Sanjay Subrahmanyan – Vocal
S.Varadarajan – Volin
Guruvayur Dorai – Mridangam
Bangalore Rajasekar – Morsing

Where & When? – Infosys Hall, Ramakrishna Mission School (Mudhra) on 17th December

Concert Duration: Almost 3 hrs 15 min

List of Songs:
1. varnam – rItigowLai
2. manavyAla – naLinakAnti – swarams at ManavyAla
3. Sri rama ramaNi – mOhanam – Alapana; neraval & swarams at atulita
4. Sri Kamalambaya – bhairavi – Alapana
5. parAmukhamadeno – shUlini – swarams at ShUlini
6. amba nIlAmbari – nIlAmbari – Alapana; swarams at amba – tani Avartanam
7. RTP – madhuvanti
Pallavi (tirukkuraL): kuzhal inidu yAzh inidu enbar tam makkaL mazhalai sol kELAdavar – Adi
swarams in madhuvanti, sivaranjani, priyadarshini, sindhu bhairavi
8. nijagAdasA – sindhu bhairavi
9. kANi nilam – rAgamAlikA (hamsadhwani, bhAgEshri, sindhu bhairavi)
10. kandA guhA shaNmugA (viruttam) – behAg, Ahiri, kApi
followed by orumai uDan – kApi
11. mangaLam – sowrAshtram

Despite having everything from the sounds of cars, bikes, auto and even trains passing by, to a Mallu sitting next to me answering all his calls right inside the hall, to the sounds of dosa/adai vatthufying and even the sounds of someone sweeping the floor (!!) coming from the canteen, providing a constant companion throughout the concert, every moment of this amazing concert had me so mesmerized by it that surprisingly, none of these disturbances affected me at all!

After a beautiful rendition of rItigowLai varnam, when Sanjay started manavyAla, I was so eagerly waiting for him to sing kalpana swarams since the SGRMRP manavyAla that I heard him sing in some concert this year has had me humming it often ever since. And I was indeed rewarded with some nice naLinakAnti swarams. 😉

After an elaborate mOhanam, there was a shift from happy raagams like rItigowLai, naLinakAnti and mOhanam to a more serious Bhairavi. And what a Bhairavi it was! The detailed alapana and the unhurried, excellent rendition of kamalAmba navAvarnam had me thinking that it would be the main piece. But after a surprise shUlini piece for which he put some awesome swarams at the word shUlini, came the main piece of the day – nIlAmbari!! It’s not often that you get to hear such an elaborate, beautiful nIlAmbari and it made my day!

But can you ever say just one piece made your day when the concert in question is Sanjay’s? 😉 So, making my day yet again 😉 was the RTP in madhuvanti! nIlAmbari to madhuvanti – again a shift from a happy raaga to a serious one. Both Sanjay’s and Varadarajan’s madhuvanti raagam and taanam were just out of the world and the really beautiful tirukkuraL as the pallavi line – kuzhal inidu yAzh inidu enbar tam makkaL mazhalai sol kELAdavar, made the madhuvanti all the more special!

Matching the mood of madhuvanti were the raagams in which swarams were sung for the pallavi – sivaranjani, priyadarshini and sindhu bhairavi. While singing the swarams for priyadarshini, Sanjay sang the aarOhaNam and avarOhaNam of the raagam (SRMDNS SNDMRS) and went on to sing the raaga name, priyadarshini in raaga priyadasrshini before continuing the swarams. 🙂

After some amazing swarams in sindhu bhairavi (Sanjay’s sindhu bhairavi is becoming more and more special with each concert!), came one of my favourites, nijagAdasA. Sanjay’s rendition of it is always super!

After an audience request for a Bharatiyar song (The way some people shout the song that they want the singer to sing!), Sanjay sang the song that we often get to hear in his concerts these days, kANi nilam. Even if it is just a few lines in a song like kANi nilam, listening to Sanjay’s bhAgEshri never fails to take me back to the Kalarasana concert last year. 🙂

The moment Sanjay sang the viruttam in kApi, after singing it in behAg and Ahiri (I wish he sings Ahiri as the main in some concert!), my sister and I were keeping our fingers crossed hoping that he would sing orumai uDan. And yippee! He did sing it! 🙂 2006 was the year when orumai uDan was a part of many of Sanjay’s concert during the Season. Sanjay’s rendition of orumai uDan is my sister’s current favourite. After learning the song from her, a major part of Sunday had both of us singing it. 🙂 So listening to it in yesterday’s concert made us so happy. We are soon hoping to visit kanda kOttam in darumamigu Chennai to see the deity that inspired the composer, Ramalinga Adigalar, to compose those lines!

With Varadarajan (Sanjay-Varadarajan combo always rock!), Guruvayur Dorai and Rajasekar (generally, it’s only during the Season that you get to hear the morsing) giving excellent accompaniment, the concert turned out to be one which I won’t forget for a long time to come. 🙂

Till now, I have gone for 6 concerts of Sanjay this Season (had to miss the one at Chrompet since it is so far away) and though each one of those concerts have been excellent, this one was extra special. 🙂 As expected, the audience gave a standing ovation at the end of the concert.

Am very eagerly looking forward to his concert at Bharat Kalachar today!