A Musical Journey from Kadanakutuhala to Arunachala
Some concerts are remembered for a spectacular centerpiece, some for a particularly memorable raga, and some for the sheer virtuosity of the musicians. There are also concerts that remain in the mind because of the way the entire evening unfolds. The concert by Ramana Balachandra, accompanied by Bangalore V. Praveen and Guruprasanna, was one such experience—a thoughtfully structured musical journey that moved gracefully between the majesty of traditional Carnatic repertoire and the intimacy of devotional music.
The programme had an admirable sense of progression. Beginning with a Kadanakutuhala varnam, it travelled through Ritigaula, Calanata, Saveri, Kapinarayani and Mohanakalyani before gradually turning towards the devotional world of Ahirbhairav, Pahadi and finally a raga-malika setting of Arunachala Siva Aksharamanamalai. The result was a concert that seemed to expand and contract in mood, moving from the formal architecture of the kriti to the expansive freedom of raga and tani, and finally towards contemplation and bhakti.
The opening “Sharanagata Vatsale” in Kadanakutuhala, an Adi tala varnam by Calcutta K. S. Krishnamurti, was an energetic and purposeful beginning. Kadanakutuhala is naturally vivacious, and a varnam in this raga is well suited to setting the pulse of the concert. The opening item immediately placed the evening within a recognisably classical framework, while the choice of a composition that is not among the most routinely heard varnam selections gave the programme an individual character right from the outset.
The concert then moved into one of the most beautiful early contrasts of the evening—Tyagaraja's “Dwaitamu Sukhamā” in Ritigaula, set to Adi tala, with alapana and swara passages. Ritigaula is a raga of extraordinary depth. Its beauty is not loud or demonstrative; it emerges through its characteristic turns, delicate oscillations and unmistakable emotional personality. Following the brisk Kadanakutuhala opening with Ritigaula created a lovely change of temperature.
The inclusion of alapana and swara also meant that the raga was given room to breathe beyond the confines of the composition. This is an important feature in concert programming: a raga becomes a living musical personality when the musician is allowed to explore it rather than merely render a kriti within it. Ritigaula, in particular, rewards such exploration.
Next came Koteswara Iyer's “Edayya Gati” in Calanata, set to Adi tala. The appearance of Calanata at this point was another refreshing change of colour. Koteswara Iyer's compositions provide an opportunity to move beyond the most frequently traversed Tyagaraja–Dikshitar–Syama Sastri repertoire, and the inclusion of this kriti contributed to the distinctive character of the programme.
The concert then entered one of its major early stretches with Tyagaraja's “Tulasi Jagajjanani Duritapaharini” in Saveri, set to Rupaka tala, presented with alapana, neraval and swara. Saveri is one of those foundational ragas in which the weight of tradition is immediately perceptible. Its personality is unmistakable, and its emotional range can be profound without requiring excessive embellishment.
The progression from Ritigaula to Calanata and then Saveri made for a fascinating sequence. Each raga possessed a strongly individual identity, and the programme was clearly not interested in staying within one particular emotional or melodic zone for too long. The alapana gave Saveri its own independent space, while the subsequent kriti brought the raga into the compositional world of Tyagaraja. The addition of neraval and swara further expanded the treatment, making this one of the substantial musical landmarks before the main RTP.
Another interesting choice followed with Tyagaraja's “Sarasa Sama Dana Bheda” in Kapinarayani. Kapinarayani is not a raga one encounters in every concert, and its inclusion was one of the programme's particularly attractive features. There is a certain joy in hearing a musician move into less frequently visited territory, especially when such a raga is placed alongside familiar stalwarts like Ritigaula and Saveri.
Then came the central presentation of the evening: the Raga-Tana-Pallavi in Mohanakalyani, set to Chaturasra Triputa tala, two-kalai. This was naturally the point around which the concert acquired its greatest structural weight.
Mohanakalyani is a fascinating raga because of the way it combines the familiar luminosity of Mohanam with the additional melodic possibilities associated with Kalyani. It can be graceful, expansive and highly evocative. Choosing Mohanakalyani for the RTP was therefore an inspired departure from the more predictable choices one might expect for a central pallavi.
The very nature of an RTP provides a different kind of musical experience. It allows the musician to move beyond the boundaries of a fixed composition and engage with raga, rhythm and imagination as interconnected dimensions. The choice of two-kalai Chaturasra Triputa also gives the pallavi a substantial rhythmic canvas. After the succession of kritis earlier in the concert, this was the natural point at which the evening could open out fully.
The percussion component was equally important in this architecture. Bangalore V. Praveen and Guruprasanna brought the mridangam and kanjira voices into the rhythmic fabric of the concert. Their presence ensured that the rhythmic dimension had both weight and colour, particularly as the concert moved towards the central pallavi and its associated rhythmic elaboration.
After the RTP, the atmosphere began to change perceptibly. The programme moved into “Pibare Rama Rasam” in Ahirbhairav, a composition of Sadashiva Brahmendra set to Adi tala. This was an excellent post-RTP choice. Ahirbhairav carries a contemplative quality, and Sadashiva Brahmendra's composition naturally belongs to a more inward devotional space.
The shift from Mohanakalyani to Ahirbhairav represented more than a simple change of raga. It felt like a transition from the intellectual and structural concentration of the RTP towards the emotional simplicity of bhakti. This kind of post-RTP relaxation is one of the pleasures of a well-planned concert.
The subsequent “Nine Gati Nine Mati” continued this lighter, devotional portion of the programme. The concert was now gradually shedding the formal weight accumulated through the main classical section.
Then came the Mirabai bhajan “Payoji Maine” in Pahadi. Pahadi is ideally suited to this kind of transition. Its folk-like accessibility and gentle melodic charm allow the listener to move effortlessly from the sophistication of the Carnatic concert format into the direct emotional language of the bhajan.
The final item, “Arunachala Siva Aksharamanamalai” in ragamalika, provided a deeply evocative conclusion. The choice of Ramana Maharshi's celebrated devotional text associated with Arunachala was especially appropriate as a concluding offering. After travelling through the formal and expansive dimensions of Carnatic music, the concert ended by embracing a more meditative and devotional aesthetic.
The entire programme can therefore be viewed almost as a carefully constructed arc. Kadanakutuhala supplied the youthful energy of the opening; Ritigaula brought depth; Calanata added an element of discovery; Saveri provided gravitas; Kapinarayani expanded the repertoire's colour; and Mohanakalyani became the central expansive canvas. From there, Ahirbhairav, Pahadi and finally the Arunachala Siva Aksharamanamalai gradually turned the concert inward.
What I particularly appreciated was the balance between scholarship and accessibility. The programme clearly had enough substance for the serious rasika—the less frequently heard compositions, the substantial raga treatments and the RTP ensured that—but it did not remain intellectually demanding throughout. The later devotional pieces opened another door into the music, allowing the concert to conclude on a more intimate and contemplative note.
That balance is not easy to achieve.
A concert can become overly cerebral if every item is chosen primarily for novelty or technical possibilities. Conversely, an excessive dependence on familiar devotional pieces can make the latter half predictable. Here, the two worlds complemented each other. The classical core gave the concert its depth, while the devotional concluding sequence gave it warmth.
The contribution of the accompanying musicians also deserves appreciation. A vocalist's imagination can truly flourish only when the accompanists are listening deeply and responding with sensitivity. The combination of Bangalore V. Praveen and Guruprasanna provided the rhythmic foundation for the concert, while the musical dialogue within the ensemble would have been particularly important in a programme that moved from kriti-based presentation to raga exploration and an RTP.
What makes a concert memorable, ultimately, is not simply the number of difficult passages or the length of the main item. It is the feeling that the musicians have taken the audience somewhere. This concert certainly had that quality.
The programme offered variety without fragmentation, depth without heaviness, virtuosity without exhibitionism, and devotion without sentimentality. It allowed the listener to appreciate Carnatic music in several dimensions—its grammar, its improvisational freedom, its rhythmic architecture, its poetry and finally its capacity for contemplation.
The concluding Arunachala Siva Aksharamanamalai was therefore more than a final item. It served as the final brushstroke on the musical canvas. After the energy of the varnam, the exploration of Ritigaula and Saveri, the expansive Mohanakalyani RTP and the rhythmic dimensions of the concert, the music finally arrived at a place of surrender.
And perhaps that is the most satisfying way for a Carnatic concert to end—not with the feeling that the programme has merely been completed, but with the sense that the listener has travelled through something meaningful.
Ramana Balachandra, Bangalore V. Praveen and Guruprasanna presented a richly conceived concert that combined melodic sophistication, rhythmic vitality, repertoire imagination and devotional warmth. The evening demonstrated how a thoughtfully chosen programme can itself become a form of musical storytelling.
For the rasika, it was a rewarding journey—one that began with the exuberance of Kadanakutuhala and concluded in the contemplative glow of Arunachala.
A concert of considerable musical substance, distinctive repertoire and lingering emotional resonance.
