The annual Neelakanta Sivan Music Festival’s main attraction is undoubtedly the renowned Carnatic musicians who consider the stage as one of the finest platforms to perform. A discerning audience who appreciate the music keenly is also a key asset of the festival.
Malladi brothers
The concert by Malladi brothers, Ramprasad and Ravikumar was noted for their discipline in singing. A brief synopsis of Kaanada raga and the varnam tagged to it were bhava-laden. A brief sketch of lovely Atana raga was filled with mellifluous facets that instantly showcased the soothing nature of the scale. The Neelakanta Sivan kriti ‘Innamum irakkam’ was presented with phrases and swaras illustrating the elegance of Atana. Simhendra madhyamam was elaborated with classical touches that gave shape to the intrinsic subtleties of the scale. The raga’s creative aspects were replicated by Varadarajan during his brilliant exercise on the violin. The kriti ‘Pamarajana palini’ was adorned with aesthetic niraval and swaras. The main raga Kamboji was gracefully delineated and ‘Sriraghuvara’ contained commendable classical attributes of the scale. K. V. Prasad and Kottayam Unnikrishnan accompanied them creatively on the mridangam and the ghatam respectively.
Sandeep Narayan
He depicted each raga and kriti with intense feel during his concert. An extensive picture of Sahana preceded the composition ‘Rama ika nannu brova’, which was sung with clear diction. The breezy rendition of swara-studded ‘Palayasada’ in Nalinakanthi raga was well-received by the rasikas. A vivid picture of Keeravani raga unfolded during the ragam thanam pallavi, which, during the latter half, took a different route through ragas such as Varali, Suruti, Darbari kanada and Sankarabharanam. The singer was accompanied by Ananthakrishnan (violin), Arjun Ganesh (mridangam) and Udupi Srikanth (ganjira).
Ranganatha Sharma
Melody reigned during the concert by Ranganatha Sharma. ‘Senthil Vaazh’ in Hamirkalyani raga was fluently sung with some exceptionally melodious phrases and swaras. The Neelakanta Sivan composition ‘Sidhi arul sivasakthi’ in pleasing Natta raga and the popular ‘Akhilandeswari’ in mellow Dwijavanthi were sung with clear diction.
The singer did justice to the Neelakanta Sivan kritis ‘Karunai Puriyithu’ in Varali raga and ‘Orarumughane’ in Reethigowla. The Shankarabharanam raga, a part of ragam thanam pallavi was explored in depth by the vocalist. Avaneeswaram S.R. Vinu (violin) deftly extracted the pure classical texture of the scale and blended it together with its lighter melodic shades. Shravan Narayan gave vocal-support to the singer. Vallangaiman Thyagarajan (mridangam) and Tripunithura Radhakrishnan (ghatam) acccompanied.
Mysore brothers
The violin recital by the Mysore brothers, Manjunath and Nagaraj was a class apart. The veteran duo opened the concert with a sparkling varnam in Nattakurunji, which was well-received. A spellbinding portrayal of Shanmughapriya raga and the kriti ‘Marivere’ entranced the audience. Harikumar (mridangam) and Guruprasanna (ganjira) followed the duo’s notes meticulously, and kept pace with them on the rapid beats right till the end of the kriti. The Kharaharapriya raga visthara and the Neelakanta Sivan kriti that followed was yet another aural treat. The ragam thanam pallavi in Gangeyabhushani (33rd melakartha) that meandered through chromatic notes was an amazing feat. Perfect sync and understanding between Manjunath and Nagaraj resulted in an extraordinary raga elaboration, fantastic thanam and pallavi enriched with a special swara-section that travelled through many ragas. A terrific taniavarthanam by Harikumar and Guruprasanna was greeted with applause by the audience.
Ranjini and Gayathri
The concluding concert of the fete by Ranjini and Gayathri was memorable. The opening varnam ‘Vanajakshi’ in Kalyani was soaked in melody. The exquisite flow in the rendition was praiseworthy. The popular ‘Swaminatha paripalaya’ in Natta was painted with swaras that entertained the audience. Ranjini’s elaboration of Darbar raga was marvellous. The usage of specific glides embellished the kernel of the raga. The Tyagaraja kriti ‘Raama bhi’ unravelled the beautiful attributes of Darbar in the swara passages.
It was blissful to listen to Bilahari raga rendered by Gayathri in her exemplary visthara. The aesthetic flavour of the scale in the kriti ‘Sri Chamundeshwari’ was mixed diligently in the swaras.
Clarity and dynamics in the beats by Sai Giridhar on the mridangam and Guruprasanna on the ganjira resulted in a fabulous taniavarthnam. The ragam thanam pallavi was in Subhapanthuvarali. The raga and thanam were elaborated extensively by both the singers. Gayathri illustrated raga-shifts to Mohanam and Madhyamavathi, using sruthibhedam.
A perceptible change was brought by the transition in the swara-chain to ragas like Sama, Bindumalini, Kapi and Jog. Vittala Rangan gave excellent accompaniment to the team on the violin. The fete was held under the auspices of the Neelakanta Sivan Sangeetha Sabha Trust.
