A vocal recital by Bangalore Brothers M.B. Hariharan and S. Ashok was a welcome addition to the rising number of vocal duos performing in Palakkad. Although both were trained by different gurus, the duo shared an excellent rapport on stage and sang in unison. While Ashok is endowed with a powerful voice, Hariharan’s voice is husky, with a limited range. Their dedication and adherence to the traditional concert pattern was noticeable in their vocal recital under the auspices of the Palghat Fine Arts Society, Palakkad.
The varnam ‘Taama sinchuka’ of Patnam Subramanya Iyer in Asaveri gave a solid start to the recital. Ashok’s Kalyani raga alapana stood out for its pure classicism. He, however, did not traverse beyond rishabha in the upper octave. In contrast, violinist Attukkal Balasubramanyam came up with a full fledged melodious delineation of the raga. The duo’s rendition of the Tyagarja kriti ‘Ammaraavamma’, embellished with a tidy niraval and swaraprastharas at ‘Thaamarasa dhalanetrudu’ in the charanam, was commendable.
After a breezy portrayal of ‘Jaya Jaya Padmanabha’, Hariharan proved his adherence to tradition, in his analytical elucidation of Bilahari. The duo’s interpretation of ‘Dorakuna Ituvanti’, the lovely kriti of Tyagaraja, spoke volumes about their good patanthara. The well-conceived kalpanaswaras revealed the raga bhava in full. A brief but lively nottuswaram of Dikshitar, ‘Anjaneyam’, in Sankarabharanam in praise of Lord Hanuman and the heart-warming Malayalam padam ‘Poonthen Neermozhi sakhi’ in Anandabhairavi were apt fillers prior to the main item, the RTP in Thodi.
The distinctiveness of this major raga was nicely depicted by Ashok in his brilliant exposition. Here again, the absence of sanchaaras in the upper octave (for which the raga affords immense scope) was conspicuous. The torrential flow of sangatis in the delightful tanam, rendered by the duo in the Pancharatna ragas, Natta, Gowla, Aarabhi, Varali and Sri, besides Thodi was well executed. The ragamalika swaras in Kedaram, Ranjani, Surutti and Mohanam were noteworthy. The soulful sloka followed by ‘Jagadhodhaarana’ was marked by devotional serenity. Choosing another ragamalika song ‘Arabhimaanam’ seemed rather odd. Kabirdas’ bhajan ‘Bhajana vina jeevana’ and ‘Bhaja bhaja maanasa Ragavendram’ in Tilang were full of melody. The mangalam in Surutti of Purandaradasa was soothing.
This promising duo should work hard to move effortlessly in all the octaves and plan their concert more judiciously. The accompanists did a great job.
K.R. Ganesh (mridangam) gave ample proof of his expertise. Manjoor Unnikrishnan (ghatam) made his presence felt with his subtle touches.
