Competence, dedication, reverence and melody - all these were palpable in the morning concert of Vignesh Ishwar. A lively Abhogi varnam sung at a medium pace served as a starter, ragas Begada, Varali and Bhairavi were other delicacies, and Behag and Chenchuruti, with a sprinkling of profundity, made up the dessert… the light musical lunch had the perfect menu!
A rich, deep voice with comfortable reach over two octaves and a sruti of perhaps one-kattai were the springboard from which the singer showcased his talent. Ishwar created a tranquil mood right at the beginning.
K. Giridhari (violin) and Ranjani Venkatesh (mridangam) complemented Ishwar well. He was fortunate to be assigned accompanists who were not only competent but also well possessed of a keen musical sense. Following a briga-driven sketch of Begada raga came Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar's tidy composition ‘Anudinamunu Kavumaiyya' in Rupakam. The rendition effectively brought out the the hue of the raga. The kalpanaswaras around ‘Kanakanaruchi’ were the most enjoyable exchanges among the three on stage. Ishwar's ideas of Varali that followed flowed easily and was pleasantly executed. He could also hold his karuvais over long periods comfortably, reaching higher notes with ease, extending to the dhaivata. Firm and leisurely strokes of the bow become this raga well, and Giridhari adopted these in good measure. Muthuswamy Dikshitar's samushti charana kriti 'Mamava Meenakshi' was rendered with tender care and led up to niraval at 'Shyame Sankari' on samam.
Over the next 7+5 minutes, the vocalist and the violinist mapped out a picturesque Bhairavi to offer as a perfect red carpet for Syama Sastry's composition 'Sari Evvaramma' in Khandajati Jhampa talam as the main item. The artists took it through kriti, niraval and kalpanaswaras, slow and fast, for nearly 15 minutes, leaving the mike to Ranjani for presenting her colourful thani, which went on with trotting chasuram for some time before ending with khandam. 'Idu tano Tillai sthalam' in Behag from Nandan Charitram was a soulful presentation. The last item was a thillana in Chenchurutti, “ a relic of old times, first heard on stage from the Alathur Brothers.
K. DHARINI has a pleasant voice which she employed well, with a penchant for briga, in her lively concert. She was accompanied by Sudha R. S. Iyer on the violin and K.V. Vineeth on the mridangam.
The committed treatment of ‘O Rangasayee’ of Tyagaraja, Adi, through a 50 minute stretch (one-third of the total concert time) stood out as Dharini’s obeisance to Lord Vishnu on the day of Vaikuntha Ekadasi. She highlighted the utter devotion of the composer which drips in every line of it. She raised the level of audience consciousness to receive and savour the kriti through an elaborate alapana in Khambodi -- 15 minutes of imaginative sancharas in which she shared honours with Sudha. Brigas were sprinkled all through her preface, no too laboured and pleasingly native. While the transition from the manthara range to the madhyama sthayi appeared a little abrupt, she glided smoothly to upper shadja with a long karuvai.
Sudha took up the alapana from the upper Sa, where Dharini had left it, to spin her own creative patterns. After a brief virttam (‘Ramata Bhujagendra Sayee, Vatapatra Sayee, Sri Ranga Sayee’), she commenced her main piece, instantly underscoring the ambience of tranquillity that the song possesses. The niraval at ‘Bhuloka Vaikuntha’ and the manodharma swaras were apt and appealing.
Vineeth had his chance to display his sensitivity to this -- as contrasting with that in the earlier stages which went fast -- and came out splendidly. Even in the transition between successive phases of the standard three-part composition, his inherent musical sense showed in the arudis he played.
The percussionist has a hard task. While the singer and the violinist can weave diverse patterns in infinite numbers, when on niraval and kalpanaswara, slow or fast, using the different notes, the mridangam player is circumscribed by his instrument, unable to produce variety, limited to no more than 2 or 3 notes. He has to make up with combinations or permutations of sollus, which he needs to make musical. Thus playing to accompany is a different cup of tea from playing the thani. Vineeth did his part splendidly.
From the Dhanyasi varnam, through ‘Siddhivinayakam,’ till the last items – a Tamil virattam (Kapi) and a thillana (Madhuvanti), the concert stood out for its simplicity, competence and teamwork.
