NAVYA C
Top women percussionists who are making a change
Percussion such as mridangam , tabla , ghatam , or live drums is often considered to be a male-dominated genre and demanded high-power coupled with patience and mastery over the instrument . Carnatic music has always been known for its sincerity to rhythm and progression over decades altogether . Mridangam and ghatam being highly south Indian and Carnatic centric instruments still remain to be a challenge to take up .
Score brings a special focus on women percussionists who brought and still are continuing to bring a dramatic change to the genre with their boldness and mastery over percussion . Pudhukottai Ranganayaki Ammal : Regarded as one of the senior percussionists in the world of Carnatic music , she is the first mridangam player in Carnatic music . She shared the stage with almost ever-popular musician of her time and broke all the rules of masculinity associated with percussion . Sukanya Ramgopal : She has been a legend and hosted an amazing ghatam solo ( stree taal tarang ) in the year 1995 , putting audience as well as male chauvinists to shock . Her magical rendition not only spoke about domination , but a fitting answer to people who feel ghatam is truly a masculine instrument . She is also known for setting up an all-female concert that was almost unheard of in the world of Carnatic music .
Rajna Swaminathan : Pioneering women percussionists across the globe , Ranjna is also famous for her bold take on the struggles of female percussionists in the talk Transcending His Beat , Her beat . The US-based musician sets the stage on fire with her mridangam playing and neutralizing gender inequalities . Ramgopal Hariharan : Facing much competition over male-dominated stage artists and percussion , she has dreamt of bringing all-female percussionists together on stage and gained popularity among the Carnatic music circles . She brought a fitting 84-piece percussion tribute dedicated to the ghatam legend Vikku Vinayakaram on his 75th birthday .
Deepika Srinivasan : A Bangalore-based mridangist , Deepika has brought in new glamor to the instrument with her unconventional style of playing . Her modern thought and tremendous energy levels cannot be ignored by Carnatic musicians and listeners alike . These top women percussionists not only brought a new edge to Carnatic music but continue to make a change with their renditions , whether live or on recordings . It is high time we cherish and relish not just their musical prowess , but also their egalitarian thought .
The Score
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