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In the realm of melody's paradise

Zahangir Alom
In the realm of melody's paradise
The second installment of the Bengal Classical Music Festival 2013, dedicating to the memory of Gyantapas Professor Abdur Razzaq was set off on November 28. The festival is being organised by Bengal Foundation in collaboration with ITC-Sangeet Research Academy of Kolkata to promote, nurture and to celebrate the shared legacy of classical music in Bangladesh.
A fascinating dance piece, participated by 60 Bangladeshi artistes, produced by Bengal Foundation, was showcased before the festival began. The piece, scripted by Kamoi Khalid and choreographed by Anisul Haque Borun, showcased die thousand-year heritage of Bangla songs.
Kathak prodigy Vishal Krishna set off the opening day's performance enthralling the Dhaka audience. The performance was followed by the formal inauguration of the festival. Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, KCMG, Founder and Chairperson of BRAC inaugurated the four-day extravaganza as chief guest while Pankaj Saran, Indian high commissioner to Dhaka; Anjan Chowdhury, Managing Director of Maasranga TV and Director of Square Group and Ravi Mathur, executive director of ITC-Sangeet Research Academy (SRA) were present as special guests. Apart from the guests, Bengal Foundation Chairman Abul Khair thanked everyone who made the return of such an event, and especially the strategic partners The Daily Star and The Daily Prothom Alo; broadcast partner Maasranga TV and radio partner ABC Radio; and all those who have supported their endeavours.
The inaugural day's performance featured classical vocal and instrumental music.
Living legend of Purkm^-styled classical music,
Vidushi Girija Devi was the first vocalist, who performed Raga "Jogkauns" at the festival. Her vilambit bandish "E Jhanjhariya Jhanake Kaise Kar Aaoon Tore Paas" performance - based on vilambit ektaal - generated Radha's deepest passion for meeting with Krishna. Raga Jogkauns is the intermingling composition of two distinctive ragas -Raga Jog and Raga Chandrakauns depicting the unparallel emotional expression. Girija Devi's drut bandish "Bohuta Dina Biti Ajhoo Na Aaye Mori Shaam," performance, set on leentaal, carried forward the exquisite emotive plea and plethora of Radha's pining heart. The maestro beautifully styled distinctive musical phraseology' while rendition of the raga.
The artiste then performed a bol banao ki thumri, based on Raga Mishra Tilak Kamod and jat taal. The bandish "Ayo Piya Morey Ayo Jin Na Jaye Ratiyan" expressed the emotion in a dramatic way. Later, she performed her own composed dadra - "Purab Des Se Ayee Goria Jadua Daar Geyi Rey". Sanjay Adhikari (tabla), Rupashree Bhattacharjee (har-
monium), Sarwar Hussain (sarangi) and Aparajita Lahiri and Rupan Samanta (tanpura and vocal support) accompanied the entire performance by the legend.
Bangladeshi artistes Goutam Sarker, Swamp Hossain, Iftekhar Alam Prodhan and Md. Zakir Hossain performed in a tabla quartet next. Based on teentaal and Raga Kirwani, they started off the tabla lahora with the kayda "Dhin Kre Dhindha". The accomplished artistes showcased various types of kayda, tukra, chakradar and chakradar tehai. They presented traditional compositions of renowned gharanas - Benaras,
Delhi, Ajrara and Farrukkhabad in their respective solo and group recitals. The packed audience received their presentation with pride and praise.
Noted sitarist Ayan Sengupta, immersing in the melodic bliss, mesmerised the Dhaka audience with his divine recital on Raga Maru Behag. The performance, based on vilambit jhaptaal and drut teentaal, had many reminiscent features. Ayan's raagdari, dhrupad-ang aalap and speedy gamaki taan performances took the audience into the transcendental world of music.
The audience welcomed Vidushi Kaushiki Ghakrabarty - who termed herself a girl from Mymensingh, Bangladesh, with rounds of applause. She rendered Raga "Abhogi" at the festival. "Abhogi" is a melancholic raga quite similar to raga Bageshree. Kaushiki's performance featured a dramatic vistar, decorative murki, various combination and permutation of sargam, gamaki aakar taan and many types of tehai, together with aakar taan and sargam taan - which are hallmarks of her
father Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty. The vocalist effortlessly touched all the "Sa" of four octaves several times. She also presented a composition (a thumri on raga Jog) by her father. She was accompanied by Pandit Yogesh Shamsi on tabla and Allarakha Kalawant on sarangi, along with Rupashree Bhattacharjee on harmonium.
Sarod maestro Pandit Tejendra Narayan Majumdar started off his part playing Raga Kaushiki Kanhada on the instrument. He first presented aalap, jod and jhala in a conventional way. Kaushiki Kanhada is an intermingling of Raga Darbari Kanhada and Malkauns.
Pandit Majumdar stunned the audience by taming the distinctive musical phrases of Darbari and Malkauns and playing a subtle melodic and rhythmic game incorporating the notations of two ragas. Tabla maestro Pandit Yogesh Shamshi was predominantly on teentaal. The Pandit duo enthralled the music connoisseurs with fashioning off-beat layakari and tehai along with offbeat Sawal-Jawab. Later, the artiste performed Raga "Chandra Nandan," originally composed by his guru Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. Chandra Nandan is a portrayal of pathos and is quite similar to Raga Jogkauns.
The Mishra brothers - Pandit Rajan and Pandit Sajan Mishra - were the last performers of the night. Pandit Rajan Mishra said, "Music is our prayer." They melted the audience's heart with their rendition of Raga "Bhatiyar". The vilambit bandish (on vilambit ektaal) "Uchat Geyi Mori Nindia" was evocative of musical prayer that they presented through pukar while the drut bandish "Ayo Probhat" (on teeltaal) displayed jugalbandi rendition by the brothers. While performing vistar, the pandit duo showcased Marwa and Bilawal ang in mandra and taar saptak. Pandit Samar Saha on tabla and Rupashree Bhattacharjee on harmonium fashioned a musical high. Set on the same raga, a tara-na on madhya and drut ektaal came next. Later, the pandit duo performed a Gujri Todi bandish "Banke Panchi Bhayi Bawari", originally composed by Ustad Ameer Khusrou. Based on the same raga, the brothers performed a tarana on ektaal. Their performance was so fascinating that the audience wanted more renditions from them. Later, the pundits wrapped up the inaugural day's festival performing a Bhairvi Sandra "Bhabani Dayani Maha Baak Bani".