There are some concerts that start out with a sizeable audience in attendance but witness an exodus of sorts after the first half hour. Then, there are others wherein the curtain goes up to a smattering of rasikas augmented by a steady trickle of latecomers who stay glued to their seats till the very end, held in thrall by the skill and commitment of the artist.
Happily, the vocal concert of Vaikom Jayachandran held at the Ragasudha hall under the auspices of Naada Inbam, fell into the second category.
Beginning with the varnam ‘Pagavari Bodhana’ (Hamsadhwani, Patnam Subramania Iyer), the vocalist graduated to a crisp ‘Gajaananayutham’ (Chakravaham, Dikshitar) affixed with sarvalaghu kalpanaswara rounds that carried punch and power.
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Sung with involvement, the indwelling sangatis in ‘Rama Rama Pahi Rama’ (Swati Tirunal) highlighted depth and timbre of voice in the mandra stayi while swara kalpana wove vadi-samvadi patterns. Ritigowla is an established favourite with artists and rasikas alike. Mining its melodic potential, the vocalist breathed life into the Tamil composition ‘Oraaru Mugane’ (Neelakanta Sivan), establishing an instant connect with listeners.
The mystique of Pantuvarali was explored in alapana through panchama-varja passages followed by strategic halts at panchama and nishada in the madhya sthayi and shadja-varja prayogas in the tara sthayi. Brigas finessed to ravai consistency were drizzled in apt proportion. ‘Paripalaya Sarisiruhalochana’ (Swati Tirunal) led to detailed niraval and swara segments in two kalas, sparking exuberant exchanges between voice and violin.
‘Mahadeva Manohari’ (Devamanohari, Ponnayya of Tanjore Quartet) and a refreshing ‘Rajagopalam’ (Mohanam, Dikshitar) added a burst of energy. Voice in fine fettle by now, the vocalist embarked on the main raga, Kiravani, with vigour, displaying appreciable command over linearity and lyricism. The exposition unspooled in a leisurely step-by-step progression, adding areas of notably effective contrast through shadja-varja phrasing. Traversing the tara sthayi shadja suite with full throated akara prayogas, the artist corralled brigas into the rishabha suite, judiciously juxtaposing nagaswaram and veena style phases.
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Given that the compositional gamut offers a select number of kritis that lend themselves adequately to the elaboration required of the main piece in this raga, the seldom aired ‘Namo Namasthe Girvani’ (Dikshitar) came as an unexpected treat. Sung with involvement and a distinct feel for the lyric, the composition was graced with kizhkala and melkala niraval and kalpanaswara that impressed with their vistara.
An interesting line-up of kritis that hinted at an extensive repertoire, rendered with bhava and clear enunciation of sahitya, backed by manodharma tempered by a strong element of accountability – these testified to an artist who sets great store by substance.
With the accompanists matching strides with the vocalist, the sallies and solo turns of V.L. Kumar (violin), Shertalai Anantakrishnan (mridangam) and Nerkunam Shankar (ganjira) held much interest. Kumar’s nuanced modulation effortlessly carried forward the subtleties of Pantuvarali and Kiravani, his concluding kalpanaswara in Pantuvarali winning plaudits. The tani avarthanam featured gripping sollus.