A colourful portrait of ragas by Sikkil Gurucharan
2 years ago

A colourful portrait of ragas by Sikkil Gurucharan

The Hindu  

Smart choice of ragas and kritis, careful distribution of time, keeping the raga treatises and swarakalpana under control and avoiding over indulgence — all these contribute to the success of a concert. With his vocal cords in fine form, Gurucharan opened the performance with the ghana raga Adi tala varnam, ‘Chalamela jesevura’ by Vinjamoori Varadaraja Iyengar. The raga’s splendour could be further felt in his rendition of Syama Sastri’s ‘Nannu brovu lalitha’. A surprise addition of Bharathidasan’s ‘Vennilavum vaanum pola’ in raga Jayanthasena, set to music by M.M. L. Ramakrishnan’s intelligent and innovative responses in the Lalitha and Shanmukhapriya raga essays and swara sallies drew as much appreciation and applause as the vocalist’s renditions.

Swara Raga Gurucharan Ragas Lalitha Shanmukhapriya  gurucharan  raga  swarakalpana  shanmukhapriya  set  swaras  swara  ragas  concert  portrait  lalitha  colourful  sikkil

History of this topic

Ashwath Narayanan presents a classy Kamboji at The Music Academy’s December music festival
6 days ago

Ashwath Narayanan presents a classy Kamboji at The Music Academy’s December music festival

The Hindu  

Ashwath Narayanan is a musician with impeccable tutelage, good voice range and dynamics and respect for tradition. The kriti is a masterpiece in Khanda Chapu and Ashwath’s patantara allegiance took the concert to a good high. ‘Jambupathe’ was a good idea to stoke in some serenity, but the execution skipped the emotive weight and the vilamba kala mastery Dikshitar presents …

The appeal of a tune and its ability to cross genres
1 week ago

The appeal of a tune and its ability to cross genres

The Hindu  

The first lec-dem of Day 2, titled ‘Encapsulating a Raga: Varnamettu’, was presented by Sangita Kala Acharya Ritha Rajan. She illustrated how traditional folk tunes naturally evolved into art music, citing examples like ‘Villnai otta’ and ‘Valli Kannavan’, with recorded clips of renditions by V.V. She demonstrated its adaptability with examples from other genres, such as ‘Vatapi Ganapathim’ in Hamsadhwani, …

A. Kanyakumari and Vittal Rangan presented a delightful string theory
1 week ago

A. Kanyakumari and Vittal Rangan presented a delightful string theory

The Hindu  

On a rainy evening, there was a downpour of melody as violin vidushi A. Kanyakumari and her disciple B. Vittal Rangan, drenched rasikas in their nuanced and aesthetic music. In perfect sync, the guru-sishya duo commenced the concert, for Kartik Fine Arts, evoking bhakti rasa with ‘Karimukha varadha’, a GNB composition in raga Nattai. This was followed by an alapana …

How artiste couple Indira and Ramprasad lent a distinct touch to Natyarangam’s Parampara series
1 month ago

How artiste couple Indira and Ramprasad lent a distinct touch to Natyarangam’s Parampara series

The Hindu  

The relationship between the two main facets of Bharatanatyam — sangeetham and natyam — and the possibilities that can emerge from it form the core idea behind the series ‘Parampara’, an initiative by the Nrithyopasana Trust and Natyarangam. Energetic performance Indira’s dance was marked by high energy and clarity of movements during theermanams, while her ability to convey varied shades …

Kartik Fine Arts Expands Cultural Reach to Chennai Suburbs
2 months ago

Kartik Fine Arts Expands Cultural Reach to Chennai Suburbs

The Hindu  

Kartik Fine Arts expands its cultural activities to Chennai's suburbs. The sabha has launched an outreach effort to reach out to rasikas in the suburbs, featuring a Carnatic vocal recital by K. Gayatri. The inaugural event was held in collaboration with Babaji Vidhyashram, Sholinganallur, and featured a diverse lineup of performances. The concert showcased the talents of renowned artists from …

How changing seasons can be portrayed through dance
3 months, 3 weeks ago

How changing seasons can be portrayed through dance

The Hindu  

Every year Natyarangam, the dance wing of Narada Gana Sabha, brings together artistes and scholars for its annual thematic festival. Rama Vaidyanathan’s Vasantha Rithu The festival began with senior Bharatanatyam dancer Rama Vaidyanathan heralding the Spring. Apoorva Jayaraman’s Grishma Rithu It was time to move on to the next season — Summer, as Apoorva Jayaraman presented ‘Grishma Rithu‘. Unlike the …

Spirit of Youth: A music series dedicated to promoting young Carnatic musicians
4 months, 1 week ago

Spirit of Youth: A music series dedicated to promoting young Carnatic musicians

The Hindu  

For aspiring young musicians, every concert opportunity is an acid test. In a pleasant irony, the charm of the old school music came as a whiff of fresh air in Dhanush Anantharaman’s vocal recital, which began with Tyagaraja’s ‘Tulasee dalamulache’ in Mayamalavagowla. After a tidy raga essay of Kalyani, Supriya flowed seamlessly into Patnam Subramania Iyer’s ‘Nijadasa varada’, where the …

Rishabh Kaushik’s vocal concert was a showcase of talent
5 months ago

Rishabh Kaushik’s vocal concert was a showcase of talent

The Hindu  

What stood out in Rishabh Kaushik’s Nadhasangam concert for Narada Gana Sabha held at its Mini Hall recently was his diligence. After a crisp raga alapana of Vachaspathi, Rishabh presented Papanasam Sivan’s ‘Paraathpara Parameswara’. Oothukadu Venkata Kavi’s poignant Ritigowla song ‘Enna punniyam seidaeno’ in Misra Chapu was followed by the main kriti ‘Kaligiyuntegada’ by Tyagaraja. While the concert underlined Rishabh’s …

The timeless appeal of the traditional Bharatanatyam repertoire
5 months, 2 weeks ago

The timeless appeal of the traditional Bharatanatyam repertoire

The Hindu  

“It is not just the past six months of rehearsals, but many years of rigorous training I received from my guru in my early years, which has given me the strength and stamina to present the margam today “ said Nithyakalyani Vaidyanathan at the start of her Poorna Margam for Natyarangam at Narada Gana Sabha mini hall. K. N. Dhandayuthapani …

Every ragam carries a certain emotion says Ranjani Sivakumar
6 months, 2 weeks ago

Every ragam carries a certain emotion says Ranjani Sivakumar

New Indian Express  

Smara Sada Manasa in Bilahari ragam, a composition by Swathi Thirunal, captivated the audience with its enchanting sangathis and tunes. Smarasada Manasa means ‘always remember, oh my heart,’” shared Ranjani, praising the lyrics. “Having the audience as passive listeners is one way, but building small bridges of interaction goes a long way,” Ranjani exclaimed. When asked about the trajectory of …

Mime and movement blended seamlessly in Chaitra Rao’s performance
7 months, 1 week ago

Mime and movement blended seamlessly in Chaitra Rao’s performance

The Hindu  

It was a performance where melody and movement complemented each other to make up an evening high on aesthetics. From that moment, through the hour-long show, Chaitra Rao’s ability to communicate ideas and feelings with her abhinaya, which seamlessly intertwined with Rohith Bhat’s bhava-soaked singing, sustained audience interest. Chaitra began her performance for Natyarangam’s monthly series at Narada Gana Sabha’s …

Content-filled feast for theatre buffs
7 months, 1 week ago

Content-filled feast for theatre buffs

New Indian Express  

While the characters in most of the plays seemed to be written for the actors playing them, the script of a few like Prananathan strayed from the plot. Vignesh, who played the protagonist of the play, said the inspiration stemmed from the title that his grandfather Koothapiran came up with in his popular narrations for children in All India Radio. …

N.J. Nandini showed why song selection matters too
11 months, 3 weeks ago

N.J. Nandini showed why song selection matters too

The Hindu  

Trivandrum N.J. Nandini presented a well-planned two-hour recital at The Music Academy. Beginning with Ambujam Krishna’s ‘Iniyaagilum ninai’ in Purvikalyani, Nandini consistently demonstrated clarity in sangatis in all the pieces she performed. Even her selection of phrase for swarakalpana in Tyagaraja’s ‘Samajavaragamana’ proved to be engaging – she centred her swaras on the phrase ‘Murali vaadana’ in the charanam landing …

Sikkil Gurucharan Reinvents Genre and Style
1 year ago

Sikkil Gurucharan Reinvents Genre and Style

Deccan Chronicle  

HYDERABAD: It is amazing to find top grade Carnatic musicians being brilliant academicians too. Add to the list the scholar musician Sikkil Gurucharan, the grandson of flautist Sikkil Kunjumani. In the final moments of the rendition nāto mātlādammā was such an ethos filled presentation that it could well have tempted Māyammā to respond. In contrast to a tendency to reduce …

Ashwath Narayanan, Krishna Excel with Virtuoso Renditions
1 year, 4 months ago

Ashwath Narayanan, Krishna Excel with Virtuoso Renditions

Deccan Chronicle  

A stellar performance by Ashwath Narayanan drew wholesome applause from followers of Carnatic music and brought the curtains down on the mid-season festival of Kalasagaram. Ashwath Narayanan’s rendition exemplified how being under the tutelage of a good guru and patanthara can pay dividends. A special mention has to be made about K. V. Krishna’s mesmerising raga alapana, which were in …

C.V.P. Sastry’s concert brought forth Balamuralikrishna’s ability to challenge dominant narratives with his compositions
1 year, 5 months ago

C.V.P. Sastry’s concert brought forth Balamuralikrishna’s ability to challenge dominant narratives with his compositions

The Hindu  

On the occasion of vidwan M. Balamuralikrishna’s 93rd birth anniversary, Sarvani Sangeetha Sabha organised a concert by Chivukula Venkata Pery Sastry. Sastry and Krishna presented a neat delineation of the raga in their alapana preceding the kriti ‘Mahaneeya madhura murte’. ‘Nee daya rada’, another composition by Balamuralikrishna, set to Adi tala, was energetically rendered with niraval and kalpanaswaras at the …

Two senior disciples bring alive T.M. Thyagarajan’s musical style in their tribute concert
1 year, 5 months ago

Two senior disciples bring alive T.M. Thyagarajan’s musical style in their tribute concert

The Hindu  

Considered a ‘Musician’s Musician’, T.M. On his birth centenary year, as we discuss the many traits of his art and personality, Hamsadhwani recently organised a tribute concert featuring his two prime disciples — Lakshmi Rangarajan and Subhashini Parthasarathy. Every composition presented by the duo, from the opening varnam ‘Vinayaka charanam’ in raga Kalyanavasantham to the closing Thiruppugazh, was presented meticulously …

A well-structured concert by Prema Rangarajan
1 year, 8 months ago

A well-structured concert by Prema Rangarajan

The Hindu  

Veteran vocalist Prema Rangarajan presented an erudite vocal recital as part of the Muthuswami Dikshitar Jayanthi celebrations, held under the aegis of Saraswathi Vaggeyakkara Trust at Narada Gana Sabha Mini Hall. ‘Gana raajena rakshitoham’ in Arabhi followed by the popular kriti ‘Swaminatha paripalaya asumam’ in Nattai with a niraval and swara adjunct at ‘Vaamadeva parvati’ set the tone for the …

Rithvik Raja’s concert: An experiment that worked in parts
1 year, 11 months ago

Rithvik Raja’s concert: An experiment that worked in parts

The Hindu  

Rithvik Raja concluded his two-hour vocal concert with Gopalakrishna Bharati’s ‘Eppo varuvaro’ in Jhonpuri. I was reminded of the elaborate raga exposition of Bhairavi followed by tanam for the Ata tala varnam, ‘Viriboni’, presented by Rithvik’s mentor at a December Season concert a few years ago. Before this, there were smartly-framed swara sallies centred on dhaivatam that added lustre to …

Prasanna Venkatraman’s alapanas stood out for their traditional interpretations
1 year, 11 months ago

Prasanna Venkatraman’s alapanas stood out for their traditional interpretations

The Hindu  

Prasanna Venkatraman’s concert at Madhuradhwani was distinguished by neat presentation and perfect diction. Warming up with a less heard Kanada varnam ‘Ninne kori’ in Adi talam by Tiruvottiyur Thyagayyar, Prasanna launched into ‘Anudinamunu kavumayya’, the Begada kriti by Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar. Prasanna’s raga alapanas stood out for their traditional interpretations and his elaborate delineation of three ragas competed for main …

Aditya Prakash: A voice with enough promise
1 year, 11 months ago

Aditya Prakash: A voice with enough promise

The Hindu  

In his concert, Aditya Prakash brought his grounding in Carnatic music to the fore despite being a part of international musical projects. Sowkhya bhava that reigned supreme during his rendition of ‘Swara raga sudha’, continued during the swarakalpana too. ‘Sogasu juda tarama’ set the mood for Aditya’s Varali raga exploration, followed by the violinist’s equally impressive interpretation. The niraval/swaras at …

Sanjay Subrahmanyan’s rendition of raga Desh left his rasikas in thrall
1 year, 11 months ago

Sanjay Subrahmanyan’s rendition of raga Desh left his rasikas in thrall

The Hindu  

Sanjay Subrahmanyan’s concert was a blend of traditional music and striking creativity, with special emphasis on Tamil compositions. Koteeswara Iyer’s ‘Nada nilai kanduruga’ in Gayakapriya came as a filler, paving the path for the detailing of raga Natabhairavi. A breezy Bhadrachala Ramadas keerthana ‘Nanu brovamani cheppave’ in raga Yamuna Kalyani came as a prelude to the main piece. On the …

Neyveli Santhanagopalan’s poignant rendition
1 year, 11 months ago

Neyveli Santhanagopalan’s poignant rendition

The Hindu  

Neyveli Santhanagopalan, who was greeted with thunderous applause as the curtains went up at his morning concert, treated listeners to a performance packed with aesthetic, emotional and musical elements. The niraval/swaras were at, ‘Tyagaraja nutudu sri ramuni tatvamu.’ This section bristled with colourful phrases. After a beautiful Begada alapana, Santhanagopalan rendered ‘Lokavana chatura’. In the RTP in Surutti, the vocalist …

Karaikudi Mani’s Nandhikeswara Utsav brought together sruthi and laya
2 years ago

Karaikudi Mani’s Nandhikeswara Utsav brought together sruthi and laya

The Hindu  

With a focus on bringing music and rhythm together on a single grandstand, mridangam maestro Karaikudi Mani celebrates Nandhikeswara Utsav in various venues. In this year’s Winter Music Festival, hosted by Sruthilaya Kendra, he brought together well-known artistes to perform compositions that are embellished with swaras in intricate laya patterns. A team of singers, violinists and percussionists rendered a set …

Charulatha Chandrasekar began her Naadhabrahmam concert on a promising note
2 years ago

Charulatha Chandrasekar began her Naadhabrahmam concert on a promising note

The Hindu  

Charulatha Chandrasekar’s veena recital in Naadhabrahmam’s 21st year concert series established that musical expertise is independent of age. Gopalakrishna Bharati’s fast moving ‘Sababathikku veru deivam’ in Abhogi, with brisk swarakalpana, was followed by a precise and sober raga essay of Sahana for Tyagaraja’s ‘E vasudha nivanti daivamu’. Here too, Charulatha embellished the kriti with swaras at ‘Dasa varada tyagaraja hrudaya.’ …

Krishna impresses with his presentation of kritis and raga essays
2 years ago

Krishna impresses with his presentation of kritis and raga essays

The Hindu  

Krishna offered a sumptuous fare keeping intact all the necessary classical elements in his kutcheri. A fleeting touch of Darbar led to Tyagaraja’s ‘Yochana kamala’ with a catchy chittaswaram and a precise swara sequence. Subbaraya Sastri’s Yadukula Kamboji oeuvre ‘Ninnu sevinchina’ came as a smooth interlude with its classically structured chittaswaram and sahityam. Krishna’s raga essay was quite expressive with …

D.B. Ashvin’s concert was replete with rakti ragas
2 years, 4 months ago

D.B. Ashvin’s concert was replete with rakti ragas

The Hindu  

Legacy has its advantages, but it also means constantly living up to expectations. Ashvin’s accent on the emotive quotient could be felt in his niraval at ‘Yat gopi vadanendu’, and the raga’s vibrancy were highlighted in the subsequent swarakalpana passages. Elaborate raga essay Ashvin’s exhaustive exposition of Kedaragowla, presented later in the concert, needs special mention. Ashvin selected ‘Tulasi bilva’ …

Vaani Lakshmi Varma’s impressive debut performance in Chennai
2 years, 5 months ago

Vaani Lakshmi Varma’s impressive debut performance in Chennai

The Hindu  

Ganapathy, the remover of all hurdles, is worshipped at the start of an event. Vaani Lakshmi Varma too began her performance at the Kalakshetra auditorium with a shloka in praise of Ganapathy, before moving on to Alarippu in Tisra Eka talam. The basic elements of the dance form — perfect araimandi posture and symmetry in hand movements and footwork, which …

Aditya Madhavan’s raga essays were steeped in manodharma
2 years, 5 months ago

Aditya Madhavan’s raga essays were steeped in manodharma

The Hindu  

Aditya Madhavan’s recent concert for Madhuradhwani and Aanmajothi was aesthetic from the word go. Connoisseur’s delight Aditya Madhavan’s extensive Begada alapana for Muthuswami Dikhitar’s ‘Tyagarajaya namaste’ was a connoisseur’s delight. Another gem of a composition in this concert was Tiruvarur Ramaswamy Pillai’s ‘Sree Kamakshi Katakshi’ on the Goddess of Vedapuri in Tamil Nadu. This composition is attributed to Subbaraya Sastri …

A carefully navigated concert by Sudha Ragunathan
2 years, 11 months ago

A carefully navigated concert by Sudha Ragunathan

The Hindu  

Sudha Ragunathan’s concert for the Music Academy relied on her famed presentation mantra and delivery style. ‘Enraikku siva kripai varumo’ in misra chapu and a dominant upper octave structure served as the booster to recoup her voice fluency. Mysore Sadasiva Rao’s ‘Saketha nagaranatha’ in rupakam is a unique kriti with a vibrant madhyama kala course and even a durita sprint …

Vishnudev K.S.: At his creative best
2 years, 11 months ago

Vishnudev K.S.: At his creative best

The Hindu  

Listening to Vishnudev K.S. In his concert at Bhavan, he began with a refreshing ‘Saketha nikethana’ by Tyagaraja in Kannada with madhyamakala swaras at the pallavi lines set to Rupaka tala. Tyagaraja's ‘Makelara vicharamu’ in Ravichandrika was quick and precise, and an expansive Saveri kriti ‘Devi pavane’, one of Swati Tirunal’s Navaratri compositions, followed. Vishnudev did not disappoint with his …

Sikkil Gurucharan impresses with the tone and texture of his music
3 years ago

Sikkil Gurucharan impresses with the tone and texture of his music

The Hindu  

Art gets easily weathered by the times that it exists in. There are so many popular Tamil compositions in Simhendramadhyamam, but what Gurucharan sang was by the almost forgotten composer Muthu Thandavar, regarded as one of the Tamil Trinity. However, Gurucharan is a musician who captures and holds on to emotions, so even when he sings a mood changer, the …

Girijashankar Sundaresan’s inspiring Kamboji
3 years ago

Girijashankar Sundaresan’s inspiring Kamboji

The Hindu  

Kamboji is known to offer immense scope for elaborate elucidation, a reason why musicians often include this rakti raga in concerts. Girijashankar Sundaresan opted for it while performing recently at Kedaram’s three-day festival at Ragasudha hall, effortlessly bringing out its emotional shades through voice modulation. Girijashankar chose Tyagaraja’s ‘O Rangasayee’ where the composer beckons the god. A rare Dikshitar kriti …

Immaculate raga exposition by Amrutha Venkatesh
3 years, 1 month ago

Immaculate raga exposition by Amrutha Venkatesh

The Hindu  

A rare enthusiasm and freshness marked the online vocal concert of Amrutha Venkatesh for the 63rd Annual Art Festival of the South Indian Cultural Association, Hyderabad. Melodic swaraprastara Amrutha followed this up with Swati Tirunal’s popular Mayamalavagowla composition, ‘Deva deva kalayami’ in Rupakam, with a lengthy, melodic swaraprastara at the pallavi. Then came the breezy Kadanakuthuhalam composition by Mysore Vasudevachar, …

Mudicondan Ramesh’s concert at Veenotsav’21
3 years, 3 months ago

Mudicondan Ramesh’s concert at Veenotsav’21

The Hindu  

On the inaugural day of the annual Veenotsav ‘21, senior veena artiste Mudicondan Ramesh was honoured with the ‘Vainika Mudhra’ title in the presence of vainika Prof. R.S. A highlight of the performance was the challenging Chaturdasa Ragamalika by Muthuswami Dikshitar, ‘Sri Viswanatham’, set in 14 ragas — Sri, Arabhi, Gowri, Nattai, Gowlai, Mohanam, Sama, Lalitha, Bhairavai, Saranga, Sankarabharanam, Kamboji, …

Review: Finding the Raga by Amit Chaudhuri
3 years, 7 months ago

Review: Finding the Raga by Amit Chaudhuri

Hindustan Times  

244pp, ₹499; Penguin I remember Kishori Amonkar saying that she always waited for the raga to appear in front of her before she could sing. These are in full demonstration in Amit Chaudhuri’s Finding the Raga – An Improvisation on Indian Music, which is a personal meditation on singing, music making, listening and mishearing – aspects associated with music known …

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