Kalpakam Swaminathan, Samajam

Smt Kalpakam Swaminathan - vINai
Smt Padmavathi - vINai support
Sri K P Anil Kumar - mrudangam

Sri Thyagaraja Sangeetha Vidwat Samajam
22 Nov 2006. 6:30 pm

samukhamu - nATTai - aTa tALam - varNam
varasiddhi vinAyakA - kAnaDA - Adi - HMB (R)
srI guruguha - dEvakriyA - rUpakam - MD
dEvI mInAkshI - kalyANi - rUpakam - taccUr singAchAri (R)
inkevarunnAru - sahAnA - Adi - Annaswami Sastri (R)
parimaLa ranganAtham - hamIr kalyANi - rUpakam - MD (R)
brOvabAramA - bahudAri - Adi - T (RS)
nagumOmu - AbhEri - Adi - T (R)
praNathAthihara - chenchuruTTi - kaNDa tripuTa - MV (R)
ambara cidambara - suruTTi - kaNDa cApu - GKB (R)

I reached a bit late as Smt Swaminathan was playing the cittai svarams in the varNam. The short kAnaDa sketch and the kriti were very good. The dEvakriyA kriti was rendered beautifully.

The first major elaboration was kalyANi. Smt Swaminathan played the AlApanai nicely. The kriti a rare one, was presented with a nice ciTTai svaram. When she finished the kriti, Sri Rajam Iyer and Sri M Chandrasekaran asked which piece is this, for which Smt Swaminathan actually sang the kriti. And the rendition was just too good.

sahAnA AlApanai was very well rendered with precise gamakkams and some excellent pidis being displayed. The kriti was rendered very well. The distinction between the svaram and the sAhityam playing for the ciTTai svara-sAhitya passages was very well displayed.

It was a surprise to hear Smt Swaminathan elaborate hamIrkalyANi just a few minutes after kalyANi. Thats probably what somebody of such high stature and calibre (vidwat) can pull off without a hitch. She did play hamIr kalyANi very well, and the kriti (the one with anupallavi and caraNam) was rendered very well also. The short bahUdAri AlApanai was nice. The kriti was rendered with a nice sparkling ciTTAi svaram which travelled up to thArasthAyi dhaivadham. The svarams at the pallavi line were good also. The AbhEri AlApanai (with chatursruthi dhaivadham) was well rendered and the popular kriti without gimmicky sangatis to follow.

This is when Smt Swaminathan told the mrudangist to get ready for the tani and started with a sAvEri AlApanai (possibly for a main kriti) while, Sri M A Krishnaswami, who is one of the secretaries of the samajam, himself a performing violinst, walked up to her and asked her to finish off in 10 minutes. Then Smt Swaminathan requested Sri Anil Kumar to play the tani for nagumOmu, for which this gentleman said "its fine if doesnt play the tani, you finish off in 10 min" (avar vAsikkaTTa paravailla, neenga 10 nimishathula mudichudungo) and abruptly walked out of the venue as the chenjuruTTi AlApanai was being played. Even some of the other senior Vidwans present at the venue, and some others on the organising committee were not happy with his behaviour and were expressing their sentiments after the concert, quite loudly infact. Thus, we missed the main sAvEri kriti. If this is how one artist behaves in public towards another, particularly somebody as senior as Smt Swaminathan, both in age and in vidwat, then i dont know where would the music fraternity evolve to?

The chenjuruTTi AlApanai and the kriti were rendered beautifully in madhyama sruthi. The suruTTi AlApanai and the piece were amazing as well.

Smt Swaminathan, gave an enthralling 'main-less' concert while singing the lines here and there. All the gamakkams precise and exact and they are rendered just the same way everytime the particular line is repeated. It was just an amazing experience to be at the concert. I am short off words to explain the effect of the concert. She was ably supported by Sri Anil Kumar who played well all thro' the concert.