Melody as the common thread

G. Swaminathan on the recitals showcased as part of the Chennai edition of Sangeet Sammelan concerts held recently.The 2016 edition of Akashvani Sangeeth Sammelan of Prasar Bharati held recently at AIR’s multi-track auditorium in Chennai, featured the two major streams of classical music - Hindustani and Carnatic with a laya vinyasa interlude. The programme was inaugurated by violin maestro T.N. Krishnan.

Sundri is a double reed wind instrument with a strong semblance to shehnai but smaller in size. The artist was Pt. Suryakant Khaladkar from Pune supported by Sanjay Apar (Aurangabad) on the tabla and Saratkumar Khaladkar and Dinesh Maulikar on Sundri.The major presentation was a detailed portrayal of Maru Behag in vilambit, madyama and dhurit sections through raag and a bandish set to ek taal. The vilambit passage rested on lingering phrases with stress on melody. Though the raag reflected a plaintive mood in the slow pulse, it turned quite vivacious in madyama and dhurit kaal. The swirls and eddies special to wind instruments made their presence at the appropriate junctures to make the raag shine.

The second piece was in Saraswati with a bandish in teen taal. The short prologue and the brisk bandish showed the beauty of Saraswati in a different light exclusive to Hindustani. Pt. Suryakant Khaladekar signed off his recital with a fast and colourful ‘dhun’ in Misra Khamaj. His accompanists participated with dedication while Sanjay Apar’s beats were soft and subtle to suit the moods of the raags.‘Laya Vinyasa’ by thavil exponent K.G. Kalyanasundaram from Tiruchi bristled with energy. The heavy duty instrument created a wonderful package of strong, sharp beats to complement the supple, slight and slow patterns of rhythm keeping the audience fully engrossed for nearly 30 minutes. The laya was in misra chapu to a pallavi in Kalyani played by Kovilur K.G. Somanathan on the nagaswaram who initiated the laya vinyasa. The time keeper was Sembanarkoil Jothi Natarajan.

The finale was a vocal recital by up-and-coming young singer Vishnudev Namboothiri of Thrissur. With an impressive resonant voice, Vishnudev essayed Nattakurinji for Tyagaraja’s ‘Manasu Vishaya.’ The vocalist exploited the unique charm of Nattakurinji with several fascinating phrases in the madyama regions and through comfortable trajectories in the upper registers. His swarakalpana, centred on madyamam, showcased the depth of his imagination and arithmetical acumen.

Vishnudev shared a dynamic Pantuvarali with an alapana linked to ‘Sankari Ninne Ika Jala’ by Mysore Vasudevachar. The exposition and extrapolation on ‘Pankajakshi Neethu Mahima’ with swara sallies were promising. Vishnudev Namboothiri began his concert with Swati Tirunal’s Navarasakannada kriti ‘Vandhe Sada Padmanabham’ and concluded with Lalgudi Jayaraman’s Mohanakalyani thillana.

N. Sampath from Thrissur on the violin matched the vocalist’s vision in ragas and swaras with ingenuity. N.C. Bharadwaj on the mridangam and Udipi S. Srikanth of Thiruvananthapuram on the ganjira added pep to the proceedings with their agile percussion beats.The Akashvani Sangeet Sammelan Concerts broadcast will commence on October 22 . The programmes discussed here will be aired on November 14 (10 p.m.), October 23 (10 p.m.) and October 23 (9.30 p.m.) respectively in Chennai A and FM Gold-National Hook-up.

Forwarded By: Jainender Nigam,PB NewsDesk ,prasarbharati.newsdesk@gmail.com