(From top) Vocalist Ankita Joshi and tabla player Bijay Kumar Das perform at Jayadev Bhawan in Bhubaneswar. Pictures by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, Jan. 6: A musical event organised by the Harihar Shastriya Sangeet Pratisthan tugged the heartstrings of the audience with vibrations of the sitar, beats of the tabla and Hindustani classical renditions.

The event held on Wednesday saw performances by young and promising talents from the state and outside who regaled the music lovers of the capital with their compositions. Disciples of music exponent Harihar Rath first presented a chorus, Saraswati Vandana followed by a duet by disciples Swetanga and Narmada.

In the Jugalbandi on raga Saranga, both singers displayed technical excellence. Then came a tabla recital by young tabla player Bijay Kumar Das. The rendition of raga Puria by vocalist Amit Rath, son of Guru Harihar Rath, was also touching. He won the hearts of the audience with his recital of a Thumri on raga Kaafi.

Ankita Joshi from Mumbai, who is groomed and trained under the tutelage of Pandit Jasraj, grabbed the attention of the listeners for over an hour.

The young singer began with a song on raga Jog that was a composition of her Guru. It was based on the desperation of a devotee for Lord Krishna.

Ankita continued with a dadra, followed by a bhajan. Her performance was appreciated with loud rounds of applause including words of praise from Guru Damodar Hota, acclaimed Odissi music exponent.

“The composition was beautiful and was executed deftly. The young singer has a bright future and is indeed talented. She proved her mettle by performing tough compositions one after another,” said Guru Hota.

The performers were supported by Siddhesh Bicholkar, Krushnachandra Das and Kunjabihari Nayak on harmonium, Chittaranjan Mohapatra on tabla and Rasmita Nanda, Suchicmita Mishra and Swayam Sampurna on tanpura.

“We are overwhelmed with the appreciation of the crowd,” said Manoranjan Swain, secretary of the organising body.