A concert structure has no written rules. Rithvik Raja’s concert for Mylapore Fine Arts Club swayed between excellent alapana and niraval moments and placid meander. The swarakalpana speed was reset midway at the 52nd minute of the concert, as Rithvik’s boat accelerated to its due speed. Vaidyanathan is adept at playing for a range of speeds, and is particularly impressive …
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 …
Watching young Veena Venkataramani on the frets gives one the hope that the appeal for the instrument has risen in the current scenario. When she was nine, Veena started learning the veena from A. Champakavalli, and then from her guru’s prime disciple, Jayasri Jayaraj Krishnan. The Tyagaraja kriti on Mother Tulasi, ‘Amma Ravamma’ was preceded by a melodious, serene delineation …
