With a flick of the wrist and a beautifully flourished arm extension, dancer Aniruddha Knight captivates his audiences not only with his body movements, but with an element of sheer passion emanating from his piercing eyes
The University of Oregon School of Music and Dance presents “From the Heart of Tradition” by Aniruddha Knight & Ensemble on Friday May 2 at 8 p.m. in the Beall Concert Hall as a part of its World Music Series.
Knight, the star of the show, dances in the bharata natyam style using a fluid combination of arm, hand and body movements that match beautifully to the beat of the music. As he rhythmically stomps during certain parts of the performance, the ankle bells that decorate his feet add an extra element of momentum to the already steady beat of the Mridangam hand drum.
Knight’s delicate hand formations flow throughout the dance and are often made to evoke specific meanings and symbols such as the national flag or a lamp light. Each gesture moves fluidly together to create either an emotional narrative or to mark the tone of the beat.
A ninth generation dancer and musician whose style originates from the Royal Court of Thanjavur, Knight’s knowledge of the bharata natyam style of music and dance was passed down hereditarily through his family. His grandmother, T. Balasaraswati, was a world-renowned Indian dancer who once performed at the University of Oregon in the 1960s.
Knight’s dancing is backed up by a group of four musicians including his father, Douglas Knight, who plays the burgundy velvet-encased Mridangam hand drum, two female singers, Usha Shivakumar and Vegavahini Vijayaraghavan, and bamboo flutest, T. R. Moorthy.
The wavering vocals, intricate drumming and sweet fluttering of the flute is all brought together by the swirling droning sound from the Sruti box that serves as the reference tone for every song.
Friday’s performance will include five or six different numbers paired with explanations of what each piece means.
They will be pretty evenly split between the traditional lyrical and rhythmic pure dance styles.
Lyrical, or Padam, pieces have more of a dramatic flair with Knight acting out a set of lyrics spoken in English before the piece sets into a straight dance. The “acting” portion of this dance is all improvisational, and Knight equally uses his piercing facial expressions and all-encompassing body movements to showcase the intense emotions of the piece.

The rythmic pure dance, or Varnam, pieces are more about the beauty of the dance rather than telling a story. These dances are primarily choreographed with small bits of improvisation inserted during the smaller scale stories that are told in the songs.
The Aniruddha Knight & Ensemble have been performing together for 15 years and are based between Chennai in India and Middletown, Conn.
The Ensemble’s goal as a group is to help bridge the gap between American and Indian cultures and prove that this type of dance isn’t necessarily foreign, but a manifestation of the United States’ immigrant culture.
“This is also American art,” says Mridangam player Douglas Knight. “Indian dance is a part of what we are now.”
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