The ambition and skill of this young instrumental quartet are praiseworthy. Fourteen-year-old violinist from Chicago, Rishabh Ranganathan, led the quartet. Haritha Raj (21) from Thiruvananthapuram on the veena, Chennai-based Sarvesh Karthik (18) on the mridangam and e-percussion (such as drum-pad), and Samyukta Sreeram (16), from Virginia DC, on the ghatam were the other three. Their distinctive fusion style reflected a strong passion for experimentation.
The concert was a mix of traditional kritis and contemporary compositions. In the popular Mahaganapathim (Dikshitar – Nattai), Rishabh and Haritha shared the swaraprasthara. Kuthukala-Kanthi — a stimulated blend of two popular kritis in Kadhanakuthuhalam and Nalinakanthi (‘Raghuvamsa Sudha’ and ‘Manavyala’) was a brilliant effort. Rishabh’s focussed playing was robust and refined at the same time. He learnt to play the violin from Akella Mallikarjun Sharma and Parur Ananthakrishnan. Using the HandSonic pads, Sarvesh produced stunning thavil sounds.
For the kaapi lovers, there was a well-brewed espresso Kapi, inspired by a piece by Pt. Ravishankar and Yehudi Menuhin and preceded by an alapana on the violin and veena. Tyagaraja’s ‘Nagumomu’ was given a twist with Haritha (a student of Soundararajan and Seethalakshmi) playing the Blues, obviously with the help of a processor. Similarly, in the charanam, she produced a few chords on the veena.
The centrepiece was ‘Adhbuth,’ an adaptation of a Ganesh-Kumaresh composition that portrayed different moods through different layers of ragas, Hamsadhwani being the base. It also had Kanada, Ananda Bhairavi, Pantuvarali, Dharmavathi, Kiravani and Ranjani.
The thani by the percussion duo —both disciples of T.H. Subhashchandran — with an attractive Tisra nadai was a medley of rhythm.
The youthful team wound up their afternoon concert with four more pieces that comprised an Ateetam composition, a Natabhairavi piece of Punya Srinivas, Maand thillana of Lalgudi and a Malhar creation of the Agam Band.
The quartet has a bright future in the realm of global music.