Bharat Narayan. , Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Bharat Narayan started the lesson for currency With Kamboji Ata Taala Varnam ‘Sarsijanabh’. He showed a fine command over rhythm as he navigated the sculpted charanam and chittaswaram of the piece. This was followed by CS Krishnaswamy Ayya’s ‘Namami Vighna Vinayaka’ in Hansadhwani. The exchanges between Bharath and R Raghul (violin) were sharp and firm when the fiery vocals sang in ‘Kumara Sodara’. The sub-chief that Bharata chose was Tyagaraja’s ‘Paraloka Sadhaname’ in Poorvikalyani. The raga alapana was creatively created by reducing some frequently heard phrases. Niraval and Kalpanaswar were sharp in ‘Tanaiyadi Bandhavula’. Raghul was able to match Bharath’s fast-paced brigade by executing the vocals with precision.
In Thodi, ‘Paridanmichite’ in Bilhari was sung as a filler before moving on to the main part. At this point, the performance could have added some variety by fitting into a four-piece rather than a moderate tempo.
A fairly detailed depiction of the Thodi was presented by Bharata – the Daivatam section from the Rishabham of the Madhyadai was traced in detail. The long-winded phrases in the thodi were handled well by Raghul during the alpana. The main act of the evening was Tyagaraja’s Lalgudi Pancharatnam’s ‘Gathi Nivani’. It was a fitting choice to showcase the musician’s potential.
Throughout the text, a fine balance was struck between essential phrasing and inventive aspects when exploring psychology. Kishore Ramesh on mridangam and Kottayam Rohit Prasad on ghatam complimented other artistes during the Kalpanaswara classes.