An incredible musician delights rasikas

CHENNAI: His style of music has nothing to do with the frivolous tinsel variety. It has depth and emotion, with excellent breath control. Meet vocalist TM Krishna, who is creating musical waves at this month-long music festival. Recently, he performed at the concert for the Brahma Gana Sabha at the Sivagami Petachi auditorium.He began with Janaki Ramana of Thyagaraja in the raga Suddha Seemandhani and proceeded with Kalpana swaras in madhyama and dhuridha kala pramanam. He delivered raga Anandha Bhairavi  alapana (Ethanaithan Vidhdhai Kattralum...) of Aanai Ayya, which was anchored with bhava and soaked in prayogas, with composure. It was an impressive conceptualisation of the raga’s varied facets. This was delineated with Rakthi prayogas opposite to the raga Bhava with substantial classical content. He also rendered raga Kalyani, focussing on its ‘swaroopa’.  His delivery of the keerthana (Talli Ninnunera) of Shyama Sastri,  made it clear that he was not on a chase of rainbows, but on a successful pursuit to highlight the classical depth of the raga. The Kamas raga (Ragam-Thaalam-Pallavi) Sarasa Dhala in Misra chapu with pleasing metrical formats, revealed his indomitable spirit to get to the core of the raga Bhava. His flair for variety and expression, his inherently vibrant voice, and his sense of self-involvement and total commitment have catapulted this artiste to great heights. No doubt, he is an incredible musician who can ensure that music flows in harmony. What’s more, he can deliver it with panache.While handling of violin by HN Baskar attested his concern for investing the swara patterns with adequate raga Bhava, young mridangam player Praveen Kumar (the grandson of Mridanga Vidwan Tanjore Upendran) who is steadily climbing the rungs of proficiency, anticipating the vocalist’s calculations, supported the concert with perception. The Thani Aavardhanam between him and Guruprasad (Ghatam )was an acme of laya excellence.