Informal, in form
JITENDRA PRATAP
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Ardhendu Sekhar Bandyopadhyay recently gave a mellifluous vocal concert that reflected his intense training.
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TUNEFUL Ardhendu Sekhar Bandyopadhyay
It is rather unusual for a serious minded Hindustani classical vocalist to commence his recital in a casual manner by rendering a chhota khayal, and that too in a hybrid raga. But that is what Ardhendu Sekhar Bandyopadhyay did the other day at his recital in the HCL Concert Series in New Delhi, when he chose to start his concert with raga Charukesi.
The raga Charukesi is one of the principal ragas in the Carnatic music system's 72 melakartas. It has a definite format and specific inter-relation between some of its notes. However, the manner in which most of the Carnatic ragas are handled by the Hindustani musicians, they acquire a hybrid format, since more stress is given merely to the scales of the ragas and not much attention is paid to their specific format and movements. Under such circumstances, Ardhendu's rendering of the chhota khayal in the Carnatic Charukesi set to mid tempo Teen tala, "Kaise Kate Ab Din Raien Sajani", pleased only in parts.
It should be pointed out that Ardhendu, who started his training under N.K. Nath when only seven, and later trained under Ajit Das, has a sterling record. He holds first class degrees from Bhatkhande University, Lucknow (Sangeet Visharad), and Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata (M.A. Music). He has also received training from the late Pandit A.T. Kanan of the Kirana gharana.
Ardhendu did make up for his unconvincing start with his mellifluous performance of the next raga, the rich and colourful melody of raga Bageshwari. The slow tempo 12-beat Ek tala composition "Pi Man Laagey Naa" was redolent with scores of hauntingly released variations in alap, badhat, behelawa, sargams and bole-taans. He was equally fluent with a good number of bold and powerful variations and scores of powerful gamakas. The fast tempo 16-beat Teen tala composition "Nayee Nayee Tori Laagi" was a delightful follow-up in the same raga with variations that were colourful and lilting.
The slow 12-beat Ek tala composition in good old raga Kafi, "Piya to Maanat Naahi", was a very welcome piece of music laced with scores of enchantingly released melodic sequences.
It is no wonder that in his performances in India and abroad, Ardhendu, who has been both a performer and a visiting professor in Germany and Holland, has been received with accolades.
Ardhendu concluded with a soulful rendering of guru vandana in raga Bhairavi.
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