Swami Vivekananda, who was a singer and composer himself, has expressed his love and passion for and written about his philosophy of music, especially the spiritual power of Indian classical music, in many articles. His birthday is thus always celebrated with a grand musical event at the Vivekananda Hall at the Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Golpark. This year was no exception and the event focussed especially on duet performances. Among all the sessions, each of which was filled with a great variety of music and rhythm, the father and son duo, Sajan and Swaransh Mishra, on vocal and violin, left the deepest impression on listeners. They presented Raga Jaunpuri late morning and their flourish and on-stage coordination enchanted the audience. Be it in the vilambit ektaal kheyal or the madhyalay and drut kheyal, Swaransh Mishra’s clarity and style were appreciable. Swapan Chaudhuri’s tabla accompaniment was sparkling and Jyoti Goho provided sonorous support on the harmonium.
The morning session commenced with a sarangi recital by Sabir Sultan Khan, who played Raga Miyan ki Todi. The rendition was melodious with Parimal Chakraborty on the tabla uplifting the mood. Nishat Khan’s sitar recital in Bilaskhani Todi could have been more intricate, although the beginning was spontaneous and vivid when it came to the movements of the keynotes. The alaap, jor and jhala were followed by different compositions. The performance was enhanced by subtle accompaniment from Subhajyoti Guha on the tabla. Jayateerth Mevundi’s vocal recital along with Praveen Godkhindi on the flute was exceptional. They started with Raga Madhuvanti, proceeding with well-coordinated aochar, vistaar and taankari as well as some musical conversation. Mevundi’s generosity and Godkhindi’s sweetness created a serene ambience. The Kathak recital by Saurav and Gaurav Mishra, especially their attempts to mimic raindrops and thunderclouds with innovative postures and footwork, enraptured the audience. The clarity of their tatkar, tihais and expressions was praiseworthy. Sanju Sahai on the tabla and Ravi Shankar Maharaj enunciating the bols added a different dimension to the performance.
The mood of the evening session was set by the intricate and melodious rendition of Raga Marwa on the rudraveena by Bahauddin Dagar with Nirmalya Dey on vocals (picture, left) and Sukhad Munde on the pakhawaj. Although it was difficult to achieve symmetry between the vocal performance and the veena, the presentation was free-flowing. The formal alaap of a dhrupad structure was utterly spontaneous. The violinist, L. Subramaniam, and his son, Ambi Subramaniam (picture, right), entertained the audience with ragam, tanam and pallavi along with a varnam (Abhogi). The depth, intelligence and modernity of Ambi Subramaniam and the traditional style of his father blended perfectly; it was a joy to hear. Their rendition captured the essence of the raga in true Carnatic style. Tanmoy Bose on the tabla, Parupalli Phalgun on the mridangam, Radhakrishnan on the ghatam and G. Satya Sai on the morsing provided appropriate assistance to the artists. The resonance of the percussion and the cyclical rotation of the violin were evocative. The compèring by Biplab Ganguly and Korak Basu wove the disparate threads of the programme together beautifully.