Inimitable

Legendary vocalist Vidushi Kishori Amonkar passed away on April 3, leaving behind the key to many musical mysteries in her experimental singing.

 

KISHORI TAI’S PASSING away is a great loss to Indian classical music and the Jaipur-Atrauli gharana. For me, it is also a huge personal loss.

During my initial days as a vocalist, Kishori ji‘s presence and music made a huge impact on me. My father, Pandit Wamanrao Sadolikar, and I would attend her concerts. I could understand what she was singing. During discussions at home, my father would praise Kishori Tai’s music, performance and intellect. He would tell my mother, “Bahut tez ladki hai (She is a very sharp girl).” Those were marvellous days. Artistes would freely exchange thoughts and bandish (compositions) with each other. There was a generous flow of observations on music, performances and concerts between our seniors. They liked to, and even attended concerts of other artistes. There would be endless discussions on the various aspects of singing, on ragas, on sahitya and grammar. Kishori Tai read a lot and she would participate in some of the discussions actively. During my training from my father, I picked up a lot owing to these discussions. Tai would sometimes quote from the texts she read. She read the scriptures. She had read Naaradiya Shiksha deeply and would often refer to it. Tai would always be ready with her valuable inputs. The knowledge seeped into her singing.