Stirring recitals
MANJARI SINHA
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This past week featured a slew of polished performances.
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IN CONCERT Uma Garg and Rita Ganguly.
To celebrate the World Heritage Week, the Archaeological Survey of India presented a sarod recital by the celebrated Ustad Amjad Ali Khan against the magnificent backdrop of the beautifully lit Purana Quila, this past week. The musical mood was set by Kamal-Shree, a raga created by the Ustad in memory of the late Rajiv Gandhi. With the serenity of the dusk raga Shree and the liveliness of raga Kedar, it had an enchanting alchemy created by the subtle mystical mix of both the ragas. The short introductory alap was just enough to create the atmosphere of the raga before he played the reposeful madhya laya (medium tempo) composition set to Jhap tala of 10 beats.
Next came raga Durga with his popular composition in Teen tala, replete with charmingly inserted phrasings in alap badhat and intricate layakari with `laya se hat kar chalane wala kaam'. His profoundly vibrant and restful strokes revealed a high level of musicianship and artistic depth while he handled the hidden folds of the raga. The taan patterns that followed were varied and imaginative. He held his listeners spellbound with the melodious strains of Khamaj and Mishra Gara in the concluding "Vaishnav jana to... " followed by a traditional bandish (composition) in Khamaj, when they braved the drizzle that went faster with the speeding jhala that kept them glued to their seats. Sandeep Das and Anuvrat Chatterjee gave brilliant tabla accompaniment, winning several rounds of applause for their interspersed solo sequences.
Integrated performer
The India Trade Promotion Organisation presented Rita Ganguli as part of the cultural programmes held at Shakuntalam Theatre during the 26th India International Trade Fair. Trained originally in Dhrupad of Vishnupur gharana, Rita is a gandabandh shagird of Sidhheshwari Devi and Begum Akhtar besides learning the nuances of bhaav-batana from the legendary Shambhu Maharaj and receiving vocal guidance from Pandit Mani Prasad of the Kirana gharana. With training in music, dance (Kathakali, Bharatanatyam and Kathak) and acting, she is an integrated performer according to the Natya tradition. Her most significant contribution has come in the area of preservation of traditional thumri, dadara, tappa, hori, chaiti, ghazals and allied forms of music.
She opened her vocal recital with a bandish ki thumri "Jiya nahin laage... " in raga Kirwani. With her passionate renderings of thumris like "Kiwaria kholo maharaja" she delineated the intricacies like bol banaav and pukaar of the Banaras gharana, while the Kaushik Dhwani "Tore bin Baalam... " showcased the nuances of the Punjab ang. She also offered a feast of ghazals like "Mere hamnafas... ." and "Door hain raahen... " soaked in the pathos of Bhairavi that were immortalised by Begum Akhtar. Ghulam Sabir on the sarangi, Rashid Mustafa on the tabla, Dildhad Khan on the harmonium gave her commendable support, while her disciple Sumita Datta assisted her on the tanpura.
Sweet voice
In association with the India International Centre, Vasant Rao Deshpande Pratishthan presented a Hindustani classical vocal recital by Uma Garg at the India International Centre auditorium. Initiated into vocal music by Prem Prakash Johri, Uma was further trained under Ustad Hafiz Ahmad Khan besides being groomed by Pandit Bhimsen Joshi and Pandit Mani Prasad of the Kirana gharana. Gifted with a sweet voice, Uma has also worked on its tunefulness. She opened her recital with raga Puria Kalyan, an evening melody, with the popular bada khayal, "Aaj so bana... " set to vilambit (slow) Ek tala, followed by a chhota khayal in Teen tala. A compound of ragas Puria and Kalyan, this raga requires its twin components understood and then blended into an integral whole. Uma's in-depth handling proved it well during her treatment of the raga from the systematic alap badhat to the intricate taans. She also sang a khayal in Jogkauns and a Thumri in Mishra Khamaj before concluding her recital with a Meera bhajan. Jayram Potdar on the harmonium and Durjay Bhaumik on the tabla gave her perfect accompaniment.
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