Madurai Sri TNS for Global GNB Cent Celebrations, Singapore

[Dikshitar]

Madurai Sri TN Seshagopalan - Vocal
Vittal Sri Ramamoorthy - Violin
Sri TR sundaresan - Mridangam

Inta Chala - Begada - Adi - Veenai Kuppair (S)
Telisi Rama - Purna Chandrika - Adi - Thayarajar (S)
ennagAnu rAma bhajana - Pantuvarali - Rupakam - Badrachala Ramadas (R,N,S)
parAmukhamEla namma - kAnaDa - Adi - GNB (R)
mArakOTi sundari - bahudAri - Adi - GNB
Ninnu Sevinchina - Yadukulakamboji - M Chapu - Subbaraya Sastri (R,S)
Giripriyam - katanakutoohalam - Adi - HMB
RTP - Shanmugapriya - Adi (purvangam tisram, Uttarangam chatusram)
Slokams - Ragamalika
Tillana - Sindhu Bhairavi - Adi


This concert was organized as part of the Global GNB centenary celebrations in Singapore by Music Circle.

I have followed TNS sir for the last 20 yrs or so and have heard more than 400+ live concerts of his. Even so, this concert was a special one that will be remembered for a long time to come.

The concert started with a brisk rendition of the Begada Varnam. There are some ragas that seem to kindle TNS. Begada is one of those. Most of his concerts that have started with Begada have been super hits. Telisi Rama is his favorite as well and brisk redition of Swarams kept the violinist challenged. Purnachandrika is not an easy ragam to handle on the violin especially during the faster passages. Vittal handled the raga very well.

Pantuvarali was elaborated in the madhyama Kala with a lot of Akaram usage. Then there were some scintilating Jarus and karvais across octaves that gave the first hint that we were in for something special in this concert. The Neraval was short and again mainly in madyama kalam. Swarams were soaked in Raga Bhavam.

The GNB's compositions preceded the Yadukulakamboji alapana. Again one of TNS sir's favorate ragas. There is a school of thought (Sampradayam) that Yadukulakamboji should not be elababorated beyond TAra Sadjam. I do not subscribe to this view because I think it stems from the assumption that one cannot differenciate between Kamboji and Yadukulakaboji effectively in the tAra stayi. TNS's elaboration in the tAra Stayi should put to rest any doubt in this matter. The tAra Sadjam was so intellegently and effectively used that even when pharases like S-R-G-S, D-S-R-G-S etc that were used it dint have any "Vasanai" of Kamboji. Ninnu Sevinchina was rendered with the usual gait with Swarams at nI nAma Bhajana.

The main course was the one that really swept everyone of their feet. First the elaboration of Shanmugapriya (35 min) in 3 stages. Again, instead of using the Usual Rishabam as the jiva/nyasa swaram, TNS choose Gandaram. In fact there were several Rishaba-varjya sangathis that had absolutely no influence of Subhapantuvarali, even when there were flat Gandara prayogas in the madyama-stayi.

The RTP "Guna Nidhi Balasubramanya gAna Vidya Turandara" on GNB. 4-akshara eduppu with purvangam in Tisram and uttarangam in chantusram. It took a while for me to understand the kanakku swarams, and let me not elaborate here since it was quite complex. Ragamalika Swarams in Bageshri, Hamsanandi and kApi followed with a complicated korvai as the climax.

Sri Sundaresan's tani as usual precise as well as pleasant. He matched the Kanta nadai combinations that TNS’s sang earlier with his own “abiprayams”. Vittal was effective in his supporting role. It’s no mean task to support an artist of TNS’s caliber.

Slokam was a Ragamalika one (too many ragams to list out) followed by Tillana in Sindhu Bhairavi.

The audience were kept in rapt attention for 3 1/2 hrs even though the concert exceeded by about an hr. We should be proud that we share our lives with this genius.

- V Shankaranarayanan

[rajeshnat]

Shankar
We had very very few reviews of vocalist on another vocalist.This is just amazing for you to come forward to write about another vocalist.

I do know you are in the generation of musicians who has been /will be influenced by the jAmbhavan TNS Sir(that too at many places you have so much overlap with TNS). Should have been a treat for this generation mahA vidwan to sing a pallavi on one of the greatest mahAvidwans GNB crafting the initials of GNB in "Guna Nidhi Balasubramanya". Also some time before in one of the writeups TMK was mentioning how GNB gave an entire new color to Yadhukula kAmbOdhi. By any chance was the boeing 747(bala747) there attending this singapore concert

[Dikshitar]

It has always been a great pleasure listening/following TNS sir . My adulation for him has only grown in the one week that I spent with him. Now I realize what we see and get on stage is probably less than 5% of the maha vidwan that he actually is.

BTW, I haven't met Bala747 before, and didn't see anyone around with wings either )

[sivapriya]

Thanks Shankaranarayana Dikshitar, for that wonderful write up.

The aural treat that you all enjoyed has been sufficiently shared with by you in this forum and the write up takes us through an imaginary trip as to what that musical journey would have been.

Though there is no need to re-emphasise, it still feels nice to admit with pride, that TNS is a TiTAN and that we are fortunate to have musicians like him amongst us , from whom we can learn atleast a miniscule portion. From this writeup, we have got to hear so much of what he must have sung that day !

T R Sundaresan , i have watched grow steadily ( happens to be my mother's cousin, though no contact now). Vittal too is a good violinist. Its no mean task accompanying someone like TNS.!!

What is also nice about the write up is the way you have presented honestly the facts and impressions without mincing words or being overtly profuse in praise. An A class review with all aspects of music well laid out !! As somebody stated , I too have felt many a time that your music seems to have been influenced a little by this great vidwan.

Thanks for sharing the details. How did the workshop session take off?

[kedharam]

Dikshitar, thanks for your wonderful review. Lovely pallavi.

"We should be proud that we share our lives with this genius"
Soooo true.