The 17th year September Music season of Rajalakshmi Fine Arts commenced with the concert of Abishek Raghuram at the Kikani Vidya Mandir Auditorium, Coimbatore.
The inaugural concert was by Abishek Raghuram. He began his session with the Nialmbari varnam ‘Sendhil nagar mevum,’ in which the first two swarams of the Varnam are dispensed off with the sahityam, a practice the vidwans sometimes do.
Abishek Raghuram
After a brisk version of ‘Meedulagu’ in Mayamalavagowlai, his interpretation of ‘Alagalella’ brought out the joy of the bard of Tiruvaiyaru in a visionary glimpse of Lord Rama breaking the bow of Lord Siva. The niraval was treated with briga-rich sangatis. His alapanas of Saveri (‘Muruga, Muruga’) and Purvikalyani (‘Ninnuvinagamari’) with sangatis were of a high order. H.N. Baskar (violin) matched the vocalist’s challenges admirably with great finesse and artistry. Bharadwaj (mridangam) and Krishnakumar (ghatam) played with a lot of anticipation and manodharma. The unique naadham of their instruments and the sparkling beats were scintillating.
Winsome delivery
Aruna Sairam’s recital on the second day on the theme ‘Enngalil Iraivan,’ was a well-researched piece as her musical fare demonstrated. She had something to offer for every kind of the cognoscenti present. Her winsome delivery of an Oothukkadu composition in Mohanam went down well with the listeners.
Aruna Sairam
Her raga picture of Vachaspathi was sculpted with evocative phrases for the kriti, ‘Paratpara.’ Kharaharapriya raga portrait for the kriti, ‘Senthil aandavan’ with swaras astounded the music buffs for her powerful delivery. The RTP for ‘Bagyathalakshmi’ and the raga sancharas in Khambodi, Kurinji, Atana, Mohanam, Sahana and Ranjani took the audience to melodic heights. More than the vocalist, Bhaskar’s versions on the violin were executed with equal aplomb. Vydianathan (mridangam) and Sridhar(ghatam) were equally innovative with their rhythmic beats including a vibrant thani in the laya wing.
Ranjani and Gayatri’s concert was a highly systematised one in all respects — raga expositions, renditions of kritis and swaras that have become imperative in duet singing.
Ranjani and Gayatri
Flagging off a roller-coaster musical ride with ‘Piravavaram thandarulvai’ in Maalavi with swaras, Ranjani’s alapana of Pantuvarali for the kriti, ‘Amba manam kanindu’ was an infusion of distilled quietude and sparkling texture and Bhairavi by Gayathri for the kriti, ‘Upacharamu’ revealed sound sense with full-blooded swift passages for the kriti. Their reign in tara sthayi got high definition through a spell of impassioned singing. Their niraval and swaras were an example of meticulous planning. Their version of a Thukaram abhang was a celebration of the abhang’s beauty. Ramakrishnan (violin) offered cohesive alapanas and effective swara repartees to the challenges thrown by the vocalist duo. Sai Giridhar (mridangam) and Anirudh Athreya (ganjira) wove rhythmic patterns combining strength and subtlety in the laya wing throughout . In sum, it was a feel-good kutcheri underscored by artistic finesse throughout.
Well-planned concert
Lalgudi siblings — GJR Krishnan and Vijayalakshmi — presented a well-planned concert exhibiting their absolute control over the instrument. The melody remained intact despite their instinct to bring in novelty to the presentation. Setting the tone of the kutcheri with a Lalgudi pada varnam in Nilambari, the duo went on to present ‘Varanamukhi’ in Hamsadhwani with swaras and ‘Varasikhivahana’ in Supradeepam, which brought out the spirit of the compositions as visualised by the bard of Tiruvaiyaru. ‘Vinaradanaa’ in Devagandhari reflected the earnest plea of Rama’s devotee to the Lord.
The delineation of Varali by Viji for the kriti, ‘Kaa va va’ and Khambodi by Krishnan for the kriti, ‘O! Rangasayee’ not only reflected the essence of the ragas in every note but were aesthetic in presentation. ‘Kaliyuga Varadan’ (Brindavana Saranga) and ‘Ennasolli azhaithaal’ were appealing. The RTP in Shanmukhapriya set to tisra nadai for the kriti, ‘Maruganai Muruganai ninai maname’ traversed the breezy and sprightly route with a feisty niraval and ragamalika swaras underscoring Bagesri and Dwijavanti.
Harikumar (mridangam) and Raja Ganesh (ganjira) were energetic in their laya exercise and provided a sprightly thani. A vibrant and lilting Lalgudi thillana closed their musical agenda.
