Maharajapuram Ganesh Viswanathan showed glimpses of the unique bani of his grandfather, music maestro Maharajapuram Santhanam, in his vocal concert at Palakkad. Ganesh’s recital was marked by both bright as well as uncharacteristic turns. Though his voice was good in the beginning, as the concert progressed, it seemed to lose its timbre. In the context of the ongoing Tyagaraja Aradhana season, he prudently chose quite a number of kritis of the bard of Thiruvaiyaru.
Ganesh commenced impressively with the Kaanada raga varnam ‘Neranammithi Nayya’ in Adi tala, composed by Ramnad Srinivasa Iyengar, popularly known as Poochi Iyengar. After the lesser-heard song ‘Enakkuvendum’ in Natta in praise of Lord Ganesha, he proceeded to some of the famous Tyagaraja kritis such as ‘Raghunayaka’ — Hamsadhwani (suffixed with pleasing kalpanaswaras), ‘Orachupuju’ — Kannada Gowla and ‘Naadathanumanisam’ — Chitharanjini. Panthuvarali alapana, laced with classical sangatis, depicted the raga bhava lucidly. The niraval in the Tyagaraja kriti ‘Apparama bhakthi’ was too brief, but vibrant swaraprastharas, reflecting the style of Santhanam, were enjoyable. Though the portrayal of Reethigowla raga had some bright shades, the melodic beauty of this enchanting raga was not fully explored. The rare kriti of Neelakanta Sivan, ‘Arumuganae’, a short piece, was a refreshing choice.
The exposition of Mohanam was the best part of the concert. It had the authentic stamp of the Maharajapuram school — the sancharas in all the octaves were enjoyable. Though one expected Ganesh to take up Tyagaraja kritis such as ‘Mohana Rama’ or ‘Nannupalimpa’, both favourites of Santhanam, he chose the kriti ‘Dayaraanee’, which does not afford much scope for elaborate interpretation.
The soulful aesthetics of ‘Maayamma’ (Aahiri – Shyama Sastri) was missing in his rendition. Thodi could have been developed in greater detail and the thanam too was brief. ‘Thenpazhani Vadivelane Daivanai Manavaalane’, the simple pallavi in Adi tala, had limited impact. The swaras were also rendered in a hurry. ‘Yaar enna sonnalum’, a kriti of Oothukkad Venkata Kavi in Manirangu, brought happy memories of his grandfather. The vocalist concluded the concert abruptly with a Thiruppugazh. Violinist CS Anurup enlivened the recital with his superb accompaniment. His maturity and proficiency in handling the instrument were clearly visible in his raga and swara versions. K M S Mani (mridamgam) and Kottayam Unnikrishnan (ghatam) provided adequate support. Their tani in Adi tala was precise.
The concert was organised under the auspices of the Palghat Fine Arts Society
