RAAGA Music Academy, Mysuru, a young and dynamic Music Sabha, celebrated its third anniversary with a grand musical ensemble ‘Swara Raaga Sudha’ by Sangeetha Vidyanidhi Vid. Dr. Vidyabhushana, accompanied  by  Vid. H.L. Shivashankaraswamy and troupe. This was also its 51st monthly music concert, which was held on Saturday, 19th instant at Mysuru Vasudevacharya Bhavana. The auditorium which was overflowing with music aficionados and ardent admirers of Dr. Vidyabhushana, was a testimony to the popularity of the artistes and the way the programme was conceived.

Dr. Poornima Krishnamurthy, Director of Prajna Kuteera Ayurveda Centre, Abhijna International Academy of Ayurveda & Yoga and the Managing Trustee of RAAGA Music Academy, commenced the programme with a brief introduction.

Dr. Vidyabhushana is one of the most renowned musicians having a huge fan following. He is credited with bringing out umpteen number of Haridasa compositions to the fore, through numerous albums and live concerts. However, this concert was one of its kind, as an ensemble of eight instrumentalists led by Vid. H.L. Shivashankaraswamy, Founder of Laya Vidya Pratishtana, Mysuru, created a palpable atmosphere. Dr. Roopashree Madhusudan, a Dancer and Choreographer who compered the programme, was brilliant.

The concert started with an invocation of Lord Ganesha, through a very popular composition ‘Nammamma Sharade’ of Sri Kanakadasaru. The following composition, ‘Dhavala Gange’ was filled with energy and the interludes of ‘Om Namah Shivaaya’ transposed the audience to the divine world. The audience kept their feet tapping and fingers snapping for every composition and it was unprecedented to see them dance in front of the stage, to ‘Kolu Kolanna Kole.’

The rendition of ‘Tunga Teera Viraajam’ a composition on Guru Raghavendra Swami brought tears in the eyes of most of the listeners. The composition on Lord Dhanvantri ‘Aava Rogavo Enage’ by Sri Gopala Dasaru was befitting for an Ayurveda Centre. The rest of the evening was filled with very popular compositions including ‘Pillangoviya’, ‘Kandena Govindana’, ‘Krishna Krupe Maado’ and so on. The auditorium was filled beyond capacity till the very end of the concert. Each of the over twenty compositions rendered was very well received with enthusiastic applause and the audience were immersed in transcendental bliss for the whole evening.

The ensemble of eight instrumentalists led by H.L. Shivashankaraswamy included C.N. Thyagarajan on Violin, Sameer Rao on Flute, H.P. Srinivasan on Sitar, Sangeet Thomas on Keyboard, H.L. Shivashankaraswamy on Mridanga, Raghunandan Rao on Ghata, S. Nagaraju on Tabla and Ananthakrishna Swamy on Rhythmpad.

The challenges are many for an artiste, the most important being, striking a fine balance between what he/she wants to convey and what the audience enjoy. It calls for sonic perspective, understanding voice dynamics, delving deep into one’s system and so on. This style of singing entails a certain amount of synch and structuring. On stage, both the vocalist and the instrumentalists caught on each other’s vibe to perfection. On the whole, it was a wholesome experience for both the artistes and the rasikas. RAAGA deserves all praise for organising such a captivating concert which reached out not just to the connoisseurs of Karnatak music, but, to those who enjoy devotional music as well.

Grand Veena concert on Sept. 16

RAAGA is organising a Grand Veena concert by renowned musician Vidu. Bhagyalakshmi Chandrashekar on Sept. 16 at 5 pm as part of Sri Krishna Jayanti celebrations. For details, contact RAAGA on Mob: 82777-33410.