Amrita Venkatesh kept the momentum going throughout her concert

Amrita Venkatesh. , Photo Credit: Raghunathan SR

Amrita Venkatesh kept the audience interested from her opening Saveri Varnam ‘Sarasuda’ to Lalgudi Jayaraman’s concluding Madhuvanti Thillana. After him, Rajiv Mukundan on violin and famous percussionist Petri Satish Kumar on Mridangam and S. on Ghatam. Karthik performed efficiently. Amrita presented a fascinating mix of popular and lesser heard compositions of famous vaaggeyaars.

After Varnam, Amrita presented the Swathi Tirunal composition ‘Narasimha Mamava’ in Arabic along with Andal’s Tiruppavai hymn ‘Ongi Ulagalantha’ in Virutham format. His vocal section was concluded impressively with Rishabham-oriented vocals.

In a way, the highlight of the concert can be attributed to his raga portrayal of Kumudkriya. His imaginative efforts in alapana, through long and short phrases, furthered the unique tone of the raga, which is a derivative of pantuvarali except the panchamam. Muthuswamy Dikshitar’s ‘Ardhanarishwaram’ proceeded leisurely. The vocal exchange in ‘Agamadi Sannutam’ added more significance to his offering.

After this serene rendition, Amrita chose ‘Nirvadhi Sukhada’ (Tyagaraja), a lively piece with a lively chittaswara in Ravichandrika. He also added additional flourishes.

The luxurious Bhairavi was chosen for the main course. As she progressed with the alapana, the short phrases in the beginning gave way to longer and weightier phrases. Amrita worked deeply on the fine details to portray a powerful image of Bhairavi. The rarely heard Mysore Vasudevachar composition ‘Balam Gopalam Akhiloka Palam’ was sung with grandeur. ‘Balendu Bhushanadi Vinutam’ in Anupallavi was chosen for Niraval. The vocal section went smoothly and the conclusion focused on the Panchamam.

Violinist Rajeev Mukundan responded carefully to Amrita’s poses and also added his creativity to give extra charm to the raga essays and vocal sali.

Percussionists Patri Satishkumar and Karthik were impeccable. He signed almost every creation with his signature beats. His Tani Avtaranam was elaborate and added extra sparkle to the concert.