Neyveli Santhanagopalan @ Ayodhya Mandapam, Chennai

Venue: Ayodhya Aswamedha Maha Mandapam, West Mambalam, Chennai

Date: 30 Mar 2007

Vocal: Vid. Neyveli Santhanagopalan

Violin: Vid. M.A. Sundaresan

Mrudangam: Vid. Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman

Khanjira: Vid. B. Sree Sundar Kumar

List of songs:

1) srI rAma rAma rAmEti (slOkam) – mOhanam

2) inta chAlamu (varnam) – bEgaDa – Adi – vINai kuppaiyer (S)

3) mErusamAna – mAyAmALavagowLa – Adi – thyAgarAja (NS)

4) mAkElarA – ravichandrikA – Adi – thyAgarAja (S)

5) raghuvara nannu – pantuvarALi – Adi – thyAgarAja (ANST)

6) rAmabhadra rArA – Anandabhairavi – Adi – bhadrAchala rAmdAs

7) durmArga charAdamulanu – ranjani – rUpakam – thyAgarAja (AS)

8 ) hechariga – yadukulakAmbOji – kanDa chApu – thyAgarAja (O)

9) thAyE yashOdA – tODi – Adi – UthukkAdu venkata subbaiyer (AN)

10) kastUri tilakam (viruttam) – yamunA kalyANi

       krishnA nI bEganE bArO – yamunA kalyANi – misra chApu – vyAsarAya

11) ArabhimAnam – rAgamAlikA – Adi – tanangambaDi panchanAda iyer

12) mAnasa sanchararE – sAmA – Adi – sadAsiva brahmendra

13) ni ri ni ri ga ma ga ri sA (tillAnA) – pUrvi – rUpakam – t. vaidyanAta iyer

14) apakAra nindai (tiruppugazh) – chakravAham – kanDa jampai – aruNagirinAtar (T)

15) nI nAma rUpa mulaku (mangaLam) – sowrAshTram – Adi – thyAgarAja
(Key: O=raga outline, A=raga alapana, N=neraval, S=kalpana swaram, T=taniavartanam)

I was quite excited about attending this concert ever since I came to know about it yesterday. The primary reason for the same was the team of artists that was supposed to perform on stage with each one of them having established a name for themselves in their respective fields. The group gave an enjoyable concert amidst poor amplification arrangement compounded by excessive noise of vehicles from the busy Arya Gowda Road just outside the venue.

Sri Neyveli Santhanagopalan sang detailed raga alapanas for pantuvarALi and tODi. Sri M.A. Sundaresan’s alapanas played in reply were quite enjoyable. However the star of the evening to me was Sri Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman (UKS) who was very ably assisted in the percussion department by Sri Sundar Kumar on the khanjira. One look at the group of  popular percussion artists of the present generation seated in the very first row and you could tell what they were all waiting for …. and I think they would have surely gone back satisfied from their experience of watching the maestro hold everyone spellbound with his wizardry on the mrudangam. Sri UKS was unstoppable. The tani he played in a rather fast paced Adi talam (for “raghuvara nannu”) was out of the world. Even at such a fast pace, he played patterns with such great speed, precision and clarity. Some of the lightning fast patterns were simply unimaginable at that speed. And it was not just the tani that was great. The way he played for songs like “hechariga” was too good. He had such a fertile imagination. I think if I don’t stop here, I would simply go on and on and on singing his praise.