CHENNAI: The eighth edition of the annual Carnatic classical music festival, Baala Bruhman, organised by Ramjhi’s Issai Mazhalai in association with Jaya TV, was held recently at Vani Mahal. Baala Bruhmam this year saw the participation of young singers from the state and also from outside Tamil Nadu. The day-long fest, which was inaugurated by Sangeetha Kalanidhi R Vedavalli, saw a total of 15 concerts.
Apart from singing compositions of Saint Thyagaraja, Dikshithar and Purandaradasar, the participants also sang a number of Tamil compositions. The highlight of the festival was that no participant repeated the same composition or the raga.
The day began with Anahitha and Apoorva on the vocals, Vittala Rangan from Bangalore on the violin and Akshay Ram on the mridangam. This was followed by the performance of Parur Sisters — Ananthashree and Ananthalakshmi.
Along with Sai Prasad from Kerala on the mridangam and Krishna on the ghatam, they gave a scintillating performance. Another dual concert was also held at the day-long fest.
Kamakoti Sisters’ Jaya Mathangi and Jaya Bhargavi mesmerised the audiences with their song selection and rendition. Sriram on the violin and Kandhadai Sivasubramanian on the mridangam accompanied the duo.
Singer Prachotan from Hyderabad concluded the fest. With Vittala Rangan from Bangalore on the violin, Thirucherai Kaushik on the mridangam and Krishna on the ghatam, it was a perfect finish. Dressed in ethnic outfits, the young musicians put up a good show. Guruji Dr TV Gopalakrishnan presided over the valedictory function.