Two musicians and unending applause
|
Pt. Shiv Kumar Sharma and Ustad Rashid Khan perform to a packed auditorium.
|
Ustad Rashid Khan.
Beautiful weather, the rains and music by biggest names in the field. Could the combination get any better? Perhaps not. For at the `Barkha Ritu-Rains and Ragas' held by Banyan Tree events, the occasion and the weather were partners in crime to create the perfect ambience.
The event began on time. A one and a half hour concert by Pt. Shivkumar Sharma was followed by an hour-long vocal performance by Ustad Rashid Khan.
Accompanists included Pt. Bhavani Shankar on the ghatak, Vijay Ghate on the tabla for Pt Shivkumar Sharma and Yogesh Samsi and Jyoti Goho for Ustad Rashid.
Both masters made extensive use of the raga associated with the event and the season — Megh Malhar raga and did a fine job of rendering their versions of it.
Many compositions were done impromptu - like a sort of jugalbandi. So neither the musicians nor the audience knew what to expect next and the result was simply breathtaking. Especially the trio of Panditji, Pt. Bhavani Shankar and Vijay Ghate.
You could tell that they were enjoying creating their music as much as the audience was enjoying listening to it. And the musicians didn't hold back in applauding each other either.
Complex compositions by these three musicians and ones that oscillated between high and low octaves had them applauding each other as well. Pt. Shivkumar Sharma has pioneered the santoor, so technically, no one can get better than him. They can be different yes, but better? — It seems quite impossible.
Ustad Rashid Khan too built up the tempo and the many wah-wah's that were heard stands testimony to the fact that there are many takers for music that emanates from the Rampur Shaswan Khayal Gharana that Ustad Rashid is a part of. Music can sometimes take you to a different dimension and the Ustads' voice does that sometimes.
This was one of those few events that went off without any hitches. Nandini, the compere from Mumbai who usually hosts Banyan Tree events, did a good job of introducing the artistes and holding the event together. Altogether, the event was something the city needed and got after many months— the gift of music from musical geniuses.
R.V.K.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Friday Review
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
