TM Krishna-vedic cultural center -Sammamish WA -May 8 2011

[Suji Ram]

TM Krishna-Vocal
RK Shriram Kumar-Violin
Arun Prakash- Mridangam

rAma nannu brOva –harikAmbhOji-rUpaka-T (S)
shrIkRSNam bhajarE rE mAnasa-rUpavati-rUpaka-MD(R)
mOkSamu galadA-sAramati-Adi-T(RNS)
kathaya kathaya mAdhavam-kalyANi-NT
RTP-kIravANi-miSra jAti triputa- rAgamAlika in many ragas- sahana, desh, tillang, suraTi etc..
kAna vEnDAmO-Sriranjani-rUpaka PS
bhaja gOvindam-rAgamAlika- Adi ShankarAcArya.

This is my first TM Krishna concert. It was fantastic-2.5 h! I was hoping for a grand Dikshitar kriti but he presented a small one. sAramati was just flowing like a river with occasional waterfalls. He did not present second speed svarams which I think was thoughtful as the whole piece was presented in such a slow pace-very creative! Neraval was for the first line of caranam.
kIravANi was again slow but I liked it very much. Pallavi was composed by RKSK and had the words Shankaram and ending with Adi Shankaram. Since it was Shankara jayanti it was apt. rAgamAlika svarams were flowing one after the other. RKSK add his own selection of ragas.
I had heard a recording of TMK singing bhaja gOvindam recently-on this site? I really like this song but it is too long and instead he could have presented a couple of other pieces. However it was soulful.

RK Shriram was excellent as always. This was a wonderful vocal-violin pair. The mridangist was minimal and he hardly played. At least during the kalpanasvarams he should have played! Felt as if did not want to wake a sleeping baby somewhere. But when he did play he was too loud. His tani was good though.

During the TMK's sAramati AlApana someone shouted “kyA bAt hai ustAd”! That sums my experience.

[mahavishnu]

Thanks for your post, Suji Ram. Sounds like a wonderful song list for a 2.5 hr concert.

The rUpavati composition must have been wonderful. Few sing this wonderful mela ragam from the netra chakra. Even a recent concert on allied ragams from this chakra (in Cleveland) somehow did not include this ragam.

I understand that you would have liked more pieces instead of the longer Bhaja Govindam. But I suppose they presented it for Shankara Jayanti also, RKSK being a very devout follower of the Sringeri peetam. TMK sings it almost exactly like the MSS version, which is just superb. I am no Sanskrit expert to comment on his diction, but I just love the way he enunciates the lyrics here.

And yes, Arun Prakash is very minimalist. It works well at times, but sometimes it is TOO minimal for my taste...I do like robust but non-intrusive accompaniment where you can see the intelligence of the mridangist. Although KAP is a very good artiste, his minimalism comes across as being passive, especially when he accompanies Krishna.

[ksharanam]

Thanks for the review! It was indeed fantastic – to me, the Saramati vilambakAla-svarams were the high-point. TMK demonstrated all kinds of fabulous gamakas during the svara-prastAram, staying for 7-8 avartanas just between sa and ma! Completely agree - dRtakAla-svarams would have spoilt the effect.

Honestly though, I thought Arun Prakash played brilliantly. I seemed to like the effect he created when he came in with a flourish.

P.S. Wonder how many rasikas.org members are in Puget Sound?

[rajeshnat]

And yes, Arun Prakash is very minimalist. It works well at times, but sometimes it is TOO minimal for my taste...I do like robust but non-intrusive accompaniment where you can see the intelligence of the mridangist. Although KAP is a very good artiste, his minimalism comes across as being passive, especially when he accompanies Krishna.

mahavishnu
I am in the same boat as you, at times he is just not passive , it is almost like a dharna in the concert field

[rajeshnat]

kataya kataya-kalyANi-NT

Suji- thanks for the review.I know you pay lot of attention to words, I thought it is gatayA and not kataya
gatayA gatayA mAdhavam - kalyAni - NT
This was tuned by SSI

[sureshvv]

And yes, Arun Prakash is very minimalist. It works well at times, but sometimes it is TOO minimal for my taste...I do like robust but non-intrusive accompaniment where you can see the intelligence of the mridangist. Although KAP is a very good artiste, his minimalism comes across as being passive, especially when he accompanies Krishna.

I think he is a trend setter and expect many younger mridangists to adopt his style of accompaniment - a sharp contrast to the busybody mridangists who feel compelled to maximize their strike rate during the course of a concert. He is also sensitive to the style of the main artiste. The few times I have heard him accompany Smt. Vedavalli really provided the definition of "sowkyam" for me - something which is being hotly debated in another thread here.

[Suji Ram]

Suji- thanks for the review.I know you pay lot of attention to words, I thought it is gatayA and not kataya
gatayA gatayA mAdhavam - kalyAni - NT
This was tuned by SSI

It is kathaya kathaya mAdhavam
source: http://www.sangeetasudha.org

[sirsub11]

Shri Krishnam Bhajare Manasa in Rupavati was sung a few years ago by Sanjay Subrahmanyan at a Dikshithar festival at the Gayana Samaja in Bangalore. I have a recording of this, a krithi I greatly enjoyed, though I've never heard Sanjay perform it again. It would be interesting to hear Krishna's rendition of this short, melodic krithi.

[srikant1987]

I began liking KAP's playing a little less than I used to some time back.

It sometimes seems to say a "See! I'm so minimalist!" which I find irritating. |(

Another thing is sometimes there are some very gentle, even tentative, strokes and some louder strokes. While having such a variation should be having good musical and aesthetic reason, it may be placing impractical demands on the sound people, the sound equipment and the acoustics.

That said, he's still a favourite of mine.

[sureshvv]

Another thing is sometimes there are some very gentle, even tentative, strokes and some louder strokes. While having such a variation should be having good musical and aesthetic reason, it may be placing impractical demands on the sound people, the sound equipment and the acoustics.

High time these unsound people/equipment move into the 21st century

[arasi]

Suji,
I haven't heard rUpavati at all What does it sound like?
Before someone says 'like rUpavati' , I'd say I'm ignorant but curious and would like to hear the rAgam. Of course, there's no chance of hearing the one sung in the concert you attended!

[Sindhuja]

Interesting list. Looking forward to hearing him in San Diego this Friday!
Looks like he has decidedly weaned himself from the Ariyakudi kacheri format over the last several months (years?)...

[Suji Ram]

Suji,
I haven't heard rUpavati at all What does it sound like?
Before someone says 'like rUpavati' , I'd say I'm ignorant but curious and would like to hear the rAgam. Of course, there's no chance of hearing the one sung in the concert you attended!

Arasi,
The short sketch of the rAga rUpavati he presented immediately sounded as a vivAdi raga. I heard a gamakam like R3 of nAta which is G2 in rUpavati and the scale has D3.
Ar: S R1 G2 M1 P D3 N3 S
Av: S N3 D3 P M1 G2 R1 S
The kriti was beautiful and was a in slow motion bringing out the beauty of lyrics and rAga. There is just one recording (unknown singer) of this kriti in sangeethapriya site- see under Dikshitar.

Would like to hear how Sanjay Subrahmanyan sang.