Have you tried this rarest raga yet?

Carnatic guru and scholar Dr Vyzarsu Balasubrahmanyam has challenged singers to attempt the Annamacharya keerthana 'Ayyo Vikalpa Vaadi'

Well-known Carnatic guru and scholar Dr Vyzarsu Balasubrahmanyam from the city threw a challenge to all the Carnatic singers in social media to attempt the Annamacharya keerthana Ayyo Vikalpa Vaadi composed by him in one of the rarest ragas Karnaranjani and set to Tisra Gati Adi Talam. Most of the senior vocalists are attempting this particular keerthana which was sung by the Indian Idol contestant from Hyderabad PVNS Rohit, who is known for his intricate nuances and blessed voice.

The challenger himself explains why he picked up this particular composition. “This particular keerthana has many gamakas, called ‘Brugas’, and a person who has excellent voice fitness only can sing it. We composed this in 78 BPM tempo, and the ones who have not practised in 4th or 5th speeds of ‘a’ kaara saadhana (open mouth humming) cannot attempt this particular song, until and unless they have a wonderful gift by birth. I am happy that my students have accepted the challenge and sung it effortlessly,” says the Sangeethacharya.

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The guru, who has students across the globe, also said “this can be a good voice exercise keerthana, where students who are serious about learning the finest intricacies can become gem singers”.

When Dr Vyzarsu was pursuing his PhD on Sangeetha Acharya, he included this particular ragam in that thesis. “If one practises this keerthana, vocal fitness will automatically come. If I tell everyone to learn this particular keerthana, they might not take it so seriously, so I kept it as social media challenge,” says the guru with a smile, and his Facebook timeline is flooded with many seniors attempting it and tagging him.

Most of the new generation singers who are doing extremely well in the film industry with commercial hits are his disciples.

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