Banking on a rich timbre warmed by depth and enhanced by an effortless traverse across octaves, vocalist R. Ashwath Narayanan embarked on a Thodi alapana, at his concert in Chennai, that was a judicious blend of vilamba and madhyama kala prayogas buttressed by sturdy pidis. Voice stood the artiste in good stead with evenness in tone evident in three sthayis. With equal attention bestowed upon every suite, the alapana acquired a chiaroscuro of shadja-varja sancharas that balanced out the ravai phrases at the tara sthayi. It was a well-rounded essay, yet one that left you with the feeling that the artiste was capable of more.
While some of K.J. Dileep’s (violin) prayogas hit a bullseye, others dashed around in futile scale-based flights. Kizh kala niraval at ‘Prakasimpa Jesina’ in Tyagaraja’s’ ‘Dasarathi’ scored with its ideal kalapramana, opening up into expansive vistas at the tara sthayi gandhara-madhyama suite. Accelerating to top gear, with aesthetics intact and sustaining grip, the classic melkala niraval made accompanists and rasikas sit up while melkala sarvalaghu kalpanaswaras offered a thrill-a-minute ride.
In a vibrant tani, S.Arvind’s mridangam sollus sketched vivid vignettes in the company of Madipakkam Gopalakrishnan’s ghatam strokes.
In the firmly etched Poorvikalyani raga of the RTP, the main playing ground was the tara sthayi.
On the strings, Dilip transmitted a scintillating vibe, with a seamless flow of passages in alapana. Singing tanam in this raga is an addictive experience for vocalists and Ashwath was no exception. Finally, you got a glimpse of the fire within, as, in an impassioned whirl, the artiste’s self-forgetful outpouring made the tanam an immersive experience for the listener as well. Artistic integrity impelled the vocalist to have another go at a few phrases that did not pan out as envisioned in the intention-execution continuum.
The pallavi ‘Kaana Kidaikkumo Sabesan Darisanam’ worked... mostly. A brainchild of vidwans K.V. Narayanaswamy (Aswath’s guru) and Palghat Raghu, the deceptively simple rhythmic structure proved that it could trip up an artiste in just one unwary second.
Swarakalpana fusillades
Firing on all cylinders, Ashwath shot swarakalpana fusillades, while softer elements surfaced in the ragamalika swara segment. Not ideally matched, voice and violin were, at times, on notably different wavelengths.
In the first half, the kriti ‘Saketa Nagara Natha’ (Harikhambodi, Mysore Sadasiva Rao) spruced up with niraval and sarvalaghu kalpanaswaras, saw Ashwath in his element, exchanging spirited volleys with Dileep.
‘Rangapura Vihara’ (Brindavana Saranga, Muthuswami Dikshitar) showcased a different facet of the vocalist, one in which he freely explored melodic bylanes. ‘Vidajaaladura’ (Janaranjani) did duty as a zesty filler in which Ashwath upped the ante when he fast tracked swarakalpana to an uber-racy pace that stayed firmly on course.
The concert showcased Ashwath at his uninhibited best in niraval and swara segments. The fire within burned bright and importantly, held the promise of burning brighter.
