I am running a series of FB posts, one raga at a time. Here are the first two, posted yesterday and today.
30th March: Hamir Kalyani
My pick for today is Hamir Kalyani, or Kedar, as it is called in Hindustani music. Charulatha Mani's article below makes any further comments redundant.
Venkata Shaila Vihara, Parimala Ranganatham and Manamuleda are immortal classics. I still remember listening to Sreevalsan Menon rendering Swathi Thirunal's 'Gangeya Vasana' at Dombivli Fine Arts decades ago. Here he is, singing the same kriti for Doordarshan:
https://youtu.be/Y_5dHJqoEio
Also attached are clips of a lesser known canonical composition rendered by the faultless Sanjay and one in a modern idiom presented by the trending iconoclast TMK.
(Sanjay Subramanian)
(TM Krishna)
31st March: Shubhapantuvarali
Shubhapantuvarali, evoking a sad, sombre atmosphere, is considered an auspicious raga, as the prefix in the raga's name indicates. The notes map to the Todi thaat in Hindustani music. Once again, Charulatha Mani brings together a wealth of compositions in the raga, in a range of styles:
The more famous pieces in the raga that Charulatha Mani mentions are easily accessible. Tyagaraja's
plaintive 'Ennalu Urake' is a personal favourite, still unfortunately on my list of kritis to be learnt. The clip below is an interesting Jugalbandhi of Shubhapantuvarali with the shades of Lalit that has several matching notes and shades.
And as an illustration of how the raga's quick association with sorrowfulness has been exploited in cinema, here is a hyperbolic sentimental piece from Malayalam cinema:
