A captivating performance

In Concert

It was a mesmerising concert with the Ganagandharvan singing rare kritis in his charming voice to a packed audience.

The concert started on time and the audience, who came in a little late, struggled to find a seat. As the crowd kept pouring in even after the concert began, the organisers put extra chairs to accommodate the music lovers. Yesudas started off his concert with an elaborate alapana, his usual style of experimenting with the raga and treating each note in different ways.

Later, he sang a Ganesha stuthi, Jaya Jaya Mushika Gamana with great devotion and providing a chance to the instrumentalists to exhibit their mastery over their instruments. While singing a Krishna bhajan, Srinivasa Enna Bittu Yesudas took a break from the rendition to give a demonstration to the benefit of music students.

He showed how differently a note can be produced within the limits of the respective raga. He also taught them a few techniques that should be adapted to sing upper and lower notes. He suggested some exercises and advised the youth who want to make a mark in the music industry to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Throughout the concert, Yesudas took breaks to interact and share his ideas and experiences with the gathering without disturbing the flow of the concert. He rendered popular bhajans like Jaanaki Ramana, Gurukarana Honduvudu and Ksheera Sagara Shayana. Prior to the concert, Yesudas was presented the ‘S V Narayana Swamy Award’ in a function held in the morning.

“Few months back, I attended yet another mega concert by Yesudas which was organised to mark his 71st birthday. It was a film music concert. Today, I got to listen to pure classical style. But on both the occasions, I found the energy and devotion of the singer amazing. I have not seen any other singer who is as comfortable as Yesudas in both film and classical music,” said Sahana Balachandra, a Hindustani music student from the City.

Yesudas was accompanied on violin by Mahadeva Sharma, on ghatam by K Radhakrishnan, and on mridangam by Tiruvarur Bhakthavatsalam. The music festival will be held till May 9, each day featuring noted musicians from across the nation.