Kallekulangara Sri Emoor Bhagavathi Temple in Palakkad celebrated Navaratri with a music festival. All the artistes featured in the festival rendered mostly kritis on Devi, in the context of the occasion.
V.R. Dileep Kumar in concert in Palakkad
V.R. Dileep Kumar has evolved a unique style of his own, as visualised in his absorbing vocal recital. Drawing from his wide repertoire, he rendered select kritis, each of which was a gem. Muthuswamy Dikshitar’s Kanchadalayadakshi... in Kamala Manohari was an apt piece to begin the concert. Kamlambana... of Garbapurivasar was prefixed with a delightful essay of Kanada. His analytical treatment of Kalyanavasantham, embellished with graceful akaaras, was superb. Inudaya Bharathe..., a Purandaradasa kriti, evoked devotion; vibrant kalpanaswaras lent additional splendour.
Vandesada Padmanabham... (Navarasakannada – Swathi Thirunal) was a smart choice, prior to the main raga Kalyani. Dileep Kumar’s praiseworthy patanthara and deep insight were observed in the weighty alapana. Choosing Tyagaraja kriti Sundari nee divya... , he sparkled in the niraval and lively swaraprastharas. Viju S. Anand (violin), K.B. Ganesh (mridangam) and Vellinezhi Ramesh (morsing) gave outstanding accompaniment.
Erudite rendition
Mathangi Sathyamoorthy
Another enjoyable concert was that of vocalist Mathangi Satyamoorthy. Classicism was at its best in her recital. The Sri raga varnam Sami Ninne... and Maha Ganapathim... (Natta – Dikshitar) laid a strong base. After a less-heard kriti of Mysore Vasudevachar’s, Brova vamma... in Gowri Manohari, she embarked on Mohanam and made a statement in her beautiful delineation of the raga, unfolding its melodic grace. Her keen sense of sahitya was seen in her exquisite portrayal of Kadambari priyayai... (Dikshitar), which was appended with well-formulated swaras.
The main item of the concert was a bhava-filled exposition of Keeravani. An emphatic niraval and vibrant swara patterns in the Muthiah Bhagavathar kriti Amba Vaani..., made a mark. She rounded off the concert with Karunai Deivame... in Sindhubhairavi and Karpagame... in Madhyamavathi. She was ably supported by N.C. Madhav on the violin, Palakkad Ganesan on the mridangam and T.R. Parameswaran on the ghatam.
T.V. Sankaranarayanan
T.V. Sankaranarayanan enthralled the listeners with his performance. The concert bore testimony to his versatility and virtuosity. He was in his element right from the opening items, Aekaradanam..., a kriti of Thulasivanam in Hindolam, and Sri Saraswathi... (Arabhi – Dikshitar), both of which were adorned with fine swara korvais. His alapana of Shanmugapriya was enriched with ingenuous sancharas. Paapanasam Sivan’s Andavane Unnai... was noted for the glorious swara joints.
The piece de resistance of the concert was a marvellous elucidation of Sankarabharanam. Syama Sastri’s composition Saroja dala netri... gained solidity thanks to his energetic interpretation. After the breezy niraval, he spun a web of magnificent swaras. The Tamil virutham and devotionals Srinivasa... (Hamsanandi), Vellai Thamarai... (Bhimplas) and Sri Kamalambike... (Sri) and so on kindled deep musical expressions and aesthetics.
K.J. Dileep revealed glimpses of his illustrious guru MSG’s brilliant style, in his delectable violin accompaniment. Extending deft support was Kallekulengara Unnikrishnan (mridangam), Gopi Nadalaya (morsing) and T.R. Parameswaran (ganjira).
The festival also featured Palakkad Sreeram, Vellinezhi Subramanyam, Poornima Krishnan, Pallavur Krishnankutty (kurumkuzhal), Kallekulangara Anil Kumar, Mahalakshmi sisters Parvathi Narayanan and Pooja Narayanan and Master Karthik Manikandan (Kathakali).
