Prasanna Venkatraman’s music is reposeful, unadventurous , yet vibrant with a balanced mix of diverse tempos. Right from the Asaveri varnam, he presented a vast repertoire of compositions by Thyagaraja and Dikshitar to Papanasam Sivan and Gopalakrishna Bharati.
A flow of melody made the Natakurinji kriti, ‘Kuvalayadala Nayana,’ by Thyagaraja, stand apart. The tempo in the kalpanaswara segment, which mostly hovered around the madhyama of the raga, made many heads nod in appreciation. Violinist Sanjeev's version of Nattakurinji and Janaranjani that followed was exemplary. Sprinkled with swift swaras, Prasanna rendered another composition of Thyagaraja, ‘Nadadina Mata,’ with poise.Preceded by a breathtaking alapana, loaded with brigas and smooth jarus, he chose Dikshitar’s Gamakakriya composition ‘Ekamranatham Bhajeham.’ The niraval at the anupallavi line, ‘Onkara Roopam,’ appended by an imposing swarakalpana, lingered on even after he moved on to the charanam. The steady speed maintained in this kriti along with soft touches on the mridangam by Trivandrum Balaji and K.V. Gopalakrishnan on the ganjira lent bliss.
After the fast-paced ‘Vara Raga Laya’ in Chenchu Khambodi, Prasanna sprang into a majestic Kharaharapriya. Beginning with known phrases, he delved into the raga, spanning across sthayis with long karvais. Sanjeev’s account of the raga alapana with long phrases coupled with interesting jantais was impressive. Papanasam Sivan’s ‘Janakipathe’ in a slower kalapramana came adorned with incredible bhavam. An exceptional understanding between the percussionists prevailed throughout the concert and the thani was a proof of it.
The warm feel continued with the javali in Behag ‘Nirupamana Samini’ and Gopalakrishna Bharati’s ‘Thillaisthalam Endru Solla’ in Sama. Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar’s tillana in Sankarabharanam again set in a not-so-hurried pace elevated the mood further.
