TNK-Bhaktavatsalam-Vaikom Gopalakrishnan, 8 Feb 2013

[srikant1987]

Indiranagar Sangeetha Sabha, Bangalore

Prof TN Krishnan - Violin
Thiruvarur Sri Bhaktavatsalam - Mridangam
Vaikom Sri R Gopalakrishnan - Ghatam

vAtApi gaNapatim - haMsadhwani - Adi - MD (RS)
sarasa sAma dAna - kApinArAyaNi - Adi - T
sArasamukhi - gauDamalhAr - rUpakam - HMB
nambi keTTavar - kalyANi - cApu - PD (RNS)
tani
mAnasa sancararE - sAmA - Adi - Sadashiva Brahmendra
venkaTAcala nilayam - sindhubhairavi - Adi - PD (R)
krShNA nI bEganE bArO - yamankalyANi - cApu - Vyasaraya Tirtha (R)
tillAnA in jOnpuri, Adi
pavamAna sutuDu - saurAShTra - Adi - T
madhyamAvati sketch

[arasi]

Thanks Srikanth, for sending me mail about the concert. Otherwise I would have missed it.

Short notice it was and a long trek through BengaLUru's traffic (to and fro), but I had to go. Just one concert of his during the season wasn't enough.

The occasion was Indra Nagar Sangeetha Sabha's conferring their Purandara award on him. It was an impressive ceremony with a nicely decorated stage, the number of seats on it indicating how many speeches were in the offing. A former chief minister, a current minister and the sabha office holders spoke (though for a few minutes each, it all added up to more than an hour), with the citation, honoring, bouquet-giving and photo-taking.
TNK had a bad throat and cough, but gave an endearing speech.

Being the pro that he has been for seventy seven years or so, he gave an excellent concert. Each note measured, interlaced with imaginative phrases--each song not played but 'sung' so that you followed every word of the song.
His gauDa malhAr was a delight. nambik keTTavarilavO was lingeringly sweet. VenkatAchala nilayam and krishnA nI bEganE bArO made it an almost 'KarnATakA' concert.
Well, I loved every syllable of what he played!

Thiruvarur Bhakthavatsalam's playing was added bonus for me and I did not for a moment think of the long way back home through (what else) the traffic. When he eschews noise, BV's playing appeals no end. There wasn't a single passage of loudness in his playing last evening, and the result was exce (llent)vatsalam playing! Under TNK's gentle sway of mini-conducting, his strokes flowered into fine and ever so pleasing sound. Vaikkom added more to the concert with his pleasing play.

Mrs. TNK was also honored and it was a pleasure meeting them both in far away Indranagar after a concert of the master. Hoping to hear more in the coming years of dear TNK's playing in good health--with his usual cheer when he picks up his violin.

[srikant1987]

Arasi, I was so delighted you made it to this concert!

I was about 2 hours late for the whole evening's programme, and reached exactly before the concert began. I had similar luck at a SPICMACAY TNK concert a year or so back too.

Exce-vatsalam -- such a rhythmic portmanteau!

[rajeshnat]

Thiruvarur Bhakthavatsalam's playing was added bonus for me and I did not for a moment think of the long way back home through (what else) the traffic. When he eschews noise, BV's playing appeals no end. There wasn't a single passage of loudness in his playing last evening, and the result was exce (llent)vatsalam playing! Under TNK's gentle sway of mini-conducting, his strokes flowered into fine and ever so pleasing sound. Vaikkom added more to the concert with his pleasing play.

Nice to hear that , this kind of right sensitivity was also there when he played in 80's and 90's for maharajapuram santhanam. But now during vocal concerts , I wish excevatsalam maintains the same sensitivity of loudness