| Veteran
S R Janakiraman gave a scholarly account at the Music Academy on
18th December 2000, as expected from him. Maha Vaidyanatha Iyer's mammoth
work, the 72-mela ragamalika, in which he took up the third chakra (Agni),
won appreciation from the connoisseurs who formed a major section of the
audience. Ragas like Ratnakanti, an unheard raga, can be expected only
from the likes of S R Janakiraman. He gave a good account of the raga in
which the contours were portrayed in such a way that it made one wonder
why a straight-forward upanga raga like this wasn't being such
oftener and by other artistes. Having a simple scale of srgmpns-snpmgrs,
using the same variety of notes as in Latangi or Kalyani, it is found
mentioned in works like Raganidhi (authored by B Subba Rao). He
rendered 'Srinatha nannu', a composition of Tiruvottriyur Tyagayyar,
perhaps the only kriti in this raga. |
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The grandeur of 'Tiruvadi
saranam', a masterly composition in Kambhoji popularised by his guru
Musiri Subramanya Iyer, was aptly conveyed. 'Nannubrovulalita', a
gem of Syama Sastri was presented without any unnecessary frills. The
piece de resistance was a Ragam Tanam Pallavi in Natabhairavi, which was
quite challenging because, though it is listed as a parent raga, it has
been eclipsed by Bhairavi, which is considered its janya scale-wise. The
alapana was rendered in stages as is the tradition, without any traces of
Bhairavi. His tanam was an ideal lesson for aspiring musicians. The
Pallavi was an intellectual treat, with due importance given to the often
cursorily treated neraval. At every stage, the raga bhava was kept in
mind.
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