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Pure, clear and bereft of frills

MSJ

Sowmya with her simple and impressive rendering of ragas made a profound impact on the listeners.

PROFOUND IMPACT: S. Sowmya. Photo: Shaju John.

S. Sowmya has inherited the style or bhani of Dr. S. Ramanathan who had a deceptively simple way of rendering kirthanas. The style, on the face of it, looks simple but the musical content makes a profound impact on the listeners.

Sowmya was accompanied by Nalina Mohan on the violin and Neyveli Narayanan on the mridangam. She brought out the beauty of raga Manirangu with ease and comfort, preserving the bhava without encroaching into Madyamavati or Shri. Harikambhoji was given a lengthier treatment, and its purity maintained. Sowmya's stance at Panchama and Dhaivata and the manner in which she handled the sancharis in Harikamboji around them were impressive. There was no unwanted brika and frill for the sake of adding quantity to the raga.

Dikshitar's `Mamava Pattabhirama' in Manirangu was dignity personified. Other pieces such as `Dinamanivamsha' in Harikamboji and `Srikantani' in Bhavapriya reflected Sowmya's good patantharam. .

Nalina Mohan on the violin lent good support. Her handling of the raga Bhavapriya, in particular, was praiseworthy. Narayanan's support on the mridangam, easy and non-intrusive, elevated the concert level.

S.M. Vilasini, a young promising vocalist, made an impact with her very first number, a Tamil varnam in Pantuvarali. The right mix of the fast, medium and slow sangathis in Shanmukhapriya was well conceived by the singer, who seemed to enjoy the nuances. Arunachala Kartik on the violin provided able support. Vilasini is a disciple of Raji Gopalakrishnan. She sang Dikshitar's `Shri Tyagarajaya Namasthe' in Begada with good kalapramanam, bringing out the bhava of the raga amply. A neat rendering of Kharaharapriya, associated with fine well structured prayogas, was followed by Tyagaraja's `Rama Ni Yada'. Vilasini sang `Bhavayami Gopalam' in Yamunakalyani with good aesthetic appeal associated with the Annamacharya piece.

The mridangam accompaniment by E. Krishna Prakash needs special mention for clarity of strokes. He followed the main artiste with enthusiasm.

Madurai T.N. Seshagopalan, TNS for short, is an artiste of rare genre and serves as a role model for young, aspiring musicians. He lived up to his reputation of being a total musician when he sang at Kartik Fine Arts. He was accompanied by veterans M. Chandrasekaran on the violin, Gurvayoor Dorai on the mridangam and A. S. Krishnan on the morsing.

The concert commenced with one of Tyagaraja's Pancharatna kritis, `Sadinchane O Manasa,' in Arabhi. TNS sang at a strikingly slow pace, improvising in the different prastharas.

The artiste then took up Chakravaham, drawing a beautiful picture of the raga in the classical mould. It bore the stamp of solid Carnatic elements — there was no diluting it with the lighter version of Ahirbhairav.

In the kriti, `Etula Brotuvo Teleya' of Tyagaraja set to Misra Chapu talam, TNS gave a new dimension to the swara rendering at `Ekantha Ramayya.' With Chandrasekaran joining in to capture some of the finer aesthetics in both raga and swara rendering, the audience was treated to some great music.

It was in Poorvikalyani that TNS exploited the beauty of the raga in all its majesty and grandeur. His voice has a tendency to suddenly go off key but when under control, the range it covers is amazing. Cascading avarohna brikas followed in rapid succession with clarity. Chandrasekaran with his best prayogas enthralled the listeners. On the whole it was a rich, wholesome musical fare.

Dorai was at his best both during the tani avartanam and while accompanying TNS. Krishnan's morsing lent a pleasing support.

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