Pt. S. Ballesh, supported by Krishna Ballesh and Prakash Ballesh, and accompanied by M.N. Munesh (tabla) and Ramamoorthy (dukkad) presented a scintillating shehnai recital at the Hindustani music fest held under the auspices of Sri Guru Ganayogi Panchakshara Sangeet Yogashram Trust and S.G.S Sabha.
Trained by maestro
Having had the privilege of receiving advanced training under grand maestro Pt. Bismillah Khan and being a member of the Panchakshara Gavai brotherhood, this artist has quietly gathered renown over the years by virtue of his versatility in varied genres including film music, apart from classical concerts and jugalbandis.
Clear sparkling notes issued forth to define raag Puriya Kalyan (vilambit ek taal and dhrut teen taal) with firm strokes.
The bittersweet flavour pierced layers of slick city sensibilities, demanding deeper levels of receptivity and introspection from the listeners. Phrases woven around the shadja-gandhar suite of the middle register made landings at the tivra madhyam in sharply poignant statements.
Medium fast and dhrut passages snaked through the pancham and tara sthayi shadja suites, interspersed with the characteristic blow-and-shut staccato technique inherent in the instrument’s vocabulary.
The shadja-varja phrases linking the komal rishabh and tivra nishadh carried particular impact.
A dhun in Misra Khamaj ushered in an air of festive gaiety with folk overtones. Shades of Behaag, Desh and Shudda Sarang made a graceful entry and exit. The percussion team’s efforts shone in the dhrut section.
