Strict adherence to standard
SVK
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The guidance of their training was evident in the songs rendered by the Bombay Sisters for the Fifty-Fifty Club.
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Photo: R. Shivaji Rao
Great patanthara: Bombay Sisters, C. Saroja and C. Lalitha.
Sound training in the early days and rigorous practice pay their dividends in the later years when age has its say. The power of communication may slacken, but concern for maintaining standard fetches its own rewards.
The reputation gained in the early years is the motivation to retain the approach. To some extent, presenting the same songs and ragas again and again over the years may create an impression of mechanical interpretation, but they still carry the core of their appeal, because that is the hallmark of the classic contents of the kirtanas and alapanas.
It is the duty of the gurus to teach their sishyas not to show disrespect to any of the songs of the great vaggeyakaras. So, even when the voice falters, the performance would certainly ensure satisfaction if not appreciative ecstasy.
Alapanas of Purvikalyani (‘Gnanamosagarada’) and Madhyamavati (‘Paalinchu Kamakshi’) formed the main thrust of the concert by Bombay Sisters Lalitha and Saroja for the Fifty-Fifty Club. Where duos sing, the tempo of a recital automatically gets a boost.
Their strength lay in preserving the structural compactness of the kirtanas. Strict adherence to sangati patterns in songs spoke of their solid endowment which made for the real dignity of Carnatic music. The two kirtanas were placed with vividness and consistency. The training they had undergone in this respect was to be seen all the time in the song session. ‘Sri Kumaralaya’ (Atana) and ‘Sri Rangapura Vihara’ (Brindavana Saranga) were the other two weighty songs in their list.
On conservative values
The alapanas of Purvikalyani and Madhyamavati were precisely on conservative values. Anchored in swara after swara, the ragas progressed to the higher octave on predictable lines which marked the basis of their creative process.
There was accompanying generosity in the way Usha Rajagopalan, the violinist, extended her support. She directly transferred her manodharma with harmony and balance in the delineation of the ragas.
Intensely vigorous, the raga pictures were slicing in musical expression, elaborated with sustained interest.
The mridangist, Madipakkam Suresh, provided a passionate presence. His accompanying competence rested on unleashing relentless beats. His thani with Madipakkam Murali (ghatam) was replete with frenzied percussive patterns.
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