Violin maestro M. Chandrasekharan’s presentations carry the distinct warmth of classicism that was on full display during his recent concert at Kalabharati Visakhapatnam. In tandem with his talented daughter G Bharati, the maestro gave a treat of sage Narayana Theertha’s taranagams to rasikas.
The tarangams are replete with sage Narayana Theertha’s visions of Lord Krishna and His leelas . The maestro brought out this rapturous combination of lyrical (sahitya) grace and musical (sangeeta) elegance of the compositions in his distinctive way.
He sang the composition before proceeding to weave his magic truly in a gayaki style on violin, with each phrase falling in place in right sequence and in right time. His music is not all about syntax and technique.
The devotional fervour comes out in his spirited presentation. He adorned almost all the pieces with a brief aalapana or swarakalpana. He began it with Jayaswamin in raga Nata that set the tempo for the concert. Saranamabhava Karunamayi in raga Sourashtra was a classy rendition that spread out a devotee’s mindscape in total submission in a supplicant mood to the Lord.
His well structured exposition of raga Bilahari for Puraya mama kaamam saw him invest it with flashes of ingenuity and natty swarakalpana spoke of his mastery over matrix of notes.
Raga Madhyamavati for Dakshyami gokulanilayam by his daughter Bharati was a faithful rendition. The other notables in the concert included Madava mamava deva in raga Nilambari, Kshemam kuru gopala santatam in raga Kapi and Govardhana giridhara gopala in raga Kanada.
VV Ramanamurthy on mridangam and Mandapaka Ravi on kanjira lent good support. Thyagaraja Aaradhana Trust, Visakha Music and Dance Academy in association with Kakinada-based Naryanatheertha Tarangini Trust of Gundlapalli Adinarayana hosted it as part of Narayana Theertha’s 339 Jayanthi celebration.
