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Do you..

Dare to be Different
Dare to Innovate and
Dare to Differentiate

Many concerts in the Chennia musical festival season, thrills you, energises you, makes you feel glad that you made the right choice, amongst many options you had as a choice.

But once in a while there is this one concert or artist that moves you, brings out that soul and empathy in the compositions that take you to a different world. It is rare, but has happened to me a couple of times in the past seasons. Some that I can recollect are concerts by MS Subbhalakshmi and Maharajapuram Santhanam many years back. Also, in recent year I have had that experience once during Aruna Sairam’s concert.

This year, I had that experience again listening to Ranjini & Gayatri’s concerts. Really, it is an experience listening to them, and one really comes out energized, fully satisfied with a feeling that it was a soulful experience.

This time I listened to their two concerts back to back, first at Narada Gana Sabha and the second the next day at the Music Academy, after each of these concerts, I really felt it was a very soulful and beautiful experience. Both concerts were simply divine and thoroughly entertaining.

After such a wonderful experience, I wanted to just introspect for myself, what makes this experience so different, even after attending so many other concerts that are excellent.

I think I did come to some conclusions, which could not only be an interesting read, but also useful to upcoming artists to note, observe and replicate.

First, as a duo, they make sure they complement their skills. Ranjini brings out the softer nuances of a ragam or composition, whereas Gayatri aggressively brings out the improvisations possible. This combination brings out the subtleties and capabilities possible in the composition.

Second, listening to their concerts, one will observe that even the selections of songs are such that, each selection, brings out the best in them, keeps the tempo of the total concert.

In fact each selection brings out the best in each of their styles of singing, without trying to damage or contradict each of their skills or style.

So, one will notice, that if Ranjini is leading the Alapana, Gayatri will not out do her, but instead, take the lead elsewhere in another composition, such as in the RTP. This way both have clear opportunities to excel and lead without competition and apparent comparisons by the audience.

Last but in my opinion the primary reason for the effects their concerts have on the audience is that they Dare to be Different. They improvise and make the concerts tuned to the audience. Let me give you two examples.

When they sing a main composition or RTP, they bring in sweetness coupled with talent for sure, but more importantly they improvise and innovate. For example during their RTP in Janaranjini in the Music Academy concert, they infused and amalgamated into the pallavi Raag Jog from the Hindusthani counterpart, the result of which had a stunning effect.

The output was an outstanding Pallavi, which introduced to the audience the best of both the worlds of Carnatic & Hindusthani music. A neat innovation, which resonated extremely well with the entire audience. It was nothing short of bliss to say the least, as it had the entire audience mesmerized.

Similarly, in the other concert at Narada Gana Sabha, the rendering of the composition in Ragam Suddha Dhanyasi was intensely soulful. This was also because, it had amalgamated traces of the Hindusthani style of singing.

The second example of why their concerts are so differentiated is that their selections of songs are made very carefully with thought and attention. Selected in such a way as to maintain a brisk tempo in their singing as well as interacting very well with the accompanists, all this, making a big difference to the effect it has on the audience.

Best of all they will always end at a high note, mostly with an Abhang where the energy and momentum accelerates as the song proceeds and ends to an astounding peak.

These approaches and carefully designed selections of songs in each of their concerts make the experience to the audience soulful, engaging, and so entertaining that you invariably come out fully energized.

It will do upcoming artists good, to observe their style and adapt the same for themselves.

Hat’s off to Ranjini Gayatri, because they;

Dare to be Different
Dare to Innovate and they…
Dare to Differentiate

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