Some poems of Nijaguna Shivayogi, Pu Thi Narasimhachar, K V Puttappa, D V Gundappa, K S Narasimhaswamy and others sound beautiful when presented in a classical attire.
One such effort was made in a concert recently. The venue was JSS Math. The occasion was moonlight music programme.
Srikantham Nagendra Shastri hails from a musicians family. His passion for Kannada literature drove him to include uncommon lyrics of Kannada poets in his classical concerts.
An ardent researcher, he is ever in pursuit of new experiments. His concert at Mysore JSS Math was one such . The selection of the songs for the occasion spoke of his dedication and commitment to music.
Except two compositions of Tygaraja and one of Mysore Sadashiva Rao, the rest were by Nijaguna Shivayogi, Kumara Nijaguna swamy and and Basavappa Shastri. He was totally supported by H K Narasimha murthy(Violin),H S Sudheendra (Mridanga) and Shashishankar(Ghata). It was a wonderful team work.
‘Shivarathri Deshikane’ (Shankarabharana-Khanda chapu-Kumara Nijaguna Swamy) was an appropriate opener for the day. That was decorated with a frill of Kalpana swaras too.
Nijaguna shivayogi, who penned the first encyclopaedia in Kannada has composed a number of songs that speak of the hurdles and the mystic experiences in the path of philosophical journey. “Aadutaitaale Maaye” is one such song. The beats of Mridanga by Sudheendra showed the different steps of ‘Maaye’. His anticipatory playing adds colour to the concert by enhancing the meaning of the sahithya.
After a good alapa of Darbar, Shastri took up ‘Munduvenaka’ of Tyagaraja. The Purvikalyani krithi of Mysore Sadashiva Rao “Gangadhara Tripurahara” was a scholarly presentation. Shastri’s disciple Anoop Krishnan joined him in the ragalapa and swara kalpana.
A neraval at “Ahibhooshana amaravana” was pleasing followed by an overflow of Sarvalaghu swaras. After “Chalakalalaadukonna” of Tyagaraja in Abheri, a short and melodious raga in Kapi lead to”Jyani Nityananda nijarupa” of Nijaguna Shivayogi. A neraval at “Tatvajyani mohipudandave” was a musical treat.
Yet another composition of Nijaguna was “Ajyaniyallave neevu?” in Shanmukhapriya. The anthem of old Mysore state “Kayau Shri Gowri” came as the crowning glory. H K Narasmhamurthy’s violin support was commendable. The tani between Sudheendra and Shashishankar was short and sweet.
Swarasankula Sangeetha Sabha had organised a Hindustan vocal concert by Sadhana Deshmukh Mohithe on the 16th of July 2011. She belongs to the Gwalior Gharana and is trained at the Sangeeth Research Academy. Sadhana was accompanied by Veerabhadrayya Hiremath on the Harmonium and Udayraj Karpur on the Tabla. The concert started with Rag Yaman in tal Tilvada(sixteen beats). Sadhana has a bold and attractive voice with a pleasing approach to the raga. The shuddha swaras unfurled the beauty of Yaman in a leisurely manner. “Jiya maanath nahi” was embellished with gamakas.
The akars that followed Dhruth in “Shankara suratathi” introduced yaman in many dimensions. Listeners were engrossed for nearly an hour of Yaman. “maananakari gori tore karan” was the bandish in Gowdamalhar. Rag Des failed to impress in which she sang “karan na mori laagire kanhayya”. The concert ended with an Ashtapadi ‘ Manini makuru’ . Veerabhadrayya and Udayraj Karpur gave good support to the singer.