Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

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rajeshnat
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Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 08:04

Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by rajeshnat »

Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018
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Vocal : Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna
Violin : BU Ganesh Prasad
Mrudangam : Tiruvarur Bhaktavatsalam
Ghatam : K V Gopalakrishnan

Concert Type : Nirvana - no concert to follow
Day/Duration : Wednesday/ 2 hours and 30 mins with roughly 8 mins of speech break
Concert Type : Paid concert
Hall : Jayashri Kalyana Mantapam, Kalakshetra Road, Thiruvanmiyur

1. evari bOdhana (Raga sketch,S) - Abhogi -Patnam
2. muddumOmu (R,S) - sooryakantham - T
2 mins alapana and brief violin return
swaras for

3.kApathuvE unadhu pAtham (raga sketch) - Anandabhairavi - Tanjore Sivanandam
4. shree mAthrubhootam (RS,S) - kannada - MD
2 mins swaras

5. mAra vairi ramani (R) - nAsikabhooshani - T
11 mins alapana and 6 mins violin return
6. teliyaleru ramA (ragasketch) - dhenukA - T

7a. nArada guru swami (R N S T)- darbAr - T
15 mins alapana and 7 mins violin return
nraval in ithihAsa purAna for 7 mins
swaras for 8 mins
7B. tani for 18 mins

Speech break
8. muruganin maru peyar azhagu - behAg - swami surajananda
9. bhaja bhaja mAnasa - sindhubhairavi -ST
10 . nee nAma roopamulaku

rajeshnat
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Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 08:04

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by rajeshnat »

I came in at 06:35 Pm the artist were standing and took another 15 mins to start with . THey extended beyond the golden mean time of 9pm, I still feel if the stage and microphone is ready with sabha patrons and artists, starting on time has to be a rule and not an exception. In any case kudos in compensating the lost time .

KBMK started with a nice AbhoGi. With the alapana sketch in ABhogi he clearly disambiguated with other close children of melakatha #22. Prior to the start of the concert KBMK asked for lot of corrections to his vocal microphone but what about the primary percussionist check . I Felt the percussion volume was on the high side for first two songs ,the accompanist extra energy from both bhaktha and KVG kind of bit overpowered and felt very high on this kalyana chatram auditorium. . The sooryakantham #2 is a rare number but in my memory I will recollect more for the volume.

i was happy KBMK who earlier instructed the sound engineer where I heard some thing like give more balance , more sharpness etc finally told the most needed adjustment parameter to the sound engineer .He asked to lower the master volume. Anandabhairavi soothens and KBMK was getting into the groove. Bhaktha showed his class with his superb mastery and his patterns in kApAdhuvE had some lovely laya poruthhhams . Kannada was a bit of mixed bag at some point in anupallavi it was more like mishra chaapu taalam accompanied by kannada ragam, but thank god we have a charanam always after little mel kAla anupallavi.

kBMK settled wonderfully with a longer alapana of nasikabhooshani. Nasikabhooshani raga elaboration is very rare and I cannot ever take my trace towards S kalyanaraman there. KBMK had great ideas in nasikabhooshani and i enjoyed his wonderful rendition. The expected krithi maravairi ramani came out well with good balanced rotation from bhaktha and KVG. Few contrasting patterns from bhaktha was very creative in nasikabhooshani

Dhenuka was an incomplete filler as he only sang krithi , i would have been more happier if he also extended with swaras along with the song . Darbar raga unfolded it is a tricky raga i kind of struggled very slightly in disambiguiting with nayaki but it is all my own lapse of concentration . KBMK showed his class but this raga darbar when elaborated for 15 mins with alapana , I felt a little few phrases of very distinct repetition was there in darbar . Repetition has been happening even with few jambhavans so as such I liked his bold attempt in taking darbar as main. The krithi neraval and swaras were well done with just a feeling that swaras were bit limited .

Both the tukkadas were really well done . Behag had a lovely raga sketch and muruganin maru peyar was sung with great feeling with a little higher share of hindustani type cast which was great . The sindhu bhairavi krithi of swati was well done .

Ganesh Prasad has extremely high quotient of precision in raga bhavam and even for nasikabhooshani he intensely searches and sticks to pure carnatic feel. I loved the way he played darbar where for my lakshya trained ear I found Ganesh was extremely clear. Bhakthavatsalam had superb patterns for almost all songs but i was not that lucky with consistent master volume and at times there was not any spacing and pauses in his play. KVG could have shown bit sedate contrast but he enjoyed and showed the same percussion over joy with lot of strong hits that had a bit of multiplier effect in my ears . Their tani was bit high in sound for the auditorium but there were at times superb patterns form both KVG and Bhakthavatsalam which showcased his mastery over the instrument.

KBMK is surely raising up with intense vidwat and strong voice . At times there is a little shade of brighas not really falling with sowkhyam but I guess the aberration was at times a function of master volume which is easily fixable . Narasimhan Sir praised the four artists and also connected with his usual antha kalathu anecdote trace where he connected vishwanatha iyer and kbmk with darbar.

Overall a very good to excellent concert for 2 hours and 30 minutes with 8 minutes of speech.

HarishankarK
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Joined: 27 Oct 2007, 11:55

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by HarishankarK »

There is no need to expand a raga like Durbar for 15 mins just for the sake of it.
Kriti can be sung as main even after 5 - 7 min alaap or even adding a shloka or something.

Best option would have been to sing Durbar as submain and go for Todi or Kalyani etc.,

Sachi_R
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Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by Sachi_R »

Durbar. Yes, one of those ragas where brevity is the soul of wit.

I don't know, but maybe because they have a complex vis-à-vis Hindustani counterparts, I see CM innovators work on a raga for a long time. I feel it is a bit like a cuckoo painting its feathers to look like a parrot.

narayan
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Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by narayan »

I am also one of the many who did NOT attend the concert in question, so I am also making my comments on the appropriateness of what happened.

Great choice of Durbar as main, and it must have been fantastic! Tyagaraja has composed multiple big songs in this raga (Mundu Venuka, Narada Guruswami, Endundi vedalitivo and several smaller songs) and the raga is an old raga capable of elaboration and substantial variety. I do not see any reason to imply that it was "just for the sake of it". TVS has sung the same Narada Guruswami in the Music Academy with a substantial alapana, and of course many other giants in the past have done it also.

I am very pleased to hear that (a) this song is alive and doing well and (b) someone has the inclination to sing this grand raga at leisure and that someone else has the patience to listen to it. This much I can say without having attended the concert.

Sachi_R
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Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by Sachi_R »

Thanks, Mr. Narayan, to your comments, I searched and found a veritable treasure of a report on the Music Academy deliberations on Raga Durbar!
http://www.carnatica.net/newsletter/dur ... letter.htm

A quote attributed to Sri. V. Subramaniam (SSI Bani) :
Manodharma (V Subramanyam): Durbar is not a raga conducive for expansive elaboration and requires crisp and deft handling for depiction of aesthetic values. It has a restricted renditional scope, if repetitive phrases are to be avoided.
However I take your point that someone sang it at length and you enjoyed it.

I have heard TMK do niraval and taanam and swaras in the middle of a tillana to great effect!

ganeshkant
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Joined: 05 Feb 2010, 11:59

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by ganeshkant »

KBMK sang RTP in darbar in MA few years back.
May be it can be taken for R T P but not as main !

narayan
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Joined: 05 Oct 2008, 07:43

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by narayan »

Dear Sachi_R, thanks for the link, which I read carefully. The moderator V.V.Srivatsa has spoken about its scope and beauty. In fact he has himself composed a fine song Ganalola, beginning at the top Sa in a very striking fashion. That song has leisurely passages and also madhyamakala lines. I used to be familiar with it, but have now lost touch. Any pointer to a rendering is most welcome. I am absolutely convinced that the raga itself is capable of substantial elaboration. Just to clarify, I meant rajeshnat as the willing listener, in my earlier post. I am one, too, of course.

My rant was only about the assumption that the singer was singing as he did for some superficial reason, when I can see no such evidence from those who attended the concert. Please pardon the intrusion and let me veer back back to the singer and his music.

Having never heard Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna live, I am indeed very happy to hear that he sings this splendid raga regularly and look forward to an occasion where I can hear it in person.

Sachi_R
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Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by Sachi_R »

Sir
KBMK has 3 big plusses:
1. A robust and highly pliable voice.
2. A very vibrant and even aggressive style of singing.
3. A very good repertoire.

For those wanting to listen to a music dominated by Saukhyam and a meditative languid style, he may not offer much.

Please watch this concert. It is a very good one! :
https://youtu.be/4iPHH6fF1MU

kvchellappa
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Joined: 04 Aug 2011, 13:54

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by kvchellappa »

Is sowkyam not to be found in other styles? I saw that Shulman also makes a similar point you are making Sri RSachi:
"I think there’s a tendency for many of the singers to sing too fast and too loud. It’s almost always performed with a microphone, but the microphone tends to distort what I think really should be—and was originally—a very intimate music, a kind of chamber music. You wouldn’t know that if you just went to the Music Academy, because people sing really fast; they get into virtuoso pyrotechnics, and that has become a major feature. Not for all of the singers, but for a lot of them."
Well, Shulman is not a gold standard. It was just on top of my mind because of recent posts.

sureshvv
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Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by sureshvv »

HarishankarK wrote: 19 May 2018, 09:14 There is no need to expand a raga like Durbar for 15 mins just for the sake of it.
Kriti can be sung as main even after 5 - 7 min alaap or even adding a shloka or something.

Best option would have been to sing Durbar as submain and go for Todi or Kalyani etc.,
Atrocious comment! Please open your mind.

ganeshkant
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Joined: 05 Feb 2010, 11:59

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by ganeshkant »

Regarding duration of time in raga expositions time also matters and that solely depends on the presentation.Regarding repeat phrases, when TNR played Todi for hours,do you think phrases didn't repeat?
Yet it was delicious because timing and rounding off of those phrases only matter to make them engaging.
Nedanuri told he sang Ahiri as main once and got a gentle admonition from SSI.
I think its time to come out of our conditioned thinking.

HarishankarK
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Joined: 27 Oct 2007, 11:55

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by HarishankarK »

sureshvv wrote: 21 May 2018, 09:16
HarishankarK wrote: 19 May 2018, 09:14 There is no need to expand a raga like Durbar for 15 mins just for the sake of it.
Kriti can be sung as main even after 5 - 7 min alaap or even adding a shloka or something.

Best option would have been to sing Durbar as submain and go for Todi or Kalyani etc.,
Atrocious comment! Please open your mind.
Hope your choice of words does not reflect your personality.
You can oppose my views pOlitely too.
I have not said not to do alaap for Durbar - just said do it just for enough time where it does not sound boring.

kvchellappa
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Joined: 04 Aug 2011, 13:54

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by kvchellappa »

The clincher would be whether you heard it and whether it was boring. From Rajeshnat's post, it does not appear so.
All VVS seems to be saying is 'let us not have fixed notions, let us listen and decide'.
Of the choice of language, I have no comment.

sureshvv
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Joined: 05 Jul 2007, 18:17

Re: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna@Astikam samajam (Thiruvanmiyur) on May 16th,2018

Post by sureshvv »

HarishankarK wrote: 22 May 2018, 02:05 Hope your choice of words does not reflect your personality.
You can oppose my views pOlitely too.
I have not said not to do alaap for Durbar - just said do it just for enough time where it does not sound boring.
Unfortunately it does. And likewise your choice of words. I don't think you were very polite either.

The comment was thoughtless. It was belittling the effort put forth by artistes who work hard in order to present something different.

And the practice of art is actually "just for the sake of it".

Feel free to say what you like. But be prepared when you are hauled up for it.

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