Sanjay Subrahmanyan@Chicago

[kedharam]

Sanjay Subrahmanyan
Varadarajan - violin
Venkatesh - mridangam
Kanakangi – varnam- thodi
Ninnu joochi – sowrashtram
Entani ne varnintunu – mukhari , R, N, S. N@ kanulara sevinchi kammani phalamula nosagi
Sarasa dala nayana – khamas, R
Keeravani- innamum sandeha padalamo, R, S
Thani
Mayamma – ahiri
Mamava jagadeeswara – saraswathi manohari
Kalyani –RTP
Pallavi: govinda alarmel mangai manala va thiruvengada natha, kanda triputa
Ragamalika – sahana, hindolam, nalinakanthi, kapi narayani
Rageshri - dasara nindisa beda manuja
Palukku thenella – Abheri
Pitham theliya marunthu – senchurutti
Engum niraindirukkum – navroj
Arumo aval- mand
Thillana – kapi
The concert’s opening number, varnam set the tone for a journey of inexorable momentum, astute musicianship and commanding technique.
Sanjay explored the hues of mukhari with an earthy passion, lending a haunting drift which I can’t expound effectively through the written word and Sri.Varadarajan spun out the lovely melody with poise. Entani ne varnintunu unfolded with a fully warranted grandeur with his vocal colorings wedded to the composition’s spirit, easing into neraval at ‘Kanulara sevinchi kammani phalamula nosagi’, realizing the angst of the composer by thrustingly tossing the phrases with graceful abandon in his interchanges with Sri.Varadarajan and Sri. Venkatesh.
keeravani- Sanjay expanded it comprehensively letting himself loose in melodic passages with some impressive fluid playing in bringing out the latent nuances by Sri.Varadarajan in his solo. He completed this phase with the portrayal of 'innamum sandeha padalamo', attuned to the nuances of the composer’s sensibility, augmenting the inner pathos, and capturing its organic solidity - a sanjay hallmark. The swarams came with an expressive ease in a progressive enhancement of rhythmic density bringing out the enduring melody beneath the swirling graces complemented by Sri. Venkatesh’s thani - a sensitive collaboration.
Then sanjay eased into a throbbing account of mayamma, with atmost reverence to the text with deeply expressive laments, wrapping listeners in the textural richness of the composition…kind of a submissive bliss…
Then the trio sailed through the kinetically animated “mamava jagadeeswara” at a bracing tempo, capturing the piece’s galloping rhythmic bite sweeping listeners into the flow. Following this interlude, came the evening's most compelling offering, RTP…
Kalyani - after prancing and twirling to flesh out striking melodic nuances with consummate clarity, the pensive, Zen like thanam emerged with piercing clusters in haunting repetition, treading in magisterial layers of rhythm with beautiful spatial dimensions portraying Sanjay in his element for a resounding ovation. The Pallavi was an evocative musical narrative, emerging through the thickets of notes, teasing out the text’s rhythmic elements with wistful yearning and ending with brief sketches of sahana, hindolam, nalinakanthi, kapi narayani in a seamless flow, where every melody uncurled as a reflection of the text and the transitions of ragas felt organic with Sri.Varadarajan and Sri.Venkatesh gliding with him all the way for his cheery flights with an insistent bouncy rhythm.
Arumo aval and the thillana in kapi, setting toes tapping to an irresistible beat made for a lovely ending winning a grateful standing ovation…

[kunthalavarali]

Thanks for the splendid review, reminds one of "Aeolus" of Shankar's Weekly of the yesteryears.

[cienu]

Thanks Kedharam for the wonderful review..
After a long long time, I presume

[arasi]

Right you are! His reviews are eagerly awaited, though they are far and few. So are his photos. Hope more Chicago concerts are reported by him.

There was no kedAram in the song list, though.
A substantial list, as usual. Hope the organizers bring out a CD of this concert. Varadarajan and Venkatesh as 'takka' vAdyam too!

[vasanthakokilam]

I attended the concert and enjoyed it tremendously. Thanks Kedaram for the excellent review and the song list. I was not taking notes and I was afraid I may not remember all the songs especially the post RTP ones. I am glad you did.

Mukhari and enthaninne were quite good, with the right dose of emotional expression that the raga and the song warrants. Especially the alapana by Sanjay. It was quite restrained in terms of dynamics while packing it in with emotions. Outside of Mukhari (and Ahiri), It was a high energy concert throughout. There was great cooperation among the three artists on the stage.

Sanjay's alapana for kalyani RTP was excellent. I have a mixed relationship with Kalyani. While I very much love listening to kalyani compositions, alapana is a different matter. Sanjay's high energy and dynamism kept me hooked throughout. It is a different kind of alapana than what you would hear for the main, less restrained I would say. Thanam was equally good. Kalyani RTP itself is rare one for me. Given the sojourn in off-the-beaten-path ragas, it is good to get back to the main stream. On a lighter note, I was expecting some hindusthani raga or rare carnatic raga for the RTP, so when he started on kalyANi, it took me a few seconds to really convince myself that it is not some such raga with some resemblance to kalyANi!!

it was set to kanda jathi triputa tala ( 9 beats ). The arudhi looked to be on the Veechu of the drutham rather than on the usual 'thattu'. At least that is how I felt it. That is something new for me. It fit in well.

The raga malika swaras were very good. I especially liked the sahana segment, though it was a high speed kalpanaswara which means eschewing some of the sahana aesthetics that come through on a slower exposition. You can imagine how well nalinakanthi and kapinarayani lend itself to some fast paced singing that is quite attractive, doing at that pace with sahana is not easy, so well done on that front.

Sri. Venkatesh's misra chapu thani to the kIravANi main was quite enjoyable. The left side was mic'd properly and we could hear the bass very well. That is important for Venkatesh who plays a few avarthanams just on the left side to mix things up during the thani. There were lots of exciting variations and so it was quite lively. To such an extent that when Venkatesh started the final kOrvai, I felt like 'Oh, it is getting over already'. I guess that is a measure of a good thani.

Sri. Varadarajan was at his usual best. There were a lot of playful exchanges musically between Sanjay and Varadarajan. It was more so in kAlyani kalpanaswara. I do not know if this is a standard fare or not but it was new to me. Sanjay will sing with an energetic burst for like 10-15 seconds seconds, and stop at a high note and a small pause, Varadarajaran will then play 3 straight notes down, then Sanjay will continue. It was in different places of the octave at different times and so Varadarajan had to be on his toes to execute this well. (or may be this was all worked out ahead of time, I do not know. It did not look like it, at least not the lowest level details ). In either case, it was a lot of fun and the audience could relate to it and enjoy it as well.

The other playfulness came during ragamalika kalpanaswaras. He started the nalinakanthi section with a sweet 'Ma ma ga ga ri sa ga' ( something like that which immediately resonated with the audience due to how manavyala starts) and the same thing with kApi nArayani. Not necessarily in a playful manner but more of an Applesque subtle touch, Sanjay ended Swathi ThirunAl's mAmava JagadIswarA with a little humming flourish before the final theermanam which resembled a bit of that super famous song in saraswathi manohari.

I felt like this is a stage in Sanjay's career that he is experimenting at a few places to add some variations and further define his musical persona. ( oh man, that is high sounding ). I felt that in some kalpanaswara prayOgas involving some not-so-usual jumps and then a smooth flow down on the avarohana ladder etc. Mukhari kalpanaswara was like that also along with a few other format differences than the usual. It sounded quite different but all good. A high energy and imaginative singer like Sanjay can afford to do that and keep the audience engaged. On a different aspect, in kamas alapana, at a few places, the exposition was quite different from the kamas I know. Before I could figure out what is going on, he was back to the usual and familiar Kamas.

Talking of the auditorium, there were no sound issues for a change. The musician did not complain about audio, there were no high decibel screeching noises etc. We know audio is good when we do not even think about the audio system. It was one of those days. Well done, audio team! On other environmental things, I think the artists felt a bit warmer on stage ( I read a bit of a strain in Sanjay's face right after varnam but the artists did not complain). We felt warm too but not uncomfortably so. They then turned on the fans for us. It is this weird part of the year when the season changes. Everyone including the trees are typically confused, them with the leaves and us whether to keep the thermostat in heat or cold.

I bumped into arunk as I was walking out. He mentioned that each song is by a different composer which I did not quite realize. The concert is part of the all composers' day organized by the temple.

Thanks to Kedharam's excellent song list, I searched for the composers of the songs. Here is the list I could find. Please provide any corrections. Also please id the kApi thillana composer.

Thodi Varnam - pallavi gopala iyer
ninnu joochi - Patnam
entaninnE - Thiyagaraja
sArasadaLa nayanA - Muthuswamy Dikshithar
innamum sandEha padalAmO - gOpAlakrishna bhArati
mAyamma - Syama Sastri
mAmava jagadIswarA - Maharajah Swathi Thirunal
RTP pallavi - Sanjay Subramanyan ( I suppose )
Dasara nindisa beda manuja - Purandara dasa
Palukku thenella - Annamacharya
Piththam theliya marundu - Gopalakrishna Bharathi
Engum niraindirukkum - Papanasam Sivan
Arumo Aval - KaNNan Aiyyangaar
Kapi thillana - Could not find the reference through search in spite of trying hard. I guess I am not smart enough with the search query ( The lyrics are in tamil and it had the words 'rudra thandavam Adi mahizum sivanE' somewhere in the middle. Hope some of you are able to id it given this info )
pavamAna - Thyagaraja

Quite an impressive range of composers indeed.

It felt like the three artists on stage took us through a journey of vastly differing landscapes during this 3+ hour concert.
It was quite enjoyable.

[kunthalavarali]

Kapi thillana by Thanjavur S Kalyanaraman ?

[mahavishnu]

Glad that Sanjay's concert elicited a review out of VK (and kedharam) !
Look forward to catching him next week here in CA!

My guess is the kApi tillAnA is by MDR.

[arasi]

VK,
Not just a review, but a detailed one. Thanks!

After describing the surprise elements in the concert (not to be confused with gimmicks), you sum it all up well in your last line: it felt like the three artistes on the stage took us through a journey of vastly differing landscapes during the 3+ hour concert.


Arun doesn't write reviews (am I right?). Otherwise we would have heard from him.

Since I cannot be at any of the venues, I look forward to song lists and reviews of the upcoming concerts--today's (in Texas) and the two in CA.

Mahavishnu,
Waiting to read your review!

[rajeshnat]

VK and Kedharam
Thanks for your reviews. Nice song selection , glimpses of many composers. The venue being balaji temple at aurora the pallavi was apt to the temple.

[vasanthakokilam]

Yes, Rajesh. I also think the pallavi line is setup for the occasion.

As you know, the stage is right underneath the feet of bAlAji, so to say. Many artists consider it a rare privilege to be performing in such a configuration.

The arudhi was on 'va' with the usual punch. As you can imagine, all the pallavi amarkaLams end there and it is a nice crisp word for that. May be that is why Sanjay shifted the the arudhi to the 7th beat of KJT. The other choice is atheetha eduppu which can bring in its own complications! Just some idle geeky speculations on my part!

Good crowd ( 300+? ), almost houseful with the majority of the seats at $25.00 Understandable and reasonable given it is a short tour.

Mahavishnu, I also keyed in on MDR first but his kApi thillana is in Telugu. Kunthalavarali, I could not locate Kalyanaraman's kapi thillana through search.

[rajeshnat]

Yes, Rajesh. I also think the pallavi line is setup for the occasion.

FYI,There was a review some time back where this pallavi was sung in keeravani ragam by Sanjay.

[arasi]

Rajesh,
I remember hearing it, and have heard that pallavi line over the years set in other rAgAs too.

Speaking of kIravANi, innamum would have been rendered very well by Sanjay.

[vasanthakokilam]

I intended to write a few lines about the kIravANI main but it got left out. When the alapana was going on, I remembered a conversation with another organizer there who wondered out loud to the artist if there are any other songs in kIraVANi. The song that day was kaligiyunte. There were a few songs mentioned but I do not think this was one of them. When Sanjay started the song, that was double the surprise, that there is indeed another song main-worthy and that too in Tamil. Given it is in Tamil, and Sanjay's relatively clean enunciation of lyrics, I could follow the main message of the song which gave strong indications that it is a Gopalakrishna Bharathi's composition. Turned out to be so. It felt like a short song, since Sanjay got to Kalpanaswaras relatively quickly.

It is a nice song and Sanjay sang it well. The lyrics based on a well known story and that too something I can understand added a whole lot to it.

[sridhar]

MLV has rendered this song in an old album - it is a classic, esp., the neraval for the line "Ponnambalam thanil"

[Lakshman]

I have over a dozen tillAnA lyrics in kApi but the words rudram tANDavam do not occur in any of them.

[kunthalavarali]

Here is a link to the Kapi thillana composed (?) and sung by TSK:"http://www.sendspace.com/file/lxfxcj"The words 'rudra thandavam Adi mahizum sivanE' occurs at 2' 55'' (in windows media player) in the third movement of the piece.

[vasanthakokilam]

kunthalavarali, yes, that is the one Sanjay sang. It is awesome you nailed it based on just a few words I mentioned.

You put a question mark against TSK as the composer. How doubtful are you about that?

[kunthalavarali]

I am almost certain that the thillana is by TSK. But could it be LGJ'S composition?

[Ramasubramanian M.K]

Kedaram/VK: Excellent review. I am quite certain the Thillana is by Sri.Kalyanaraman. Sanjay adores him and rightfully so
Re; Keeravani--there is a Tamil song often sung by the late DKJ--Vananai Madhusudanai--I have heard Sankaranarayanan sing it too.
In my opinion Kaligiyunde's majesticity is unique.

back to the review-- I felt(probably having heard Sanjay many times!!) as if I was at the concert--so graphic and illuminating. VK's observations re: the :exchanges" between Varadarajan and Sanjay were insightful.

Browsing thro the forum is an awesome journey--so many perspectives,insights--constant reminders that years of listening could still be supplemented by Forumites' insights.

ENTHARO MAHANUBHAVULU ANTHARIKI VANDANAMU!!!!

[Lakshman]

It is definitely not LGJ's.

[vasanthakokilam]

Browsing thro the forum is an awesome journey--so many perspectives,insights--constant reminders that years of listening could still be supplemented by Forumites' insights.

Very much so. If the word 'synergy' applies anywhere without exaggeration, it is here.

ENTHARO MAHANUBHAVULU ANTHARIKI VANDANAMU!!!!

Right back at you, Sir!

[arasi]

MKR,
VaNanai is a classic, and I have heard NSG and Sanjay sing it a few times, giving it the dignity it warrants.

It's always good to see your posts which come from your musical experience of awesome dimensions. Of course, we old timers can also learn so much from the youngsters

[mahavishnu]

Vananai Madhusudanai--

small nitpick, MKR. It is "madi sUDiya maindhanai tEnanait- tiruvaNNAmalaiyanai".
Madhusudhanani would totally alter that meaning

[Ramasubramanian M.K]

Mahavishnu: Apacharam Kshamaswa!!--being a Tamil speaking person this 'faux pa' is unconscionable!!! More so because I have heard it sung by DKJ almost 50 years ago--anybody who has ever listened to DKJ or DKP's diction CANNOT afford to get it wrong!! Now I know WHY my wife always chides me when I butcher the lyrics--but then I treat all languages equally bad!!

By the way I suspect you are based in Toronto--I am planning a very short visit with my wife to Toronto for a wedding on October 25 in Missisauga--will be staying with my cousin in Missisauga--Is there any chance we could talk atleast if not meet? My # is 718-775-5256(Cell).
Viji(lalgudi) whom I spoke with,recently thinks highly of you!!I told her"That makes two of us!!"

[arasi]

MKR,
Are you kidding? Or, are you speaking in one digit of many digits? (as they used to say two for two lakhs and so on?!). Mahavishnu has many fans!

Your namesake now lives in CA. A recent move...

Mahavishnu,
aranum ariyum onRE anRO?

[Ramasubramanian M.K]

Arasi: Thanks for letting me know about Mahavishnu's move to Cal--hope it was not prompted by my threat of visit to Toronto!!!

I agree MV has many fans--afterall his "nom-de-plume" has trillions of followers over 10 avatars!!

[kedharam]

Thanks all.
VK, thanks a lot for filling in the composer names. I was in a rush to get my thoughts out while still under the influence of kalyani:)The kapi thillana is by SK. I got it confirmed by SK’s student.

[mahavishnu]

Arasi: Thanks for letting me know about Mahavishnu's move to Cal--hope it was not prompted by my threat of visit to Toronto!!!

I agree MV has many fans--afterall his "nom-de-plume" has trillions of followers over 10 avatars!!

I cannot take credit for the number of fans that the great lord preserver has
MKR, Such a pity that I will be missing you when you visit Toronto. Well, now you just have to visit California!

I have messaged you my contact info/number through the forum email. Look forward to talking soon.