The vocal concert of Serugudi Sisters turned out to be á delectable blend of some rare compositions in well-known ragas, yet less dealt with in detail on concert platforms. Rema and Geetha are students of veteran musician late T.R. Subramaniam. They started with ‘Nigamavedavedyam bhajeham’ in Hamsadhwani, indeed, a scholarly composition of their guru, on Lord Ganesha. Adorning the kriti with kalpanaswaras, the sisters moved on to render ‘Aparajithe amaresanuthe’ in Kanada by Harikesanallur Muthiah Bhagavatar. Rema’s Pantuvarali raga essay led to Tyagaraja’s ‘Naradamuni vedalina’; the niraval on ‘Narayana namamulanu’ and the swaras were dynamic.
Kapi is a lilting melody with swaras on vakra prayogas. This quality not only makes the raga lively but also lets the musicians deploy extensively their ingenuity. Geetha painted an impressive portrait of Kapi. Here also the duo’s choice was a less popular kriti of Mayuram Viswanatha Sastri, ‘Karthikeyanai kannaarak kaanavendume’. A sedate ‘Ranganayakam’ by Dikshitar in raga Nayaki was balanced with the brisk ‘Varanarada narayana’ of Tyagaraja in Vijayashri.
Elaborate RTP
The highlight was their extensive treatise of Suddha Dhanyasi for the RTP — the upper segment sancharas by Geetha and middle and concluding section by Rema.
Following a brief tanam, the pallavi went as ‘Eesanai jagadeesanai’ set to Kandajathi Triputa tala. The niraval and trikalam were extended with ragamalika swaras in Kanada, Behag, Revathi and Atana.
While the selection and treatment of the ragas and lyrics by the siblings need special appreciation, they should focus on the bhava aspect as well and should avoid repeating well-rehearsed final korvai by both in all the swara sessions.
Kovai Chandran on the violin, Kumbakonam Ramachandran on the mridangam and Madippakkam A. Murali on the ghatam lent good support to the sisters. The concert was part of Pre-Music festival concerts of Narada Gana Sabha.
