Music can soothe the soul, the tempo or the kaalapramanam with which it is rendered playing a pivotal role in reaching out to the listeners. Raji Gopalakrishnan, in a concert at Irinjalakuda recently, captivated the audience with her adherence to time honoured sampradaya.
She started the concert with a Mohanam varnam. The way she began the concert, sans any gimmicks, was an indication of how the rest of the concert would be.
After the varnam, she chose the Dikshitar kriti ‘Swaminatha Paripalayamam’ in raga Natta. ‘Sarasasaamadhana’ in Kaappinarayani, composed by Tyagaraja, which extolled the statesmanship of Lord Shri Rama, was rendered beautifully as the singer brought forth the mood of the kriti. A highlight of the kriti was the rendering of the manodharma swara, which was an indication of her academic brilliance. A serene alapana of Reethigowla was followed by Swati Tirunal's ‘Paripaalayamam’, to which was tagged swara passages. Panthuvarali was taken for detailed alapana and Raji cautiously navigated through the contours of the raga, portraying its subtle nuances. ‘Raghuvara nannu’, a Tyagaraja composition, was taken up for rendering and niraval was at the phrase ‘Raghuvara nannu’. ‘Raama naamame’ (Desh) of Tanjavoor Sankara Iyer, ‘Manasa sancharare’ (Syama) and ‘Khelathi mama hridaye’ (Hamirkalyani), composed by Narayanatheertha, were devotional pieces.
C.S. Anuroop provided excellent support on the violin and throughout the concert he comfortably followed the vocalist. His solo presentation of Reethigowla and Panthuvarali were crisp, but elegant. K.M.S. Mani did a commendable job on the mridangam. Vellattanjoor Sreejith on the ghatam followed the pattern set by the mridangam artiste and the duo played an excellent taniavarthanam for the Panthuvarali piece. The concert concluded with ‘Narayanathe’ in Behag and the Narayaneeyam sloka ‘Yogeendranam’ rendered in a soothing Neelambari. The concert was organised by Nadopasana, Irinjalakuda.
