Sudha Raghunathan concert in Auckland

Followers of Indian classical music in general and Carnatic music in particular would be delighted to listen to the melodious voice of Sudha Raghunathan when she performs in Auckland next month.

The prolific singer, who has attained fame for her innate ability to interpret and render a variety of ragas and songs, will perform at a concert at the Raye Freedman auditorium, Epsom Girls Grammar School in Auckland on March 17, 2012 and the following day in Wellington, the venue of which would be announced in our next issue.

B V Raghavendra Rao and Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan will accompany her respectively on the violin and mridhangam at both concerts.

Born, raised and educated in Bangalore, Ms Raghunathan evinced interest in Carnatic music at an early age, recognising which her mother Choodamani encouraged her talent. She was trained under the careful guidance of Vidwan B V Lakshman.

A concern for perfection, inexplicable devotion to music and the passion to learn the nuances of the art are factors that have made Mrs Raghunathan a singer of distinction. She has been described as the ‘Radiance of Music,’ ‘Jewel of Music’ and the ‘Singing Cuckoo.’

Worthy successor

According to a recitation, “Mrs Raghunathan’s voice of gold enthrals listeners from all over the globe. There is tantalising mystery behind that cherubic smile. Her deep relish for tradition and mystical old-world charm is supremely addictive.”

She is considered as the worthy successor to the late Dr M L Vasanthakumari, one of the stalwarts of Carnatic music, for who she rendered vocal support for a number of years.

“Apart from music, MLV taught me how to live life to its fullest.”

She recalled a concert at which MLV was rendering an Ashtapathi in Ragamalika.

“The song has a sangathi in Yaman Kalyani at a higher octave. Spontaneously, MLV stopped and allowed me to take over. She was such a generous person on stage in some sense it also reflected how she was in life as well,” Mrs Raghunathan said.

Her authentic renditions of ‘krithis’ and refined elaborations of ‘ragas’, the élan with which she breezes through the ‘kalpana swaras’, her command over the octaves and her supremely confident stage presence combined with unstated humility has given her an enviable pre-eminence in the world of Carnatic music.

Honours galore

Mrs Raghunathan is the recipient of a number of citations and awards presented in India and abroad.

Among them are ‘Kalaimamani’ (awarded by the Government of Tamil Nadu in 1993), ‘Sangeetha Choodamani’ (Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai, 1997), ‘Bharat Jyothi’ (Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, New York, 1998), ‘Padma Sri’ (Government of India, 2004), ‘Sangeetha Kala Sarathy’ (Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha, Chennai), ‘Sangeeta Saraswathi’ (Mahasannidanam, Sringeri),

‘Gana Kuyil’ (Valmiki Manram, Chennai) and ‘Isai Peroli’ (VST Award for Excellence, Karthik Fine Arts, Chennai).

Carnatic music exponent and singer Dr M Balamuralikrishna conferred on her the title of ‘Tamizh Isai Vani’ in Chennai on December 18, 2011. She was the first recipient of the Award, instituted by Subhashree Thanikachalam and Manimaran of Maxim Media.