From : mssubbulakshmimusic
Added: Sep 16, 2008
Kirthana Anudinamunu Kaavumayya Raga alapana The terms alapana, raga alapana, alap and raga vistara are synonymous. In the alapana, the phrases of the chosen raga are sung in various ways according to the lakshana (grammar) of that raga. There is no beat or tala associated with the alapana but it is rendered in differing speeds. Alapana is sung as a prelude to a krithi or a pallavi exposition. During the alapana, syllables such as tadarinana, tadarinanam, tadana, tanna are commonly used. The vowel sound of ah is used extensively allowing ample scope for resonance. Typically in a full length concert the artiste will present alapanas in three or four different ragas. The length and depth of the raga alapana depends upon the creative ability of the performer. Great masters could render a raga alapana for hours at a stretch concentrating on a small section of the raga, then elaborating on the various graces of the chosen notes before moving on to the next section. There should be naturalness in the sequence of phrases presented and even though the alapana is not pre-composed listeners anticipate the rendering of phrases that are characteristic of the raga that has been chosen. Lengthy renditions of an alapana are usually divided into three parts. The first part is a short introductory section (the akshipthika) which gives the audience an idea of the whole framework of the raga; secondly there is the ragavardhini section where the artiste gives step-by-step elaboration, pausing at each major note in the raga. This is the major section of the alapana. The last section is called makarini which is the concluding section. While fast passages are interspersed throughout the alapana, towards the end of the exposition the artiste can often dazzle the artiste by singing brisk passages (brigas) scaling across the entire range of the raga.
Category : Music

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