Exploration through languid glides
LALITHAA KRISHNAN
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Narmada presented a well-structured violin concert.
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PARUR TRADITION: Narmada Gopalakrishnan. Photo: K. V. Srinivasan.
Torchbearer of the Parur style, Narmada Gopalakrishnan presented an enjoyable and well-structured violin solo concert. After a polished "Chalamela" (Nattakurinji varnam) rendered in two speeds, "Gananathaney" (Saranga) was garnished with speedy solfa passages while "Nee Irangaayenil" in Atana made a bold statement. The artiste drew attention to Tyagaraja's "Sobillu" (Jaganmohini) with an exciting round of swaraprastharas crowned with an elaborate korvai that invited spontaneous applause.
Saraswathi is not a raga one encounters often. Narmada cruised through, exploring deep with languid glides and imaginative phrases. Tyagaraja's "Anuraagamule" (Rupakam) laid stress on ragabhava as did the kizhkaala swaras.
A touch of the unexpected surfaced in the Muthaiah Bhagavatar composition "Saravanabhava" in Pasupathipriya. The main raga Karaharapriya was replete with emphatic gamakas and ornate imagery — the kalpanaswaras following Tyagaraja's "Pakkala Nilabadi" were interwoven with permutations that ventured on a brief excursion into gimmick land.
VASUMATHI BADRINATH Photo: R. Shivaji Rao.
"Adum Chidambaram" (Behag) and "Shanti Nilava" (Tilang) found instant favour with the listeners. The artiste's announcement of the ragas and explanations about the kritis went a long way in establishing audience rapport.
B. Sivaram and Trivandrum D. Rajagopal on the mridangam and kanjira were especially effective, both in their accompaniment and tani as the accent was on laya rather than on loudness.
The voice is heavy, powered by the force of the vocalist's natural gravitation towards the more weighty aspects of classicism. Vasumathi Badrinathan is an artiste who takes her music seriously. No breezy overtures or flights of fancy. Her selection of ragas Begada and Saveri suited her voice and approach to a T, although one felt the lack of sweetness in the lighter ragas like Bhimplas and Madhuvanthi. Veena Kuppaiyyar's "Inta Paraka" (Begada) and the kalpanaswaras with an attractive concluding porutham were handled tastefully. Curiously, Syama Shastri's "Ninnuvina Marigalada" customarily rendered in Ritigowla was sung in Bhimplas.
The exposition of Mandari was well within grammatical parameters. The voice suitably modulated in the upper octave, but could have made a better impression by the inclusion of strategically positioned korvais and jarus. "Ninu Jeppa Kaaranamemi" was ornamented with neraval and swaras.
In the central piece, Saveri, the artiste's genuine concern for bringing out the dignified mien of the raga was discernible from the outset. With admirable sruti alignment at the tara-sthayi shadja, Vasumathi developed the raga's musical content in the upper octave. The resulting essay would have carried more clout had equal attention been devoted to developing the bhava potential in the madhya sthayi, especially in the descending phase. Muthuswami Dikshitar's "Sri Rajagopala" was treated with due reverence.
The artiste was fortunate in her choice of accompanists as they went all out to enhance her presentation. Kandadevi S. Vijayaraghavan's raga essays in general, and Begada in particular, were marked by a rich tone and easy flow. He would however benefit from curbing his tendency to exaggerate. T.K. Ramakrishnan (mridangam) presented engaging laya permutations and along with N. Sundar (konnakkol) offered an excellent tani avartanam.
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