An Eloquent Tapestry of Compositions - Carnatic Vocal Music Arangetram by Ananya Arvind

As we were entering into the Labor Day long weekend the vibrant arangetram season was coming to an end. I was thrilled and awaiting the vocal music arangetram of Ananya Arvind which was a fitting arangetram that raised several elements of Carnatic music with much grandeur.

On September 3rd, 2023, Ananya Arvind ascended the stage to give her solo vocal debut concert at the Sutton School.

I had the wonderful opportunity and privilege of being the MC of the evening. I was elated to be a part and experienced the arangetram planning and practice sessions supporting Ananya. Having a keen interest in Carnatic music and being a trained Carnatic singer myself I was able to appreciate every moment of this stupendous arangetram by Ananya who is a devoted disciple of renowned Carnatic Singer and teacher Smt Uma Sankar and the Sruthilaya School of Music.

Ananya Arvind enthralled the audience with her infectious energy and soulful singing right from the beginning until the end of the kacheri. She kept the audience rapt with attention and left us spellbound.

There was never a dull moment during the roughly two and a half hours kacheri and every song was meticulously curated and chosen for Ananya by her Guru Smt. Uma Sankar. The audience witnessed a stalwart set of accompanying musicians who played skillfully and marvelously complemented every song performed by Ananya. On the violin we had Sri. Pranav Swaroop, on the Mridangam by Sri. Mahalingam Santhanakrishnan, on the Kanjira by Sri. Sivachelvan Ponnudurai and on the Tanpura it was Kum. Avani Kashalikar. Each one of them provided a brilliant support for the arangetram creating an invigorating ambience.

It was my remarkable honor to welcome the distinguished chief guest for that evening, Kalaimamani Dr. R. Surya Prakash. A well acclaimed and widely travelled performing vocalist, musician, scholar, composer, lyricist, and guru in the sphere of Carnatic Music today, Kalaimamani Dr. R. Suryaprakash has carved a niche for himself in the hearts of audiences all over the globe. Dr. Surya Prakash happens to be Guru Smt Uma Sankar’s Guruji.

Before beginning the concert, Ananya sought blessings from her Guru, Parama Guru Dr Suryaprakash, the accompanying artists mentioned above and the audience.

The very first composition rendered was a Varnam in Charukesi ragam set in Adi thalam and composed by Sri Lalgudi G. Jayaraman. This pada varnam "Innum En Manam" was sung melodiously by Ananya emoting her love and admiration for Lord Krishna. Utilizing this as a warm up piece, it set the stage for the concert and Ananya's exploration for the upcoming ragams.

The next composition that was rendered was “Vinayaka Ninnu '' set in ragam Hamsadhwani and Adi Thalam composed by Sri E.V. Ramakrishna Bhagavathar. This kriti was dedicated to Lord Ganesha, the remover of all obstacles! Derived from Sankarabharanam, the Hamsadhwani ragam is known to be auspicious for beginnings. It is only apt that Ananya began the concert by invoking Lord Ganesha in Hamsadhwani. A short yet brisk exchange of Kalpana swaras between the vocalist and violinist was a suitable choice and well done. Ananya beautifully brought out the essence of Hamsadhwani with her Kalpana swaras.

Listening to Ananya, it was evident she has an appealing voice, that is naturally rich and elegant. Also, the accompanying artists were supporting Ananya skillfully, especially given their supreme expertise in their respective domains.

The next composition that was rendered was “Deva Devam Bhaje” set in serene Hindolam and Khanda Chapu Thalam composed by Sri Annamacharya. This song spoke about the greatest righteous king Sri Rama who is the destroyer of demons.

A composition on Sri Shyama Sastri, "Himadrisuthe Pahimam” set in ragam Kalyani to Rupaka Thalam. This is a magnificent song on the pious Goddess Kamakshi. Every time I listen to Kalyani, the ragam really mesmerizes me. There are no words to describe this ragam. Do I call it majestic, do I call it versatile, do I call it beautiful? Ananya did a great job of rendering this vintage raaga in alapana, neraval and challenging swara kalpana patterns at “Shyama Krishna …”, and Violinist’s replies were spontaneous and excellent. It was equally well played with precision by the violinist Pranav. He followed and kept up with the melodic and ragam alapana ingeniously. Brilliant partnership between Ananya and Pranav uplifted this performance bringing out the characteristic ornamentation of Kalyani.

After a detailed rendition of Kalyani, Ananya sang a Swarajathi "Kandha" a Suryaprakash sir's composition in the lilting Reetigowlai ragam set to Adi Thalam. A Swarajathi is characterized by its rhythmic patterns and highly expressive lyrics. This piece focused on Lord Muruga with ample swaras which was rendered flawlessly by Ananya with abundant devotion. Her performance brought out the emotional and bhakthi rasa of Reethigowla. Ananya's artful bending of pitch around the tones of the raga was distinctively valued.

The next composition was "Sarasa Sama Dhana" by the great saint of the holy Trinity of Carnatic Music, Saint Thyagaraja. Ananya performed this song in Kapi Narayani ragam set to Desaadi thalam. This performance was well received by the audience.

The next presentation was the main theme of the concert, the Raagam Taanam Pallavi or popularly known as RTP.

The RTP performance is complicated as it involves a lot of sadhanai, intense practice and mathematical patterning for the spontaneous creative expression of the ragam.

Ananya took different ragas for RTP with Mohanam being the main ragam which evoked joy or "Hasya" rasa. Ananya showed off her talent by offering a great scope for her Manodharmam improvisation for the RTP.

It was glorious to experience the intense mathematical nuances and patterning of Pallavi rendition by both the vocalist and violinist.

A special mention here to the Tani Avartanam section. The jugalbandi or the face-off between Kanjira and Mridangam was powerful and energizing as they interlaced the laya aspect of the ragam with a repeating rhythm. The pace started slow with each artist making their own complex patterns which culminated at the beginning of the 8 beat cycle, and slowly increased to higher speeds and short rhythmic passages and thus energized the audience. This Tani Avartanam took its time to build up to that delightful feeling of joy.

Towards the end, ragamalika swaras in ragams Shubhapantuvarali and Revati were rendered and then the artists came back to a grand finale of rhythmic pattern of swaras in Mohanam. Sri Satyanarayanam Bhajare was the RTP composition by Dr. Suryaprakash. As I sat there listening to the RTP and the accompanying musicians I was reminded how each one of them are unique and different, yet they come together to create something that looks perfectly harmonious, heavenly and magical.

After the breathtaking RTP, Ananya moved to Sri Gopalakrishna Bharathi's composition "Aadum Chidambaramo" in Behag, a Kriti dedicated to Lord Nataraja in Chidambaram. Then she went on to sing a bhajan on Maha Periyava, Hara Hara Sankara in Revati set to Eka thalam. This tune was very catchy, and stayed with me after the concert.

The audience enjoyed the foot tapping catchy English notes in Tisra Nadai set to Shankarabharanam ragam. This composition was an adaptation of western music to Carnatic music.  The solfege syllables were set to a western tune and sung in melodic progression. This was a unique addition to the repertoire of the vocal arangetram.   

After this Ananya rendered a lively Thillana in ragam Brindavani composed by Dr. Balamurali Krishna in the praise of Lord Krishna's beauty.  Following up was a Thiruppugazh "Nadha Vindu" in the praise of Lord Muruga residing in Pazhani. Ananya sang this divine piece by Sri Arunagirinathar in the vivacious Senjurutti ragam set to Eka thalam.

Finally it was the Mangalam in the joyful Sourashtram ragam praying for world welfare, happiness and good fortune. We witnessed a seamless transition to Vande Mataram verses in the mangalam. The stage lights in the background transformed to depict the colors of the Indian flag so majestically and at this moment Ananya and the stage artists received a standing ovation from the audience. This concluded her awe-inspiring arangetram performances with an auspicious closure.

The speech from Dr. Suryaprakash sir was enlightening and inspiring as he spoke about Shishya Kulam, dedication and the importance of Ashta Vandana - the eight aspects of Carnatic Music. He effortlessly highlighted several elements of Carnatic music, the relationship between Guru and Shishya and how one can attain mastery in this art form.

The choice of compositions and ragams picked were excellent. There was clearly an effort made to choose challenging raagas, and their renditions.                                                                                                                              Carnatic songs are rich with spiritual meaning naturally. But I also felt that the choice of songs set the stage for a very meaningful spiritual rendition that mixed with “bhakti bhava”. The Shruti and Laya mastery was perfect and maintained throughout. 

Special mention to the accompanying artists, the violinist who did a wonderful job of depicting all the raga nuances on the wonderful instrument violin alongside the equally compelling Mali and Sivachelvan. Avani did a wonderful job of being steady in Tambura rendition.

Ananya has a special voice that is very natural, and great stamina that held up for more than 2.5 hours. Ananya's hard work and steadfast devotion towards this art form had enabled her to perform impressively on stage. 

I salute Ananya's Guru Smt. Uma Sankar for guiding Ananya and contributing to the future of Carnatic Music. We are immensely indebted to her for bringing us top quality music right out of our own community. Ananya has truly imbibed the strong aspects of her Guru and added her own uniqueness. 

I wish Ananya the very best in her musical journey to achieve immeasurable heights!

Kudos to Ananya for all her efforts, hard work, sacrifice and passion towards this divine art form, God bless her! May she continue this journey and pass on this music to next generations! 

Credits:

Tanpura - Kum. Avani Kashalikar
MC - Smt. Ramya Srinivasan
Sound Engineer - Mr. Jawed Wahid
Photography - KT Kannan Photography
Videography - KrispFotos Photography & Film
Event Setup & Decorations - Smt. Anitha Athipathy

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