Mellifluous music, mesmerising swara passages and meritorious rendering constituted a memorable concert by T.V. Sankaranarayanan. Throughout the concert he adhered to his unique style imbibed from his mentor and uncle, the legendary Madurai Mani Iyer whose birth centenary is being celebrated this year. Almost all the kritis that were chosen were masterpieces of Mani Iyer.
Lucid and appealing
Simple, lucid and appealing, he started with an invocatory slokam in Hamsadhvani, which was followed by the Tyagaraja kriti ‘Raghunayaka'. ‘Muruga Muruga', a Saveri kriti, was refreshing to listen to. The Shudha Bangala kriti ‘Raamabhakthi saamrajyamu,' sung at a leisurely pace, was a blissful aural experience. After the Swati composition ‘Paramapurusha' in Vasantha, Shanmukhapriya was taken up for detailed exposition.
The full essence of the raga was portrayed and as a tribute to his master he sang the Papanasam Sivan kriti ‘Aandavane'. Raga Mohanam, another treasure of his lineage, was delineated by exploring the hues of the raga and essaying it in all its splendour. The kriti ‘Mohana Rama,' describing the arresting beauty of the Lord, was beautifully sung with due attention to the lyrics of the composition. The swara passages that were woven with utmost ease were well-received by the audience.
T.H. Subramanian, on the violin, gave untiring support through out the concert. His individual essays on Shanmukhapriya and Mohanam were skillfully planned and executed, complementing the singer. Changanassery B. Harikumar (mridangam) and Alathur Raajaganesh (ganjira) gave good rhythmic support and enriched the Mohanam kriti with a scintillating taniavarthanam.
The Goudamallar composition ‘Saarasamukhi', which followed was solid proof of his bani.
A brisk ragam tanam pallavi in Brindavana saaranga, adorned with ragamalika swaras in Behag and Sindhubhairavi, made the post-tani session lively. ‘Eppovaruvaaro' (Jaunpuri) and the Sankarabharanam note constituted the fag end of the concert, which was organised under the aegis of Chalakudy Sangeetha Sabha in connection with their annual day celebrations.
