Emotional Journey with Raagas

Raaga: Nama Narayani

Hear the song "Porpadam Thunai Endru..." in the Raga "Nama Narayani". I do not know if the raga is famous or common to elaborate for a concert. The alapana is just great. You should have good imagination to start the journey. The violin solo is another hallmark. The team should be an expert one to handle this song for improvising, or if they had planned which I do not agree with Yesudas, has clicked well.

Well done, Yesudas. My journey has started.

(From my written comments on the cassette on a fine day in Osaka, Japan - 6/9/1997)

Perhaps Yesudas is the only singer for singing this song. I was just impressed when I first heard this song. Yesudas has sung with full treatment as he does for most of his songs. The song has a full-fledged alapana and a long journey with swaras. Generally, Yesudas sings with emotion as the criterion. Moreover, the raga is unusual. One classical music admirer rightly points it out as should be handled carefully or even a slight deviation will change the pattern. But for Yesudas, such difficulties are cake-walks. He has sung excellantly the song. Luckily, he did not hurry up in singing as he does often with few wonderful songs.

Malayamarutham... The word itself says something smooth flowing, is it not? Yesudas gives his rendition in Telugu, the Kirthi Dhanyudu evaro which will make any callous heart soft. In this song, I would imagine the flow as the course of a river. The smooth sailing river just starts with a fall in the mountain, flows through fields making the land fertile and finally the destination with the mighty ocean. The twist in the river occurs when Yesudas sings, 'Aanandhamrutha Paanamu Cheysi'... Wow! Yesudas, what a mellifluos voice. Another hilite is when he takes a nerava, 'Ree Ree Saa..., Ni Ri Saa Saa.... Ni Ri Saa...' A sad feeling before concluding?

This rendition is much better than 'Manasa Ettulo' of Balamuralikrishna in the same raaga.

Another wonderful journey with Yesudas is in the song Pariyachakama set in Vanaspathi raaga. The kind of feeling is very difficult to capture in this song. I had tried in different emotions when listening to this song and I could feel the same - something like the feeling you get looking at the Monolisa picture. The best was in the lines "Itha Karudai Brohichidive"

The neraval is the best part in the song. When Yesudas starts the neraval, the emotion also starts. Wonderfully rendered.

I wonder how Thyagaraja - the composer - would have felt when he sang the song; very emotional.

Emotions to continue...