Of impeccable quality
Vintage stuff.
Carnatic classical (violin duet)
Lalgudi G. Jayaraman and Srimathi Brahmanandam Kosmic 1743C, 1753C, 1763C, 1773C
Price not mentioned
The saying that it matters not how long one lives, but how one lives finds relevance in the life and illustrious career of the distinguished violin supremo Lalgudi G. Jayaraman. He is a class apart as a musician, whose unswerving dedication to the art does not settle for anything less than perfect. He entered his 76th year on September 17, yet his musical credentials are far stronger then the giant sequoia of California.
In aid of the Krishna Gana Sabha's building fund, four audiocassettes of Lalgudi's live concert in 1970 have been released. Srimathi Brahmanandam, Lalgudi's sister, plays along with him while Tiruchi Sankaran on the mridangam and Palakkad V. A. Sundaram are in charge of percussion.
The inimitable Ata tala varnam in Bhairavi by Pachimiriyam Adiyappaiyer is a textbook rendition with both the suddha dhaivatam and chatusruti dhaivatam employed to perfection. A host of Tyagaraja kritis, "Sri Ganapati" in Sourashtram, "Kanna tandri" in Devamanohari, "Kana Kana Ruchira" the Varali ratna and "Sujana Jeevana" in charming Khamas are melodic renditions. The Vasanta raga alapana as a prelude to Dikshitar's "Ramachandram" with pleasing prayogas, is sheer art unsullied by irrelevance. It is so heartening that even a hint of the panchamam is totally given the cold shoulder. That any art is cerebral in nature is amply reflected in the Karaharapriya delineation that synchronises the essence of the melody with the raga lakshana. If Tyagaraja has sung the glory of the peerless Rama in his kriti "Rama Nee Samanamevaru," Lalgudi does the same through violin. The sahitya emerges clearly because of the precision of the bow, and the swara passages by both artistes without a dull moment, have the Lalgudi trademark of competence.
A commitment to quality has been the taraka mantra of the vidvan throughout his career. An impeccable Kambhoji expansion, Tyagaraja's unparalleled "O Rangasayi" with the customary immaculate swarakalpanas in the charanam, and the masterly tani avartanam by Tiruchi Sankaran and Sundaram leave the rasika in a zone of aesthetic consciousness.
The choice of the raga for the RTP is Ranjani while the lyrics are set to the chatusra ata tala. The raga elaboration is a wonderful alchemy of melody and grammar. The swaras in Ranjani and the ragamalika swaras in Begada, Amruthavarshini, Vagadeeshwari, Nattakurinji, Kalyanavasantham, Valaji and Behag find the artistes shifting to top gear. "Enna Tavam" in Kapi, a bhajan in Mand and the Swati Tirunal tillana in Dhanasri that owes its melodic outfit to Lalgudi, are golden nuggets.
S.P.
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