Ornate and graceful
PROMISE Atma Venkatesh stuck to traditional delineation
One saw the young and talented Atma Venkatesh, fulfilling the requirements of a successful Hindustani musician. This disciple of Pandit Parameshwar Hegde rendered grace to each note. Embellishing each note was quite in keeping with the traditional constitution of her music. Her recital was held on the second day of the two-day Smrithi Nandan Memorial Young Musicians' Festival supported by the Academy of Music led by a well-known patron of music K.K. Murthy and was held at the Chowdiah Memorial Hall. This annual festival by the veteran Hindustani artiste Lalitha Ubhayakar focuses on the young and upcoming talents.
Atma Venkatesh rose to the occasion and did her guru proud. It was a happy thing to note that she never indulged in technical jugglery. Her melodious, richly intoned voice came to us like the cool and gentle sheen of the moon. It was a kind of voice and temperament that does not need to strive for keeping in tone. Accuracy of pitch and note were natural. Some of the most complex phrases were rendered effortlessly without mincing a note anywhere.
The voice and words were in complete accord with the mood of the lyric when she began with Gurjari Todi ("Paar karo", vilambit ektal and tarana in teental). Her voice behaved charmingly well in the delineation of Shobhavari ("Tum Maano", teental). She was ably accompanied by Panchakshari Hiremath (harmonium) and Kedar Vaishampayan (tabla).
Dance drama
The tale of Krishna is a favourite theme in the field of classical music and dance. The Lord's deeds and his beauty provide solid stuff for varied presentations. Every time they are re-created, they impart a refreshing and lively experience. One such experience was created at Ravindra Kalakshetra when a dance-drama entitled "Sarvam Krishnamayam" revolving round Krishna was presented by the Shivakami troupe of Natya Nikethana led by the veteran and successful Guru Revathi Narasimhan. Guru Revathi is a stickler for tradition. Her direction and choreography refuses to take even the slightest deviation from set rules of the Bharatanatya. And that is how success knocks at her door.
The collection of material from varied sources like Srimadbhagavatha, Tiruppavai, Haridasa padas and other compositions in Sanskrit, Kannada, Tamil and other languages lent not only authenticity but also variety to the theme. Suhasini Krishnamurthy, Prakrithi, Divya among other dancers, were triumphant in visualizing the imagination of their Guru Revathi Narasimhan. The songs were set to captivating Carnatic and Hindustani ragas. They were sung by Balasubramanya Sharma. The vocabulary of the Bharatanatya medium was cohesively used. The props used were apt. The costumes evoked the right period. The director Revathi could strike an even balance between nrithya, nritta and abhinaya. The usage of trishra, chaturashra, khanda, mishra and sankeerna laya patterns added variety to the movements and moods.
M. SURYA PRASAD
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