Brothers in sync

Trichur Brothers’ rendition was a show of perfect harmony.

Trichur Brothers Srikrishna Mohan and Ramkumar Mohan. Photo: R. Ravindran

Some younger artistes of this generation are willing to experiment without losing sight of the basics of the music. The experimentation is more in manodharma like ragalapana, swarakalpana, tanam presentation and neraval presentation; moving a little away from routine exercises. Trichur Brothers — Srikrishna Mohan and Ramkumar Mohan displayed this trend in their concert for Kalasagaram appearing on the second day of the music sabha’s 45th Anniversary festival, being held at Keyes High school, Secunderabad.

Their wizardry was astounding. Unlike common duet renditions, these brothers’ show sounded like a jugalbandi, brothers responding to each other with their own creations. They even introduced a new technique of harmony, one brother moving in swara scales while the other sticking to a single note, in harmony. Their three-hour show under the gaze of their father and guru — noted mridangam vidwan, Trichur R. Mohan — was captivating. Other talented accompanists were Peri Sriramamurthy on violin and Nemani Somayajulu on ghatam.

The duo opened the show with

Neranammiti a Kanadaraga Atatala varnam, in two speeds, followed by

Sri Vighnarajam Bhaje in Gambhiranata of Oothukadu Venkata subbaiyer that carried special appeal. Krishnamohan was seen occasionally pleading for mike adjustment for his voice was sounding lower than his brother’s.

Then they went for

Bhavayami Raghuramam in ragamalika, with Ramkukar’s voice sounding more assertive. The Chitta swaras were well gone through. Manaviyalakimparada in Nalinakanti of Thyagaraja was speedier than needed. Later they presented Andolika in detail, both sharing the essay, complementing each other’s out put. And the third complementing factor was violin brilliantly played by Sriramamurthy, drawing visible admiration of brothers. This was a true reflection of a real Ragasudharasa , the composition they played in it. Annapoorne Visalakshi in Sama of Dikshitar followed. After Nanoru Vilayatta Bommaya of Papanasam Sivan in Navarasakannada, they went for Seshachala Nayakam Bhajami in Varali of Dikshitar. The nereval at the line Aravindavasanayanam though lengthy, it gave ‘never heard before’ effect, elevating kirtana’s impact further. The raga too came for delineation by Peri Sriramamurthy, eliciting good response.

Gopalakrishna Bharati’s composition in Behag and Annamacharya Kirtana Nanati Batuku Natakamu in Revati, Viruttam in Ragamalika concluded the show. Using Vandemataram in Desh to round up the concert was a master stroke, as if returning the spellbound audience to the nation.