Gwalior Sisters Deliver an Immersive Experience for the Boston Audience

Concert review by Sonali Tambe

Apoorva Gokhale and Pallavi Joshi, granddaughters of a renowned Gwalior Gharana musician and musicologist Pt. Gajananbua Joshi delivered an unforgettable immersive experience to Boston music lovers on Saturday, June 10^th. The concert was organized by Shadaj at a private residence in Lexington. A baithak-style concert where the connection between the artists and the audience can be fostered is one of the missions of Shadaj. Staying true to this vision, Shadaj arranged this memorable concert of the highest quality.

The Gwalior sisters were trained rigorously by their grandfather and later by their uncle from an early age. Their presentation can be described as ‘taleem ka gana’ where all aspects of khayal gayaki can be found. They started the concert with the majestic evening raag Shree. The traditional slow composition in taal Tilwada, “saanj bayi” was rendered with utmost attention to raag purity. The meend (glide) from re to pa and back in this raag is conducive to the creation of a serious yet anxiety-inducing mood experienced by many at nightfall and their expressive rendition truly evoked those emotions.  An exquisite composition, “mana laga tumisana” in drut Teentaal composed by Pandit Arun Kashalkar followed.

In the next presentation of raag Gaud Malhar, they sang the traditional composition “kahe ho..” in Tilwada followed by a drut Teentaal bandish, and concluded the presentation with a farmaishi tarana. The shower of soulful notes of the raag inside and the rainfall outside felt like an effect of the music and not mere coincidence. 

After a brief interval, the concert resumed with a presentation of raag Jogkaun. They chose vilambit Teentaal “sughar bhar payo” and traditional bandish “pir parai” in drut Teentaal both composed by Jagannathbua Purohit.

The sisters have inherited lessons of Agra and Jaipur gayaki from their grandfather as well and they demonstrated equal command of Agra gayaki in the next presentation of the Agra Gharana specialty raag Sawani Pancham. They sang a Teentaal madhyalaya bandish by Vilayat Hussain Khan Saheb “sakhi more preetam..”

The concluding piece was the famous Bhairavi, “Panaghat pe jala bharana..”.

 The salient feature of Gwalior Gharana, simplicity as an aesthetic thought, was evident from the choice of raag made by the duo. Both raag Shree and Gaud Malhar, familiar and well-known to most listeners are part of the Gwalior Gharana repertoire.  They picked mostly traditional bandishes. Gwalior Gharana places great emphasis on the bandish composition as they believe that the rules of raag, the melodic form of the raag, and laya structure are built into bandishes. The raag expansion cannot deviate from the structure given in the bandish. The artists adhered to this guideline and the unfolding of raags was an extension of the melody delineated in the bandishes. As they unfolded each raag, the progression of the improvisation was kept consistent with the mukhada (opening part of the composition) of the bandish. They sang each raag with the precision of swar lagav (raag-specific pronunciation of notes) and clearly established the nature of each raag from the very beginning phrases. Proportionate use of all elements of raag presentation such as aalap, taan, bol aaplap, bol taan, sargam, behalava makes their gayaki very authentic and reflects the taleem they have received.              

Gwalior Gharana places special importance on taal and laya. Khanapurti (filling the slots of taal) is another distinctive feature of Gwalior Gharana. The sisters weaved melodious patterns of phrases that would fit in smaller chunks of taal filling the entire avartan (cycle). This process is called khanapurti and it helps the audience understand the taal structure.  With each avartan, they continued to build the rich tapestry of the raag with melody and laya going hand in hand. The artists used mellifluous melodic patterns that kept a close connection to the mukhada and the khanapurti method of laya to indicate the approaching sum (first beat of the cycle). This contributed greatly to audience engagement. From the start of the cycle, as this design culminated in the catching of sum, spontaneous expressions of happiness and appreciation erupted from the audience. The audience anticipation was so much that in each cycle, as the sum approached people were audibly singing the mukhada with the artists. The repeated ovation from the audience at a concert of more than three hours was a testament to their ability to connect with listeners and thrive on their feedback.

Apoorva and Pallavi’s accompanists Sanjay Deshpande on tabla and Chinmay Kolhatkar on harmonium were both very effective. Sanjay Deshpande’s accompaniment showed impeccable layakari, appropriately intricate laya patterns that synchronized with the singers. Chinmay Kolhatkar on harmonium echoed the singers with all the nuances and expanded the melody when appropriate. Both accompanists helped create a cohesive musical expression.

 The honesty and sincerity of Apoorva Gokhale and Pallavi Joshi are reflected in their music. The collaboration between the sisters is quite complementary to each other. One could see the pride felt by Apoorva at the applause received by her sister multiple times. Mild-mannered and soft-spoken, the sisters were a pleasure to have around for hosts and organizers.

Shadaj had also organized a music appreciation session with the artists the day before the concert. This session was extremely helpful for music students and enthusiasts to gain insights into the Gwalior gayaki in general. Gwalior  sisters and the accompanists also explained the process of ‘aamad’ (a method of approaching sum). The concert the following day was even more enjoyable to many as they could understand the specific techniques and methods used in raag presentation explained in this session.

Punctual, smooth execution of concerts is the hallmark of Shadaj events. And this concert was no exception. For Shadaj volunteers, a concert of this nature is worth all the effort. For the discerning palate of the Boston audience, this concert was a feast. The audience returned wanting more concerts of the highest caliber which Shadaj is sure to deliver.

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