Bhavana Iyer impressed with a carefully curated repertoire

Kedaram, a Chennai-based cultural organisation, held its 11th anniversary recently at Ragasudha Hall, Mylapore.

The celebration was preceded by Bhavana Iyer’s vocal recital. Blessed with a pleasant voice, she presented an engaging concert with the able support of Pappu Gyanadev on the violin, Ajith Sridhar on the mridangam and Master Skandan Manjunath on the ghatam.

Highlighting the expansive range of the Bhairavi raga, Bhavana briskly opened her concert at the anupallavi line of Tyagaraja’s ‘Upacharamu cheseva’. The kriti was embellished with a neatly structured swarakalpana sequence in the end. Swati Tirunal’s ‘Vande sada padmanabham’ in Navarasakanada propelled the concert further. This seamlessly led to a finely etched raga alapana of Vasantha, which served as a prelude to Muthuswami Dikshitar’s ‘Brahadambikayai namaste’ set in Misra Chapu, a choice that added further merit to her selection.

Bhavana selected Surutti raga for a detailed alapana. A raga that offers ample scope for imaginative exploration, she elaborated it with poise. This was followed by Dikshitar’s ‘Sri venkatagireesam’. The niraval at the charanam line ‘Alamelumanga sametham’ was thoughtfully developed before presenting a well-crafted swarakalpana.

A concert is often considered complete only with the inclusion of a Syama Sastri composition. And Bhavana chose the evocative ‘Devi brova samayamithe’ in the rare Chintamani raga. She brought out well the raga’s nuances. The mood shifted with the rendition of Arunachala Kavi’s Tamil composition ‘Hanumane swamikkinda’ in raga Malayamarutham. And Bhavana’s rendition added to the kriti’s appeal.

The evening’s main offering was Sankarabharanam. Few ragas offer a musician the vast scope that this majestic raga does, allowing for the exploration of both melodic richness and emotional depth. Drawing on her rigorous training, diligent practice, and creativity, Bhavana brought out the many hues of this time-honoured raga. However, there were occasions, particularly while traversing the upper-register sancharas, when her voice tended to turn slightly strident. Tyagaraja’s magnum opus ‘Entuku peddala’ was her choice here. Bhavana presented a detailed niraval at ‘Veda sastra tatvarthamu telisi’, fully mindful of the profundity of its meaning and emotion. The ensuing swara exchanges with violinist Pappu Gyanadev were interestingly structured, with the gandharam-centric phrases lending a satisfying conclusion.

Gyanadev’s violin support was sensitive and restrained. So were Ajith Sridhar on the mridangam and Master Skandan Manjunath on the ghatam. Special mention must be made of the young ghatam artiste Skandan, whose mature musicianship and impeccable sense of rhythm belied his years.

Bhavana concluded her concert with a ghana ragamalika traversing the ragas Nattai, Gowlai, Arabhi, Varali and Sri, in praise of Goddess Sharadambika.