Prince Rama Varma in SIFAS 200609

bala747 · Post by **bala747** » 20 Jun 2009, 22:16

Rama Varma Vocal
Violin N N Ganesh Kumar
Mridangam: T Ramanan (local artiste)

(Preconcert mike check: Ananda Natana - Kedaram, rendered beautifully)

I arrived early for this concert and got to hear Rama Varma sing Ananda Natana in Kedaram, and I was thinking I actually arrived late for a concert (Which in my life has happened only once, for a Subhasree Ramachandran concert in Singapore in the 90's).

The first item was the Bhairavi ata tala varnam, and from the start it was apparent that though this was a free concert, held in the extremely unconducive environment of the SIFAS "auditorium", this was going to be a concert of a different class. Rama Varma's voice was clear, crisp and strong. The sangathis were delivered with weight and the trikala first half was handled with adept ease. I was pretty surprised to actually find myself enjoying the rendition of probably the most famous varnam in carnatic music.

The next item was probably the best rendition of Vathapi Ganapathim I have heard in recent years. The first few lines reminded me of MDR, with the perfect diction and emphasis on "Varanaasyam varapradham" instead of the usual "Varana.. syamvara.." (As RV wrote about MDR). The krithi was rendered very well, and the kalpana swaras saw a lot of mathematical pyrotechnics. All in all, an excellent rendition of Vathapi. The final swara korvai incidentally was an adaptation of Jon Higgins' finish in Kaligiyunte in Keeravani (G,RS R,SN S,,GRSNS,, GR, SN..) to Hamsadhwani.

Thyagaraja's Nannukannathalli was next in Sindhukannada, rendered in a slower tempo than usual. It was sung in a manner that was really soothing to hear. Rama Varma eschewed some of the more faster moving sangathis in favour of presenting a more pleasing piece.

A short sketch of Reethigoula was next followed by Janani Ninnuvina. Again, the rendition was beautiful. The pleading, sombre bhava of the krithi was brought out perfectly by Rama Varma's rendition. Again, another krithi well worth listening to. In fact by this point I was actually enjoying the experience of listening to a concert.

The next item was a short sketch in Amrithavarshini, followed by Sudhamayee of Mutthiah Bhagavathar. Rama Varma sings a lot of plain notes in the alapana, an influence no doubt of Balamurali. Anyway the raga alapana was too short (about a minute) to effectively assess his alapana singing, but the krithi was sung in a surprisingly brisk manner. The brisk tempo was a nice change after the more sombre renditions earlier, and the swaraprastara that followed was full of fireworks, including a quick sruthi bhedam into Karnataka Suddha Saveri (from what I gathered, can someone confirm/correct this?).

Following Amrithavarshini was MDR's own Hariyum Haranum in Athana. At this point it must be mentioned that Rama Varma gave detailed explanations for every item he chose. (For example I didn't know Adayappayyar was actually Syama Sastri's guru). The krithi again was rendered well. I think at this point I should stop saying it because all the krithis in this concert were rendered superbly.

Panthuvarali was the main item of the concert, and a surprising one because normally Panthuvarali is sung in small tengai moodi concerts or sung as a "secondary" item with a cursory alapana, namesake neraval and swaras (except 6th day mandapam concerts where it is the main item). For once I was happy to predict the krithi, which was Saroruhasana Jaye of the Maharaja (the 6th day krithi as pointed out earlier). I have never heard this krithi live, though I was hoping for a thanam with mridangam RV just sang an elaborate alapana followed by the krithi.

My only critique of RV's alapanas are that he indulges far too much in vocal histrionics. Though the alapana overall was very good and there were very few, if any sruthi lapses, there were far too many vocal juggling for my taste. A few lines of it is fine but when every other line in the alapana is an exercise in jumping from Tharastayi Ga to Mandara stayi Dha, it gets a bit irritating, because the raga alapana then does not flow very well and appears like a Stop-start-stop-start affair. When the alapana started to 'flow' it was a treat to the ears but he should keep the Balamurali stuff to a more manageable level. The violinist, NN Ganesh Kumar is a teacher in SIFAS and a student of the Parur school. His Panthuvarali was of that style but it was beautiful. Panthuvarali is a raga that is easy to play but it is difficult to play it in a way to please a fusspot like me, and Ganesh Kumar's pleased me.

The krithi, as mentioned was sung very well but there was no neraval and the swara prastaras were on the pallavi. Again the swara fireworks (ALA Balamurali) followed, but after getting me quite irritated with some gimmickry he 'redeemed himself' with a spectacular finish.

The thani was very short but good enough. T Ramanan is a local artiste who has improved tremendously over the years. While he did not do himself justice in the Thani, he played with aplomb throughout, and some of his finishes for other pieces were great. His playing for the Sindhukannada and Reethigoula were appropriately filled with sowkyam while his handling of Sudhamayi and Saroruhasana was brisk and lively. I have heard him before quite a few times but this is his best so far.

Following the main item was a kirthana in Anandabhairavi of Purandara Dasa (Hodi nagare mele kayya), a delightful little piece that he embellished with his own mannerisms (including an intentionally loud "HODI!" at the end).

This was followed by a surprisingly elaborate rendition of Behag, which was a nice surprise because it was not just a short sketch but a 5 minute alapana. The alapana was beautiful, with lots of plain notes, slowly strung out to produce a nice melody (remniscent of a young maiden with beautiful ornaments), and was followed with an equally beautiful rendition by Ganesh Kumar. The krithi was one of Annamacharya's, Narayana the namo namo.

Following that was the Balamurali thillana in Kuntalavarali with all its Balamuraliesque gimmickry. Normally I would complain about using the stage to showcase mathematics but this time it was actually delightful. No complaints from me here.

Just to make my day the mangalam was a particular favourite of mine, the grand Bhujagasayinam of the Maharaja which is normally only sung on the last day of the mandapam concerts.

As it is obvious to you, I enjoyed this concert thoroughly. The concert's less-than-stellar setting (the folks at SIFAS should really consider calling it something else than an "auditorium", call it a hall for chrissakes!) also helped set the mood for a more relaxed format. The ragas were quite common ragas but the way Rama Varma handled them more than made up for that, and besides how often does one hear a Panthuvarali main item with Saroruhasana in Singapore?! RV chose a variety of composers, variety of thalas, languages. While there were no Thodis or Kambhojis, RV's rendition gave each piece a feeling of importance. His slower tempo, elaborate sangathis, and his complete involvement in every piece gave each piece an aura of grandeur that other singers have not been able to (at least from what I have heard). One has to look (listen) no further than his Nannukannathalli to realise that. From the Varnam to the mangalam, while the mood was relaxed, there was no piece that was sung in a laissez faire manner, and even the simplest sangathi was sung with the same involvement as a complex one.

That is not to say that the concert was perfect. As I said before, the alapana in Panthuvarali could have been handled in a smoother fashion with lesser vocal gimmickry, he could have sung at least one neraval and/or a thanam with mridangam for the main item. The swara patterns too got a bit too involved in kanakku but those were just minor quibbles to what was otherwise a concert that was out of the ordinary. This was a free concert and I have heard paid concerts which were far behind this one in terms of both variety and quality.

I very rarely say I enjoyed myself in a concert, and this is one of those concerts which was just great to sit down and get immersed in some great music. I even let the cliche'd "jaalra thatting" by the chaps in SIFAS slide without comment.

VK RAMAN · Post by **VK RAMAN** » 20 Jun 2009, 22:26

Thanks for the review. What do you mean by "he indulges far too much in vocal histrionics"

bala747 · Post by **bala747** » 20 Jun 2009, 22:38

Heh VK, it's hard to explain, but if you listened to BMK concerts from the 90's onwards you'll know what I mean..

kedharam · Post by **kedharam** » 20 Jun 2009, 22:45

Nice review!

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 20 Jun 2009, 23:13

Nice review, bala. My mother and grandparents attended the concert and said it was quite nice. They too commented that all the krithis was rendered very patiently and very well.

cienu · Post by **cienu** » 20 Jun 2009, 23:36

Such a nice review Bala. Thank you for such a detailed write up

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 21 Jun 2009, 02:29

Bala,
I wasn't sure if you were going to be at the concert. My! Sounds like a very good performance--if it pleased you so much--the fuss pot that you are (by your own admission)

While your statements can be scathing at times, your reviews can be eye openers too for the readers and to the performers. Anyway, I look forward to your reviews, though simhapuram holds very few concerts but produces able reviewers!
Your rasanai is deep, and no wonder it appealed to you when Rama Varma gave each piece a feeling of importance. You were happy because he sang with total involvement.
A fitting review for a very good concert.

kamalamba · Post by **kamalamba** » 21 Jun 2009, 05:34

I was at the concert for the most part. It was very nice. Excellent voice and range.
I enjoyed the BMK like elements in his singing (there are not many singers doing it these days).
As Bala mentioned VAthApi Ganapathim was exceptional.
Some of the sangathis in anu pallavi and charanam I have only heard in MDR's version of vAthApi gaNapathim.
Janani Ninnuvina was very nice as well.
RV sang the last charanam "Vanajayata" rather than the usual first "VaradAyaki", which added a new dimension.
Very enjoyable concert, particularly for me, since he combined elements from my two most favorite singers MDR and BMK.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 21 Jun 2009, 06:53

Kamalamba,
Good to hear from you too.
Wonder if RV would be gracious enough to share a part of the concert on the forum. Otherwise, we can ask CML to sing vanji bhUmi and make a request on our behalf

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 21 Jun 2009, 07:39

Kamalamba, THOUGHT you'd have enjoyed it!

devi · Post by **devi** » 21 Jun 2009, 09:06

@ Bala747
Thank you for the detailed review of Varma Sir's Concert! Great to read about Kedaram, Hamsadhwani and Behag!

kamalamba · Post by **kamalamba** » 21 Jun 2009, 09:56

Arasi

I recollect RV being a member of rasikas. Perhaps he will read this thread and be kind enough to post excerpts.

Bilahari, you got it right, I really enjoyed the concert.

Kamalamba

Layavinyasa · Post by **Layavinyasa** » 21 Jun 2009, 11:20

Wonderful review. I've heard Prince with people like Palghat Raghu, Sivaraman, TVG, Karaikudi Mani,
Harishankar, T.K.Murthy, you name it, and with young kids too. And I have observed that he unfailingly brings out the best in his accompanists. Particularly the percussionists. Many non laya initiated friends of mine have told me again and again that they started paying attention to thaniavarthanams only after having attended Prince's live concerts since he would be appreciating the percussionists so happily that it would be impossible not to be drawn into the web of enthusiasm created by him. I am glad to know that the same trend was being continued in Singapore too.

rajeshnat · Post by **rajeshnat** » 22 Jun 2009, 09:57

bala747
As usual your reviews are brilliant and well written. I remember somewhere sometime before(may be in sangeetham) that you had mentioned that you would love to hear a pantuvarAli main with a thAnam like swati tirunal concerts at trivandrum. YOu got that almost ofcourse assuming if sri rAma verma had sung tAnam that would have been more to your liking.

Hope you hear more singapore concerts and review

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 22 Jun 2009, 14:34

The next item was probably the best rendition of Vathapi Ganapathim I have heard in recent years.

I wonder if I would anywhere near the mark in thinking this the most-performed of all carnatic songs? Maybe it is just that it was one of the easiest to recognise when I was a complete newcomer.

Anyway, it is certainly sung so very often that this must be the highest of praise.

I have a recording of BMK singing this song --- for 22 minutes!

jananee · Post by **jananee** » 23 Jun 2009, 10:35

I did think it was you Bala sitting in row 2 ( yellow T shirt) and nodding your head vigorously and was sure you would post a review

Bilahari..saw ur mom n grandparents.wanted to talk to her but they left before the concert ended. And yes Kamalamba..we did see each other.
I enjoyed the concert. this was my first time listening to RV and I found it very satisfying.

The rendition of Vathapi Ganapathim was one of the best ever with the right emphasis on the words. My personal favourite of the evening was Janani Ninnuvina...It was soaked with bhavam. Esp when he sang Janani..loka janani it was so moving.

As for the auditorium ( or " Hall" ) i agree with ur point Bala but i have also come across people who say they like the open atmosphere! So i guess there are varying views....anyway glad u enjoyed the concert! Next time we should meet.

Another thing which struck me was Prince's most amiable nature on stage ever smiling and the beautiful rapport he shared with the accompanying artists appreciating them all through!

cienu · Post by **cienu** » 23 Jun 2009, 10:53

jananee wrote: Another thing which struck me was Prince's most amiable nature on stage ever smiling and the beautiful rapport he shared with the accompanying artists appreciating them all through!

That is very true. RV is an extremely humble person, carries no airs (of royalty) and most approachable.

vijay · Post by **vijay** » 24 Jun 2009, 14:01

Thanks for sharing Bala - excellently written as usual - must have been one helluva concert to have elicited such rapturous comments from you

bala747 · Post by **bala747** » 24 Jun 2009, 20:50

nickH, yes everyone has rendered Vathapi Ganapathim at some point but few alas, have sung it well. RV's rendition was slower than normal, measured and most importantly sung with "azhuttham" (can someone translate this into english?), measuring a full 24 minutes including swaraprastara.

Jananee, maybe you found that line moving because he was singing your name.

Yes rajeshnat, I love hearing elaborate thanams, especially the Travancore style with mridangam.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 24 Jun 2009, 22:02

Bala,
I am the last one to question your impeccable taste! I am glad you were there (in that yellow shirt) and shared your experience with us with a review. Singapore may have just a few concerts, all of which you do not write about. Yet, there are many on the forum who look forward to your posts.

Cienu,
Yes, Rama Varma is a gentleman who has no pretensions (gosh, he isn't even a pretender to the throne like some of us

Why do I need to carry nEndran pazham to Kerala (or coal to New Castle?). We all know him as an affable fellow member...

skutty · Post by **skutty** » 24 Jun 2009, 22:55

I am so glad with the wonderful review that bala747 has given. It is no secret that I have always enjoyed your reviews and have wished that you attend a concert of Prince whom I look up to and admire as a musician with a difference. I once heard a recording of Prince where he sang just Saroruhasana Jaaye (preceeded by a fantastic thaanam) for more than 1hr 40mts in a two hour concert. I'll try and get you the recording if you like. (Incidentally, in this recording he first requests everyone to stay for the thani by his favourite mridangam player B.Harikumar and then requests anybody who plans to leave during the thani to leave before the main krithi itself!) Being familiar with
Prince's views on ragas, krithis and aesthetics, I used to wonder for a while whether bala747 was Prince himself

Singapore definitely needs artists like our Prince and listeners like Bala.

skutty · Post by **skutty** » 28 Jun 2009, 20:50

Here is a recording of "Vatapi Ganapatim" from the concert at SIFAS uploaded on Youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5Hl2tk0Sf8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UJBluLD ... re=channel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JN1LmJNY ... re=channel

sunaada · Post by **sunaada** » 29 Jun 2009, 17:53

That was one extraordinary rendition, indeed. Prince Varma's love for MDR is so apparent (@ veetarAginam- vinuta yoginam

) and yet he brings so many of his own fresh ideas to this popular krithi. Right from the way he starts of... there is something special and soulful in every line.

The explanation on Hamsadhwani was interesting...I always wondered why such a beautiful raaga was named after the unpleasant noise a swan makes.

Thanks to Bala for the in-depth review and Skutty for sharing the links.

mahesh3 · Post by **mahesh3** » 30 Jun 2009, 07:06

what is so extraordinary abt this renedition? he splits sentences into words that dont flow as smoothly and even abruptly picks a word to sing a sangathi ...he starts the song at the wrong place, and it tends to become choppy on more than one occasion...i am quite sure this is not how vathapi ganapathim is meant to be sung......pathantharam for dikshithar krithis tends to be quite specific.

that said, there are other reneditions of the artist that i have enjoyed.

But, Please refrain from using hyperbole rather loosely....

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 30 Jun 2009, 12:28

I think that all the best hyperbole is loose

skutty · Post by **skutty** » 30 Jun 2009, 12:48

"One man's meat is another man's poison" and since any artistic expression and its enjoyment is highly subjective, this idiom holds very much true in the case of music too.

The audience at SIFAS comprises mostly of people who are regular concert-goers and have trained ears. And most of the feedback generated was that the concert was highly enjoyable and the rendering of Dikshitar's composition refreshing and attractive. There must be some merit to what these people who were physically present there, felt. It would, therefore, be unfair to discount all their sentiments aside with such sweeping statements.

I was present for the whole concert and I enjoyed it immensely. In my thirteen years in Singapore, I have attended most of the concerts which SIFAS has hosted at its "auditorium". Rama varma's concert was one with a difference and I guess it is left to my personal wish to decide whether I should use hyperboles or not. I, for one, wouldn't question a fellow rasika's use of the English language or his taste.

sunaada · Post by **sunaada** » 30 Jun 2009, 13:11

Mahesh,

Whether something is extraordinary or not is a matter of opinion...I think this one is and I think many others do as well, from their previous posts. I didn't mean it as a hyperbole (is calling something extraordinary a hyperbole??)...in fact, I meant it quite literally.

As for your arguments against this rendition, I disagree with every one of them.

bala747 · Post by **bala747** » 01 Jul 2009, 18:54

Re: mahesh3, I agree that the start was wrong. The krithi should have started at Vathapi Ganapathim Bhajeham, but I actually found RV's rendition quite good actually because it did remind me quite a great deal of MDR. There was that same devoted rendition to the krithi, the emphasis on every sangathi, regardless of whether it was the first or the highlight sangathi. As I pointed out, I was not a big fan of him showing the BMK side of his music too much, but compared to the concerts I have heard in Singapore this was definitely one of the best. I was impressed by his Azhuttham, and I don't think my view of his rendition can be considered "hyperbole" especially since I am almost always most stingy with praise and this was the first time I heard RV live (thus there was really no room for bias).

Re: skutty, I would never say no to a 1 hour plus rendition of one of my favourite compositions.

mahesh3 · Post by **mahesh3** » 01 Jul 2009, 21:55

bala747 wrote:... because it did remind me quite a great deal of MDR. There was that same devoted rendition to the krithi, the emphasis on every sangathi, regardless of whether it was the first or the highlight sangathi.
....I was impressed by his Azhuttham,....

and this was the first time I heard RV live (thus there was really no room for bias).

Bala...I am fine with your opinions, we are all allowed to have our opinions on a concert. But, having watched that video, I will just say that his renedition was at best, ODD! AND please dont connect the dots to MDR... it is quite laughable really...

Always_Evolving · Post by **Always_Evolving** » 03 Jul 2009, 10:34

I too was curious after all the superlatives but could not see the greatness of this Vathapi rendition. It wasn't anywhere near an MDR experience. But a lot could be lost in a youtube streaming.... so I reserve judgement!

prashant · Post by **prashant** » 03 Jul 2009, 15:49

Always_Evolving wrote:I too was curious after all the superlatives but could not see the greatness of this Vathapi rendition. It wasn't anywhere near an MDR experience. But a lot could be lost in a youtube streaming.... so I reserve judgement!

My feeling exactly...

shripathi_g · Post by **shripathi_g** » 04 Jul 2009, 05:43

I think Bala was referring to the way certain parts of the krithi was sung. I could definitely see parallels to MDR in the way he sung 'Bhoothadhi', 'Veetharaginam Vinuthayoginam', 'Murari' and the general way in which he approached the charanam. I'm not sure if people were expecting a slow rendition.

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 04 Jul 2009, 08:48

Why use MDR as a measuring stick? This is RV's vAtApi! RV while he is broadminded is no imitator. He is developing his own style which has to stand the test of time. MDR was never compared with the stalwarts of his preceding years. MLV used to render an outstanding vAtApi but no one ever compared her to any, let alone MDR! This is a futile argument which will be detrimental to the progress of CM

For heavens I hope CM performers don't start imitating MDR's mannerisms too

Always_Evolving · Post by **Always_Evolving** » 04 Jul 2009, 11:01

cmlover wrote:Why use MDR as a measuring stick? This is RV's vAtApi! RV while he is broadminded is no imitator

Can there be any argument that MDR's the yardstick for Vathapi! I think the OP wrote that this was the "best Vatapi" -- or something like that -- he'd ever heard. It's all v subjective of course and there seems to be a wide difference btw what was experienced by those who were there and those of us who heard it on youtube.

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 04 Jul 2009, 13:49

So, from the outpouring of wrath on the person who dared compare Sanjay's use of silence to MDR's, and from this thread, one thing has become crystal clear: NEVER compare ANYBODY to MDR. Can we at least agree on that?!

PUNARVASU · Post by **PUNARVASU** » 04 Jul 2009, 14:15

There is a saying in sanskrit:
'rAmarAvaNayOr yudhdham rAmarAvaNayOriva'- meaning 'the battle between rAmA AND rAVAnA was like the battle between rAmA and rAvaNa'.
So MDR is like MDR.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 04 Jul 2009, 21:32

Well said, Punarvasu!

mahesh3 · Post by **mahesh3** » 04 Jul 2009, 22:21

it must be embarassing, even for Rama Varma...to have a renedition like this compared to MDR's.....

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 05 Jul 2009, 02:18

Comparisons are always ugly, whether in music or in life.
When a concert has been appreciated by many, and has been reviewed as a very good one by Bala (not easy!), why should we get testy?
Good or bad, I have this thing about any forumite, big or small, young or old when he or she performs. I encourage them. Now, there is a difference of course, between overdoing the praise and warming up to someone from the RasikA family. I tend to do the latter. Most of us do.

VK RAMAN · Post by **VK RAMAN** » 05 Jul 2009, 04:03

Comparisons are always judgmental and detrimental for the healthy growth of any stream of life, period.

kamalamba · Post by **kamalamba** » 05 Jul 2009, 04:42

It is strange how this discussion has evolved.

All that was said by Bala, Sunaada and myself was that some things that RV did (such as a few uncommon sangathis and the atAna kriti...) reminded a few rasikas of MDR.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 05 Jul 2009, 21:35

Kamalamba,
If we are reminded of a particular musician that they venerate, some rasikAs take offense. My comment was about such reactions. We should actually be happy that the younger vidvAns emulate the giants, so that the quality of music can carry through.

colours · Post by **colours** » 25 Jul 2009, 03:45

Firstly, a concert when heard live can be totally different from hearing it on Youtube. You can see for yourself that the recording isn't very good. It isn't professional recording. That itself is a major factor as to why people who have heard him live may feel differently from people who have seen it on youtube.
Secondly, with accompaniments such as those, Rama Varma has managed to sing so well, which in itself is a feat of unimaginable proportion. You will know the difference if you have heard people like Patri and Harikumar accompanying him on the mridangam and Varadarajan and Vinu on the violin in recent times.
Thridly, most rasikas have this inertia towards any rendition that is different from what they have been hearing all their lives and so find all other renditions 'odd'.

Whether or not it would be embarrassing for Varma that his rendition of Vaatapi is being comapred to MDR is not for us to discuss and in my opinion, a sheer waste of time and energy. It is one thing if some people do not like his rendition but a totally different thing to use meaningless adjectives where it doesn't make sense. Also, if a rasika feels he/she is reminded of MDR, it is totally his/her opinion just like somebody may feel he is not reminded of MDR. I seriously do not understand the necessity or the reason as to why Varma would be embarrassed.

As for bala747, can you please elaborate on the BMK side which he indulged in? I find it quite strange that you do not like that side of him as I believe that BMK is a breath of fresh air amongst the stale and boring composers/musicians we find, thronging music circles, with predicable renditions and most often, of mangled lyrics. BMK signifies improvisation in the true sense of the term unlike musicians who 'practise' the improvisation before they actually improvise on stage!!!