Trichur Brothers@sAstri hall on Dec 23rd,2010
--------------------------------------------------------
Vocal : Trichur brothers - Srikrishna Mohan & Ramkumar Mohan
Violin : Usha RajagOpAlan
Mrudangam : Trichur Mohan
ghatam : Venkatasubramaniam(n?)
Concert duration/Day : 2 hours/ Thursday
Sabha : Sri kapAli fine arts
I had to wade the traffic snarls after my official customer left , I wish they build a super highway from OMR to Mylapore, I came at 07:25 pm or so missed the two below
1. varnam ninnu kOri - Mohanam - poochi
2. gajavadana karunA - shree ranjani - psivan
3. brOvabhAramA (R, S) - bahuDAri - T
6 mins swaras.
4. janani ninuvinA - reetigowlai - subarAya sAstri
5. pahimAm shree rAja rAjeshwari - janaranjani - maha vaidyanAtha sivan
6A. seshAchala nAyakam (R N S T) - varAli - MD
14 mins alApanai , 5 mins violin return
8 mins neraval in "aravinda paTra nayanam govinda"
swaras for 4 mins
6B. tani for 17 minutes
7. bhavamulOna - suddadhanyAsi- AC
8A. slokham on sathya sai bAbA "sadA satswaoopam"- basanth bahAr -
8B. sai bhajan hey vishwanAthu hey SAyeenAthu - ??? - ???
9. pavamAna
Positive Impressions:
-----------------------
# As I entered the bahudAri alApana just got over and when the duo brothers sang this piece with swaras it was just superb , they have an extraordinary sense of fast baton exchange and for a rasika who prefers aggressions instead of sowkhyam squat it means a lot
# janani ninuvina can be sung with little more azhuttam , a terrific number to get their lineage , they belong to semmangudi sishya parampara , I found them bit having synchronization issues but all said and done it was lovely
# varAli alApana was really well done with few sangathis like a hindustani ustad touch I liked it immensely. The krithi was well done the neraval was also very good
# The sai slokham was in basanth bahAr , I did get lot of lakshya pointers from a famous basant bahar thillAna of Santhanam , the sai bhajan krithi was definitely well done , but unable to zone on the rAgA but definitely well done
# Their dad whom I have heard in their concerts and few vintage recordings of jAmbhavan TRS has lovely rolling singers and he gives a well set rhythm for the brothers to go with lot of creative patterns. Why is hid dad Mohan not playing for any other singer other than their son(I hope it is not a policy decision like a famous mridangist) : :^)
# varAli swaras were bit too short , possibly a little cut in alApana would have helped.
Bit of Negative to Neutral Impressions:
--------------------------------------
# They need to present always one slow number , at times that silence is needed to assimilate what went before and what comes bit after , the janaranjani number reminded a bit of the popular adage speed thrills but kills
# The MS popularized krithi of AC just did not turn out too well.
# Usha rajagopalan violin in bahudAri was just ok , but she played varAli very well, Overall I felt there could have been a bit of pause in her playing
Bit of Negative Impressions:
---------------------------
# One usually hears that junior vocalist will get bogged with a longer tani from established senior mridangists. I thought that would not happen with a father (mridangist) to their own beloved sons. Two singers are singing , the concert is for just 2 hours why should there be a tani as long as 17 mins, if he had wrapped atleast 5 mins before the brothers could have sung a very emotive viruththam
# Usha rAjagopalan when she just began to play few avarthanas of bahudAri spoke bit rough , she asked a rasika who is in the first row to leave the auditorium if they dont like violin and come only inside when the vocalist starts singing. I dont know if she gave adequate warnings before , but her tone was rude and loud that got soothed with bravO ga ga ramA.
Overall I recommend these brothers not when you have a jet lag as you need to concentrate and get their speed. Their music has a definite USP and I like it immensely,if you generally like fast paced numbers you are in for a great day,these brothers should give a run for the money for the RG's , malladis etal .
Overall a very good concert for 2 hours.