Tonal sweetness marked the veena duet of G.R.S.Murthy and son, S.Sudharshan, despite the slight metallic sound that came from the latter’s instrument. The concert was held recently under the auspices of CARVA Trust on the occasion of the 98th birth anniversary of Chittor Appanna Bhagavathar.
Over the years, Murthy has expanded his spectrum to accompany dance peformances as well. His well-rounded technique came through in his fluent playing. A near-perfect rendition of ‘Marivere’ (Anandabhairavi) was soothing, and the pace Murthy chose made it more pleasing. Neyveli Ramkumar (mridangam) and Nerkunam Dr Sankar (ganjira) maintained a perfect tempo with interesting nadais.
His one-minute alapana of Nalinakanthi was followed by a fast-paced ‘Manavinalakinchara.’ This set the mood for the evening’s sub-main Poorvikalyani. His raga essay was a meaningful progression that brought out the flavour. ‘Ananda Nadamaaduvaar Thillai’ saw Murthy delving into a lengthy kalpanaswara that was marked by clinical precision. It was heartening to watch young Sudarshan skilfully keeping pace with his father’s rendition.
Two kritis, ‘Budhamashrayami’ and ‘Nee Chiththamu’ were played back to back. Keeravani, the evening’s main, saw Murthy attempting phrases with a single meetu (plucking). The omission of tanam was disappointing though. Keeravani (‘Kaligiyunte’) was well-rendered with niraval and swaras that led to the thani.
Ramkumar and Sankar presented a thani that saw them unleash interesting patterns that enhanced the appeal of the concert.
