I strongly believe that there was only one Carnatic musician who did a lot of voice modulation in his rendering. It is none other than M Balamuralikrishna. He could sing in all three sthaayis with impeccable ease.
In his last concert (in Kerala) he was finding it difficult to sit on the floor (that too supported with three pillows). His voice had not faded a bit. The rendition of his composition “Thamra Lochani Latangi” in Latangi was ornamented with subtle nuances and he was able to sing in the three octaves with gay abandon.
I have been listening to concerts of many stalwarts since 50 years. But Balamuralikrishna had always amazed me. By modulating his voice, he could create the real bhavam of a particular ragam, wherever needed.
The concert of Balamuralikrishna held at Kerala Kalamandalam in 1980 (?) still lingers in my mind. He was accompanied on violin by M Chandrasekharan and T V Gopalakrishnan on mridangam. At the end of the concert he sang a kriti of his own, in raga Manorama, created by him It was a treat to musical aficionados.
He was instrumental in unearthing many kritis of Sadashiva Brahmendrar and Bhadrachala Ramdas.
His contributions to Carnatic music cannot be forgotten. Varnams, kritis, tillanas….. All of them had a stamp over them.. BALAMURALIKRISHNA.
narayanan.desamangalam 