Held under the auspices of Naada Inbam at the Ragasudha hall, Uttara Swaminathan’s vocal concert featured well-chosen Trinity compositions. The artiste’s neat rendition of ‘Anuragamu Leni’ (Tyagaraja, Saraswathi) was capped with free-flowing sarvalaghu kalpanaswara culminating in a simple korvai.
In a solidly structured Nattakurinji alapana that eschewed flamboyance and settled for flavour, due attention was bestowed upon unhurried exploration of swaroopa through predominantly madhyamakala sancharas. ‘Mayamma’ (Syama Sastri) was an elegant excursion into the raga, the kriti embellished with fluent one and two-avartana swaraprastharas that sustained the raga’s characteristic swing and sway.
The opening notes of Poorvikalyani were introspective. Compact segments effectively established a meditative atmosphere. Brief mandra sthayi forays revealed that the vocalist needs to work on acquiring tonal depth and reach in the lower register.
Mature approach
Although the exposition was leisurely, it merited greater detailing and depth in light of the sublimity of the masterpiece that followed — Muthuswami Dikshitar’s ‘Meenakshi Memudam Dehi’. Fidelity to kriti patanthara spoke of diligent shiksha. At ‘Madhurapuri Nilaye’ an appreciable measure of kuzhaivu graced kizhkala swarakalpana, while a tisram outing and dapper little kanakkus spruced up the melkala swaras.
The young vocalist’s composure and assurance went a long way in investing her approach with maturity. If she could augment these advantages with greater self-immersion, her music would gain in stature.
Violinist Swetha Anandasivan’s accompaniment was pertinent and competent. Her willingness to pick up the gauntlet was evident in her spirited response to the vocalist’s kanakkus in swaraprasthara.
On the mridangam, Ranganathapuram Akshay Ram’s detailed tani avartanam had many things going for it — well-knit permutations, clarity and firmness of sollus in particular.
