By Dr. Padmavathi Narasimhan

On the tenth and last day of the Ramothsava music series on Apr. 8, Vid. Ramakrishnan Murthy from Chennai performed with Vid. H.N. Bhaskar on violin and Vid. Guruprasanna on kanjira.

Deeply rooted in classical vocabulary, Ramakrishnan’s concert, right from the opening ‘Chalamela jese’ varna in Shankarabharana set to atta tala in two speeds and ‘Rama Ika Nannu Brova raada Dayaleda’ in shahana (Patnam Subramanya Iyer) with kalpana swaras were absorbing. Endowed with a pliable voice, his flaunting of vocal opulence in Latangi (‘Aparadhamulanu’) and Kapi for the kriti ‘Inta Soukhyamani ne’ with niraval and kalpanaswaras infused resonance in the presentations.

Ramakrishnan surprised the listeners with the javali ‘Matadabaradeno’ (Narahari Dasa)in the middle of the concert, which was a bit disappointing as what was expected was a kriti like ‘Seetapate’ after the alapane of Kamas (Javalis are usually sung as the end pieces in a concert). Niraval at ‘Swara Raga Laya Sudha rasa’ for ‘Inta Soukhyamani’ was unforgettable for its lyrical fervour.  The swarakalpana he presented was unique in its structure. The other attraction of the evening was the RTP in Mohanakalyani. The artiste explored the various possibilities of the raga in his unusual and extraordinary alapane and tanam. Ramkrishnan’s masculine voice traversed through the three octaves creating grandeur. The sahitya of the pallavi was ‘Dasharatha Bala Ramachandrayya Mam Pahi’, set to Trishra TriputaTala. The niraval and swaras sung in ragamalike in Thodi, Natakuranji and Darbari Kanada was highly impressive with the artiste moving easily from one raga to another, also presenting the pallavi in different kalas. Seasoned mridangist Delhi Sairam elevated the concert to notable heights throughout and also in taniyavartanam with Guruprasanna’s kanjira.

Violin accompaniment necessitates tempering one’s own urges, concentrating on the other artistes and going with their flow, not one’s own. Bhaskar is one such accompanist who understands this role superlatively and rises to the occasion. Bhaskar’s playing was not only supportive but enhanced and embellished the main artiste.

The concluding part of the concert included ‘Sapashya Kausalya Sapashya’ in Jonpuri and a shloka on Lord Rama ‘Vaidehi sahitam Suradrumatale’ in ragamalike leading onto the Tamil Composition ‘Ramanai Taruvai Jagadrakshaka’ and the tillana ‘nrnrgmgrs’ in Purvi.

The Ramothsava series concluded with this concert. Each of the concerts had something new to offer, new ideas in presenting Raga Tana Pallavi, all of which is most beneficial to the students of music. Dr. Sriram and his team must be lauded for their sincere and hard efforts in the more-than-ten-day event.