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Enchanting sitar recital
Pt. Janardan ... easy elegance. — Pic by S. R. Raghunathan
DESPITE THE rain and clogged roads there were quite a few at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan auditorium on December 24 to listen to Pt. Janardhan play the sitar for Karthik Fine Arts. As he warmed up to the chosen ragas the hall filled up - the only not so nice thing being the constant movements of rasikas going in and out. The recital was enjoyable because of its brevity and the fact that he displayed the tradition he has inherited from his mentor, Pt. Ravi Shankar. The technical grasp over the sitar created an impression of the expressivity and mastery in his playing. In any case he did keep the audience comprising senior citizens and a smattering of foreigners delighted.
Beginning with a rather sparsely heard Multani, a late afternoon raga, Janardhan's alaap was fleeting with the raga structure emerging with the support of the masterly and enthusiastic tabla of Ravindra Yavagal from Bangalore. It was a rather fine piece - with the artiste playing soberly especially in the low notes. He deliberated on the sthayi for a considerable amount of time as the main structure of the moody raga developed. With the progressively increasing tempo, Janardan let his fingers fly over the frets till the conclusion, which was quick and practical.
Mishra Kafi was the next raga he took up - Kafi is a midnight raga, and when Mishra enters the raga there is a beauty despite the fact that it is not in its pure form. He took this up inspired by the thumri tradition where this raga is considerably used.
Thumris pioneered by the Nawab Walid Ali Shah of Oudh, Lucknow, has been nurtured by songs like kajri, a mixture of khyals and tappa. They are very romantic in content and in presentation but not considered very pure and formal by many. The pleasing notes of the raga were given ample space in the vilambit, madhya and the drut. It opened with a leisurely alaap in which Janardan developed the structure of the raga and its mood- one of simple sensuality.
In vilambit of 16 beats both Ravindra and Janardan slipped into a comfortable partnership with both communicating on each beat and note with enthusiasm. The concluding Sindhu Bhairavi was enchanting with some seemingly faint folk touches. What came across was his control especially in the drut portions where his finger flew effortlessly.
What was even better was his sense of timing both in his playing and in the way he finished on the dot.
CHITRA MAHESH
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