sang a fast and refreshing song in the raga Kamas, Shasanane Sakalam Arpayami, with very fitting accompaniment from Kapil Ramanarayanan and Samarth Rao. Smt. Deekshita’s main piece for this concert was Kadambari Priyaayi, in the raga Mohana. Smt Savitha played a very soothing alapana in Mohana. The song was filled with harmonious sangathis, followed by a Thani by Kapil and Samarth, which had the audience tapping their foot to the catchy rhythms. Smt Deekshitha ended her concert with a composition Puranga Nandana in another rare raga Hamir Kalyani. The accompaniment was apt and really elevated the performance. We look forward to many more concerts by this team!

Annadata Sukhibhava! Many of our community members took pleasure in offering food and snacks at the festival. Annadatas enriched the audience’s experience, enabled them to stay longer, and ensured that artists had the community support them. We pray that all Annadatas be blessed and happy.

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Vipanchi Challenge Concert (aka speed jamming on steroid) – Manasi Krishnakumar, Sriya Venkat, and Vageesh Nanduri accepted the challenge to jam on stage and give a mini concert with manodharmam. The trio learned who their teammates were just the day before Veenotsavam. Also they had less than a day to plan within a tight guideline. The main piece should be a Deekshithar krithi in a prathi-madhyama ragam and Adi talam. Manasi elaborated Varali alapana followed by Mamava Meenakshi to an able violin return. Manasi, Sriya, and Vageesh earned the audience’s appreciation.

Tantri Madhuram - Smriti Sridharan presented a solo veena concert. Smriti was accompanied by Kapil Ramanarayanan on mridangam. Smriti rendered Sri Mathrubjutham (kannada) with bhavam. Dhanyasi alapana and Blakrishnan pada malar were recited to audience’s appreciation.

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Veena Yugalam Smt. Subha Sridharan (veeNa) Smt. Gowri Srinivas (veeNa) Siddarth Gadepalli (mridangam)

Concert review by Sriya Venkat

Rasikas were treated to a wonderful veena duet of Smt. Subha Sridharan and Smt. Gowri Srinivas on Deekshithar Aradhana day. They started the concert with the popular Deekshithar Kriti “Kanchadayaladakshi…” in Kamalamanohari set to Adhi Thalam. This song was on Goddess Kamakshi of Sri Kanchipuram. They played this song very well giving the feeling of “aananda amrutha” as Deekshithar’s charanam descrbes Ambal. Kapil Ramanarayanan’s support on Mridangam was very good. Next came the beautiful raga alapana in Dharmavathi. Both Smt. Subha and Smt. Gowri complemented each other very well. I enjoyed the thanam that followed very much. They chose Mysore Vasudevacharya’s “Bhajana Seyya Radha…” set to Rupakham for the Kriti and played it very well. Kapil elevated the concert with his masterful play. Overall it was a very good concert.

Sunada vinodini - Smt. Prabhavathi Vijayaraghavan and Srinidhi Srinivas gave a Veena duo concert with Krithin Viswesh accompanying on mridangam. Their Nattai and Anandabhairavi were a great treat.

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Guha Sankeerthanam - Smt. Mallika Mantravadi's students presented a vocal concert.

Vinithra Sudhakar (violin) and Tejaswi Shashidhar (mridangam) embellished the presentation.

Guruguha margam Sudarshan Mohan (vocal) Tejas Srinivasan (violin) Karthick Narayanan (mridangam) Samarth Rao (kanjira)

Concert review by Sreeram Venkat

Sudarshan Mohan's concert was a highlight of the Nada Vipanchi Veenotsavam and Dikshitar Aradhana. Centered around a theme of Sri Mutthuswami Dikshitar's small excursions around Tiruvarur, Sudarshan's concert provided glimpses into the land which was Dikshitar's home and showcased many of his signature composition styles. The concert started with a brisk Ganesha krithi: kari kalabha mukham in sAveri about the Lord at Mayavaram or Mayiladuthurai. The song was followed by expertly rendered poruttham kalapana swarams to the swaraksharam of the pallavi. Tejas Srinivasan, Karthick Narayanan, and Samarth Rao accompanied with prowess, matching the rhythms and tones of the the song and swarams with precision. It is interesting to note that the line "nIla grIva" in the madhyama kalam refers to both Lord Shiva and a peacock, which is the namesake of the town and temple.

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Sudarshan then shifted the focus to the town of Pulivalam - known as the Dakshina Gokarna kshetram - by presenting a melodic alapana in surutti followed by the popular krithi srI vEnkata gIrIsham. It was particularly rare to see an elaborate rendering of niraval in this raga, and Sudarshan and Tejas brought out the beatuiful bhavams in their music. Sudarshan again presented rhythmic patterns of poruttham swarams which showed Sri Dikshitar's expertise in composing a myriad of tala patterns. The songs presented in the concert also showed the different vibhakthi's - or noun cases - that Dikshitar was famous for using in his compositions. The first two songs were in the second vibhakthi, and the next song presented the rarer seventh vibhakthi. Describing the presiding deity of Tiruvarur (Sri Tyagaraja), tyAgarAjE kRtyAkRtyaM in saranga was a wonderful contrasting piece to the surutti and showcased the uncommon misra jhampa talam. This krithi provided an enjoyable segue into the main piece of the concert. Starting with an intricate raga alapana in bhairavi, Sudarshan presented a majestic bAla gOpAlam, one of the magna opera of Sri Mutthuswami Dikshitar. Tejas' return of the ragam showed his dexterity in presenting long phrases that encompassed serval octaves. Sudarshan presented a deliberate and thoughtful niraval on the anupallavi line and followed it by measured kalpana swarams that fit the rhythmic structure of the vilamba kalam krithi. Another interesting point regarding this krithi is that in the Mannargudi temple, the utsava mUrthi is known as "Sri Vidhya Rajagopala" and there is a "Sri Vidhya Yantram" in the sanctum sanctorum. As Dikshitar was a Sri Vidhya Upasakar this temple would have been extremely significant to him. Karthick and Samarth played a masterful taniAvartanam which explored many rhythmic pathways. Karthick concentrated on developing embellished sarva laghu while Samarth presented detailed korvais. To conclude the concert, Sudarshan presented a brilliant SrI abhayAmbA composed in the eighth vibhakthi. This krithi is written in Manipravalam, which is a combination of Sanksrit, Telgu, and Tamil, and Dikshitar's ingenuity shines in this krithi as the lines of sAhityA alternate languages. From start to finish, the concert by Sudarshan, Tejas, Karthick, and Samarth was truly riveting. The combination of songs, ragas, and talas showcased the proficiency of both the artists and the composer. Sudarshan has long been an inspiration for youth musician's in the RTP area, and we hope he keeps coming back to give more concerts!

Kayaka Sevaka Sukhibhava! A lot of effort went behind the scene to prepare the stage and auditorium and to clean up after the festival. Kayaka Sevakas planned and executed the work with timely precision. Kudos to V. Giridharan, Raguraman Venkat, Ramana Jayanty, Venkata Gadepalli, Chandu Vemparala, Murthy, and each other volunteers for all the help they provided.

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Community Aradhana – Mangalam Rendering

To conclude the Veenotsavam & Dikshitar Aradhana on October 19, 2019, Nada Vipanchi invited

the community to learn and present selected Mangalam krithis as a group. Several of our

community artists and students joined together and rendered Deekshithar krithis. To enable

asynchronous learning easier for everyone, Nada Vipanchi selected relatively simpler Deekshithar

krithis and shared the lessons. Smt. Varuni Ravinder led the group of presenters to co-present in

G shruthi. The krithis presented as Community Mangalam were mAye tvam yAhi (tarangini ragam)

and SrI kamalAmbikE (SrI ragam).

The reception and feedback from the community were encouraging. In response, Nada Vipanchi

plans to organize group Community Aradhana in future festivals. At the Vaggeyakara Vaibhavam

on October 3, 2020 there will be three such concerts interspersed between other thematic concerts.

The Community Aradhana concerts will celebrate Sri Rama through Sathguru Tyagaraja's Utsava

Sampradaya Krithis.

Wanted: Content for Vipanchi Buzz May 2020 Issue

In the next Vipanchi Buzz issue we would like to publish something that you create. As we are all coping with these tough times in different ways, let's all come together and share with the community an original creation that is important to us!

Anyone can contribute (even adults!!). We welcome anything of your imagination that you think is worth sharing. Here are some ideas:

• A recent recording of your rendering. Share with a link and description. • Write a story or about a topic of your interest. Share with illustrations if you prefer. • Scan a drawing, painting, or photo that you created. Send with a caption and/or

description.

• A picture of yourself engaging with the arts or the community, along with a description.

• Have something else to share? Feel free. Email your works to us by April 13, 2020. Multiple submissions welcome! Let us know if you have questions.

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Next event …

Vaggeyakara Vaibhavam Saturday, October 3, 2020

2020 Vaibhavam Concert Themes Take this Mini Quiz to guess what to expect on October 3, 2020

tinyurl.com/Quiz-VV-20