When a steady thread of artistic integrity runs through a musician’s creative expression, it unites artiste and listener in a harmonising pact.
The select gathering present at the Hindustani vocal recital of Pt. Shantanu Bhattacharyya was part of this shared experience. The concert was organised under the auspices of ArtSpire at the in-house auditorium of the Wandering Artists venue.
The opening piece in raag Marwa was the vilambit ‘Ri Mamata’, a khayl composed by Pt. Jnan Prakash Ghosh set to Jhumra taal (14 beats). Radiating meditative ripples, leisurely phrases circled the poignant thrum of the dominant rishabh which spring-boarded the phased, gliding descent to the mandra saptak.
Pockets of discovery lit up the progression to the madhya saptak dhaivat.
In the subdued yet resonant landscape of the tara saptak suite, intricately twined passages in medium and rapid tempos wound themselves around shifting imagery held together by points of emphasis.
There was a sense of reined in energy, freed up to unplugged mode at strategic junctures, making for heightened effect through the principle of contrast. A composition of Pt. Prasun Bannerjee, the madhya teen tal (16 beats) ‘Saanjh Tu Aaye’ provided the backdrop for a brief tabla solo laced with interesting motifs.
In Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan’s drut ek taal ‘Kou Na Paayo’, akara passages deftly negotiated laya intricacies with punch, while solfege added sparkle to the tisra gait in the latter part of the composition.
The beauty of Ragesri shone through the madhya teen tal in ‘Ve Gun Ki Gunavanta Daata’ (khyal, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan) and the drut ek taal, ‘Raag Sang Ragini’ ( Pt. Jnan Prakash Ghosh). The raag’s elusive grace was captured in soaring flights and wide swathes perforated with delicate jali work.
Balanced on the knife-edge of single-avartan modules, the artiste pulled off speedy taans with elan. Prodigious skill lent an incredible sense of airiness to the sargams that followed.
The concluding piece, a dadra in raag Pahadi, Rupak taal, tuned by Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan was an essay in loveliness. Powerful verses dwelt on the greatness of the Lord’s name, which saved ardent devotees, bhakt Prahlad and Vibhishan in their hour of distress.
In-depth exploration
The artiste’s in-depth exploration of the lines ‘Hari Om’ and ‘Shankar Mahadev’ yielded multi-hued melodic variations that were affirmations of his spiritual connect. Sargams testified to the intense internalisation that had gone into the fluid strokes which painted the sound scape.
What stayed with you long after the recital was the inner calm transmitted by the artiste, which was at the core of his search and articulation. Equally memorable was his mastery over meend. Moulded with insouciant ease to his flow of thought, the liquid glides added touches of luminosity.
Vyasmurti Katti’s intuitive accompaniment on the harmonium aptly complemented the vocalist’s creative flights, while Sudhir Gorai on the tabla anchored their exchanges with crisp strokes.
