Concert of a different kind
The music programme organised by the Ananya on Saturday on the occasion of Kannada Rajyotsava, was not just another programme, but a concert with a difference - a blend of Kannada lyrics with melody.
Three young musicians - Balasubramanya Sharma, Pavan Rangachar and Ramya Vasist - joined together to present a concert through the Kannada lyrics, from Pampa to Padmacharan, where Kannada dominated. Kannada language, literature and culture was presented through the lyrics of different poets, vachanakaras, haridasas and modern poets of 20th century - which can be called 'Lalitha Sangeetha' aptly.
The trio opened their programme with few lines of Pampa in the form of Gamaka, followed by the lyrics of Kumara Vyasa. "Kannada Jaanapada" (folklore) is also very rich with vibrating tunes and rhythm. Out of them few padas like "Bandeva Nimma Charanakka" brought variety and colour to the programme. To mark the significant contributions of Shivasharanas, few vachanas of Allama Prabhu (Nene Endodaiah) and Basavanna (Neerige Naidile Shringara) and Akkamahadevi (Akka Kelavva Nanonda Kanasa Kande) were presented. To highlight the Haridasas' contribution, Devaranamas of Sripadaraja (Baro Namma Manege), Vyasaraya (Krishna Nee Begane Baro), Kanakadasa (Yadava Raya Brindavanadolu), Raghavendra Swamy (Indu Enage), Prasanna Venkata Dasaru (Dada Seriso Bhavada) and Vijayaja Dasaru (Sada Enna Hridayadalli) were rendered though they could have selected at least one pada of a woman Haridasaru.
Then they jumped to the poets of 20th century. To open with lyrics of B M Sri (Karunaalu Ba Belake), was the right choice, followed by D V G (Mankuthimmana Kagga), Kuvempu (Anandamaya) and D R Bendre (Naaku Tanthi). A programme of this magnitude requires good amount of preparation and rehearsals.
Thus, efforts of the trio is commendable, though with some more editing the programme can become much more impactful. Seasoned instrumentalists - Jayaram (flute), Pradeshachar (violin), Gurumurthy (mridanga), Gurumurthy Vaidya (tabla) and Prasanna Kumar (rhythm pad) - shared the honours with the vocalists.
Not wholesome
Nadasurabhi, a leading sangeetha sabha of Bengaluru, conducts music concerts every month, apart from special programmes like 'Karnataka Vaibhava,' Aradhana of Purandara Dasa and Tyagaraja, lecture demonstrations and music courses on specialised topics. It's special initiative "Take Music to Schools" is also well appreciated.
In the annual music festival, they confer the title "Sangeetha Surabhi" on a senior musician every year and this year veteran musician Dr T V Gopalakrishnan received the title. There were seven music concerts in the 23rd annual music festival, held last week. Ramakrishna Murthy is a young vocalist, who has come to limelight very quickly, with his talent and good presentation. In his concert for Naada Surabhi on Wednesday, as usual his choice of raga and compositions were good enough to please the connoisseurs, unfolding the tested melody. Bhegade, Ranjini ragas were convincingly rendered and Todi was the main item of the evening. Seasoned connoisseurs felt Todi - the main item of the evening, was not wholesome, as his voice was not at its best - especially in the "Thara Sthayee".
However, "Mathada Baradeno", the legendary composition and the raga Mayamalavagowla caught the attention. When music lovers were expecting some more, the concert ended all of a sudden. But Charulatha Ramanujan on violin and M C Bharadwaj on mridanga gave good support on their respective instruments.
The music programme organised by the Ananya on Saturday on the occasion of Kannada Rajyotsava, was not just another programme, but a concert with a difference - a blend of Kannada lyrics with melody.
Three young musicians - Balasubramanya Sharma, Pavan Rangachar and Ramya Vasist - joined together to present a concert through the Kannada lyrics, from Pampa to Padmacharan, where Kannada dominated. Kannada language, literature and culture was presented through the lyrics of different poets, vachanakaras, haridasas and modern poets of 20th century - which can be called 'Lalitha Sangeetha' aptly.
The trio opened their programme with few lines of Pampa in the form of Gamaka, followed by the lyrics of Kumara Vyasa. "Kannada Jaanapada" (folklore) is also very rich with vibrating tunes and rhythm. Out of them few padas like "Bandeva Nimma Charanakka" brought variety and colour to the programme. To mark the significant contributions of Shivasharanas, few vachanas of Allama Prabhu (Nene Endodaiah) and Basavanna (Neerige Naidile Shringara) and Akkamahadevi (Akka Kelavva Nanonda Kanasa Kande) were presented. To highlight the Haridasas' contribution, Devaranamas of Sripadaraja (Baro Namma Manege), Vyasaraya (Krishna Nee Begane Baro), Kanakadasa (Yadava Raya Brindavanadolu), Raghavendra Swamy (Indu Enage), Prasanna Venkata Dasaru (Dada Seriso Bhavada) and Vijayaja Dasaru (Sada Enna Hridayadalli) were rendered though they could have selected at least one pada of a woman Haridasaru.
Then they jumped to the poets of 20th century. To open with lyrics of B M Sri (Karunaalu Ba Belake), was the right choice, followed by D V G (Mankuthimmana Kagga), Kuvempu (Anandamaya) and D R Bendre (Naaku Tanthi). A programme of this magnitude requires good amount of preparation and rehearsals.
Thus, efforts of the trio is commendable, though with some more editing the programme can become much more impactful. Seasoned instrumentalists - Jayaram (flute), Pradeshachar (violin), Gurumurthy (mridanga), Gurumurthy Vaidya (tabla) and Prasanna Kumar (rhythm pad) - shared the honours with the vocalists.
Not wholesome
Nadasurabhi, a leading sangeetha sabha of Bengaluru, conducts music concerts every month, apart from special programmes like 'Karnataka Vaibhava,' Aradhana of Purandara Dasa and Tyagaraja, lecture demonstrations and music courses on specialised topics. It's special initiative "Take Music to Schools" is also well appreciated.
In the annual music festival, they confer the title "Sangeetha Surabhi" on a senior musician every year and this year veteran musician Dr T V Gopalakrishnan received the title. There were seven music concerts in the 23rd annual music festival, held last week. Ramakrishna Murthy is a young vocalist, who has come to limelight very quickly, with his talent and good presentation. In his concert for Naada Surabhi on Wednesday, as usual his choice of raga and compositions were good enough to please the connoisseurs, unfolding the tested melody. Bhegade, Ranjini ragas were convincingly rendered and Todi was the main item of the evening. Seasoned connoisseurs felt Todi - the main item of the evening, was not wholesome, as his voice was not at its best - especially in the "Thara Sthayee".
However, "Mathada Baradeno", the legendary composition and the raga Mayamalavagowla caught the attention. When music lovers were expecting some more, the concert ended all of a sudden. But Charulatha Ramanujan on violin and M C Bharadwaj on mridanga gave good support on their respective instruments.