Sparkle Dazzle Electric !

by .....Sivapriya Krishnan


What is the human emotion after witnessing and being through a torrential downpour for three hours at a stretch? What is the feeling when you watch a half hour cracker bursting session? What happens when you are on a zig zag roller coaster ride?

A sense of awe and bewilderment ! One is stupefied and also maybe a trifle shaken! Sense of sparkle and dazzle! High spirited adventure trip?

These are exactly what we could describe of Abhishek Raghuram's concert last evening at the Music Academy.

Unbridled imagination translated into torrential spells of raga and swara phrases. Unstoppable brikhas catching up with one another left one stupefied! To such an extent, that even the mangalam 'pavamaana suthudu pattu ' was not spared !

Abhishek is blessed with a voice that can traverse easily and an imagination that charters unchartered territories. The Vasantabhairavi followed by Needaya Ra dhaa and the Kalyani followed by RTP - un darisanam kidaikumo nataraja dayanidhe, set in chatusra triputa, atheetha eduppu, witnessed all of that which has been said above.

Its amazing to see this young lad being gifted with so much of the musical sense that can be translated much beyond an average thought process. However as in the Kalyani raga, there were more of flashes upon flashes, with little of Kalyani to soak into.At times when he used to land on a traditional phrase format, one heaved a sigh of relief as though one has landed from a roller coaster, only to be lifted into a zig zag again !

As time goes by , without getting too lost into the mechanics of the swaras , if Abhishek lost himself in the ruchi or the flavour of music along with his sparkling imagination, one would see a stupendous artiste non-pareil, blooming prettily for posterity.

Akkarai Subbhalakshmi, is one violinist who has by now demonstrated as to how to maintain fidelity to the main artiste. Her violin transforms into that style and the effect of the concert just multiplies. Kudos to her on her ability to match Abhishek phrase after phrase.

Neyveli Narayanan, needs no introduction. A thoroughbred professional he led the show with equal gusto, ably supported by Guruprasanna on the Khanjira.

Ushering the 2011 Music Season

by ........ Sivapriya Krishnan


The Madras Music Academy, to repeat ad nauseam, is the "Mecca" of music in the cultural map of South Indian classical music. The Music season actually starts only when the Academy starts, however much other institutions may have started. The Academy being what it is, has a stiff twin objective to meet in providing for the entertainment value without shortchanging the content.

Artists are in queue to get a slot to sing and more so in queue to get onto the next senior slot, which actually tells the public about their elevated status. The Academy was one of the earliest,probably one of the first to announce the schedule of concerts for this December season of 2011.

The schedule of concerts did reveal the meaning of one old adage : " the old order changeth, yielding place to new" !

The seniors have given place to the juniors, the veterans have given place to the seniors, fathers have given place to sons/ daughters, senior disciples have given place to junior disciples while some have remained untouched .

Keeping with the tradition of an inaugural concert by a Sangita Kalanidhi,this time the series begins with Smt.R.Vedavalli. The morning slots, traditionally a veterans' bastion sees the inclusion for the first time of the maestro-veteran Sri.T.N.Seshagopalan. TNS Krishna sings in the evening for the first time this year. Young ladies doing Harikatha have always attracted huge crowds and this year the morning has been handed over to young Suchitra, grand-daughter of the veteran Harikatha artist Kamala Murthy. Neyveli Santhanagopalan sings in the morning and his daughter Sriranjani in the afternoon.

Artists like Shertalai Ranganatha Sharma and Manda Sudharani have proved over the years and plodded their way into the evening senior bastion. The shining stars among the young seniors like Gayatri Venkatraghavan, Sikkil Gurucharan, Abhishek Raghuram, Savita Narasimhan have got their due. The senior seniors like Sanjay Subramaniam, Vijay Siva, Unnikrishnan, TM Krishna have their places intact. The "senior ladies quartette", comprising Bombay Jayasree, Nityasree, Sudha Raghunathan andd Aruna Sairam, who continue to attract large crowds and good gate collections have their places intact and remain untouched. Some new juniors have been given a warm welcome to prove thier mettle.

Just as it is important for any musician to be slotted in the Academy, it is also a dauntingly important task for the programming committee at the Academy to balance the schedule , keeping in mind the need for

(a) attracting new talent,
(b) preserving veteran art,
(c) encouraging and promoting juniors to seniors and shaping them for posterity
(d) balancing entertainment and economic viability through gate collections

all with utmost impartial judgement and clear substantiation.

In this the Academy officials as organisers have proved that with ample thought and clear thinking, a well balanced schedule can be drawn which meets up with most requirement parameters on hand. Lets usher in the season of 2011!

Madurai TNS : A phenomenon

by...Sivapriya Krishnan


For me the season started with Madurai T N Seshagopalan at the Kartik Fine Arts. TNS was in good cheer and the two brilliant pieces vying with one another were the Nagaswaravali and Vijayasaraswati alapana. The brisk swaras at Saranam Vijaya Saraswati Maye, was a testimony to the veterans genius, which has been proved amply several times. Accompanied by M Chandrasekharan on the violin and Ramabhadran on the mridangam, this concert was a memorable one.

I doubled it up with the masters' Music Academy concert, as its a yearly ritual for me, never to be missed.

My pick was the Bhairavi raga and the Vachaspati swaras for Kanathandri naapai in the song Ennaduni, a Patnam delight. The Bhairavi raga could not have hid itself anymore, as every nook and phrase of the raga was explored by him, only to be followed by the beautiful Upacharamulanu.

Here again he was supported well Delhi Sunderrajan on the violin , Ramabhadran on the mridangam and Grurprasad on the ghatam.


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Seshu-Seenu read the title of the evening programme at Krishna Gana Sabha. Multiple delight! TNS and Mandolin Srinivas together with Guruvayur Dorai and Zakir Husain as percussion accompaniment.

Though personally I felt that the title name was a little frivolous and that some other name surely could have been coined, I had to thank myself for attending this concert.

What a fiercely fiesty combination that was ! All titans ! with prodigious leaps and powerful steps! Left one spellbound and stupefied !

Starting with an Abhogi varnam, the songs that followed were, Hamsadhwani ragam and Vatapi Ganapathim with swaras.

A uniquely off beat kalapramana was chosen by TNS for the Anandabhairavi Marivere, which lent a nice pep to the otherwise peppy gait of Misra Chapu !

Samajavaragamana in Hindolam witnessed a short but imaginative neraval from TNS, followed by swara exchanges by both Srinivas and him at the line Veda Shiro ....!This was then followed by a very expansive raga alapana of Kalyani,by TNS,wherein he left no raga exploration untouched; with brief exchanges between him and Srinivas at a few places and at Tanam, before they moved onto a pallavi in Adi Tala sama eduppu : "Hare! Rama Krishna Govinda, Mukunda" . One may wonder that it is far too simple for the artists on stage. But then TNS put his imaginative, genius stamp onto this by doing various tala workmanship for this phrase, thus embellishing it fully !
The way he made a korvai with the word Govinda was impeccable.

Mandolin Srinivas, proved that he was an intelligent master, all along, wonderfully giving the due respect to the larger titan by his side, at the same time displaying his mastery over the instrument. There were times when he just played along side, or made a nice frill of an embellishment or even kept quiet without playing or disturbing the flow of music.

The Tani saw sparkling fireworks between the mridangam and tabla ustads. Words may not describe anymore of this experience.

Pantula Rama : Fascile and confident

by Sivapriya Krishnan

Been a while since I posted on the site.


Pantula Rama at the Music Academy made a statement , by a fascile approach to her singing. If the Sanskrit word "anaayaasam" needs to be understood in application, then one has to listen to her sing. Her voice traverses multi octaves with ease and her brighas are crisp and fall in place. Her creativity, energy and exploratory approach on stage very easily reminds us of the felicity of MLV. I am not here talking about bani or style. Readers please don't confuse. Just drawing a mild comparison to the energy on stage !


I heard her only from the song Vinanaasakoni yunnaanura in Pratapavarali.
Parvati Ninnune in Kalkagada, which she sang with a tisra nadai approach had a folkish touch , which was rather different to the ears.

She sang an excellent Kamboji raga , that was to be followed by Tiruvadi Charanam.
My crib with her Tiruvadi Charanam was that it became a " Candy Floss ". A song with so much pathos and entreaty was not treated to its grandeur. She was very fast with the song and the swaras sans neraval only added to this lightness.

Her RTP in Khanda triputa, purvangam Tisra nadai till arudi and the dhrutam portion with chatusram was an intelligent line. It was actually a simple format, very easy to handle, but at the same time giving the listener a feeling of being tricky !

She treated this pallavi well and wrapped with a brisk Sindubhairavi Tillana of Lalgudi Jayaraman.

What is good about her, is that she sings pleasantly, unmindful of the surroundings, with ease and poise,is very confident about herself and presents with maturity.

MSN Murthy on the violin, VV Ramanamurthy on the mridangam and N Somayajulu on the ghatam matched the artist's calibre and added to the lustre of the concert.

The applause factor in Carnatic concerts

................................... by Sivapriya Krishnan


According to me a "chu chu" or an "ahaa", are something that comes from an extremely emotive frame of reference and a pure oneness with the artist on stage. This is so involuntary, when you can actually feel the creativity, beauty or the speciality of a phrase or a tala or any other musical dimension that the artist presents and totally empathise with his /her state of mind.

Yes, it may be disturbing , maybe it can be done more subtly. But then are we " mummified bundles" sitting and viewing the concert with a dead look on the face? Art is all about life, joy, mirth and happiness and we may all have seen that the artist who presents his art with passion and joy alone can produce sustainable art.

As for the applause ,this is becoming more of a contrived nuisance both from the audience and the attention seeking artist on stage. Piled up neraval phrases, super loaded swara prastharas, holding onto a note for a long time , are some of the things that the audience will instantly clap, as though programmed.

Sometimes it might be a very simple thing and the audience here is ready to put their hands together, leaving even the artist bemused. But when the applause comes for something really befitting , then it is welcome and the artist also gets immensely enthused by it.

An applause that comes between the anupallavi and charanam, is the most irritating, as though the audience can't wait for the artist to finish!! It also spoils the trend of thought and feel of the concert.

I have also observed that the audience not clapping for an unknown newcomer or youngster on stage, even if he/ she is playing an excellently classical or weighty stuff. Whereas for a popular face young or old or senior, the applause comes in roaring fits even if fare was average ! It is as though you will be out of league if you didn't clap.
What is so wrong in applauding a youngster and encouraging him/her if its really good?

Applauses become "goshti gaanam" with everybody clapping in congregation for songs, like Kurai ondrum illai, Vishamakara kanna, Maadumeikkum kaaNa, Brhamamokatte !!!

Standing ovation in the portals of the Music Academy, is becoming something of a modern fashion and trend. One is not sure of the intent. It could be that the audience could even be stretching their tight muscles, before taking the next step. !!!

If it were really truly extended, well and good, but again if it is done customarily like standing in attention for the National Anthem, then it becomes meaningless.

It would not be too late, before some award were to be instituted for the "biggest applauding rasika" or the " most applauded concert " of the season !!!

Kiranavali Vidyasankar : Traditional Format

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Kiranavali Vidyasankar sang for Vani Mahal at 2.15.p.m. on the 31.12.09

She was totally tradition personified. Hers is a controlled, restrained musical presentation, sticking to old style format. Her training under her father Chitravina Narasimhan has given her the good grip over laya, raga alapana and sound performance. Her further training with T.Brinda has given her the base of many compositions and their associate melody.

Her concert included Brochevarevare in Sriranjani, Brova Bharama in Bahudari, Kamalambike avaava in Ghanta, Male Manivanna in Kuntalavarali, Ninnuvina ga mari dikevaru in PurviKalyani and the Javali,Nene mandhunamuddubala of Dharmapuri Subbarayar in Misra Mukhari were all grand choices.

Kiranavali's tala sense is crisp and imaginative and her swaras for Brova bharama and Ninnu vinaga mari revealed this aspect well. She also essays her alapanas and brings out the essence of the raga within a short time. One only wished that she employs quick phrases in her alapana, as she is capable of doing it. This will only add more value and charm to the alapana.

Raghuram on the violin had a melodious touch , but was good in parts.Umayalpuram Kalyanraman accompanied on the mridangam well.

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Manda Sudha Rani : Exceptional Talent

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.......................by Sivapriya Krishnan

Carnatic Music does not stop with Chennai metro. It extends into various parts of TN, AP and Karnataka and many good vidwans and vidushis with exceptional talent and sound classicism, still emerge from these places.

Manda Sudharani from Vijayawada is one such example of an examplary talent.

One may not credit her with an exceptionally "attractive" voice, but she has a voice with depth and can traverse great speeds and flash lightning brighas, at the same time being able to sing vilamba kalam also with equal melody.

Sharavana Bhava in Pasupatipriya was sung in lightning speed and not one step missed! It sounded like a continuous cracker firework.

Her four raga pallavi, in the lines of the Ariyakudi pallavi, set in Shankarabharanam, Kalyani, Valaj and Kaanada, stands testimony to her musical mastery and her dedication to the art.

Set in adi tala , two kalais, the lines were "Sankarabharana veni, Kamala nayana Kalyani,Valachi vacchi na ramani, Kaanada rasikamani " was an aural treat. With tremendous ease she traversed all the four ragas and did all the workmanship , a standard RTP demands.

Not one bit of glamour, not one bit of unwanted showmanship! All she brought to the stage was her learning and her command over her art, with confidence and modesty at the same time. A soulful Parulanamata and BMK's lilting Brindavani tillana brought the curtains down.

Dr.Narmada on the violin was both melody and mastery personified. She was so quick and brought out refined and imaginative phrases and swaras on her bow.

VV.Ramanamurthy on the mridangam and N.Somayajulu on the ghatam, were pillars of strength on the percussion instruments and played a mind blowing thani avartanam.

Two things are clear from this :

1. Endaro mahanubhavulu , andhariki vandhanamu

2. Mastery over tala , laya and music is not the preserve of only a few males in the Carnatic community.

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Nirmala Rajasekhar : Confident on the Veena

.........................by Sivapriya Krishnan

Nirmala Rajasekhar, on the Veena yesterday in the Music Academy, proved that Veena is not lost in the Carnatic World and that young artists are still boldly holding onto it. Living in Minneapolis United States, a very cold and clammy place, she holds onto this rather difficult instrument , dearly to her chest, when many Chennaiites scare of it!

A disciple of the Veena exponent Kalpakam Swaminathan, Nirmala, handles the instrument with so much confidence, non chalantly.

Ekambresa Nayike of Dikshitar in Karnataka Suddha Saveri, Kamakshi Swarajathi Syama Sastri, Kaa vaa vaa in Varali with the brief raga alapana, all spoke of how she has internalised the gamaka aspects and the finer aspects of playing the Veena.

Her RTP in Sankarabharanam in Khanda Triputa, a swarakshara pallavi by T R Subramaniam, ‘ sa Ri Samaanamaa sabhapate, Sada siva, veru deivam unakku”, was played with a brisk taanam, trikaalam and intelligent swaras.

RTP on the instrument calls for tremendous grip over tala and the instrument through regular and rigorous practice. Nirmala showed that she is adept and very comfortable with it.

Jagodharana in Peelu and a Tirupugazh ended the concert.

Chidambaram Balashankar on the mridangam and Balaji Chandran on the ghatam, kept up the tempo. They were in good control and knew how to embellish a Veena concert with perfect understanding of the concert mood.

Bombay Jaysree : Modern yet Classical

...............................by Sivapriya Krishnan

Bombay Jaysree, today at the Academy proved that she is truly the melody queen among female singers of today. Hers is a voice rich in timbre and is capable of producing complicated musical phrases with melody and ease. Best use of the voice and microphone is an art and skill that she has mastered through the years and excels in it.

She, over the years has been steadfast in her approach towards Carnatic music. Though having forayed in to the cinema world , she is dedicated to Carnatic music, without missing out on the classical idiom. Thanks to her, a new modern approach and format to concert presentation has caught on in the Carnatic world among female vocalists.

A good madhyama kala pramanam was seen throughout her concert with no dull or boring moment. However sadly in a couple of places one noticed very faint strains of slippage of voice and exertion, which she managed beautifully.

Starting with Varavallabha in Hamsadhwani, Sogasujooda tharama, she went on to a fast Dharee ni telusu konti with brisk firework swaras. With a wonderfully elaborated and very involved Kamboji raga, she sang the Lalgudi Pancharatna kriti Mahita Pravrudha, in Tisra Triputa, arai edam , as taught and preserved by her Guru Lalgudi Jayaraman. Kaa Guha in Kosalam , a Koteeswara Iyer kriti was followed by a very good Kapi raga, interwoven with Mohana Kalyani and Dwijavanti .

Her RTP in Adi Tala Misra Nadai , was from the Kamba Ramayanam line, “ Annalum Nokkinan, Avalum Nokkinaal” and was presented with a touch of class.

Neraval , however seems to be a weak point with her. The neraval for the pallavi line was staright jacketed, manouvered and lacked any creativity, as she was more intent on keeping the tala. Veekshehamgada, a NArayana Teertha Tarangam in Yaman Kalyani sounded a little odd and different, rather modern and out of place as one is so used to hearing it in the traditionally soulful Ahiri.

All of Lalgudi’s tillanas , acquire their full proportions only in Jayasree’s hands. Because of her voice felicity, she is able to produce the dhatu swaras and the triple octave swara passages in the tillana and handle the minutest level of instrumentation through her voice. She did the Sindhubhairavi tillana proud.

Embar Kannan on the violin, Patri Satishkumar on the Mridangam and Kartick on the ghatam , are her stock accompanists and know exactly how to embellish her concert well. They presented their mastery alongside of carefully planned accompanying for the main artist.

Smt.R.Vedavalli's Music : Sukham, Sumukham, Suswaram

R.Vedavalli : Music Academy 27.12.09

................................by Sivapriya Krishnan

If any musician of modern times needs to understand what it is to be precise without being limited, what it is to be perfect without undue pomp and show, how to excel in every sphere of musical presentation be it neraval, alapana, swara prasthara, pallavi, how to plan and balance with right choice and proportion the concert on stage, then it can be from none other than Smt.R.Vedavalli.

Starting with Enduku Nirdaya, in Harikamboji, Palukavemi in Purna Chandrika, Korinavaramu in Ramapriya, the concert was at once elevated to a level of superiority, that can be brought only with years of training and sadhana.

Ramapriya swaras with just the four swaras n, d, p and m and multiple combinations of the same were a sheer delight. Sukhi Evvaro in Kaanada was a divine expression and Kanugonu Sowkhayamu soaked in nayaki melody.The grand Sankharabharanam and Akshayalinga Vibho , with neraval and swaras at “Akshara Swaroopa Prataapa” was a connoisseurs delight. What a raga alapana and neraval? It was an intricately made Abharana !!

Srividya Rajagopalam , a rare Dikshitar kriti in Jaganmohanam was followed by Kharaharapriya RTP, with the Taanam in ragamalika of Begada and Reetigowla. The Khanda Triputa pallavi ‘Sri Ranga, Rangayya Nannu Brovumayya” was dexterously handled in the true masterly approach and style. The swaras in Kharaharapriya, Atana, Sama and Surutti were quick and crisp , replete with raga bhava within short catchy phrases. The concert concluded with Oruthi Maganaai Pirandhu , Tiruppavai in Behag.

Pakkala Ramadas’s violin was honey soaked and reminded of his guru Lalgudi in many places, while Arunprakash can be easily called the best Mridangam player with a keen musical ear, among youngsters today. What inventive and innovative strokes. Special mention has to be made about the way he played for the neraval in Akshayalingvibho. Anirudh Atreya, on the Khanjira is a youngster with a lot of promise for the future.

On hearing this veteran, one feels that the lines “ Nityamaina Suswarapu gaanamutho nirantharamu , tyagarajanutha” in Tyagaraja’s Sukhi evvaro, defines Smt.R.Vedavalli best !!.

Sreevalson Menon : The Calm after the Storm !!

.............................. by Sivapriya Krishnan

What happens after a storm ? There is a certain calm !! ; sudden silence, stray mater strewn here and there , everything seems shaken up till fresh life begins.

This is exactly what happened in the Music Academy today. Aruna Sairam created the storm and the calm thereafter, taking away groups and groups of people from the hall, thus creating rows and rows of empty chairs. The entire Academy, with all of 30- 40 odd people including me, decided to sit and listen to Sreevalson Menon.

It was worth the effort, as the mind and ears both needed to come back to normalcy and Sreevalson right from the word go aided the limited audience strewn here and there to get back into that state.

Sreevalson has a voice that is supple and yet mature and can traverse well . There is what is called "sowkhyam" in his voice ; however he may need to steady a few brighas a little more with some practice .

Starting with the Todi pada varnam, Dani Samjendra by Swati tirunal, an intelligent compostion , Sreevalson went on to the ekaika raga kriti Varasikhivahana of Tyagaraja in the rraga Supradeepam.

The MDR composition in Kedaram , Tyagaraja Gurum, was a scintillatingly divine experience , as the master composers music . So much of Kedaram beauty, poise, grandeur all at once.

Sreevalson excelled in his raga alaapana of Purvi Kalyani. The gandhara madhyama rishaba, aligned beautifully and he went on to sing Ekkalathilum Unai Maravene, a brilliant composition of Tiruvaru Ramaswami Pillai. This kriti stands out for its descriptive passages about surrender to Goddess Minakshi , with a chitta swara, that is "chittai" , as in short and succinct, with swarakshara sahitya bringing out the meaning intelligently.

Sreevalson made a creditable description of the neraval in the highly meaningful line " Taye, vedapurishwari, taruvai nidamodam" and the swaras that followed. Govardhana Gireesham of Dikshitar sang in Madhyama sruti lifted the overall mood of the concert.Bhairavi and an exhaustive Sarievvaramma of Syama Sastri in Khanda Jhampa, was given a great place of honour , deserved by the masterpiece.

Hamirkalynai for the RTP was where Sreevalson showed his capacity to use brighas and the range he could traverse with his voice. The MIsra Chapu pallavi after three beats, "ganalola, dheenapala,nandapala,madhava murali " was handled with trikaalam precisely and ragamalika swaras in saveri, sahana, dhanyasi and a Hindustani raga I could not make out. The Sahana , Dhanyasi and Saveri was enough for this listener, as the Sahana took the place of the icing on the cake!
An emotive Sakhi prana in Chenchuruti and a Kathakali padam in Purneermai, wth a lilting tune and beat brought the curtains down !

C N Chandrasekharan on the violin, played with gusto and Trichur Narendran on the mridangam and Pudukottai Ramachandran on the ghatam played a tani avartanam in Misra Chapu, with nice intricate kanakkus and korvais.

The entire team's spirit was commendable, as they sang undaunted, unfazed by the empty seats, with a sense of purpose and surrender to the select audience and God up there, and honoured the stage given to them with authentic classicism of the best variety.

Lec-dem by Ritha Rajan : Different patantharas in Tyagaraja Compositions

...........................by Sivapriya Krishnan


Ever wondered , as to why the same Tyagaraja composition gets presented in different formats by different artists?

The answer to this question and wonderment, was provided by Smt.Ritha Rajan, the Musicologist- Musician and the former Head of the Dept. of Music, Queen Marys' College, Chennai, at a lecture in the Music Academy on 20.12.09 of the morning conference session.

Ritha brings with her , a training of many number of years, right from her childhood days in Kanchipuram and from her later tutelage under Sri. Ramnad Krishnan. Under him she had the opportunity to learn many more compositions and finer aspects of music. She also got introduced to Naina Pillai's style of singing and the Vina Dhannamal school through her Guru. She furthered her knowledge on her own during her tenure with Queen Marys and her research work.

In her lecture at the Music Academy, she brought out the differen singing approaches to the same composition of Tyagaraja.

Tyagraja has three groups of sishya parampara viz: Umayalpuram school, Walajapet school, Tillaisthanam School.

She explained about several compositions ; to name a few, Chitra Ratna maya , Vidulaku, Anyaayamu Seyakura,NaradaGuru Swami, Ramaanee Vadhu , Etula Brothuvo, mahita Pravrudhha, Siggumali, Raghuvira Ranadeera.

The changes that are observed are in the ollowing areas :

1. Overall changes in notation and approach of the same song from one school of Tyagaraja tothe other, followed by changes later on .

2 Change in ragas

3. Change in kaalapramaana and tempo, mainly towards a slower tempo

4. Change in tala

5. Change in the eduppu and swara notations between one school and another.

What was admirable about her lecture was the ease with which she juggled between one patanthara and another for the same song. She is fluent with Telugu and had learnt a few songs from the Telugu notations and script. Also amazing is the fact that she has assiduously collected material and scripts over a period of time and has worked on a critical analysis of the same.

She said that the changes have occurred from the third generation sishyas. One other observation on changes in kalais , kalapramaana and tempo , she said could be because music which was sung in tthe Bhajana tradition demanded a slightly faster tempo, whist in the concert format on stage , the demand shifted to a slower pattern of singing.
Also the raga changes and morphing has occurred over a period of time may be due to the singers method of holding on to a similar note or phrase between two ragas leading to a shift .

Some snippets :

1. Chitra Ratna maya acording to the Umayalpuram school and popularly in Andhra Pradesh is sung in 1 kalai, but the Tillaisthanam school sings it in 2 kalai, as sung by Sangita Kalanidhi R. Vedavalli.

2. There are different versions of Vidulakhu Mrokkeda in the swara notations.

3. There are lots of kritis that have morphed from Darbar to Kaanada to Kapi, Lalita to Vasanta.

4. Naradaguru sami sung in Darbar now, is given as Kapi in the manuscripts.

5. Etula Brotuvo is given as in Triputa tala, now sung as Misra Chapu.

6.Hechariga Gaa raa raa is now sung as Khanda Jhampa, has been listed as Khanda Ekam

7. In Walajapet version, the song Raghuvira Ranadira, now popurlarly sung in Huseini, is listed under Kharaharapriya.

8. Gnaanamosagarada is given as Gamanaasrama in the manuscripts, but later on has morphed into Purvikalyani

9.Siggumali which is in Jhampa is now sung as Adi tala.

A little of what I could note and understand I have tried to write. There is more that I may have left, and all that is due to my limitations perhaps.

Thanks to the Academy for such informative morning sessions, where serious students of music like me get an opporunity to find answers to many queries and develop a curiosity to know why, what has happened has happened.

Sumitra Vasudev : Young Veteran !

........................by Sivapriya Krishnan

The veteran spirit of the morning initiated by Nedunuri, was carried throughout till 3.30 by Sumitra Vasudev in the afternoon.

Sumitra Vasudev , is a young lady with a veteran’s mind and approach to singing. Classicism, creativity, control, fostered manodharma are some of the hallmarks of her singing. She did her guru Sangita Kalanidhi Smt.R.Vedavalli proud by her brilliant singing today at 1.45 in the afternoon at the Music Academy.

Her music flowed like a cascading waterfall . Her intuitve ability, innovation, raga mapping, neraval manodharma, are fabulously lofty and reminds one of a very senior veteran’s music.

The Bhairavi Ata Tala varnam by Pachimiriyam Adiappa ,was sang with the third swara in the charana and the anubandha, as given in the Sangita Sampradaya Pradashini. After Samrane Sukhamu, a beautiful Khamas raga followed with Seetapate and the quick swaras, told us immensely of Sumitra’s grip over the raga.

Varali raga had brilliant sancharas and covered all the possibilities of delineation .Maa mavaMenakshi , a Dikshitar masterpiece was sung wonderfully with innovative swaras.

The major credit goes to Sumtra for her RTP in Begada. What a raga alapana! There was not a single unexplored phrase of Begada left. The Taanam needs a special mention . She correctly maintained the “madhyamakala” speed from start to end, as per the Lakshana of taanam singing. The pallavi “Mahima Teliya Taramaa ama nee in Khanda Jhampa at mukkaal eduppu was a veitable treat. Very neat and crisp presentation. Neraval is the heart of pallavi singing and this Sumitra did brilliantly.

All the necessary aspects of changes in speed , trikaalam were strictly adhered to. Her ragamalika swaras in Reetigowla, Paadi, Kuntalavarali and the same in reverse order back to Begada was a done with consummate ease and creativity.

Arunachala Karthik was good by himself on the violin, but could not match upto the vocalists creativity. R.Sankaranarayana on the mridangam was accompanying very well, but he failed to impress,in the tani avartanam, as he was far too long and kept rolling over with his korvais.

Nedunuri : Naada yogi

.......................... by Sivapriya Krishnan

Sangita Kalanidhi Nedunuri Krishnamoorthy sang the morning concert in the Academy today the 22nd December, 2009 and announced that this was his 55th concert at the Music Academy and thanked the Rasikas and the Academy profusely for supporting him.

One after the other he poured out a big jar of precious musical gems in the form of Asaveri ( E Paniko), Purvikalyani ( Paraloka Sadhaname). Yadukula kambhoji (Adikadu Bhajana.) What a mgnificent portrayal of the raga ?The half and one avartana swaras were fireworks. His ragamalika sloka and Adideva paramatma in Sindubhairavi was the soulful conclusion to the concert.

The greatness of this kind of music is that it is timeless, memorable and worthy of preservation. So much for youngsters to learn and imbibe from. It is so inexplicable, that every raga takes such good shape and retains its originality and flavour in the hands of stalwarts like Nedunuri. Maybe this is because ,they practice music as some form of naada yoga, inspite of keeping it for livelihood. There is no corruption, no malice, no unwanted pressure on themselves to be in the rat race!! Hence the music shines eternally.

Sriram Parasuram, returned the serves made by Nedunuri and played very well and Nedunuri magnanimously appreciated him on stage. Trichy Sankaran the master was bountiful and Purushottaman on the khanjira added o the percussion flavour.

TNS Krishna - concert to remember

.................... by Sivapriya Krishnan

T N S Krishna , over the the last few years has matured into a brilliant artist of his own merit and right.

A chip of the old block, he has imbibed the musical approach and values from his father and has crafted his singing style with a lot of bhava and crispness to suit his capabilities thereby being able to produce very high and good quality music.

His grip on varied kalapramana, tala, raaga alaapana and neraval is amazing and this came alive in the three compositions namely Ninnuvinaagamari (Purvikalyani), Amba Neelayadakshi( Neelambari) and Dasukovalena (Thodi), all of which he sang sequentially.

His neraval at Soumitri Tyagaraju in Misra Jhampa was classical and innovative in style, diction and clarity without any loss of meaning. The sloka on Harikesa Nallur Muthiah Bhagavathar , composed by TNS, followed by a Tillana in Hamsanandi by Harikesa nallur Muthiah Bhagavathar was a befitting and delightful experience.

He showed a lot of professionalism in concert management, planning and ample respect to the stalwarts accompanying him without being too superfluous at the same time.

M.Chandrasekharan on the violin, Umayalpuram K Sivaraman on the mridangam, E M Subramainam on the ghatam , made the concert a lively and enjoyable experience.

Smt.R.Vedavalli 's Samarpana to Tyagaraja

.............................. by Sivapriya Krishnan

To me this day of 20th Decemebr 2009 has been a celebration of veterans and music that is timeless !!!

The concert was at carnatica's Samarpana 2009 and the theme given to Smt.R.Vedavalli was (interrogative kritis of St.Tyagaraja)

Smt.R.Vedavalli started by giving a very brief explanantion of the concept of interrogaion by the Saint. She said that Tyagaraja specialises in interrogation and has raised several questions to Sri Rama on many topics of philosophical perspectives.

She started with Evarani in Devamrutavarshini, where he raises the question of who can fully uderstand Rama tattva? Are you Shiva, Madhava, Brahma or a combination of all?
Palukavemi na deivama in Poorna Chandrika was the next song. This was followed by Sandehamunu in Ramapriya, preceeded by a crisp and beautiful raga alaapana and crisp and intelligent swras at the line Bharatarcharana. Kaanada Raga was rather extensive and was followed with Sukhi Evvaro, in a gait, that was sowkhayam personified , making all the listeners "sukhi" and "sumukhi"!!

Ennalloo uragae in Subhapantuvarali was handled in a madhyama kalapramana, which kept the spirit of the song without making it too langruous.

Bhairavi raga was an examplary portrayal of all the beautiful phrases of a traditional Bhairavi. Tanayuni Brova, with neraval and swaras at Mahini tyagaraja vinuta brought out so many varieties of phrases of Bhairavi

The concert was concluded with Ramachandra nee daya in Surutti.

All in all the concert was indeed a “SAMARPANA” at the feet of Tyagaraja, a connoisseurs delight and a perfect classroom in finer musical aspects for both her disciples like me and other avid students of music.

Sumitra gave a brilliant support and was quick on uptake, as she used to correctly follow from where my guru left.

RK Shriramkumar, soothing violin, Arunprakash’s measured mridangam and Anirudh’s sparkling khanjira with their fiery tani avartanam added to the overall quality of the concert.

The crowd bade goodbye with a standing ovation to the artists on stage.

R K Srikantan - antique bronze masterpiece

...................................... by Sivapriya Krishnan


I heard the 90 year old R K Srikantan , supported on the Mridangam by Sri Umayalpuram Sivaraman, Sri Chitravina Ravikiran on the Chitravina , Sri Karthick on the ghatam , Sri.Ramakant for vocal support at Bharat Kalachar.

IT WAS RKS_RK_UKS_RK_GSK AT BK !!!

RK Srikantan was a master blaster with a ringing voice that would put a 9 year old to shame. !! Such steadiness, range and pitch is enviable and pretty much a miracle for that age.Vande Nishamaham and the swaras that followed it were fireworks. Terediyaka raada with the shuddha madhyama prayoga was delight. A brilliant Hindolam raga alaapana followed by Saraswathi Vidiyuvati. Then came a brilliant and expansive Chakravakam , to be followed by Etula Brothuvo and wonderful swaras at the end of it.

Ramakant the 60 year old son of R K Srikantan has a voice that ranges miles and can travel mikeless. What a unison between the father and the son? One cannot decipher where one starts and where one stops!

Umayalpuram Sivaraman is the untold Chakravarthy on the mridangam and showed that he has attained this status by no mean efforts !! What a Tani in misra chapu ? What crisp fingering and striking beats?

Ravikiran was truly the “silken strings” accompanying the “bronze metal” Srikantan.
Such melody, harmony and smooth accompaniment, shadowing the main vidwan. He did not show his vidwat , but enhanced the main singers vidwat by quietly shadowing him. I think the violin vidwans should learn from Ravikiran on accompaniment to the main artist.!
Dr. Karthick, proved that he is equally capable like any of the other artists on the stage. Undaunted by the the experts on stage he went about his job meticulously and added a lot of colour to the concert.

Brothers and Sisters Day at the Music Academy

........................................ by Sivapriya Krishnan

Today seems to be a day of brothers and sisters in the Academy. Starting with Rudrapatnam Brothers, to Malladi Brothers, the last concert was Priya Sisters.

1. The morning session of the Academy concert was by Rudrapatnam Brothers. These brothers are experienced senior musicians from Karnataka and are known for their sedately classical style.

Every item be it, Varnam in Kannada by Lalgudi Jayaraman , Nannu brovarada in Bhairavam by Patnam Subramania Iyer, Ninne Namminaanu in Todi, Marivere a GNB composition in Malavi or the RTP in Keeravani was all true to their tradition of pure classicism and grammar. Arabhimaanam vaithu Aadari , a ragamalika in Tamil was rendered with full bhava of the words and the raga.

Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi on the violin preserved this classicism and brought forth her tradition in her volin playing. V .Kamalakar Rao , a very senior Mridangam player gave his best to the concert ably assisted by N.Govindarajan on the ghatam.

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2. Priya Sisters is an example of dedication to their career, boldness of approach and determination to be there and stick it out in this field of carnatic music.

If you were to look for strains of pure classical traditionalism, the classicist purists, may just not accept them, as their approach is rather light and not so full throated.

But they are able to produce music that cannot be faulted , that which is pleasurable, pleasing to the ears, sruti aligned and with basic grammar of music remaining intact.

Their voice crooning and falsetto at the higher octaves and constant penchant for singing only tara sthayi phrases and swaras, is what gets monotonous and irritating, but then any modern singer today, especially most female singers, only indulge in such singing styles.

However,they made a neat and compact presentation at the Music Academy. Right from the start of the Nayaki vanam by Rudrapatnam Venkataramayya they kept up the tempo. Lavanya rama was sung well with the words pronounced correctly.
They took up Gamakakriya (commonly known as Purvikalyani), with the song Meenakshi Memudham Dehi. Their neraval at Meenalochani Pasamochani was refreshing and intelligent.

They proved that they were capable of standard classical material in the Todi RTP. The alapana, was good, taanam was short and crisp and the rettai pallavi with two eduppus and two arudis in Khanda Ata Tala, was very deftly handled by both the sisters. Being a long pallavi, the words were too many. The Pallavi’s first line was “ saravananai muruganai, guhanai, ninai, second line was nidam padametudhi seivaainee arul perave." What was impressive was that they gave the necessary treatment correctly by way of Trikaalam and Neraval to the pallavi line.

The concert came to a fine close with a customary bhajan and an Annamayya composition. V V Srinivasa Rao, was an expert support on the violin. Neyveliskandasubramaniam and Madipakkam Murali were very good with their percussion and lent the concert a perfect laya support.

Chitravina Ravikiran with his chitra-kalaa

....................by Sivapriya Krishnan

What do you get when you are blessed with “purva janma sukrutam”, immeasurable talent, immense brain power and extreme hardwork ? You get an artist like Chitravina Ravikiran.

Ravikiran literally drew a “chitram” with his “Chitravina” that was an expression of pure art , both creative and emotive.

His art comes fully alive when he plays on the old style “gottuvadyam” , what is now called "chitravina “. It is as though God has sent him for preserving this instrument.

One after the other the prodigy-maestro , kept throwing gems in the form of Saraseeruhasanapriye ( Naattai), Brahma Kadigina Paadamu ( Mukhari), Hiranmayeem (Lalita) with alapana and swaras at Sangeeta vadya vinodini, Dwijavanti raga alapana, followed by a Misra Ata tala song by Oothukadu Venkata Kavi. Dwijavanti was the ‘dwajaarohanam” of this concert, so full of majesty. O jagadamba in Anandabhairavi was presented in true and pure classical Anandabhairavi.

A quick ‘ennai nee maravade” in Amritavarshini was soon followed by a Kambodhi raga alapana.

Kambodhi raga unfurled slowly like a lotus that blooms seeing the sun. Starting at the lower octaves, majestically staying in the mandhara sthayi and peaking at the higher registers, he took the raga through a grand procession. A raga malika taanam was followed by a Nadai Pallavi in Khanda Triputa, Khanda Nadai – “ Gopala Gokula bala, Gopikasamuhalola, laasa hrdayaalaya, maam paalaya”. A true classical RTP with all the furnishings due to it.

Ravikiran is a master in intelligent swara patterns and subtle kalapramana variations and this subtlety was seen in the handling of the lines Hiranmayeem Laksmim and Brahma Kadigina padamu in the way he finished the song.

Akkarai Subbulakshmi was no mean accompanist. She was one on one with Ravikiran and matched his wits and grandeur. Her uptake is very quick and her presentation very neat. The taanam she played in Nattakurinji was creditable.

T V Gopalakrishnan, the mridangam wizard, was at his best, with very intelligent kanakkus, ghumkis and phrases. The special one to one exchanges in swara prastharas was sheer delight.

Tripunithura Radhakrishnan, proved his mettle on the ghatam and ably supported all the artists.

One came out with a divinely satisfied feeling, praying that the Carnatic Music world be blessed with more such Ravikirans.!!

To me personally this was added with an extra value of unalloyed happiness at the "hatrick Kambodhi", with a hallmark of purity, over the last three days, starting with TNS the titan Gayaka-Vainika's (vocal concert on the 15th), Ashwin Anand the bright youngster on the Veena (on the 16th) and Ravikiran the prodigy-maestro (on the 17th)!!

You see what is common to all these : The Veena !!!

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Vijay Siva, at the Music Academy, 16.12.09

..................... by Sivapriya Krishnan


Vijay Siva, at the Music Academy gave a standard fare. His concerts never fail as he always sings well above a certain standard. The main highlight was the Gamanasrama Raga followed by Idhi Neeku Nyayama in Misra chapu by Mysore Vasudevachar. Gamanasrama is a Mela karta raga close to Purvikalyani , but with the “pdns” prayogas in the aarohana and his raga alapana brought this out very clearly. The neraval and swaras were also interestingly crafted for this kriti.

Raksha Bettare, in Bhairavi, is a song that has the distinctive DKP / DKJ stamp to it and Vijay Siva did his school proud with this. Every bit of the song reminded us of those two stalwart musicians.

R K Shriramkuar was brilliant wih his violin. The veteran Trichy Sankaran’s mridangam was every bit a work of genius. With this thani avartanam, intelligently co-opted by Ghatam Suresh, both of them created rhythmic firework on the stage of a very high order.

Vijay Siva was the forerunner among youngsters taking to full time Carnatic Music and till date he preserves the classical tradition much to his credit and has been in many ways influential in getting more youngsters to join the Carnatic Music world.

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