Years back when Rathnagiri Subba Shastry and G. Krishna Shastry started teaching mridanga to their young nephew, would they have foreseen the heights to which he would rise in the field? Or would the later gurus of their nephew, M. Vasudeva Rao and S.V. Giridhar, have dreamt of the success their student would achieve. Today all of them would be undoubtedly proud of their sishya, G. Gurumurthy.
Attributing talent to genes alone would be facile. Many are born into the families of musicians, but how many of them are willing to devote hours and hours to sadhana to achieve mastery? Hailing from a family of musicians, Gurumurthy has reached fame through sheer hard work, hours of practice and a dedication to his craft.
Gurumurthy is one of the first choices as an accompanist whether it is a live music concert, a dance performance, or a studio recording. The maestro is at equal ease performing in a classical concert or a fusion music programme. Great talent cannot be confined by geographical barriers and Gurumurthy is an example of this, having performed all over Europe and USA. For an artist of his caliber and repute performing for AIR and Doordarshan is routine.
Many dancers finalize their programme after first confirming Gurumurthy’s dates. He is a dancer’s delight as an accompanist. The popular belief in dancing circles is that when Gurumurthy is on the mridanga a dance performance is bound to be a success. He has scored music for several ballets – Vishwamithra, Gayathri, Andal, Kalyana, Panchatantra, Navarasa Devi, Sacred Geometry, etc.
Gurumurthy has been conferred with the title, “Karnataka Vadya Rathna”. Name and fame has not influenced this man. He remains simple, humble and totally approachable. Like all great masters, he too wishes to make his own contribution to his field. He is currently working on a project where by just listening to the mridanga jatis (even in a recorded piece of music), one can identify the adavus. He indeed is an inspiration to the younger generation. Spoorthi, thy name is Gurumurthy!
Jatis just flow out of Gurumurthy and are always based on theme of dance, which makes them appropriate for every performance. For the benefit of readers of Drishti, Gurumurthy has composed a jati, which can be used by dancers, without failing to give credit to the maestro.
Jati which can be used for Jatiswaram in Tala – Adi
Takun Tari Jam, Tari Takita
Ta, Di, Thom, Nam, Takuntari Kitataka
Kukun Tari Jam Tari, Takita
TaTa, Didi, Thom Thom, Nam Nam
Kukuntarikitataka
Ta, Tari, Takita, Ta Dhi, Thom, Nam
Di, Tari, Takita, Ta Dhi, Thom, Nam
Thom, Tari, Takita, Ta Dhi, Thom, Nam
Nam, Tari, Takita, Ta Dhi, Thom Nam
Tari, Takita, Ta Dhi Thom Nam, Tadhithom Nam, Tadinginathom,
Tari, Takita, Ta Dhi Thom Nam, Tadhithom Nam, Tadinginathom, Tadinginathom,
Tari, Takita, Ta Dhi Thom Nam, Tadhithom Nam, Tadingathom, Tadinginathom, Tadinginathom.