A voice to cherish forever
Hindustani vocalist Pandit Jasraj inspired and delighted the audience as he performed at the Sangeeth Utsav-2012 held at Chowdiah Memorial Hall recently.
The veteran musician was mesmerising despite suffering from a sore throat. The fact that he is a perfectionist could be seen even before he started his recital as he requested the audio controller to equalise the voice decibels of all the mikes.
However, in the midst of the recital, he had to stop yet again to get a mike fixed.
The recital started with a shloka but his sore throat gave him some problems. So he quickly apologised to the audience — “I am very sorry. Main sur ko pakad nahi pa raha hoon,” he said.
But there was no stopping him once he started. He showed the prowess of his voice consistently throughout the performance. Starting with one of the most difficult ragas, malkauns in ektaal vilambhit, he presented the entire range from teevra madhyam to taar saptak. He went on to elaborate this raag for an hour, innovating it and singing it in different styles so much so that one couldn’t figure out how time flew.
The hall was packed and there was pin drop silence once he started the recital. He was ably accompanied by his team and gave them ample scope to showcase their talents.
An encouraging guru, he often treated his team with a quick shabash and could also be seen guiding them on how to sing a particular alaap or a taan.
The second leg of the show saw him reciting the same raga in teen taal, Jay Jay Shri Durge was faster and full of surprises as he added a bol taan enhancing the beauty of the raga. It took everyone by surprise even the tabla artiste.
The jugalbandi between the tabla and the flute was a treat and one of the finest one could experience and so was the jugalbandi between Pandit Jasraj and the tabla.
The next raga he chose was shankra and went on to elaborate that in vilambhit
as well as in chota khayal style.
His choice of raag had an amalgamation of soft and hard-hitting tunes which made it a memory worth treasuring.“The resonance in his voice did not give away his age. His powerful style and dedication towards music is something that is commendable. I consider myself fortunate to see him perform live and it is once-in-a-lifetime experience for those who love classical music,” summed up Ramya , a member of the audience.
