Today, amidst some mega downloading, I came across this extraordinary recording of MD Ramanathan singing Nee Madi Challaga in Anandabhairavi, a classic composed by Kavi Matrubhootayya, rarely heard in the concert cirlces these days. What makes this rendition so brilliant is not MDR's characteristic drawly, listless style, coupled with his sudden bouts of frenetic pace, but the fact that he gives the listener the time to let the Anandabhairavi seep in. He pauses after each phrase, as if to give you time to take it in, experience the swaras, the gamakas, the glides that make Anandabhairavi. Anandabhairavi, as a raga, needs that space to blossom. It rejoices as much in the silences as it does in its sound. And the most powerful Anandabhairavi renditions are those that get these silences right. They are also those that get their eccentricities right - the ambiguous suddha daivatham, the bright antara gandharam, and the slight kakali nishadam.

Something else makes this recording so endearing - the fact that he's not trying to convince anyone of his talents or putting on a show - he would have sung the same way humming to himself in the verandah of his house lazily reading a book. For instance, he takes a couple of attempts to get the tisram correctly on the chittaswara, but he jokes about it and moves on. He even has a conversation with the violinist (V.V. Subrahmanyam?) on the matter. He's almost laughing when he sings it again, and the audience laugh with him.

Most importantly, he seems to have all the time in the world. He sings the same sangati three, sometimes four, times. He sings that chittaswara a total of nine times. Yet, the music doesn't drag. Each time, he has something new to explore in the same line. Each time, the listener has something new to pick up on. It is this experience that is missing in much of the music around today - a strict two-and-a-half hour slot (when will people understand that Indian classical music shouldn't work in 'slots'?), the need to pander to different audiences within this time frame, the audience's urge to head for dinner precisely at eight o clock (the cooker will take half an hour, and "Kasthuri" is at eight-thirty), and the Sabha secretary's desire to show off his oratory talents.

Until someone wakes up and changes the way we listen to Carnatic music, I shall continue trawling sangeethamshare.com for more leisurely music!
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Oh, The Love Theme in Ritigowla has run into all kinds of trouble. In a fit of madness, I set a password to the file I was working on, and I cant remember what this password is. Any ideas on how to open such a file? Or any ideas on what the password might be?