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Spell bound by `dhrupad'
The Gundecha brothers... exploring ragas.
Music filled the hall, like various layers of evening. One after another, in soft succession. Taking the listeners to the subtler realms of meditation.
The Gundecha brothers, Umakanth and Ramakanth, are hailed as the finest exponents of dhrupad music. So it was their day to cater to unsatiating demands of music lovers in the city, with two complete hours of pristine classical music.
It is not everyday that city residents get a chance to listen to dhrupad, performed live. One reason why the Fine Arts Hall got almost filled on Wednesday evening, much to the relief of officials of the Kerala Sangeeta Nataka Akademi, even before the Gundecha family settled on the dais.
It was also a chance to learn more about an art, till now only read about. Theories apart, it is performance that counts. Many exponents of classical music sitting among the audience were seen trying to analyse this new experience of listening.
Dhrupad--the name is a derivative from Dhruva, the evening star, and Padam, poetry--is often described as a tough art, with little possibility to improvise or experiment upon. Gundecha brothers, the famed disciples of the Dagar brothers, agree on the first part--that it is tough. But it is not restrictive, they say.
But from what they sang on that evening, the impression created was that dhrupad music is about exploring various manifestations of a particular raga.
For instance, the duo sang three compositions on raga Malkauns --one of which was authored by Swati Tirunal (Bhaja bhaja manasa...). First, they outlined the raga in alap and they followed it up with compositions. In doing so, they stuck to the path defined by the raga religiously, at times with less respect for words and lines of the text.
They also performed a couple of other ragas--Durga and Adhana. Those at the Fine Arts Hall were held spellbound by the magic of human voice, even as the evening progressed.
The performers did try hard to give a feel of the art to the audience. For, they ended their show with a composition in Adhana, which was an artistic interpretation of veera rasa or valour.
Beats of Thandava reverberated within listeners, long after curtains fell at the Fine Arts Hall. Did someone say that the beauty of art lies in recollection, once it has ceased to exist?
No write-up on the concert would be complete without a mention about Akhilesh Gundecha, who accompanied his illustrious siblings on Pakhawaj. A post-graduate in music and law, he handled the only percussion instrument to be featured with deftness of a master. It was a lesson in underplaying.
Sangeeta, the Gundecha sister, had her turn on the next day, as she delineated the intricacies of dhrupad, aided by her brothers, in a lecture demonstration.
At the end of it all, what really remained etched in memory was the path those gifted singers trekked, with their silken voices. Like leaves flying down to rest, as evening dies.
By Anand Haridas
Photo: Mahesh Harilal
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Life
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Thiruvananthapuram
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