Vocal : Sampagodu Vighnaraja
Violin : N N Ganeshkumar
Mrudangam : Anoor Ananthakrishna Sharma
List :
01 karuNimpa (varNam) – sahAna – Thiruvottiyur Thyagayya ( O )
02 shrI gaNapatini sEvimpa -saurAStram – Thyagaraja
03 mOkSamu galadA – sAramati – Thyagaraja ( A,S )
04 eTi janmamidi ha O rAmA – varALi – Thyagaraja (A,N,S )
neraval & svara @ ‘sAgarashayanuni thyAgarAjanutuni’
05 shObhillu saptaswara – jaganmOhini – Thyagaraja ( S )
06 rAga sudhArasa – AndOLika – Thyagaraja ( O )
07 tyAarAja gurudEvam bhajEham – chArukEshi? – D S Suryanarayana Bhatt? (A,S,T )
08 tuLasammA – dEvagAndhAri – Thyagaraja
09 tava dAsOham tava dAsOham tava dAsOham dAsharathE – punnAgavarALi – Thyagaraja
10 sItAkalyANa vaibhOgamE – kurinji – Thyagaraja
The last time I heard him live was around 4+ years back. I was told, he was in Malaysia, doing a teaching assignment. He was one of the promising young vidvans and that hasn’t changed going by the last evening’s performance at Ranjani. This was the first time, I am listening to Sri Ganeshkumar and what a fine musician he is.
Started five minutes into the stipulated time, he started of with the sahAna varNam of a different Thyagaraja; otherwise the concert was again dedication to the legend whose 250th birth anniversary is being celebrated by the carnatic music world. Saramati was the first to get some respect with a nice,beautiful alapana. He started it with some impressive passages. I haven’t heard a sAramati alapana for a very long time and that added to the interest. Kriti was sedate, no unwanted shout at ‘sAkSatkAra’ , to my liking. But somewhere the energy was sagging in the concert at this point of time. Very good rounds of kalpana swaras followed, livening it up a bit.
Varali alapana was very good as well. It can take me into depression with some of the very dragging phrases. His alapana was much crisper and lively to my pleasure. That is why, I was surprised when he took eTi janmamidi. The only neraval of the concert came at this point. Decent, but not grand. I would have been happier if he sang another neraval in the concert. However, kalpana swaras were very impressive.
Very appropriately, he sang couple of faster pieces before main. Shobhillu saptaswara can, and it did, lift the concert with some cracker of swaras. A GNB school trademark AndOlika also was sung before main.
Grand alapana of ( I think) chArukEshi was real treat. The amazing range of voice he possess and the alapana traversed with ease through these. The approach and progression was very good. For both sAramati and charukeshi, he tried to sing some phrases of alapana at atimandra sthayi notes. Good attempt, little abrasive, a little finesse would have made it even more appealing. Ganeshkumar was brilliant in his return. Kriti, a composition of his guru and father D S Suryanarayana Bhatt was a fitting homage to the musical genius. Short kriti with a ‘madhyamakala’ sahitya, he did not sing a neraval, but quickly moved into an elaborate swara prasthana. Some of his skills and capabilities were displayed with some style. It was excellent. Anoor Ananthakrishna Sharma, played a usual delectable tani avartanam. He was at his usual best, playing along the sahitya, adding his bits at places.
Post main again had a few thyagaraja kritis. Punnagavarali, especially was very well sung. He concluded the concert with the Utsava sampradaya kriti Seethakalyana Vaibhogame. A good concert by the team.
Brain Drain 