Of thrills and frills
SVK
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Ravikiran amazed the audience with the sapthaswara ragamalika pallavi, where the ragas seamlessly flowed.
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The chitraveena recital of Ravikiran in the Krishna Gana Sabha Gokulashtami series stood out for its pallavi of a string of seven ragas (saptaswara ragamalika pallavi). It was a stimulating presentation where the versatility of Umayalpuram Sivaraman, the mridangist, shone with the seven-gati laya display. This part of the concert bristled with thrills and frills.
The fluency with which Ravikiran switched from one raga to another was remarkable. He made sure that each had its proper place and seamlessly flowed into one another.
Wedded to high-flown laya, giving sharp angles to the booming patterns, released in the scorching pace, the exciting saptagati tani avartanam demanded attention. It is tani of this kind that defines Umayalpuram Sivaraman's place. In fact, he scaled the peaks of the pallavi with elan.
The other two percussionists, T.V.Vasan (ghatam) and B. Sreeramkumar (kanjira) were silent spectators during the major part of the tani, joining Sivaraman only in the last leg of the tani conclusion. Akkarai Subbulakshmi (violin) presented herself as Ravikiran's shadow.
The earlier part of the recital contained "Kadale Vaadu" (Narayana-gowla) "Mariveregati" (Anandabhairavi) "Tatwameruga" (Garudadwam). The Anandabhairavi alapana by Ravikiran and Akkarai Subbulakshmi brimmed with grace.
Sparkling voice
If sound music culture is marked by delicate expression, Vasundhara Rajagopal's concert for the Thyaga Brahma Gana Sabha was full of it. Her smooth and sparkling voice made the raga essays of Ramapriya (Korina Vara) and Saveri (Rama Bhaana), delightful.
Gamakas, brigas and karvais were well harmonised to confer refinement. Vasundhara's straightforward approach enabled her to translate her manodharma into clipped elegant sancharas. The main appeal of her concert was that she ignored the temptations of frenetic tempo. Usha Rajagopal (violin) was in the same wavelength as that of the vocalist.
Marked by balance in the handling of sangatis, there was discipline in the smoothness of rendering the kirtanas by Vasundhara Rajagopal. The songs glimmered with sweetness of tonal tenderness.
Nellai Balaji (mridangam) and Adambakkam Shankar (ghatam) in their percussive support were convincingly persuasive.
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