“Oh.. The one who is in a supine posture....My entire body is filled with love for you.. You melt me.. Oh! My sweet nectar..”
ஆரா அமுதே அடியேன் உடலம் நின்பால் அன்பாயே,
நீராய் அலைந்து கரைய வுருக்குகின்ற நெடுமாலே,
சீரார் செந்நெல் கவரி வீசும் செழுநீர்க் திருகுடந்தை,
ஏரார் கோலம் திகழக் கிடந்தாய் கண்டேன் எம்மானே.
sang the inimitable Nammazhwar, about whom I have already written elaborately in my post on ‘Enegengo Sellum’(ILaiyaraaja-The Wonder’ 4th March 2009).
I am not getting into the philosophical contours of this verse now. What is important here is the feel of the poem.
Don’t we feel the love, passion, and the devotion of the poet when we read the verse?
To put it simply and succinctly, Nammazhwar was allured by the beauty of the Lord. To him nothing in this world mattered except the Lord. Most importantly, he was able to communicate his feelings through beautiful words. Maybe, that is why we are allured by the poetry of people like Nammazhwar even after 1000 years.
If poets like Nammazhwar used poetry as a medium to express themselves, great musicians like Saint Thyagaraja used both poetry and music as a medium to describe the beauty of the divine.
In one of his kritis in the ragam Vagadeeswari, he says, ‘The Divine shines with grandeur everywhere.. It is present as Vishnu, Shiva, human beings, animals, birds, trees, the three basic qualities, the five elements..’.
‘Paramaathmudu velige mucchata baaga telusukore..’
Likewise, ILaiyaraaja, sees and makes us see the Divine everywhere through his Music.
The song of the day is yet another special composition of his and is based on a very rare ragam. One can even say that a ragam which has not been used by any other musician.
The composition is ‘Kariyaadha Manamum uNdo’ from ‘Varusham 16’(1989) and the ragam is Hema Bhushani(which literally means ‘adorned with gold’).
Hema Bhusnani is a janya of ‘Gangeya bhushani’, the 33rd melakarata and its structure is:
Sa ri3 ga3 ma1 dha1 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha1 ma1 ga3 ri3 sa.
Incidentally, the ragam of Thyagaraja kriti quoted above-‘Paramathumudu’- Vagadeeswari is the 34th melakarta and is in the same chakra as that of
Gangeyabhushani .
‘Kariyadha Manamum..’ is special because of many reasons.
One, it is based on a very rare and unknown ragam.
Two, the song does not appear in the movie.
The third reason is the second charaNam and we shall see how and why it is special.
The Pallavi -which starts without a prelude- radiates positive energy and is resplendent not just because of the structure but also because of the soothing warmth in the voices of Yesudass and Chitra.
If the first line is effulgent, the second line has an alluring distinction, the reason being the vivadi note ‘ri3’.
The Sitar and violins slice through and infuse exotic shades of the raga in the beginning of the first interlude. The Flute shows the emotive facets of the Ragam and our hearts begin to melt.
The sitar and the Veena yearn evocatively.
The first CharaNam has a tranquil luminescence.
The first line dwells on niceties, while the second line gives a caressing touch. We are pierced by moments of poignancy in the following line.
The second interlude is marked by some wonderful aalaps by Yesudass.
It takes silky glides.
It sketches graceful silhouettes.
It flows smoothly through various terrains.
It bubbles with creative excitement.
Can any instrument substitute a memerising human voice?
The second charaNam looks at hidden ecstatic possibilities.
Remember my third point in the beginning of the description where I had said ‘The third reason is the second charaNam and we shall see how and why it is special’?
The ‘ga’ of the ragam is now taken as the base ‘sa’. I had discussed this concept called ‘Gruha Bedam’ in some of my earlier posts. Please refer ‘ILaiyaraaja-The Genius’, and ‘ILaiyaraaja-The Eloquent Musician’.
But the difference between those compositions and ‘Karaiyadha..’ is that while the former are based on known ragas, the latter is based on an unknown raga.
Most importantly, the raga that emerges after the Gruha Bedam is another unknown raga.
As per the theory of Gruha Bedam, the new raga-that is the raga one gets after applying the technique- has the same number of swaras as that of the original raga.
For example, let us take a very popular ragam ShankarabharaNam. If the ‘ri’ is kept as the base, it becomes Karaharapriya, if ‘ga’ is taken as the base, it becomes Todi, if ‘ma’ is the base, it is Kalyani, if ‘pa’ is the base, it is Harikamboji and it is Natabhairavi if ‘dha’ is the base.
Three points are worth noting here.
1.All the aforementioned ragas are well known and popular.
2.All these have seven swaras (like the ‘original’ ragam ShankarabharaNam).
3.Most importantly, since people have already tried and tested applying Gruha Bedam on such ragas, they clearly know the raga(s) that would emerge.
But ILaiyaraaja believes in chartering unknown territories and discovering gems that are not hitherto known to the world.
He also breaks the rule while staying within the boundaries of virtuosity. If this statement sounds somewhat ambiguous, please look at the following examples:
In ‘Vaidegi Raman’, he applied Gruha Bedam in Kalyani and instead of giving us the sampoorna (or complete ragams) like ‘Todi’ and ‘Harikamboji’, he ‘hid’ a couple of swaras to make them pentatonic ragas (Hindolam/Mohanam).
In ‘KaNgaLukkuL unnai ezhuthu’, he did the reverse. The 4 note ragam(Lavangi) became a 6 note ragam(Mandaari).
But by doing this, he never compromised on the beauty and the virtuosity.
Now, let us go back to ‘Kariyadha Manamum’.
I am sure this was the first time Gruha Bedam was done on an unknown raga. Added to this is the fact that the raga that emerges is also little known and has never been used before.
The new raga that begins the charaNam is called as ‘Makarandhapriya’(as per the Raga text ‘Swaraprastara Sagaram’ authored by Nathamuni PaNditar) whose structure is:
sa ri1 ga3 dha1 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha1 ga3 ri1 sa.
It is ‘Lalita’ without the ‘ma’.
Here too, the Maestro has made a ‘Shadava raga’(6 note raga) ‘Audava’(5 notes) by skipping one note after the Gruha Bedam.
Artistically Innovative!!
Innovatively Artistic!!
Let us continue with the description of the CharaNam.
The first two lines in the second charaNam are subtly integrated and is a striking combination of sensitivity and beauty.
The beats of Tabla –that gives various permutations and combinations in a matter of half a cycle- in between the lines- steal our hearts.
The finale is meditative.
‘Kariyatha manamum uNdo’
‘அவர் இசைக்குக் கரையாத மனமும் உண்டோ..’
Friday, 10 December 2010
Friday, 26 November 2010
ILaiyaraaja-The Bonhomous Musician..
‘Slicing through the dark clouds, the charming crescent moon reaches the cool hillock (of ThirukkodudumkunRam), the holy town where the one who bathes in ‘Panchagvaya-a mixture of five substances obtained from the cow resides accompanied by His Lady whose voice is as sweet as the honey’.
VaaniR poliveythum mazai megam kiziththodi
koonaR piRai cerum kuLir caaraRkodukunRam
AaniR poliainthum amarnthu Aadi ulageththath
theniR poli moziyaaLadum meyaan thirunagare
வானிற் பொலிவெய்தும் மழை மேகம் கிழித்தோடிக்
கூனற் பிறை சேரும் குளிர் சாரற்கொடுங்குன்றம்
ஆனிற் பொலி ஐந்தும் அமர்ந்து ஆடி உலகேத்தத்
தேனிற் பொலி மொழியாளடும் மேயான் திருநகரே
This is a verse composed by one of the greatest Tamizh poets Thirugnanasambandar about whom I had elaborately written in some of my previous posts (Natana Raaja-Part II and Natana Raaja-Part V).
Yes..It is a bhakti poem dedicated to Lord Shiva, but what is to be noted here is the way the poet has used the things in nature and of course his intelligent word play (the word ‘பொலி’ used in different contexts to give different meanings) which was literally a child’s play for him( as some of you may have known Thirugnanasambandar started composing poems since a very tender age).
He looks at the beautiful crescent moon which is peeping out from the dark rainy clouds. The moon looks like a sickle that slices through the dark clouds to land at the Hillock.
If one looks at it from a poetic angle, one can appreciate the description of the moon, clouds, hillock and the cow.
Philosophically speaking, one can say that the moon is our mind that wants to purify itself from the dark and filthy things (simile here: the dark clouds) to attain salvation. If one delves deeply, one can deduce that the poem talks about the harmony of nature.
Dark clouds, Moon, Hillock, Cow, Honey-all these exist in nature and though they have different qualities (some even contrasting) there is a perfect harmony or bonhomie between these natural elements.
If Samabandar did such magic with his words, ILaiyaraaja has been doing this with his music.We see the perfect harmony and bonhomie between the different instruments, between the different genres, between the singers …
The song of the day is a classic example of the bonhomie of the different contrasting sounds.It is ‘Aadai KoNdu Aadum’ from ‘KeLviyum Naane Badhilum Naane’ (1982) sung by Unni Menon and S.P.Shailaja.
The composition uses many modern western instruments including synthesizers to the accompaniment of Mirudangam, a traditional South Indian percussion instrument.
It is based on Dhenuka, a very classical raga.
Dhenuka is the 9th melakarta and its swaras are
sa ri1 ga2 ma1 pa dha1 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha1 pa ma1 ga2 ri1 sa.
Scalewise, it is very close to Todi and it is the Sudhdhamadhyama counterpart of Subhapantuvarali, a raga known for pathos. Moreover, if the variant of ‘ri is changed, it becomes Keeravani and if the variant of ‘ga’ is changed, it becomes Mayamalavagowla.
But despite all these factors, Dhenuka does not resemble any of the aforementioned popular ragas and has a special identity of its own.
Let us now look at the composition.
The prelude itself is grand and is a forerunner to the musical edifice.
The air is resonant with the robust Mirudangam playing ‘Ta ka dhi mi’ with stress on the first and the third syllable. The scintillating piper moves reposefully. The synthesiser allies with the strings and we see a ravishing beauty. Enthused and energised, the flute sweeps us with a wave of excitement.
The Pallavi that starts in the higher octave has clusters of flowering phrases. The first line is dynamic, and the second line lilting. The last line gives us gliding aural images with the ‘Ta ka dhi mi tathomta’ dancing like a peacock.
The first interlude juxtaposes pace and the mood. First, the synthesizer moves with a gentle wave of vigour. The impeccable saxophone then takes over with a flourish.The short pauses and the ‘gumki’ of the Mirudangam breathe charm.Finally, the razor sharp stringed instruments and the Flute sustain the glory.
The CharaNams have insightful phrases.
The first part is benign while the second part shows us the beauty of the raga strata by strata.
The first two lines with the interweaving of instruments shine with emotive glints. The third line is fluent and exhaustive while the last line is simply mesmerising.
The composer weaves a beautiful soft fabric in the second interlude.
The Bass guitar splays the colours expansively with the Mirudangam brimming with exuberance. The guitar and the synthesizer that follow provide a serene edge evoking a totally different colour.
It is soft and sublime.
It is graceful.
It is meditative.
It is a chiaroscuro as the flute, and the other instruments join now.
It is a perfect harmony..
எழில் ராஜாங்கம் இசையே..அதன் ராஜாவும் அவரே..
He is the undisputed king of the beautiful Kingdom of Music..
VaaniR poliveythum mazai megam kiziththodi
koonaR piRai cerum kuLir caaraRkodukunRam
AaniR poliainthum amarnthu Aadi ulageththath
theniR poli moziyaaLadum meyaan thirunagare
வானிற் பொலிவெய்தும் மழை மேகம் கிழித்தோடிக்
கூனற் பிறை சேரும் குளிர் சாரற்கொடுங்குன்றம்
ஆனிற் பொலி ஐந்தும் அமர்ந்து ஆடி உலகேத்தத்
தேனிற் பொலி மொழியாளடும் மேயான் திருநகரே
This is a verse composed by one of the greatest Tamizh poets Thirugnanasambandar about whom I had elaborately written in some of my previous posts (Natana Raaja-Part II and Natana Raaja-Part V).
Yes..It is a bhakti poem dedicated to Lord Shiva, but what is to be noted here is the way the poet has used the things in nature and of course his intelligent word play (the word ‘பொலி’ used in different contexts to give different meanings) which was literally a child’s play for him( as some of you may have known Thirugnanasambandar started composing poems since a very tender age).
He looks at the beautiful crescent moon which is peeping out from the dark rainy clouds. The moon looks like a sickle that slices through the dark clouds to land at the Hillock.
If one looks at it from a poetic angle, one can appreciate the description of the moon, clouds, hillock and the cow.
Philosophically speaking, one can say that the moon is our mind that wants to purify itself from the dark and filthy things (simile here: the dark clouds) to attain salvation. If one delves deeply, one can deduce that the poem talks about the harmony of nature.
Dark clouds, Moon, Hillock, Cow, Honey-all these exist in nature and though they have different qualities (some even contrasting) there is a perfect harmony or bonhomie between these natural elements.
If Samabandar did such magic with his words, ILaiyaraaja has been doing this with his music.We see the perfect harmony and bonhomie between the different instruments, between the different genres, between the singers …
The song of the day is a classic example of the bonhomie of the different contrasting sounds.It is ‘Aadai KoNdu Aadum’ from ‘KeLviyum Naane Badhilum Naane’ (1982) sung by Unni Menon and S.P.Shailaja.
The composition uses many modern western instruments including synthesizers to the accompaniment of Mirudangam, a traditional South Indian percussion instrument.
It is based on Dhenuka, a very classical raga.
Dhenuka is the 9th melakarta and its swaras are
sa ri1 ga2 ma1 pa dha1 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha1 pa ma1 ga2 ri1 sa.
Scalewise, it is very close to Todi and it is the Sudhdhamadhyama counterpart of Subhapantuvarali, a raga known for pathos. Moreover, if the variant of ‘ri is changed, it becomes Keeravani and if the variant of ‘ga’ is changed, it becomes Mayamalavagowla.
But despite all these factors, Dhenuka does not resemble any of the aforementioned popular ragas and has a special identity of its own.
Let us now look at the composition.
The prelude itself is grand and is a forerunner to the musical edifice.
The air is resonant with the robust Mirudangam playing ‘Ta ka dhi mi’ with stress on the first and the third syllable. The scintillating piper moves reposefully. The synthesiser allies with the strings and we see a ravishing beauty. Enthused and energised, the flute sweeps us with a wave of excitement.
The Pallavi that starts in the higher octave has clusters of flowering phrases. The first line is dynamic, and the second line lilting. The last line gives us gliding aural images with the ‘Ta ka dhi mi tathomta’ dancing like a peacock.
The first interlude juxtaposes pace and the mood. First, the synthesizer moves with a gentle wave of vigour. The impeccable saxophone then takes over with a flourish.The short pauses and the ‘gumki’ of the Mirudangam breathe charm.Finally, the razor sharp stringed instruments and the Flute sustain the glory.
The CharaNams have insightful phrases.
The first part is benign while the second part shows us the beauty of the raga strata by strata.
The first two lines with the interweaving of instruments shine with emotive glints. The third line is fluent and exhaustive while the last line is simply mesmerising.
The composer weaves a beautiful soft fabric in the second interlude.
The Bass guitar splays the colours expansively with the Mirudangam brimming with exuberance. The guitar and the synthesizer that follow provide a serene edge evoking a totally different colour.
It is soft and sublime.
It is graceful.
It is meditative.
It is a chiaroscuro as the flute, and the other instruments join now.
It is a perfect harmony..
எழில் ராஜாங்கம் இசையே..அதன் ராஜாவும் அவரே..
He is the undisputed king of the beautiful Kingdom of Music..
Monday, 18 October 2010
ILaiyaraaja-The Uncanny Musician..
‘Out of the world experience..’ ‘I got transported to another world..’ ‘He/She did Mayajaal..’
How many times have we used/heard others use these phrases.
Generally, we say this after listening or watching something extraordinary. At times, while reading some great works of poetry too..
Why do we feel the experience itself is a different world? Aren’t we aware that we exist and continue to exist in the same world?
What is this ‘out of the world experience’ or ‘Maya’ all about?
The concept of Maya is very intriguing.
Maya literally means ‘not that’.
It is an illusion though it seems to be a reality.
I do not want to get too much into philosophy and shall try and put it in simple terms.
As per Indian philosophy, Maya is the illusion a veiling of the true. Since it seems to be a reality, it is both true and untrue. It is true but when compared to the Absolute Truth (one call it as ‘Sathyam’) , it is untrue. Maya is said to be created by the Almighty to help us see the Ultimate or Absolute Truth.
Coming to think of it, literature, music, dance also take us to a world of illusion.
True or Untrue?
Yes.. At the same time, great literature and divine music while taking us to an illusory world make us see the absolute truth.
Great composers/writers/artistes have an uncanny knack of making us see the Truth through their esoteric works.
Look at these two verses of Kamban:
வரம்பு எலாம் முத்தம்;தத்தும் மடை எலாம் படிலம்;மாநீர்க்
குரம்பு எலாம் செம்பொன்;மேதிக் குழி எலாம் கழுநீர்க் கொள்ளை;
பரம்பு எலாம் பவளம்;சாலிப் பரப்பு எலாம் அன்னம்;பாங்கர்க்
கரும்பு எலாம் செந்தேன்;சந்தக் கா எலாம் களி வண்டு ஈட்டம்.
ஆலைவாய்க் கரும்பின் தேனும்,அரி தலைப் பாளைத் தேனும்,
சோலைவீழ் கனியின் தேனும்,தொடை இழி இறாலின் தேனும்,
மாலைவாய் உகுத்த தேனும்,வரம்பு இகந்து ஓடி,வங்க
வேலைவாய் மடுப்ப உண்டு,மீன் எலாம் களிக்கும் மாதோ
Pearls shimmer on paddy fields. Gold glitter on the banks of the lakes. Rubies shine on the valleys. Conches glow on the sluices. The white swans swim with glow. Tasteful honey oozes out from sugar canes. Singing bees in the groves.
Honey from sugar cane, Honey from the petals (of flowers), Honey from the fruits, Honey directly from the Honey comb, Honey from the garlands.. flow to the sea , fill the sea making the fish swallow these varieties of honey.
The salt sea becomes the Honey Sea!
These are just 2 samples from the 60 verses in ‘Naattu Padalam’ in Bala Kandam where Kamban describes the beauty and richness of the Kingdom of Kosalam ruled by Dasaratha.
Now, a logical question: What would happen if honey were to flow directly into the sea? What would happen if one sees gold and gems on the paddy fields and by the lakeside? First of all, is this possible in reality?
The obvious answer is No.
At the same time, let us realise that the character of Rama symbolises Absolute Truth. Kamban, the philosopher helps us see the ultimate truth through Kamban, the poet. By exaggerating –albeit poetically - he takes us through a wonderful world, makes us experience the beauty and finally making us realise the Absolute Truth!
One finds this uncanny ability- of showing us a Maya world and using it as a veil to make us realise the Truth- in some people even now. These are the people whose works are extraordinary, beyond compare and beyond even logical reasoning.
A classic living example is ILaiyaraaja.
I am sure most of us undergo a totally different experience while listening to many of his songs. We do get transported to a new world. But after the song is over, aren’t our minds left with a feeling which is impossible to explain or put in words?
This is what is the absolute truth!
And ILaiyaraaja is one of the few people to have this uncanny ability!!
(At this point, let me also tell you that there are also great artistes/musicians who take us to the world of Maya through. But the difference is that while one experiences pleasure in their works, it seems to be transient without any permanent value).
Today, let us see yet another composition of his where we go to the Maya world and finally experience what I have tried to describe.
The composition is ‘Yenidu Yenidu Maya Maya..’ from the Kannada film Nannavanu(2009).
The composition is based on a Raag called Brindavana Saranga.
Brindavana Saranga has been adopted into Carnatic music from the Hindustani system.
There is still a lot of confusion about the structure of this Raag.
Some say it is a pentatonic raga with ‘ga’ and ‘dha’ being absent and that it uses both the ‘ni’.
Some say there is only one variant of ‘ni’ and that ‘ga’ is sparingly used in the avarohanam.
After discussing with some great musicologists, my personal opinion is it has 5 swaras in the arohanam and 6 swaras in the avarohanam- with a very minimum use of ‘ga’.
Its structure is: sa ri2 ma1 pa ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 pa ma1 ri1 (ga2)sa.
The ‘ri’ and ‘ni’ are considered to be the Jeevaswaras (notes that give life to this raga).
Let us see the composition now.
We see the glowing delicate filaments that prepare us for the mystical experience. The vivid flow of violins with the bass guitar running as the undercurrent shows us the mystical stream. The Flute has a meditative impact.
The gentle flavour of the Raga is felt in the Pallavi as Sriram Parthasarathy renders the lines. The second line is sharp while the third line shows the facets of the raga rippled colours. The fourth line is aglow with bhava-rich gamakas. The female voice of Bela Shinde now joins caressing niceties. The Flute interspersed between the lines makes our hearts jump with excitement.
The first interlude is a plethora of melodic and rhythmic threads that spell virtuosity.
It starts innocuously with the electronic instruments giving a joyful smile that welcomes the violins and the Laya Raaja. The composition is basically set in the 3-beat cycle Tisram while the Bass Guitar now play in Chatusram as 8 beats followed by a gap of 4 counts. This is repeated 4 times. The number of beats is 48 - which is divisible by 4 as well as 3.
One Maya already revealed!
The nectar-filled flute and the cadences in violin at the end and take us further into the esoteric world.
The subtly layered CharaNam is another marvel and shows us one more Maya.
The first two lines are supple and glow with inner light.
The Laya Raaja enters again in the next line. As the vocals follow the Tisram pattern, the violins in the background follow the chatusram pattern and goes as ta Ka dhi mi (4) 9 times. The Tisram and Chatusram merge ecstatically at the end of the CharaNam as if to show that there is only one absolute truth!
The second interlude starts with symmetrical motifs. We then see the subdued and refined Violins, and Flute moving with splendour and showing us the variegated hues of the world. There is a sudden unexpected touch as we hear the humming in akaaram that takes exhilarating flights across octaves.
Makes us see the Absolute Truth!
An uncanny experience!!
Maya Maya.. Sathya..Sathya..
How many times have we used/heard others use these phrases.
Generally, we say this after listening or watching something extraordinary. At times, while reading some great works of poetry too..
Why do we feel the experience itself is a different world? Aren’t we aware that we exist and continue to exist in the same world?
What is this ‘out of the world experience’ or ‘Maya’ all about?
The concept of Maya is very intriguing.
Maya literally means ‘not that’.
It is an illusion though it seems to be a reality.
I do not want to get too much into philosophy and shall try and put it in simple terms.
As per Indian philosophy, Maya is the illusion a veiling of the true. Since it seems to be a reality, it is both true and untrue. It is true but when compared to the Absolute Truth (one call it as ‘Sathyam’) , it is untrue. Maya is said to be created by the Almighty to help us see the Ultimate or Absolute Truth.
Coming to think of it, literature, music, dance also take us to a world of illusion.
True or Untrue?
Yes.. At the same time, great literature and divine music while taking us to an illusory world make us see the absolute truth.
Great composers/writers/artistes have an uncanny knack of making us see the Truth through their esoteric works.
Look at these two verses of Kamban:
வரம்பு எலாம் முத்தம்;தத்தும் மடை எலாம் படிலம்;மாநீர்க்
குரம்பு எலாம் செம்பொன்;மேதிக் குழி எலாம் கழுநீர்க் கொள்ளை;
பரம்பு எலாம் பவளம்;சாலிப் பரப்பு எலாம் அன்னம்;பாங்கர்க்
கரும்பு எலாம் செந்தேன்;சந்தக் கா எலாம் களி வண்டு ஈட்டம்.
ஆலைவாய்க் கரும்பின் தேனும்,அரி தலைப் பாளைத் தேனும்,
சோலைவீழ் கனியின் தேனும்,தொடை இழி இறாலின் தேனும்,
மாலைவாய் உகுத்த தேனும்,வரம்பு இகந்து ஓடி,வங்க
வேலைவாய் மடுப்ப உண்டு,மீன் எலாம் களிக்கும் மாதோ
Pearls shimmer on paddy fields. Gold glitter on the banks of the lakes. Rubies shine on the valleys. Conches glow on the sluices. The white swans swim with glow. Tasteful honey oozes out from sugar canes. Singing bees in the groves.
Honey from sugar cane, Honey from the petals (of flowers), Honey from the fruits, Honey directly from the Honey comb, Honey from the garlands.. flow to the sea , fill the sea making the fish swallow these varieties of honey.
The salt sea becomes the Honey Sea!
These are just 2 samples from the 60 verses in ‘Naattu Padalam’ in Bala Kandam where Kamban describes the beauty and richness of the Kingdom of Kosalam ruled by Dasaratha.
Now, a logical question: What would happen if honey were to flow directly into the sea? What would happen if one sees gold and gems on the paddy fields and by the lakeside? First of all, is this possible in reality?
The obvious answer is No.
At the same time, let us realise that the character of Rama symbolises Absolute Truth. Kamban, the philosopher helps us see the ultimate truth through Kamban, the poet. By exaggerating –albeit poetically - he takes us through a wonderful world, makes us experience the beauty and finally making us realise the Absolute Truth!
One finds this uncanny ability- of showing us a Maya world and using it as a veil to make us realise the Truth- in some people even now. These are the people whose works are extraordinary, beyond compare and beyond even logical reasoning.
A classic living example is ILaiyaraaja.
I am sure most of us undergo a totally different experience while listening to many of his songs. We do get transported to a new world. But after the song is over, aren’t our minds left with a feeling which is impossible to explain or put in words?
This is what is the absolute truth!
And ILaiyaraaja is one of the few people to have this uncanny ability!!
(At this point, let me also tell you that there are also great artistes/musicians who take us to the world of Maya through. But the difference is that while one experiences pleasure in their works, it seems to be transient without any permanent value).
Today, let us see yet another composition of his where we go to the Maya world and finally experience what I have tried to describe.
The composition is ‘Yenidu Yenidu Maya Maya..’ from the Kannada film Nannavanu(2009).
The composition is based on a Raag called Brindavana Saranga.
Brindavana Saranga has been adopted into Carnatic music from the Hindustani system.
There is still a lot of confusion about the structure of this Raag.
Some say it is a pentatonic raga with ‘ga’ and ‘dha’ being absent and that it uses both the ‘ni’.
Some say there is only one variant of ‘ni’ and that ‘ga’ is sparingly used in the avarohanam.
After discussing with some great musicologists, my personal opinion is it has 5 swaras in the arohanam and 6 swaras in the avarohanam- with a very minimum use of ‘ga’.
Its structure is: sa ri2 ma1 pa ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 pa ma1 ri1 (ga2)sa.
The ‘ri’ and ‘ni’ are considered to be the Jeevaswaras (notes that give life to this raga).
Let us see the composition now.
We see the glowing delicate filaments that prepare us for the mystical experience. The vivid flow of violins with the bass guitar running as the undercurrent shows us the mystical stream. The Flute has a meditative impact.
The gentle flavour of the Raga is felt in the Pallavi as Sriram Parthasarathy renders the lines. The second line is sharp while the third line shows the facets of the raga rippled colours. The fourth line is aglow with bhava-rich gamakas. The female voice of Bela Shinde now joins caressing niceties. The Flute interspersed between the lines makes our hearts jump with excitement.
The first interlude is a plethora of melodic and rhythmic threads that spell virtuosity.
It starts innocuously with the electronic instruments giving a joyful smile that welcomes the violins and the Laya Raaja. The composition is basically set in the 3-beat cycle Tisram while the Bass Guitar now play in Chatusram as 8 beats followed by a gap of 4 counts. This is repeated 4 times. The number of beats is 48 - which is divisible by 4 as well as 3.
One Maya already revealed!
The nectar-filled flute and the cadences in violin at the end and take us further into the esoteric world.
The subtly layered CharaNam is another marvel and shows us one more Maya.
The first two lines are supple and glow with inner light.
The Laya Raaja enters again in the next line. As the vocals follow the Tisram pattern, the violins in the background follow the chatusram pattern and goes as ta Ka dhi mi (4) 9 times. The Tisram and Chatusram merge ecstatically at the end of the CharaNam as if to show that there is only one absolute truth!
The second interlude starts with symmetrical motifs. We then see the subdued and refined Violins, and Flute moving with splendour and showing us the variegated hues of the world. There is a sudden unexpected touch as we hear the humming in akaaram that takes exhilarating flights across octaves.
Makes us see the Absolute Truth!
An uncanny experience!!
Maya Maya.. Sathya..Sathya..
Tuesday, 31 August 2010
Natana Raaja-Part VI
Looking at the Divine cosmic dance, the great Tamizh poet Karaikkal Ammaiyaar said ,
‘Melody of the seven swaras.. Resounding rhythm. He dances in this grandeur’.
துத்தம் கைக்கிள்ளை விளரி தாரம்
உழை இளி ஓசை பண் கெழுமப்பாடிச்
சச்சரி கொக்கரை தக்கையோடு
தகுணிச்சம் துந்துபி தாளம் வீணை
மத்தளம் கரடிகை வன்கை மென்றோல்
தமருகம் குடமுழா மொந்தை வாசித்து
அத்தனை விரவினோடு ஆடும் எங்கள்
அப்பன் இடம் திருவாலங்காடே.
This verse is very interesting.
Yes.. it does mention the name of all seven swaras as they are called in Tamizh.
Yes.. it does talk about the various melodic and percussion instruments of yore.
But what strikes one is way the poem depicts the relationship between Music and Dance.
Sometime back, I had explained as to how there is a dancer in every musician just as there is music in every dancer.
One may argue that dance depends on music while music does not depend on dance. While this statement may appear to be true, it should be understood that it is not dependency one is talking about. It goes much beyond that.
A true musician has a sense of dance. Just as a dancer has a sense of music.
A musician sings to the inward dance just as a dancer dances to the inward music..
Music and Dance have a symbiotic relationship. A relationship which is very special and divine.
In the last 3 months, we have been seeing the various forms of Classical dances of India with each post followed by a discussion on a composition of the Maestro in which dance is the fulcrum.
Starting with Bharatanatyam, we saw Kuchipudi, KathakaLi, Mohinaattam, Kathak, Odissi and Manipuri.
We saw the basic three N’s-Nritta, Nrithya, and Natya.
We saw the Adavus or the basic steps and the Hasthas or the hand gestures.
We also saw the format of a present day performance.
The series come to an end today with a wonderful composition of his.
It is a fact that not only is he Raaga Raaja and Laya Raaja but also Natana Raaja.
The compositions we saw in the last 5 posts stand testimony to this.
Today’s composition is unique.It is a competition between two sisters-one a dancer, and the other a musician.
The song is ‘Abhinayam Kaattu’ from ‘Vidiyum varai kaaththiru’(1981).
It is based on Simhendra Madhyamam.
Simhendra Madhyamam is the 57th melakarta.Its structure is: sa ri2 ga2 ma2 pa dha1 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha1 pa ma2 ga2 ri2 sa.
Though it is the pratimadhyama ragam of Keeravani, Simhendra madhyamam has a beauty of its own and some prayogas/phrases have a melting quality.
It is also in the same Gruha Beda group as Mayamalavagowlai and Rasikapriya.
Let us now look at the composition.
We taste the quintessence of the raga in the beginning itself in the Aalap. A single stroke of a painter’s brush and we see an incredibly beautiful terrain strewn with glittering gems. The emphatic rendition and the beats of mridangam prepare us for a grand spectacle.
The Pallavi is threaded around mellifluent prayogas of the raga. The dainty Veena and the pulsating mridangam heighten the air of serenity.
The crystal clear Jalatharangam and the melodic Tabla tarang dance with dexterity as the anupallavi starts.
The sangati that lasts for 2 avarthanas following the first line of the anupallavi is soaked in classical melody.
The raga dances with the fleet footedness of a deer, with the elegant charm of a peacock and the flowing fish.
In the first interlude, the effervescent veenas play the poorvanga of the raga with the flowery violins, the captivating Tabla tarang and the matchless Jalatarangam smiling in appreciation. All of them join together in the end and play the arohanam of the raga in unison.
The first line of the beautifully structured first CharaNam is aesthetically elegant. The second line has purposeful deliberation with the swaras traversing the octaves. The third line and the sangati that follows show us the subtle nuances of the raga. The last line is as graceful as the movement of a swan.
The reflective veena at the end of the first line and the melodious flute at the end of the second line decorate the already beautiful CharaNam.
The composition gathers further sheen now as the intense violins, the regal veena and the lucent Jalatarangam delve deeply into the raga.
The second charaNam is etched with sensitive strokes...
The first two lines sparkle with effective permutations in the Tisram and the Chatusram gaits. We see the power, verve and the melody in the lines that follow.
There is a plethora of imaginative phrases encompassing all aspects of the loftiness of classical dance and classical music. Music walks, leaps, prances, and dances while the Dance sings with the arc of the raga’s radiance.
Cohesively designed jatis are festooned with glowing strand of swaras..
It is a linear and circular musical geometry..
Abhinayam paarththu nadai podum isai..
ps:This Natana Raaja-VI and the Tamizh version were specially written and read out to an invited audience in Chennai on the 29th of Aug 2010.
‘Melody of the seven swaras.. Resounding rhythm. He dances in this grandeur’.
துத்தம் கைக்கிள்ளை விளரி தாரம்
உழை இளி ஓசை பண் கெழுமப்பாடிச்
சச்சரி கொக்கரை தக்கையோடு
தகுணிச்சம் துந்துபி தாளம் வீணை
மத்தளம் கரடிகை வன்கை மென்றோல்
தமருகம் குடமுழா மொந்தை வாசித்து
அத்தனை விரவினோடு ஆடும் எங்கள்
அப்பன் இடம் திருவாலங்காடே.
This verse is very interesting.
Yes.. it does mention the name of all seven swaras as they are called in Tamizh.
Yes.. it does talk about the various melodic and percussion instruments of yore.
But what strikes one is way the poem depicts the relationship between Music and Dance.
Sometime back, I had explained as to how there is a dancer in every musician just as there is music in every dancer.
One may argue that dance depends on music while music does not depend on dance. While this statement may appear to be true, it should be understood that it is not dependency one is talking about. It goes much beyond that.
A true musician has a sense of dance. Just as a dancer has a sense of music.
A musician sings to the inward dance just as a dancer dances to the inward music..
Music and Dance have a symbiotic relationship. A relationship which is very special and divine.
In the last 3 months, we have been seeing the various forms of Classical dances of India with each post followed by a discussion on a composition of the Maestro in which dance is the fulcrum.
Starting with Bharatanatyam, we saw Kuchipudi, KathakaLi, Mohinaattam, Kathak, Odissi and Manipuri.
We saw the basic three N’s-Nritta, Nrithya, and Natya.
We saw the Adavus or the basic steps and the Hasthas or the hand gestures.
We also saw the format of a present day performance.
The series come to an end today with a wonderful composition of his.
It is a fact that not only is he Raaga Raaja and Laya Raaja but also Natana Raaja.
The compositions we saw in the last 5 posts stand testimony to this.
Today’s composition is unique.It is a competition between two sisters-one a dancer, and the other a musician.
The song is ‘Abhinayam Kaattu’ from ‘Vidiyum varai kaaththiru’(1981).
It is based on Simhendra Madhyamam.
Simhendra Madhyamam is the 57th melakarta.Its structure is: sa ri2 ga2 ma2 pa dha1 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha1 pa ma2 ga2 ri2 sa.
Though it is the pratimadhyama ragam of Keeravani, Simhendra madhyamam has a beauty of its own and some prayogas/phrases have a melting quality.
It is also in the same Gruha Beda group as Mayamalavagowlai and Rasikapriya.
Let us now look at the composition.
We taste the quintessence of the raga in the beginning itself in the Aalap. A single stroke of a painter’s brush and we see an incredibly beautiful terrain strewn with glittering gems. The emphatic rendition and the beats of mridangam prepare us for a grand spectacle.
The Pallavi is threaded around mellifluent prayogas of the raga. The dainty Veena and the pulsating mridangam heighten the air of serenity.
The crystal clear Jalatharangam and the melodic Tabla tarang dance with dexterity as the anupallavi starts.
The sangati that lasts for 2 avarthanas following the first line of the anupallavi is soaked in classical melody.
The raga dances with the fleet footedness of a deer, with the elegant charm of a peacock and the flowing fish.
In the first interlude, the effervescent veenas play the poorvanga of the raga with the flowery violins, the captivating Tabla tarang and the matchless Jalatarangam smiling in appreciation. All of them join together in the end and play the arohanam of the raga in unison.
The first line of the beautifully structured first CharaNam is aesthetically elegant. The second line has purposeful deliberation with the swaras traversing the octaves. The third line and the sangati that follows show us the subtle nuances of the raga. The last line is as graceful as the movement of a swan.
The reflective veena at the end of the first line and the melodious flute at the end of the second line decorate the already beautiful CharaNam.
The composition gathers further sheen now as the intense violins, the regal veena and the lucent Jalatarangam delve deeply into the raga.
The second charaNam is etched with sensitive strokes...
The first two lines sparkle with effective permutations in the Tisram and the Chatusram gaits. We see the power, verve and the melody in the lines that follow.
There is a plethora of imaginative phrases encompassing all aspects of the loftiness of classical dance and classical music. Music walks, leaps, prances, and dances while the Dance sings with the arc of the raga’s radiance.
Cohesively designed jatis are festooned with glowing strand of swaras..
It is a linear and circular musical geometry..
Abhinayam paarththu nadai podum isai..
ps:This Natana Raaja-VI and the Tamizh version were specially written and read out to an invited audience in Chennai on the 29th of Aug 2010.
நடன ராஜா
தெய்வீக நடனத்தை, இந்த அண்டத்தின் நாட்டியத்தைத் தன் கண்முன்னால் திருவாலங்காடு எனும் ஊரில் கண்ட காரைக்கால் அம்மையார் என்ற தமிழ்ப் புலவர்,இவ்வாறு பாடுகிறார்:
துத்தம் கைக்கிள்ளை விளரி தாரம்
உழை இளி ஓசை பண் கெழுமப்பாடிச்
சச்சரி கொக்கரை தக்கையோடு
தகுணிச்சம் துந்துபி தாளம் வீணை
மத்தளம் கரடிகை வன்கை மென்றோல்
தமருகம் குடமுழா மொந்தை வாசித்து
அத்தனை விரவினோடு ஆடும் எங்கள்
அப்பன் இடம் திருவாலங்காடே.
இந்தப்பாடலில் பல சிறப்புகள் இருக்கின்றன.
ஸ ரி க ம ப த நி என்ற ஏழு சுவரங்களின் தமிழிசை குறிப்பீடுகளாகிய துத்தம் கைக்கிள்ளை விளரி தாரம் உழை இளி ஓசை இடம்பெறுவது முதல் சிறப்பு.
பண்டைய தமிழகத்தின் இசைக்கருவிகளாகிய சச்சரி கொக்கரை தக்கை
தகுணிச்சம் துந்துபி தாளம் மத்தளம் கரடிகை வன்கை மென்தோல் டமருகம் குடமுழா மொந்தை இடம்பெறுவது இரண்டாவது சிறப்பு.
இதில் தாளஇசைக்கருவிகளும் பாடல் இசைக்கருவிகளும் ஒன்றொடொன்று பின்னிப்பிணையும்படி அமைந்திருப்பது மூன்றாவது சிறப்பு.
விரவினொடு என்றால் மிகச்சிறப்போடு என்று பொருள்.
இவ்வளவு சிறப்புகள் நிறைந்த இந்தப் பாடல் நமக்கு உணர்த்துவதுதான் என்ன?
ஆடலும், பாடலும் இறைக்கு நிகரானது என்பது ஒன்று.நடனமும், இசையும் ஒன்றோடொன்று தொடர்பு உடையது என்பது இன்னொன்று.
சில மாதங்களுக்குமுன், எவ்வாறு ஒவ்வொரு நடனக்கலைஞர் உள்ளேயும் இசை இழையூடுகிறதோ, அதேபோன்று ஒவ்வொரு இசைக்கலைஞன் உள்ளேயும் நடனம் அடிநாதமாக இருக்கிறது என்று சிறிது விளக்கமாக எழுதியிருந்தேன்.
இசை எப்படி நடனத்தைச் சார்ந்து இருக்க முடியும் என்று சிலர் வினவக்கூடும்.
ஒரு இசைக்கலைஞன் தனக்குள் தானாகவே ஆடிக்கொண்டிருக்கும் நடனத்திற்குப் பாடுகிறான்.ஒரு நடனக் கலைஞன், தனக்குள் ஒலித்துக்கொண்டிருக்கும் இசையில் நடனமாடுகின்றான்.
எனவே, இசைக்கும் நடனத்திற்கும் சேர்ந்து ஒன்றாக வாழும் தன்மை இயற்கையாகவே அமைந்து இருக்கிறது.இரண்டிற்கும் உள்ள தொடர்பு புனிதமானது.
கடந்த மூன்று மாதங்களாக இந்திய பாரம்பரிய நடனங்களாகிய பரதநாட்டியம், குச்சிப்புடி,கதக்களி,மோஹினியாட்டம்,கதக்,ஒடிசி,மணிபுரி இவைகளைப் பற்றிப் பார்த்தோம்.
நிருத்தியம்,நிருத்தம்,நாட்டியம், மற்றும் அடவுகள்,ஹஸ்தங்கள் இவைகளைப் பற்றி சிறிது அறிந்து கொண்டோம்.ஒவ்வொரு பதிவிலும் நடனம் சம்பந்தப்பட்ட இசைஞானியின் பாடலை விவரமாகப் பார்த்தோம்.
ஜூன் 2 தொடங்கிய இந்தத் தொடர்,இன்றுடன் முடிவடைகிறது.
இன்றும் அவரின் மிகச் சிறந்த ஒரு நடனப்பாடலைக் காண்போம்.
அவர் ராக ராஜா மட்டும் அல்ல.லய ராஜா மட்டும் அல்ல.நடன ராஜாவும்தான் என்பது இந்த சில பாடல்கள் மூலம் நன்றாகவே புலன் ஆகி இருக்கும்.
இன்றைய ஆக்க அமைவும் தனித்தன்மை வாய்ந்த தன்னிகரில்லா ஒரு பாடல்.
அது 'விடியும் வரை காத்திரு' என்னும் திரைப்படத்தில் இடம் பெற்ற 'அபிநயம் காட்டு..' என்ற பாடல்.
இந்தப் பாடல் சிம்மேந்திர மத்தியமம் எனும் ராகத்தில் அமைந்தது.
57வது மேளகர்த்தாவாகிய சிம்மேந்திர மத்தியமத்தில் உள்ள சுவரங்கள் ஷட்ஜமம், சதுஸ்ருதி ரிஷபம், சாதாரண காந்தாரம், பிரதி மத்தியமம், பஞ்சமம், சுத்த தைவதம், மற்றும் காகலி நிஷாதம்.கீரவாணி எனும் கம்பீரமான ராகத்தின் பிரதி மத்தியம ராகமாகிய இந்த ராகம் தனக்கேயுறிய சில பிரயோகங்களால் அழகுடனும், மெருகுடனும், உள்ளத்தை உருக வைக்கும். மாயாமாளவகொளள மற்றும் ரசிகப்ரியா இந்த ராகத்தின் கிரஹபேதக் குழுவில் இருக்கின்றன.
இன்றைய பாடலில் இசையும், நடனமும் மோதுகின்றன.அதாவது இரண்டு சகோதரிகள்.ஒருவர் இசைக்கலைஞர்;மற்றவர் நடனக்கலைஞர்.இருவருக்கும் நிகழ்கிறது போட்டி இசையா,நடனமா?
பாடலை இப்பொழுது கவனிப்போம்.
முதலில் வரும் இனிமையான ஆலாபனையிலேயே, ராகத்தின் பிழிசாறினை அனுபவிக்கிறோம்.
கைதேர்ந்த ஒவியனின் தூரிகையில் ஒரே வருடலில் மிக அழகிய நிலப்பகுதியில் மின்னும் மணிகளாக ஒலிக்கிறது இந்த ஆலாபனை.
ஜானகியின் அழுத்தமான ஆலாபனையும், மிருதங்கத்தின் ஒலியும் பல இசை விந்தைகள் நிகழ இருப்பதை நமக்கு முன்கூட்டியே அறிவிக்கின்றன.
இனிமையான பிரயோகங்கள் இழைநுணுக்கமாக அமைந்திருக்கிறது பல்லவி.இசைச்சுவை நிரம்பிய வீணையும்,அதிரும் மிருதங்கமும் மன அமைவை இன்னும் உயர்த்துகிறது.
படிகத்தைப் போன்ற தெளிவான ஜலதரங்கமும், பண்திறம் வாய்ந்த தபலா தரங்கும் லாகவத்துடன் நடனம் ஆடும்பொழுது அனுபல்லவி தொடங்குகிறது.
தொடர்ந்து இரண்டு ஆவர்த்தனத்திற்கு நிலைக்கும் சங்கதி தொன்மையான இன்னிசையில் தோய்ந்து நம்மை மெய்மறக்கச் செய்கிறது.
துள்ளும் மானாகவும், மனதை அள்ளும் மயிலாகவும், கொள்ளை கொள்ளும் மீனாகவும் ராகம் நடனம் ஆடுகிறது.
பாட்டிடைக் கருவி இசைப்பில், இன்னிசை பொங்கிப் பெருகும் வீணை, ராகத்தின் பூர்வாங்க சுவரங்களாகிய ஸ ரி க ம மட்டும் வீணை மிக அழகாக இசைக்க,இதைப்பாராட்டும் வகையாக சித்திரத்தைப் போன்ற வயலின்கள்,மனங்களைத் திருடும் தபலா தரங், மற்றும் இணையே இல்லாத ஜலதரங்கம் புன்னகை புரிகின்றன.இந்த எல்லா இசைக்கருவிகளும் ஒன்று சேர்ந்து ஒருமுகமாக ராகத்தின் ஆரோகணத்தை இப்பொழுது வாசிக்கின்றன.
சரணத்தின் முதல் வரி அழகுணர்ச்சியுடன் நேர்த்தியாக அமைக்கப் பெற்றிருக்கிறது.ஆழ்ந்தாராய்வுடன் அமைந்த இரண்டாவது வரியில் எண்மங்கள் ஊடு கடக்க,மூன்றாவது வரியிலும் அதனைத் தொடர்ந்து வரும் சங்கதியிலும்,ராகத்தின் மென்மையான கூறுகளை காணுகிறோம்.முதல் சரணத்தின் இறுதி வரி, அன்னத்தின் நடைபோன்று வசீகரமாக அமைந்திருக்கிறது.
முதல் வரியின் இறுதியில் எதிர் ஒலிப்பாக வரும் வீணையும், இரண்டாம் வரியின் இறுதியில் பட்டெறிவாக வரும் குழலோசையும் ஏற்கெனவே அழகாக இருக்கும் சரணத்தை மேலும் அலங்கரிக்கின்றன.
இரண்டாவது பாட்டிடை இசைக்கருவி சேர்ப்பில், முனைப்பான வயலின்கள்,கம்பீரமான வீணை,ராகத்தினுள்ளே தீவிரமாகச் செல்லும் ஜலதரங்கம் முதலியவை பாட்டை இன்னும் பளீரென்று ஒளியுடன் மின்னச் செய்கின்றன.
இரண்டாவது சரணம் கூர் உணர்வுடன் தீட்டப்பட்டிருக்கிறது.
வரிசை மாற்றமாக திஸ்ரமும் சதுச்ரமும் மிருதங்கத்தில் ஒலிக்கின்றன.தொடர்ந்து வரும் வரிகளில், திறன்,சக்தி,இனிமை இவை மூன்றும் ஒன்று கலந்து நம்மை ஒரு தனி உலகிற்கு அழைத்துச் செல்கிறது.இசை,நடனம் இவற்றின் மேன்மையினை உணர்த்தும் பெருவளம் நிரம்பிய கற்பனைத்தொடர்களை இப்பொழுது காண்கிறோம்.
இசை துள்ளுகிறது.குதிக்கிறது.பாய்கிறது.ந்டனம் ஆடுகிறது.
ராகத்தின் ஒளியுடன் நடனம் பாடுகிறது.
கட்டுக்கோப்பான ஜதிகளை பூவளையங்களாக சுவரங்கள் அலங்கரிக்கின்றன.
இது நீட்சி மிகுந்த, வட்டமான இசை வடிவயியல்.
அபிநயம் பார்த்து நடை போடும் இசை!
துத்தம் கைக்கிள்ளை விளரி தாரம்
உழை இளி ஓசை பண் கெழுமப்பாடிச்
சச்சரி கொக்கரை தக்கையோடு
தகுணிச்சம் துந்துபி தாளம் வீணை
மத்தளம் கரடிகை வன்கை மென்றோல்
தமருகம் குடமுழா மொந்தை வாசித்து
அத்தனை விரவினோடு ஆடும் எங்கள்
அப்பன் இடம் திருவாலங்காடே.
இந்தப்பாடலில் பல சிறப்புகள் இருக்கின்றன.
ஸ ரி க ம ப த நி என்ற ஏழு சுவரங்களின் தமிழிசை குறிப்பீடுகளாகிய துத்தம் கைக்கிள்ளை விளரி தாரம் உழை இளி ஓசை இடம்பெறுவது முதல் சிறப்பு.
பண்டைய தமிழகத்தின் இசைக்கருவிகளாகிய சச்சரி கொக்கரை தக்கை
தகுணிச்சம் துந்துபி தாளம் மத்தளம் கரடிகை வன்கை மென்தோல் டமருகம் குடமுழா மொந்தை இடம்பெறுவது இரண்டாவது சிறப்பு.
இதில் தாளஇசைக்கருவிகளும் பாடல் இசைக்கருவிகளும் ஒன்றொடொன்று பின்னிப்பிணையும்படி அமைந்திருப்பது மூன்றாவது சிறப்பு.
விரவினொடு என்றால் மிகச்சிறப்போடு என்று பொருள்.
இவ்வளவு சிறப்புகள் நிறைந்த இந்தப் பாடல் நமக்கு உணர்த்துவதுதான் என்ன?
ஆடலும், பாடலும் இறைக்கு நிகரானது என்பது ஒன்று.நடனமும், இசையும் ஒன்றோடொன்று தொடர்பு உடையது என்பது இன்னொன்று.
சில மாதங்களுக்குமுன், எவ்வாறு ஒவ்வொரு நடனக்கலைஞர் உள்ளேயும் இசை இழையூடுகிறதோ, அதேபோன்று ஒவ்வொரு இசைக்கலைஞன் உள்ளேயும் நடனம் அடிநாதமாக இருக்கிறது என்று சிறிது விளக்கமாக எழுதியிருந்தேன்.
இசை எப்படி நடனத்தைச் சார்ந்து இருக்க முடியும் என்று சிலர் வினவக்கூடும்.
ஒரு இசைக்கலைஞன் தனக்குள் தானாகவே ஆடிக்கொண்டிருக்கும் நடனத்திற்குப் பாடுகிறான்.ஒரு நடனக் கலைஞன், தனக்குள் ஒலித்துக்கொண்டிருக்கும் இசையில் நடனமாடுகின்றான்.
எனவே, இசைக்கும் நடனத்திற்கும் சேர்ந்து ஒன்றாக வாழும் தன்மை இயற்கையாகவே அமைந்து இருக்கிறது.இரண்டிற்கும் உள்ள தொடர்பு புனிதமானது.
கடந்த மூன்று மாதங்களாக இந்திய பாரம்பரிய நடனங்களாகிய பரதநாட்டியம், குச்சிப்புடி,கதக்களி,மோஹினியாட்டம்,கதக்,ஒடிசி,மணிபுரி இவைகளைப் பற்றிப் பார்த்தோம்.
நிருத்தியம்,நிருத்தம்,நாட்டியம், மற்றும் அடவுகள்,ஹஸ்தங்கள் இவைகளைப் பற்றி சிறிது அறிந்து கொண்டோம்.ஒவ்வொரு பதிவிலும் நடனம் சம்பந்தப்பட்ட இசைஞானியின் பாடலை விவரமாகப் பார்த்தோம்.
ஜூன் 2 தொடங்கிய இந்தத் தொடர்,இன்றுடன் முடிவடைகிறது.
இன்றும் அவரின் மிகச் சிறந்த ஒரு நடனப்பாடலைக் காண்போம்.
அவர் ராக ராஜா மட்டும் அல்ல.லய ராஜா மட்டும் அல்ல.நடன ராஜாவும்தான் என்பது இந்த சில பாடல்கள் மூலம் நன்றாகவே புலன் ஆகி இருக்கும்.
இன்றைய ஆக்க அமைவும் தனித்தன்மை வாய்ந்த தன்னிகரில்லா ஒரு பாடல்.
அது 'விடியும் வரை காத்திரு' என்னும் திரைப்படத்தில் இடம் பெற்ற 'அபிநயம் காட்டு..' என்ற பாடல்.
இந்தப் பாடல் சிம்மேந்திர மத்தியமம் எனும் ராகத்தில் அமைந்தது.
57வது மேளகர்த்தாவாகிய சிம்மேந்திர மத்தியமத்தில் உள்ள சுவரங்கள் ஷட்ஜமம், சதுஸ்ருதி ரிஷபம், சாதாரண காந்தாரம், பிரதி மத்தியமம், பஞ்சமம், சுத்த தைவதம், மற்றும் காகலி நிஷாதம்.கீரவாணி எனும் கம்பீரமான ராகத்தின் பிரதி மத்தியம ராகமாகிய இந்த ராகம் தனக்கேயுறிய சில பிரயோகங்களால் அழகுடனும், மெருகுடனும், உள்ளத்தை உருக வைக்கும். மாயாமாளவகொளள மற்றும் ரசிகப்ரியா இந்த ராகத்தின் கிரஹபேதக் குழுவில் இருக்கின்றன.
இன்றைய பாடலில் இசையும், நடனமும் மோதுகின்றன.அதாவது இரண்டு சகோதரிகள்.ஒருவர் இசைக்கலைஞர்;மற்றவர் நடனக்கலைஞர்.இருவருக்கும் நிகழ்கிறது போட்டி இசையா,நடனமா?
பாடலை இப்பொழுது கவனிப்போம்.
முதலில் வரும் இனிமையான ஆலாபனையிலேயே, ராகத்தின் பிழிசாறினை அனுபவிக்கிறோம்.
கைதேர்ந்த ஒவியனின் தூரிகையில் ஒரே வருடலில் மிக அழகிய நிலப்பகுதியில் மின்னும் மணிகளாக ஒலிக்கிறது இந்த ஆலாபனை.
ஜானகியின் அழுத்தமான ஆலாபனையும், மிருதங்கத்தின் ஒலியும் பல இசை விந்தைகள் நிகழ இருப்பதை நமக்கு முன்கூட்டியே அறிவிக்கின்றன.
இனிமையான பிரயோகங்கள் இழைநுணுக்கமாக அமைந்திருக்கிறது பல்லவி.இசைச்சுவை நிரம்பிய வீணையும்,அதிரும் மிருதங்கமும் மன அமைவை இன்னும் உயர்த்துகிறது.
படிகத்தைப் போன்ற தெளிவான ஜலதரங்கமும், பண்திறம் வாய்ந்த தபலா தரங்கும் லாகவத்துடன் நடனம் ஆடும்பொழுது அனுபல்லவி தொடங்குகிறது.
தொடர்ந்து இரண்டு ஆவர்த்தனத்திற்கு நிலைக்கும் சங்கதி தொன்மையான இன்னிசையில் தோய்ந்து நம்மை மெய்மறக்கச் செய்கிறது.
துள்ளும் மானாகவும், மனதை அள்ளும் மயிலாகவும், கொள்ளை கொள்ளும் மீனாகவும் ராகம் நடனம் ஆடுகிறது.
பாட்டிடைக் கருவி இசைப்பில், இன்னிசை பொங்கிப் பெருகும் வீணை, ராகத்தின் பூர்வாங்க சுவரங்களாகிய ஸ ரி க ம மட்டும் வீணை மிக அழகாக இசைக்க,இதைப்பாராட்டும் வகையாக சித்திரத்தைப் போன்ற வயலின்கள்,மனங்களைத் திருடும் தபலா தரங், மற்றும் இணையே இல்லாத ஜலதரங்கம் புன்னகை புரிகின்றன.இந்த எல்லா இசைக்கருவிகளும் ஒன்று சேர்ந்து ஒருமுகமாக ராகத்தின் ஆரோகணத்தை இப்பொழுது வாசிக்கின்றன.
சரணத்தின் முதல் வரி அழகுணர்ச்சியுடன் நேர்த்தியாக அமைக்கப் பெற்றிருக்கிறது.ஆழ்ந்தாராய்வுடன் அமைந்த இரண்டாவது வரியில் எண்மங்கள் ஊடு கடக்க,மூன்றாவது வரியிலும் அதனைத் தொடர்ந்து வரும் சங்கதியிலும்,ராகத்தின் மென்மையான கூறுகளை காணுகிறோம்.முதல் சரணத்தின் இறுதி வரி, அன்னத்தின் நடைபோன்று வசீகரமாக அமைந்திருக்கிறது.
முதல் வரியின் இறுதியில் எதிர் ஒலிப்பாக வரும் வீணையும், இரண்டாம் வரியின் இறுதியில் பட்டெறிவாக வரும் குழலோசையும் ஏற்கெனவே அழகாக இருக்கும் சரணத்தை மேலும் அலங்கரிக்கின்றன.
இரண்டாவது பாட்டிடை இசைக்கருவி சேர்ப்பில், முனைப்பான வயலின்கள்,கம்பீரமான வீணை,ராகத்தினுள்ளே தீவிரமாகச் செல்லும் ஜலதரங்கம் முதலியவை பாட்டை இன்னும் பளீரென்று ஒளியுடன் மின்னச் செய்கின்றன.
இரண்டாவது சரணம் கூர் உணர்வுடன் தீட்டப்பட்டிருக்கிறது.
வரிசை மாற்றமாக திஸ்ரமும் சதுச்ரமும் மிருதங்கத்தில் ஒலிக்கின்றன.தொடர்ந்து வரும் வரிகளில், திறன்,சக்தி,இனிமை இவை மூன்றும் ஒன்று கலந்து நம்மை ஒரு தனி உலகிற்கு அழைத்துச் செல்கிறது.இசை,நடனம் இவற்றின் மேன்மையினை உணர்த்தும் பெருவளம் நிரம்பிய கற்பனைத்தொடர்களை இப்பொழுது காண்கிறோம்.
இசை துள்ளுகிறது.குதிக்கிறது.பாய்கிறது.ந்டனம் ஆடுகிறது.
ராகத்தின் ஒளியுடன் நடனம் பாடுகிறது.
கட்டுக்கோப்பான ஜதிகளை பூவளையங்களாக சுவரங்கள் அலங்கரிக்கின்றன.
இது நீட்சி மிகுந்த, வட்டமான இசை வடிவயியல்.
அபிநயம் பார்த்து நடை போடும் இசை!
Tuesday, 24 August 2010
Natana Raaja- Part V
Repetition is a interesting concept.
I am not referring to the repetition of empty rhetoric from our politicians nor am I referring to the shameless ‘Breaking News’ on the Television channels.
This is purely a thread for classical elements, a fact I am sure regular followers of this Blog know very well.
Yes..I am referring to the concept of Repetition in Classical music. Though one finds it in all major classical forms,’repetition’ in carnatic music is somewhat unique. Most of you who have listened to a Carnatic music concert must have noticed that the vocalist (or the instrumentalist) repeats a line (the number of times varies from Kriti to Kriti).A careful listener would have also noticed that each time the line appears with some additional quality. This additional quality is called as the ‘sangati’, a term I have used quite often in this thread.
Apart from this, the performer also takes up a line in one particular kriti , keeps repeating it and then starts singing swaras with the line repeated again at the end of each swara segment. This is called as the Niraval in carnatic music. Here again, the line would sound different , each time it is sung.
Let us now look at a very interesting verse:
kazhumala mudupathik kavuNiyan katturai
kazhumala mudupathik kavuNiyan katturai
kazhumala mudupathik kavuNiyan katturai
kazhumala mudupathik kavuNiyan katturai
கழுமல முதுபதிக் கவுணியன் கட்டுரை
கழுமல முதுபதிக் கவுணியன் கட்டுரை
கழுமல முதுபதிக் கவுணியன் கட்டுரை
கழுமல முதுபதிக் கவுணியன் கட்டுரை.
All the four lines identical..
Would you believe me if I say each line carries a different meaning?
The words have to be split to get the real meanings.
The first line is split thus:
kazhumal amudhu padhikka uLNee an kattu urai- You are born from the filth and die filthily.
Second line:
kazhu malam udhu padhi kavuNi ankaN thu urai- Pray to that Lord who removes the Maya, KaNmam, AaNavam(the impurities)
Third line:
kazhum alam amudhu padhi kam uNiyan kattu urai-The Lord who is in the guise of a mendicant is like the nectar and it is not easy to realize him(possible only for the ‘initiated’)
Fourth line:
kazhumalam mudhupadhik kavuNiyan kattu urai- Chant the verse about the Holy place Thirukkazhumalam(a.k.a. Sirgazhi) composed by Sambandar (who is from the Kaundinya gotra) .
This must be one of the best ever written poem/verse in Tamizh. As some of you might have guessed, this was written by Thirugnanasambandar- whose mastery over Tamizh language is amazing (and whose ‘palindrome’ verse was quoted in my second Natana Raaja post in this Blog).
Just like music and poetry, there is repetition in dance too. In a Bharatanatyam recital-mainly in the varnam piece- a single line will be repeatedly sung by the vocalist and the dancer would narrate a story in abhinaya generally related to the Lord on whom the song is composed. This is called as ‘sanchaari’.
In keeping with the objective of the thread, let us see the other three classical dance forms of India now.
Today’s Natana Raaja composition also shows us some facets of Kathak. More about this later. Before that, let us also briefly look at the two other classical forms-that appeared in the first Natana Raaja post in this thread.
They are Odissi and Manipuri.
Odissi, as the name suggests originates from the state of Orissa and is one of the most graceful dance forms.The movement of the head, chest and the pelvis-called as the Tribhangi- forms the core of this dance form.
Odissi is supposed to be one of the oldest dance forms and like Bharatanatyam, this too was mainly practiced by the Devadasis also called as Maharis.Over a period of time, two more types of schools emerged.Gotipau-where young boys dressed up like women and danced and Nartaki-which was essentially a Royal court dance.
Like the other dance forms, Odissi too has the pure dance item called as ‘Pallavi’where there are graceful movements of the eyes, neck, chest and the feet finally reaching a crescendo. There is an abhinaya piece as well-which is generally an Ashtapati of Jayadeva.
Manipuri is a subtle, graceful and unique dance form. Manipuri dancers do not wear ankle bells and also touch the ground very subtly while dancing. Devotion is the key in Manipuri dance. Delicate rounded movements mark this beautiful dance form.
Time now for the Natana Raaja composition of today. As mentioned earlier, it reminds one of a Kathak performance particularly towards the end.
The song is ‘Gokulame Needhira..’ from Chakravyham(Telugu-1990).
It is based on Darbari Kaanada, a Hindustani Raag.
This Raag was adapted from Kaanada of Carnatic music first by Tansen. There is of course a lot of difference between Kaanada and Darbari Kaanada in the way they are sung- though in principle there is a similarity.
The structure of Darbari Kaanada is: sa ri2 ga2 ma1 pa dha1ni2 Sa / Sa dha1 ni2 ma1 pa ma1 pa ni1 ga2 ma1 ri2 sa .
However, like most of the Hindustani raags, this raag is also defined more by the prayogs and pakads than by the Aroh/Avaroh.
The Gandhar(ga) plays a very major role in giving the raag its special flavour.It is a very special ‘ga’(called as ati-komal gandhar).
Moreover, the occurrence of repeat swaras- as double or triple combinations like sasasa ninini papa..-is a special feature of this Raag.
Let us now look at the composition.
Ankle bells, Pakhawaj..Flute .. We enter the world of delicate imagery.
The leisurely floats of Sitar, the elegant flute and the circular motion of the Violins prepare us for the ethereal experience.
The humming of Chitra is beguilingly soft. It is a tryst with melody even as the subtle patterns of the Raag Darbari are rendered..
The first line of the Pallavi itself creates a reposeful ambience.
The line ‘Gopika maanasa chora..’ moves with a chiseled refinement while the last line which is an interplay of octaves is an exquisite glow of finesse.
One sees a clear stream of music in the first interlude the flute plays with sensitivity with the ankle bells as the undercurrent and the violins giving the melodic essence of the raag. The rhythmic cycle is clearly delineated by the pakhawaj.
The CharaNams are full of joyful phrases.
The first line is soaked Darbari .One hears the perpetual mellowness of the Raag in the lines that follow.. The raag moves with gay abandon but at the same time without any maudlin frills.
The last line that depicts the circular motion (spin) in a Kathak performance is a marvel.
When the Pallavi is rendered again after the first CharaNam, it is embellished with the resounding tabla and the salutary tonal modulation is mesmerising.
The second interlude is dominated by the vocals with Chitra singing the swaras and Mano singing in ‘akaaram’. The diligent weaving of swaras rendered with considerable panache and felicity of expression giving us the light and shade contrasts of the Raag shows the musical brilliance of the composer.
The second charanam is followed by some beautiful melodic phrases.
First we hear the melodic strains of the violins playing the leitmotif.
Then we have Mano singing the swaras and we see the Kathak patterns in the percussion and the ankle bells.
The swara singing picks up with the swaras covering the entire spectrum of the Raag with the triple combinations (sasasa papapa ninini..)
It is a rhapsody of sorts.
Next is the turn of the violins again.
The phrases that follow show us the beauty of Kathak in a matter of seconds.
We see the gracious patterns in an orderly progression.
It is like a stream flowing in a mountainous terrain that finally cascades like a gushing waterfall.
The melting last piece of the violins in the end says it all..
Gokulame mee Sangeetam…
I am not referring to the repetition of empty rhetoric from our politicians nor am I referring to the shameless ‘Breaking News’ on the Television channels.
This is purely a thread for classical elements, a fact I am sure regular followers of this Blog know very well.
Yes..I am referring to the concept of Repetition in Classical music. Though one finds it in all major classical forms,’repetition’ in carnatic music is somewhat unique. Most of you who have listened to a Carnatic music concert must have noticed that the vocalist (or the instrumentalist) repeats a line (the number of times varies from Kriti to Kriti).A careful listener would have also noticed that each time the line appears with some additional quality. This additional quality is called as the ‘sangati’, a term I have used quite often in this thread.
Apart from this, the performer also takes up a line in one particular kriti , keeps repeating it and then starts singing swaras with the line repeated again at the end of each swara segment. This is called as the Niraval in carnatic music. Here again, the line would sound different , each time it is sung.
Let us now look at a very interesting verse:
kazhumala mudupathik kavuNiyan katturai
kazhumala mudupathik kavuNiyan katturai
kazhumala mudupathik kavuNiyan katturai
kazhumala mudupathik kavuNiyan katturai
கழுமல முதுபதிக் கவுணியன் கட்டுரை
கழுமல முதுபதிக் கவுணியன் கட்டுரை
கழுமல முதுபதிக் கவுணியன் கட்டுரை
கழுமல முதுபதிக் கவுணியன் கட்டுரை.
All the four lines identical..
Would you believe me if I say each line carries a different meaning?
The words have to be split to get the real meanings.
The first line is split thus:
kazhumal amudhu padhikka uLNee an kattu urai- You are born from the filth and die filthily.
Second line:
kazhu malam udhu padhi kavuNi ankaN thu urai- Pray to that Lord who removes the Maya, KaNmam, AaNavam(the impurities)
Third line:
kazhum alam amudhu padhi kam uNiyan kattu urai-The Lord who is in the guise of a mendicant is like the nectar and it is not easy to realize him(possible only for the ‘initiated’)
Fourth line:
kazhumalam mudhupadhik kavuNiyan kattu urai- Chant the verse about the Holy place Thirukkazhumalam(a.k.a. Sirgazhi) composed by Sambandar (who is from the Kaundinya gotra) .
This must be one of the best ever written poem/verse in Tamizh. As some of you might have guessed, this was written by Thirugnanasambandar- whose mastery over Tamizh language is amazing (and whose ‘palindrome’ verse was quoted in my second Natana Raaja post in this Blog).
Just like music and poetry, there is repetition in dance too. In a Bharatanatyam recital-mainly in the varnam piece- a single line will be repeatedly sung by the vocalist and the dancer would narrate a story in abhinaya generally related to the Lord on whom the song is composed. This is called as ‘sanchaari’.
In keeping with the objective of the thread, let us see the other three classical dance forms of India now.
Today’s Natana Raaja composition also shows us some facets of Kathak. More about this later. Before that, let us also briefly look at the two other classical forms-that appeared in the first Natana Raaja post in this thread.
They are Odissi and Manipuri.
Odissi, as the name suggests originates from the state of Orissa and is one of the most graceful dance forms.The movement of the head, chest and the pelvis-called as the Tribhangi- forms the core of this dance form.
Odissi is supposed to be one of the oldest dance forms and like Bharatanatyam, this too was mainly practiced by the Devadasis also called as Maharis.Over a period of time, two more types of schools emerged.Gotipau-where young boys dressed up like women and danced and Nartaki-which was essentially a Royal court dance.
Like the other dance forms, Odissi too has the pure dance item called as ‘Pallavi’where there are graceful movements of the eyes, neck, chest and the feet finally reaching a crescendo. There is an abhinaya piece as well-which is generally an Ashtapati of Jayadeva.
Manipuri is a subtle, graceful and unique dance form. Manipuri dancers do not wear ankle bells and also touch the ground very subtly while dancing. Devotion is the key in Manipuri dance. Delicate rounded movements mark this beautiful dance form.
Time now for the Natana Raaja composition of today. As mentioned earlier, it reminds one of a Kathak performance particularly towards the end.
The song is ‘Gokulame Needhira..’ from Chakravyham(Telugu-1990).
It is based on Darbari Kaanada, a Hindustani Raag.
This Raag was adapted from Kaanada of Carnatic music first by Tansen. There is of course a lot of difference between Kaanada and Darbari Kaanada in the way they are sung- though in principle there is a similarity.
The structure of Darbari Kaanada is: sa ri2 ga2 ma1 pa dha1ni2 Sa / Sa dha1 ni2 ma1 pa ma1 pa ni1 ga2 ma1 ri2 sa .
However, like most of the Hindustani raags, this raag is also defined more by the prayogs and pakads than by the Aroh/Avaroh.
The Gandhar(ga) plays a very major role in giving the raag its special flavour.It is a very special ‘ga’(called as ati-komal gandhar).
Moreover, the occurrence of repeat swaras- as double or triple combinations like sasasa ninini papa..-is a special feature of this Raag.
Let us now look at the composition.
Ankle bells, Pakhawaj..Flute .. We enter the world of delicate imagery.
The leisurely floats of Sitar, the elegant flute and the circular motion of the Violins prepare us for the ethereal experience.
The humming of Chitra is beguilingly soft. It is a tryst with melody even as the subtle patterns of the Raag Darbari are rendered..
The first line of the Pallavi itself creates a reposeful ambience.
The line ‘Gopika maanasa chora..’ moves with a chiseled refinement while the last line which is an interplay of octaves is an exquisite glow of finesse.
One sees a clear stream of music in the first interlude the flute plays with sensitivity with the ankle bells as the undercurrent and the violins giving the melodic essence of the raag. The rhythmic cycle is clearly delineated by the pakhawaj.
The CharaNams are full of joyful phrases.
The first line is soaked Darbari .One hears the perpetual mellowness of the Raag in the lines that follow.. The raag moves with gay abandon but at the same time without any maudlin frills.
The last line that depicts the circular motion (spin) in a Kathak performance is a marvel.
When the Pallavi is rendered again after the first CharaNam, it is embellished with the resounding tabla and the salutary tonal modulation is mesmerising.
The second interlude is dominated by the vocals with Chitra singing the swaras and Mano singing in ‘akaaram’. The diligent weaving of swaras rendered with considerable panache and felicity of expression giving us the light and shade contrasts of the Raag shows the musical brilliance of the composer.
The second charanam is followed by some beautiful melodic phrases.
First we hear the melodic strains of the violins playing the leitmotif.
Then we have Mano singing the swaras and we see the Kathak patterns in the percussion and the ankle bells.
The swara singing picks up with the swaras covering the entire spectrum of the Raag with the triple combinations (sasasa papapa ninini..)
It is a rhapsody of sorts.
Next is the turn of the violins again.
The phrases that follow show us the beauty of Kathak in a matter of seconds.
We see the gracious patterns in an orderly progression.
It is like a stream flowing in a mountainous terrain that finally cascades like a gushing waterfall.
The melting last piece of the violins in the end says it all..
Gokulame mee Sangeetam…
Tuesday, 17 August 2010
Natana Raaja-Part IV
Poetry in motion..
This is how one can describe an infant on the cradle.
The way it kicks its legs..
The way it moves its hands..
The way it cries..
The way it grumbles..
What is this if not poetry?
Periyaazhwar, the 9th Century Tamizh poet who composed 473 verses- out of which 210 verses are on the ‘growing-up’ of Child Krishna where he imagines himself to be Yasodha - says,
‘When I put him on the cradle, he kicks it and breaks it.
When I keep him on my waist, he breaks my ribcage.
When I feed him, he dances and kicks my stomach.
Oh..No! I am unable to bear his mischief!!’
கிடக்கில் தொட்டில் கிழிய உதைத்திடும்
எடுத்துக் கொள்ளில் மருங்கை யிறுத்திடும்
ஒடுக்கிப் புல்கில் உதரத்தே பாய்ந்திடும்
மிடுக்கிலாமையால் நான் மெலிந்தேன் நங்காய்!
Though the mother sounds very tired, one can easily see the appreciation and the adoration for her child.
Does one not feel poetry, hear music, and see dance in this?
A child is as beautiful as the Poetry, as mesmerizing as Music and as graceful as Dance.
In this thread, we have been seeing about poetry and music.In the last three posts, we have also been seeing albeit briefly about the various classical dance forms of India.
Today, let us see the two beautiful but somewhat contrasting forms from Kerala-KathakaLi and Mohiniaattam.
KathakaLi-meaning ‘Story play’- originated from Ramanaattam and Krishnanaattam, the earlier Dance drama forms of Kerala. Known for its unique make-up and costumes, beautiful body movements in synchronization with the vocal and the percussion music and detailed gestures, KathakaLi is not an easy dance form to perform (though an easy form to understand).A typical KathakaLi artiste is also well versed with KaLaripayattu, the martial art of Kerala that improves the concentration, stamina and co-ordination.
There are essentially 5 features in KathakaLi-Facial expressions with special emphasis on the eye-movements, Hand gestures (Mudras), rhythmic movements of hands, legs and the body as a whole(Nrittam), Vocal music(the musician also narrates the story from time to time and recites the dialogues of the different characters) and the percussion music(cymbals and 3 different types of native drums each producing a unique sound of its own).
This highly stylized classical performance involves a lot of co-ordination and is a team work. Generally, stories from the Mahabharata and the Ramayana are performed and it is said that some of the legendary dancers would literally transform themselves on the stage making the audience feel as though they were watching the real characters live in action.
Mohiniaattam, the other classical dance form of Kerala means the ‘Dance of the beautiful woman’.Though ‘Mohini’ means a beautiful woman, here it is referred to Lord Vishnu who is believed to have taken the form of a very beautiful woman twice- during the churning of the Ocean -for the nectar- to distract the Rakshasas(the Demons) and then to kill a Demon called Basmaasura.
This dance form has slow graceful movements. The sensuous movements, the subtle footwork, the unique costume in white and golden colour, jasmine flowers woven around the tied hair and the classical style of music make Mohiniaattam a very beautiful dance form.
Devotion to the God forms the fulcrum of Mohinaattam. The Hero is generally Krishna and a typical performance has a jatiswaram, a varnam, a padam, and a Tillana very similar to a Bhartanatyam recital though the ‘adavus’(basic dance steps) are different from that of the latter.
Let us now look at the Natana Raaja composition of today that reminds one of both these forms.
The speciality of the composition is the interspersing of some lines from two Ashtapathis- that were composed by Jayadeva in the 12th century are one of the most beautiful Love poems that also gives the essence of the Jeevatma-Paramatma philosophy-and the poetic cry of a child.
The composition is ‘Aalolam peelikaavadi theril..’ from the Malayalam film Aalolam(1982).It is based on Malayamarutam.
Malayamarutam is a janya of the 16th melakarta Chakravaagam and its structure is
Sa ri1 ga3 pa dha2 ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 dha2 pa ga3 ri1 sa.
The composition starts with the alluring flute which is couched in melody. It is sublime music as the santoor joins the flute as the Tabla nods its head in appreciation.
The song in the dainty voice of Yesudass is a document of delicacy.
One sees the aesthetic instincts of the composer as the Pallavi glows like a bright Kerala Lamp even as the rhythm undulates back and forth making us all sway.
The ebb and flow of the percussion in the beginning of the first interlude is scintillating and it conjures up images of a mischievous child playing hide and seek with us. The synthetic blend of the western and the eastern instruments is another beauty. The synthesizer and the Bass Guitar are ingeniously integrated while the lilting flute is laced with the charming Guitar and Malayamarutam smiles with a burnished shimmer.
The first two lines of the first CharaNam are fluently phrased. The third line has the poise and the fourth line has the pace.
It is mesmerizing ravishment.
As the CharaNam ends, we hear the special tone of the native Kerala drum followed by the first line of the 6th Ashtapati in which Radha complains about Krishna to her friend saying ‘why can’t he reform his ways and meet me?’.
This line alone is set in Kambodi ragam.
The innocent cry of the child at the end of this line gives a very special feeling.
The second charaNam is different from that of the first.
We see the clear stream of the Yamuna river..
We see the cross currents..
We see the graceful dance of the Gopikas and Krishna..
We see the kaleidoscope of colours..
We see the Nature’s regeneration..
We see the interplay of the human and the divine..
Exhilarating!!
The 19th Ashtapati of Jayadeva , ‘Priye Charusheele’ in Mukhari ragam, a rakti ragam known for its pristine beauty appears in the end with a pearly shine. The lines rendered with fervour take us to the realm of serenity.
‘Thwamasi mama bhooshanam..thwamasi mama jeevanam..thwamasi mama bhavajalati ratnam..’
You are my ornament..You are my breath..You are my jewel in the endless sea of life..
This is how one can describe an infant on the cradle.
The way it kicks its legs..
The way it moves its hands..
The way it cries..
The way it grumbles..
What is this if not poetry?
Periyaazhwar, the 9th Century Tamizh poet who composed 473 verses- out of which 210 verses are on the ‘growing-up’ of Child Krishna where he imagines himself to be Yasodha - says,
‘When I put him on the cradle, he kicks it and breaks it.
When I keep him on my waist, he breaks my ribcage.
When I feed him, he dances and kicks my stomach.
Oh..No! I am unable to bear his mischief!!’
கிடக்கில் தொட்டில் கிழிய உதைத்திடும்
எடுத்துக் கொள்ளில் மருங்கை யிறுத்திடும்
ஒடுக்கிப் புல்கில் உதரத்தே பாய்ந்திடும்
மிடுக்கிலாமையால் நான் மெலிந்தேன் நங்காய்!
Though the mother sounds very tired, one can easily see the appreciation and the adoration for her child.
Does one not feel poetry, hear music, and see dance in this?
A child is as beautiful as the Poetry, as mesmerizing as Music and as graceful as Dance.
In this thread, we have been seeing about poetry and music.In the last three posts, we have also been seeing albeit briefly about the various classical dance forms of India.
Today, let us see the two beautiful but somewhat contrasting forms from Kerala-KathakaLi and Mohiniaattam.
KathakaLi-meaning ‘Story play’- originated from Ramanaattam and Krishnanaattam, the earlier Dance drama forms of Kerala. Known for its unique make-up and costumes, beautiful body movements in synchronization with the vocal and the percussion music and detailed gestures, KathakaLi is not an easy dance form to perform (though an easy form to understand).A typical KathakaLi artiste is also well versed with KaLaripayattu, the martial art of Kerala that improves the concentration, stamina and co-ordination.
There are essentially 5 features in KathakaLi-Facial expressions with special emphasis on the eye-movements, Hand gestures (Mudras), rhythmic movements of hands, legs and the body as a whole(Nrittam), Vocal music(the musician also narrates the story from time to time and recites the dialogues of the different characters) and the percussion music(cymbals and 3 different types of native drums each producing a unique sound of its own).
This highly stylized classical performance involves a lot of co-ordination and is a team work. Generally, stories from the Mahabharata and the Ramayana are performed and it is said that some of the legendary dancers would literally transform themselves on the stage making the audience feel as though they were watching the real characters live in action.
Mohiniaattam, the other classical dance form of Kerala means the ‘Dance of the beautiful woman’.Though ‘Mohini’ means a beautiful woman, here it is referred to Lord Vishnu who is believed to have taken the form of a very beautiful woman twice- during the churning of the Ocean -for the nectar- to distract the Rakshasas(the Demons) and then to kill a Demon called Basmaasura.
This dance form has slow graceful movements. The sensuous movements, the subtle footwork, the unique costume in white and golden colour, jasmine flowers woven around the tied hair and the classical style of music make Mohiniaattam a very beautiful dance form.
Devotion to the God forms the fulcrum of Mohinaattam. The Hero is generally Krishna and a typical performance has a jatiswaram, a varnam, a padam, and a Tillana very similar to a Bhartanatyam recital though the ‘adavus’(basic dance steps) are different from that of the latter.
Let us now look at the Natana Raaja composition of today that reminds one of both these forms.
The speciality of the composition is the interspersing of some lines from two Ashtapathis- that were composed by Jayadeva in the 12th century are one of the most beautiful Love poems that also gives the essence of the Jeevatma-Paramatma philosophy-and the poetic cry of a child.
The composition is ‘Aalolam peelikaavadi theril..’ from the Malayalam film Aalolam(1982).It is based on Malayamarutam.
Malayamarutam is a janya of the 16th melakarta Chakravaagam and its structure is
Sa ri1 ga3 pa dha2 ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 dha2 pa ga3 ri1 sa.
The composition starts with the alluring flute which is couched in melody. It is sublime music as the santoor joins the flute as the Tabla nods its head in appreciation.
The song in the dainty voice of Yesudass is a document of delicacy.
One sees the aesthetic instincts of the composer as the Pallavi glows like a bright Kerala Lamp even as the rhythm undulates back and forth making us all sway.
The ebb and flow of the percussion in the beginning of the first interlude is scintillating and it conjures up images of a mischievous child playing hide and seek with us. The synthetic blend of the western and the eastern instruments is another beauty. The synthesizer and the Bass Guitar are ingeniously integrated while the lilting flute is laced with the charming Guitar and Malayamarutam smiles with a burnished shimmer.
The first two lines of the first CharaNam are fluently phrased. The third line has the poise and the fourth line has the pace.
It is mesmerizing ravishment.
As the CharaNam ends, we hear the special tone of the native Kerala drum followed by the first line of the 6th Ashtapati in which Radha complains about Krishna to her friend saying ‘why can’t he reform his ways and meet me?’.
This line alone is set in Kambodi ragam.
The innocent cry of the child at the end of this line gives a very special feeling.
The second charaNam is different from that of the first.
We see the clear stream of the Yamuna river..
We see the cross currents..
We see the graceful dance of the Gopikas and Krishna..
We see the kaleidoscope of colours..
We see the Nature’s regeneration..
We see the interplay of the human and the divine..
Exhilarating!!
The 19th Ashtapati of Jayadeva , ‘Priye Charusheele’ in Mukhari ragam, a rakti ragam known for its pristine beauty appears in the end with a pearly shine. The lines rendered with fervour take us to the realm of serenity.
‘Thwamasi mama bhooshanam..thwamasi mama jeevanam..thwamasi mama bhavajalati ratnam..’
You are my ornament..You are my breath..You are my jewel in the endless sea of life..
Tuesday, 10 August 2010
Natana Raaja- Part III
It is said that ‘Thiruvaachakam’ , the immortal work of the great Tamizh poet MaaNikka Vaachakar can melt even a stone.It is an outpouring of a honest devotee whose only objective was to reach the ultimate.
And he knew what that ‘ultimate’ was.
In one of his verses in the immortal work Thiruvaachakam, he says to the Lord,
‘ You are as sweet and pure as the Honey. You are the nectar. I am dishonest, deceitful, and full of lies and my love is not true . But I know if I cry, I can get you!’
யானே பொய் என்நெஞ்சும் பொய் என் அன்பும் பொய்
ஆனால் வினையேன் அழுதால் உன்னைப் பெறலாமே
தேனே அமுதே கரும்பின் தெளிவே தித்திக்கும்
மானே அருளாய் அடியேன் உனை வந்து உறுமாறே.
A totally different dimension to crying..
This is a verse that has a lot of inner meanings.
As humans, we are bound to make mistakes. Not one. .not two.. but many..
When we cry to the Lord, we pour out.
The tears come straight from the heart. The heart melts.. We feel light..
That is the moment when we feel the Divine.
Let it not be misconstrued that one can commit any number of sins and get away with it by finally crying to the Lord saying ‘I am a sinner. Save me!’
The ‘crying’ the poet is referring to is a very different one and not the usual crying of us mortals.
He realized that all things in this materialistic world do not have any value and only thing which is permanent is the Divine force.
He found poetry as a form of expression to express his inner feelings. One may agree or disagree with what he said. But the way it has been said melts us whether we are believers or atheists.
Just like poetry, dance is also a form of expression.
In my previous post, I tried to get into the reason for turning a blind eye towards classical arts.
There is one more reason too.. All the Indian Classical arts revolve around Bhakti or devotion and therefore, an atheist or an agnostic finds it difficult to identify himself/herself with a form associated with a thing which they feel is not in existence.
But I feel what is important is the way it is said than what is being said.
One’s personal belief should not obscure their appreciation for finer things in life.
But again this does not mean that anything can be said as long as it is said in an aesthetic way.
The long and short of it is-Let us appreciate arts without any prejudice.
In the previous posts, we saw some of the basic aspects of Bharatanatyam briefly.
Today, let us take up a dance form which is closely related to Bharatanatyam.
It is Kuchipudi.
Kuchipudi derives its name from Kuchelapuram, a village in Andhra Pradesh. Like Bharatanatyam,this dance form also involves hand gestures, subtle facial expressions and foot work. But where the two differ are in the foot movements and in the poses. Bharatanatyam has graceful, elegant movements while Kuchipudi is dazzling and has fast foot movements. There are sculptured poses in Bharatnatyam. There are more of rounded poses in Kuchipudi.
A normal Bharatanatyam performance comprises of a ‘Pushpanjali’-a prayer to the Divine/Nature, a ‘Allarippu’, that involves neck and hand movements-warming up the body essentially, a VarNam, that has all the three elements-the Nritta, Nritya and the Natya thus revealing not only the artiste’s skills but also the stamina, a Padam/Javali, that has the Abhinaya and finally the Tillana that has graceful movements as well as fast-paced hand and feet-movements.
A typical Kuchipudi performance too begins with an invocation and this is followed by a Jatiswaram. This will be followed by a Abhinaya piece, the theme of which is mostly be derived from the scriptures/mythology. In some special performances, the dance is executed on brass plate-at times with a pot on the head- and moving the plate with the feet to the tune of the accompanying music. Of course, the Tillana is the final piece and this will be marked by very quick movements of the feet.
Let us now have a look at today’s Natana song from Raaja which more or less follows the Kuchipudi.
It is again a very special composition based on a vivadi raga.
The composition ‘Om Jaya Mahadeva’ from the telugu movie ‘Kunti Putrudu’(1993).
It is based on Ragavardhini, the 32nd melakarta whose structure is sa ri3 ga3 ma1 pa dha1 ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 dha1 pa ma1 ga3 ri3 sa.
Ragavardhini resembles Charukesi, the only difference being the vivadi note ‘ri3’.In a similar vein, VakulabharaNam too has a close connection with Ragavardhini.
Charukesi has the ‘ri2’ while VakulabharaNam has the ‘ri1’..
The VakulabharaNam connection is very well ‘exploited’ by the Raga Raaja in this composition. There are certain phrases with just ‘sa ga ma dha ni’ giving the gentle flavour of Sallappam(a.k.a. Surya) which in turn is a janya of VakulabharaNam.
The song has a rather unusual start in the upper octave. The ‘gagaNa yagaNa ragaNa thagaNa’ are syllables that were in vogue centuries ago and even the famous ‘Kooththa nool’(discussed in detail in my ‘sculpture’ series earlier in this thread) makes a mention about this. In fact, Raaja had earlier used it in ‘Sangeeta jaati mullai’(Kaadhal oviyam) very powerfully and beautifully.
This unusual start itself gives this composition the requisite impetus. The puissant voice of Chitra that also has the apt modulation is an added attraction.
The composition is set in the 5-beat cycle khandam.
A simple beat of the mridangam follows leading us to the Pallavi..
The effervescent veena to depict the ‘Naada swaroopa’(embodiment of melody) is what is called as brilliance!
The first two lines are dynamic while the following two lines are zestful. The last line of the Pallavi is evocative and has the esoteric appeal. The Pallavi ends with a sangati that lasts for 7 cycles of khandam.
The first interlude starts with the energetic violins and the ebullient mridangam.We hear the harmony as another set of violins enter with abhinaya.
How can there be a Natana Raaja without the Laya Raaja? As we immerse ourselves in the beauty, we see the Laya Raaja dance with glee. He divides the beats as 5, 8, 7 and this is done twice making the total to 40 which is equal to 8 cycles of Khandam (8x5=40).
The Sitar plays ta ka ta ki ta /ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta /ta ki ta ta ka dhi mi.
In the first CharaNam, the line ‘Chandrasikha mauktaya sarveswaraaya..’ is rendered with finesse with a sangati that shows us the varieties of nuggets of the raga.
The next line and the violins that follow have succulent phrases.
The fifth line and the sixth traverse to the upper octave and are hauntingly beautiful while the last line resonates with depth. The sangati is again rendered with a flourish.
The violins play with great intensity in the second interlude with the percussion dancing in Khandam. The mellifluent Sitar thrums with excitement followed by the pulsating violins.
The second charaNam is exuberant and is full of energy.
The first line, the violins and the percussion move with imperious gait while the following lines are shaded by plaintiveness.
The line ‘Gajje kattina kaalu..’ moves with splendour. A silvery cascade of phrases follows. The last line in the higher octave is the acme of expressional delicacy.
The composition is capped by a sizzling finale in khandam with a fusillade of variations of ‘ta ka ta ki ta’. The sweeping flashes of violin laced with elegant cadences give the melodic and the rhythmic essence.
‘Nee Sangeeta Charana Saanidhyame Dikku Manaku..’
And he knew what that ‘ultimate’ was.
In one of his verses in the immortal work Thiruvaachakam, he says to the Lord,
‘ You are as sweet and pure as the Honey. You are the nectar. I am dishonest, deceitful, and full of lies and my love is not true . But I know if I cry, I can get you!’
யானே பொய் என்நெஞ்சும் பொய் என் அன்பும் பொய்
ஆனால் வினையேன் அழுதால் உன்னைப் பெறலாமே
தேனே அமுதே கரும்பின் தெளிவே தித்திக்கும்
மானே அருளாய் அடியேன் உனை வந்து உறுமாறே.
A totally different dimension to crying..
This is a verse that has a lot of inner meanings.
As humans, we are bound to make mistakes. Not one. .not two.. but many..
When we cry to the Lord, we pour out.
The tears come straight from the heart. The heart melts.. We feel light..
That is the moment when we feel the Divine.
Let it not be misconstrued that one can commit any number of sins and get away with it by finally crying to the Lord saying ‘I am a sinner. Save me!’
The ‘crying’ the poet is referring to is a very different one and not the usual crying of us mortals.
He realized that all things in this materialistic world do not have any value and only thing which is permanent is the Divine force.
He found poetry as a form of expression to express his inner feelings. One may agree or disagree with what he said. But the way it has been said melts us whether we are believers or atheists.
Just like poetry, dance is also a form of expression.
In my previous post, I tried to get into the reason for turning a blind eye towards classical arts.
There is one more reason too.. All the Indian Classical arts revolve around Bhakti or devotion and therefore, an atheist or an agnostic finds it difficult to identify himself/herself with a form associated with a thing which they feel is not in existence.
But I feel what is important is the way it is said than what is being said.
One’s personal belief should not obscure their appreciation for finer things in life.
But again this does not mean that anything can be said as long as it is said in an aesthetic way.
The long and short of it is-Let us appreciate arts without any prejudice.
In the previous posts, we saw some of the basic aspects of Bharatanatyam briefly.
Today, let us take up a dance form which is closely related to Bharatanatyam.
It is Kuchipudi.
Kuchipudi derives its name from Kuchelapuram, a village in Andhra Pradesh. Like Bharatanatyam,this dance form also involves hand gestures, subtle facial expressions and foot work. But where the two differ are in the foot movements and in the poses. Bharatanatyam has graceful, elegant movements while Kuchipudi is dazzling and has fast foot movements. There are sculptured poses in Bharatnatyam. There are more of rounded poses in Kuchipudi.
A normal Bharatanatyam performance comprises of a ‘Pushpanjali’-a prayer to the Divine/Nature, a ‘Allarippu’, that involves neck and hand movements-warming up the body essentially, a VarNam, that has all the three elements-the Nritta, Nritya and the Natya thus revealing not only the artiste’s skills but also the stamina, a Padam/Javali, that has the Abhinaya and finally the Tillana that has graceful movements as well as fast-paced hand and feet-movements.
A typical Kuchipudi performance too begins with an invocation and this is followed by a Jatiswaram. This will be followed by a Abhinaya piece, the theme of which is mostly be derived from the scriptures/mythology. In some special performances, the dance is executed on brass plate-at times with a pot on the head- and moving the plate with the feet to the tune of the accompanying music. Of course, the Tillana is the final piece and this will be marked by very quick movements of the feet.
Let us now have a look at today’s Natana song from Raaja which more or less follows the Kuchipudi.
It is again a very special composition based on a vivadi raga.
The composition ‘Om Jaya Mahadeva’ from the telugu movie ‘Kunti Putrudu’(1993).
It is based on Ragavardhini, the 32nd melakarta whose structure is sa ri3 ga3 ma1 pa dha1 ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 dha1 pa ma1 ga3 ri3 sa.
Ragavardhini resembles Charukesi, the only difference being the vivadi note ‘ri3’.In a similar vein, VakulabharaNam too has a close connection with Ragavardhini.
Charukesi has the ‘ri2’ while VakulabharaNam has the ‘ri1’..
The VakulabharaNam connection is very well ‘exploited’ by the Raga Raaja in this composition. There are certain phrases with just ‘sa ga ma dha ni’ giving the gentle flavour of Sallappam(a.k.a. Surya) which in turn is a janya of VakulabharaNam.
The song has a rather unusual start in the upper octave. The ‘gagaNa yagaNa ragaNa thagaNa’ are syllables that were in vogue centuries ago and even the famous ‘Kooththa nool’(discussed in detail in my ‘sculpture’ series earlier in this thread) makes a mention about this. In fact, Raaja had earlier used it in ‘Sangeeta jaati mullai’(Kaadhal oviyam) very powerfully and beautifully.
This unusual start itself gives this composition the requisite impetus. The puissant voice of Chitra that also has the apt modulation is an added attraction.
The composition is set in the 5-beat cycle khandam.
A simple beat of the mridangam follows leading us to the Pallavi..
The effervescent veena to depict the ‘Naada swaroopa’(embodiment of melody) is what is called as brilliance!
The first two lines are dynamic while the following two lines are zestful. The last line of the Pallavi is evocative and has the esoteric appeal. The Pallavi ends with a sangati that lasts for 7 cycles of khandam.
The first interlude starts with the energetic violins and the ebullient mridangam.We hear the harmony as another set of violins enter with abhinaya.
How can there be a Natana Raaja without the Laya Raaja? As we immerse ourselves in the beauty, we see the Laya Raaja dance with glee. He divides the beats as 5, 8, 7 and this is done twice making the total to 40 which is equal to 8 cycles of Khandam (8x5=40).
The Sitar plays ta ka ta ki ta /ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta /ta ki ta ta ka dhi mi.
In the first CharaNam, the line ‘Chandrasikha mauktaya sarveswaraaya..’ is rendered with finesse with a sangati that shows us the varieties of nuggets of the raga.
The next line and the violins that follow have succulent phrases.
The fifth line and the sixth traverse to the upper octave and are hauntingly beautiful while the last line resonates with depth. The sangati is again rendered with a flourish.
The violins play with great intensity in the second interlude with the percussion dancing in Khandam. The mellifluent Sitar thrums with excitement followed by the pulsating violins.
The second charaNam is exuberant and is full of energy.
The first line, the violins and the percussion move with imperious gait while the following lines are shaded by plaintiveness.
The line ‘Gajje kattina kaalu..’ moves with splendour. A silvery cascade of phrases follows. The last line in the higher octave is the acme of expressional delicacy.
The composition is capped by a sizzling finale in khandam with a fusillade of variations of ‘ta ka ta ki ta’. The sweeping flashes of violin laced with elegant cadences give the melodic and the rhythmic essence.
‘Nee Sangeeta Charana Saanidhyame Dikku Manaku..’
Friday, 16 July 2010
Natana Raaja- Part II
How do we define beauty?
Anything that is pleasing??
But again, is it also not true that ‘Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder’ and therefore is ‘beauty’ not subjective?
What looks or sounds beautiful to me, need not look/sound beautiful to you.
At the same time, there are some unwritten codes and norms that make us jump with joy and say ’this is beautiful!’.
Though it is very difficult to say what these codes or norms are, one can say that these are directly linked to their upbringing, knowledge, familiarity and open mindedness.
I am not a sociologist or a social scientist and am not qualified enough to understand the traits of people. Nor am I a psychologist to do any psycho analysis. I am making these observations solely out of my experience of meeting interacting with different kinds of people.
First of all, environment plays a very big role in appreciating beauty. By environment, I mean the place we grow up. It could be the home, place of study, work place, and peer group. When any or all the people in these sets say something is beautiful, we too start appreciating it.
Then comes knowledge. Things that we did not like earlier, start sounding or looking beautiful the moment we start understanding them.
Familiarity with a subject also makes us appreciate beauty.
I shall come to the aforementioned factors a little later.
For appreciating anything, what we need is the ability to keep the mind open -shorn of any prejudice. This makes us more objective and also gives us the power to appreciate genuine beauty.
Therefore, what do I conclude?
Is beauty subjective as it is claimed to be?
Before I answer this, let me go to the two aspects-knowledge and familiarity.
Generally, fine arts like classical music, classical dance, and poetry are said to be appreciated only by some sets of people. Others either say ‘it is boring’ or (when probed further) say they ‘don’t understand it ‘.
Does this then not mean that if only they had the knowledge about these arts, they would start understanding? And if they are familiar with these forms (having listened/seen/read frequently), would they not say ‘yes.. these are really beautiful’? And once they become more familiar, would they not have the ability to separate the chaff from the grain?
Am I then saying that beauty has to do more with the head than with the heart?
Well…Not really!
Beauty is a thing that has to be savoured, enjoyed and cherished.
Confucius said ‘Everything in this world has its beauty, but not everyone sees it’ while Helen Keller said ‘The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart’.
But how do we see the unseen? How do we feel what cannot be seen or touched?
Aren’t those four factors-Environment, Knowledge, Familiarity, and Open mindedness- responsible at least subconsciously?
When we see/hear/read something beautiful, there comes a moment when we totally immerse ourselves and begin to forget ourselves.
A moment when everything seems to stand still.
A moment when we feel nothing else exists in the world.
That is the defining moment when the Head and the Heart meet in an act of perfect coordination.
And there lies the beauty!
Now, have a look at this poem:
யாமாமாநீ யாமாமா யாழீகாமா காணாகா
காணாகாமா காழீயா மாமாயாநீ மாமாயா
‘yaamaamaa nee yaamaamaa yaazhee kaamaa kaaNaagaa
kaaNaakaamaa kaazeeyaa maamaayaa nee maamaayaa’.
The poem from either side-beginning or the end- reads the same letter to letter. Though it is best appreciated by people who can read Tamizh, I am sure others too can appreciate this by understanding the concept.
It is a palindrome.
This was composed by the great saint poet Thirugnaanasambandar-who is considered to be a child prodigy- and this is part of Thevaram, the collection of Holy Hymns on Lord Shiva.
The words are not just empty words without any meaning.
It means, ‘We are Pasus(animals) and you are the Pasupati (one who herds us).Oh Lord-The one who plays the beautiful Yaazh (a musical instrument), the one who wears the snake, the one who is liked by all, the one who made Kaama (God of Love) invisible, you who does the act of concealment! Please dispel and shatter the Maaya surrounding us!’
It does sound beautiful when we recite it but does it not sound more beautiful when we understand the meaning as well? And once we have the meanings in place, don’t we appreciate the beauty more?
Precisely for this reason, have I been trying in this thread to analyse the intricacies of the Maestro’s compositions-of course with my little knowledge- so that others can appreciate it more.
And precisely for this reason, have I started this new series on Dance where I touch upon some basic aspects of the beautiful art.
In my previous post, I gave an introduction to the various classical dance forms of India. I also covered some basic aspects of Bharatanatyam.
Let me now briefly take up some of the other aspects.
Bharatanatyam was earlier known as ‘Sadir’ and was generally performed by people from a particular community called ‘Devadasis’ in the Temples and in the courts of Zamindars and Kings. Learning or performing this art by people belonging to the other communities was considered an anathema and even sacrilegious.
Smt.Rukmini Devi Arundale dispelled all the myth surrounding this great classical art form and strived hard to make the art more respectable. The so called Devadasis-who were until then confined to the courts and the temples- were encouraged to give stage performances and this emboldened people from other communities to learn this art form. Accordingly, the nomenclature of ‘Bharatanatyam’ was given and officially accepted by The Music Academy in the mid ‘30s.
In the previous post, we saw that the basic aspects of Bharatanatyam are Nritta,, Nritya and the Natya.
In Bharatanatyam, even standing, sitting (half and full), walking and moving the hands follow certain unique patterns and this is what makes it more beautiful.
The combination of all these is called as an ‘adavu’.There are basically 10 different adavus and each adavu has a rhythmic pattern with a syllable.
For example, the syllables for ‘Tattadavu’ is ‘tai ya tai hi’ and this adavu is always done in the half-sitting posture.
Similarly, for ‘Tattimetti’ adavu, the syllables are ‘takadhimi takajhanu’ (depending on the jaati)…
Adavus form the foundation of ‘Nritta’.
Bharatanatyam(for that matter all dance forms) uses the body as a means of communication in a beautiful way.
People who have watched any performance must have noticed hand movements and gestures by the dancers. These hand movements are called as Hastas and each Hasta depicts an object or objects.
For example, a Simhamukha symbolizes a ‘Animal face’ and is used to denote not only the face of the lion, but all animals and even a ‘Homam’.And a ‘Mukula hasta’ is used to depict a bud or a flower and cupid with arrows.
As per the Abhinayadarpana, there are in all 28 single- hand hastas and 23 double-hand hastas.
What does a typical performance comprise of?
We shall see this in the forthcoming posts along with some more basics.
ILaiyaraaja being the Laya Raja that he is, has done wonders in his Dance compositions.
Today’s song is also one such composition.
It is ‘Aadum Padam thozha’ from ‘Ponmekalai’(2003).
The speciality of this song sung by Sudha Raghunathan is the dominant presence of the percussion instruments. Except for the subtle violin, there is no other melodic instrument(similar to ‘Aa Vedana’ discussed in the previous post).
The composition is based on Latangi.
Latangi is a very unique Raga and as per the Melakarta system, it is just two melas before Kalayani and only the variant of ‘dha’ separates the two.However, Latangi has its own identity. In fact, it also sounds very different from its Sudhdha Madhyama counterpart Sarasangi!
In Classical music, Saint Thyagaraja and Patnam Subramaniya Iyer have composed songs in this Raga. Muththuswami Dikshithar called this raga Geetapriya.
ILaiyaraaja has given us some beautiful Latangis and ‘Aadum padam..’ is one of the gems.
The composition starts with a melodic majesty and gives us a glimpse of wonderful vistas that are to follow.
When the pallavi is rendered the second time, the sangatis at ‘kooththaadum’ and the one at the end of ‘arum poruLe..’are vivacious and are pregnant with classicism.
The anupallavi is intricately detailed with the sangatis(called as ‘palukkal’) after ‘layangaLil..’ being rendered for one complete avarthanam (rhythmic cycle).The composer’s brilliance is shown when the same line is rendered the second time absolutely without any sangati. In ‘vasanthangaL koNdaada..’ we see the gleaming phrases integrated with the laya.
The CharaNam is built on a panoramic edifice. We see the raga, , bhava ,rasa ,tala and the Natya clasping their hands together and giving us an extraordinary and exceptional feeling.
The first line is softly textured and we hear the syllables ‘ta tit ta ri ki ta tham’.
The next line is sensitive and perceptive and it is followed by a wonderful array of ‘jatis’.
The sparkling phrases have Tisram, Chatusram and the Khandam.
The following line gives gentle and powerful touches of Latangi. The syllables that follow are unexceptionable and are a treat even for people who do not follow classical dance.
The next line moves with vim and vigour and as the swaras are rendered, we feel the melodic beauty of Latangi. The first set is woven around the ‘sa’ while the next set shimmers with the ‘pa’. In the end, when the ‘pa’ is skipped(ni ri ga ma dha ni ri sa), it gives a spectacular feeling. This brilliant interplay of the swaras in just a matter of minutes shows us as to why he is called the ‘Isaignani’.
The mirudangam now repeats the two sets of syllables rendered earlier.
The next two lines-followed by the swaras- have the beautiful arithmetic of rhythmic permutations giving us a pleasant breezy feel.
The varied jati patterns now follow and we see a vibrant cluster of powerful motifs.
So immersed we are in the beauty that when we hear ‘you are missing the beat’ (as per the situation in the movie) we feel people who do not listen to such compositions ‘miss something’!
The myriad cascading ‘sollukattus’ that follow are delightfully layered with Laya being the diadem.
Beautiful, Pleasing!
We feel the meeting of the Head and the Heart!!
உயிர் தொடும் ஸ்வரங்களில், மனம் தொடும் லயங்களில், ஆடும் பதம் தொழ ஆனந்த கூத்தாடும் அரும் பொருளே..
Anything that is pleasing??
But again, is it also not true that ‘Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder’ and therefore is ‘beauty’ not subjective?
What looks or sounds beautiful to me, need not look/sound beautiful to you.
At the same time, there are some unwritten codes and norms that make us jump with joy and say ’this is beautiful!’.
Though it is very difficult to say what these codes or norms are, one can say that these are directly linked to their upbringing, knowledge, familiarity and open mindedness.
I am not a sociologist or a social scientist and am not qualified enough to understand the traits of people. Nor am I a psychologist to do any psycho analysis. I am making these observations solely out of my experience of meeting interacting with different kinds of people.
First of all, environment plays a very big role in appreciating beauty. By environment, I mean the place we grow up. It could be the home, place of study, work place, and peer group. When any or all the people in these sets say something is beautiful, we too start appreciating it.
Then comes knowledge. Things that we did not like earlier, start sounding or looking beautiful the moment we start understanding them.
Familiarity with a subject also makes us appreciate beauty.
I shall come to the aforementioned factors a little later.
For appreciating anything, what we need is the ability to keep the mind open -shorn of any prejudice. This makes us more objective and also gives us the power to appreciate genuine beauty.
Therefore, what do I conclude?
Is beauty subjective as it is claimed to be?
Before I answer this, let me go to the two aspects-knowledge and familiarity.
Generally, fine arts like classical music, classical dance, and poetry are said to be appreciated only by some sets of people. Others either say ‘it is boring’ or (when probed further) say they ‘don’t understand it ‘.
Does this then not mean that if only they had the knowledge about these arts, they would start understanding? And if they are familiar with these forms (having listened/seen/read frequently), would they not say ‘yes.. these are really beautiful’? And once they become more familiar, would they not have the ability to separate the chaff from the grain?
Am I then saying that beauty has to do more with the head than with the heart?
Well…Not really!
Beauty is a thing that has to be savoured, enjoyed and cherished.
Confucius said ‘Everything in this world has its beauty, but not everyone sees it’ while Helen Keller said ‘The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart’.
But how do we see the unseen? How do we feel what cannot be seen or touched?
Aren’t those four factors-Environment, Knowledge, Familiarity, and Open mindedness- responsible at least subconsciously?
When we see/hear/read something beautiful, there comes a moment when we totally immerse ourselves and begin to forget ourselves.
A moment when everything seems to stand still.
A moment when we feel nothing else exists in the world.
That is the defining moment when the Head and the Heart meet in an act of perfect coordination.
And there lies the beauty!
Now, have a look at this poem:
யாமாமாநீ யாமாமா யாழீகாமா காணாகா
காணாகாமா காழீயா மாமாயாநீ மாமாயா
‘yaamaamaa nee yaamaamaa yaazhee kaamaa kaaNaagaa
kaaNaakaamaa kaazeeyaa maamaayaa nee maamaayaa’.
The poem from either side-beginning or the end- reads the same letter to letter. Though it is best appreciated by people who can read Tamizh, I am sure others too can appreciate this by understanding the concept.
It is a palindrome.
This was composed by the great saint poet Thirugnaanasambandar-who is considered to be a child prodigy- and this is part of Thevaram, the collection of Holy Hymns on Lord Shiva.
The words are not just empty words without any meaning.
It means, ‘We are Pasus(animals) and you are the Pasupati (one who herds us).Oh Lord-The one who plays the beautiful Yaazh (a musical instrument), the one who wears the snake, the one who is liked by all, the one who made Kaama (God of Love) invisible, you who does the act of concealment! Please dispel and shatter the Maaya surrounding us!’
It does sound beautiful when we recite it but does it not sound more beautiful when we understand the meaning as well? And once we have the meanings in place, don’t we appreciate the beauty more?
Precisely for this reason, have I been trying in this thread to analyse the intricacies of the Maestro’s compositions-of course with my little knowledge- so that others can appreciate it more.
And precisely for this reason, have I started this new series on Dance where I touch upon some basic aspects of the beautiful art.
In my previous post, I gave an introduction to the various classical dance forms of India. I also covered some basic aspects of Bharatanatyam.
Let me now briefly take up some of the other aspects.
Bharatanatyam was earlier known as ‘Sadir’ and was generally performed by people from a particular community called ‘Devadasis’ in the Temples and in the courts of Zamindars and Kings. Learning or performing this art by people belonging to the other communities was considered an anathema and even sacrilegious.
Smt.Rukmini Devi Arundale dispelled all the myth surrounding this great classical art form and strived hard to make the art more respectable. The so called Devadasis-who were until then confined to the courts and the temples- were encouraged to give stage performances and this emboldened people from other communities to learn this art form. Accordingly, the nomenclature of ‘Bharatanatyam’ was given and officially accepted by The Music Academy in the mid ‘30s.
In the previous post, we saw that the basic aspects of Bharatanatyam are Nritta,, Nritya and the Natya.
In Bharatanatyam, even standing, sitting (half and full), walking and moving the hands follow certain unique patterns and this is what makes it more beautiful.
The combination of all these is called as an ‘adavu’.There are basically 10 different adavus and each adavu has a rhythmic pattern with a syllable.
For example, the syllables for ‘Tattadavu’ is ‘tai ya tai hi’ and this adavu is always done in the half-sitting posture.
Similarly, for ‘Tattimetti’ adavu, the syllables are ‘takadhimi takajhanu’ (depending on the jaati)…
Adavus form the foundation of ‘Nritta’.
Bharatanatyam(for that matter all dance forms) uses the body as a means of communication in a beautiful way.
People who have watched any performance must have noticed hand movements and gestures by the dancers. These hand movements are called as Hastas and each Hasta depicts an object or objects.
For example, a Simhamukha symbolizes a ‘Animal face’ and is used to denote not only the face of the lion, but all animals and even a ‘Homam’.And a ‘Mukula hasta’ is used to depict a bud or a flower and cupid with arrows.
As per the Abhinayadarpana, there are in all 28 single- hand hastas and 23 double-hand hastas.
What does a typical performance comprise of?
We shall see this in the forthcoming posts along with some more basics.
ILaiyaraaja being the Laya Raja that he is, has done wonders in his Dance compositions.
Today’s song is also one such composition.
It is ‘Aadum Padam thozha’ from ‘Ponmekalai’(2003).
The speciality of this song sung by Sudha Raghunathan is the dominant presence of the percussion instruments. Except for the subtle violin, there is no other melodic instrument(similar to ‘Aa Vedana’ discussed in the previous post).
The composition is based on Latangi.
Latangi is a very unique Raga and as per the Melakarta system, it is just two melas before Kalayani and only the variant of ‘dha’ separates the two.However, Latangi has its own identity. In fact, it also sounds very different from its Sudhdha Madhyama counterpart Sarasangi!
In Classical music, Saint Thyagaraja and Patnam Subramaniya Iyer have composed songs in this Raga. Muththuswami Dikshithar called this raga Geetapriya.
ILaiyaraaja has given us some beautiful Latangis and ‘Aadum padam..’ is one of the gems.
The composition starts with a melodic majesty and gives us a glimpse of wonderful vistas that are to follow.
When the pallavi is rendered the second time, the sangatis at ‘kooththaadum’ and the one at the end of ‘arum poruLe..’are vivacious and are pregnant with classicism.
The anupallavi is intricately detailed with the sangatis(called as ‘palukkal’) after ‘layangaLil..’ being rendered for one complete avarthanam (rhythmic cycle).The composer’s brilliance is shown when the same line is rendered the second time absolutely without any sangati. In ‘vasanthangaL koNdaada..’ we see the gleaming phrases integrated with the laya.
The CharaNam is built on a panoramic edifice. We see the raga, , bhava ,rasa ,tala and the Natya clasping their hands together and giving us an extraordinary and exceptional feeling.
The first line is softly textured and we hear the syllables ‘ta tit ta ri ki ta tham’.
The next line is sensitive and perceptive and it is followed by a wonderful array of ‘jatis’.
The sparkling phrases have Tisram, Chatusram and the Khandam.
The following line gives gentle and powerful touches of Latangi. The syllables that follow are unexceptionable and are a treat even for people who do not follow classical dance.
The next line moves with vim and vigour and as the swaras are rendered, we feel the melodic beauty of Latangi. The first set is woven around the ‘sa’ while the next set shimmers with the ‘pa’. In the end, when the ‘pa’ is skipped(ni ri ga ma dha ni ri sa), it gives a spectacular feeling. This brilliant interplay of the swaras in just a matter of minutes shows us as to why he is called the ‘Isaignani’.
The mirudangam now repeats the two sets of syllables rendered earlier.
The next two lines-followed by the swaras- have the beautiful arithmetic of rhythmic permutations giving us a pleasant breezy feel.
The varied jati patterns now follow and we see a vibrant cluster of powerful motifs.
So immersed we are in the beauty that when we hear ‘you are missing the beat’ (as per the situation in the movie) we feel people who do not listen to such compositions ‘miss something’!
The myriad cascading ‘sollukattus’ that follow are delightfully layered with Laya being the diadem.
Beautiful, Pleasing!
We feel the meeting of the Head and the Heart!!
உயிர் தொடும் ஸ்வரங்களில், மனம் தொடும் லயங்களில், ஆடும் பதம் தொழ ஆனந்த கூத்தாடும் அரும் பொருளே..
Wednesday, 2 June 2010
Natana Raaja-Part I
‘’Dancing in all its forms cannot be excluded from the curriculum of all noble education; dancing with the feet, with ideas, with words, and, need I add that one must also be able to dance with the pen?’’ said the great philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.
Dance is considered to be the hidden language of the soul. There is no life without dance.
Our beloved Raaja has composed many dance songs and these shine like rubies on his crown.
On this special day, I am starting this series on dance music of ILaiyaraaja. I would also be writing briefly about the various forms of dance and the features(a la the ‘Sculptor series’ where I discussed about the dance in Tamizh literature while describing the different songs from ‘ULiyin Osai’ about two years back).
The Hindu philosophy talks about the cosmic dance of Nataraja. I shall touch upon this in my forthcoming posts.But for a moment, let us imagine as to what would happen if everything in this world starts dancing?
The great tamizh poet AruNagirinadar-about whom I had written in this Blog while describing ‘tham tan a namthana’ )- imagines all the Gods and Goddesses dancing in front of him.
Legend has it that he was challenged by Sambanthaandaan in the Court of King Prapuda Devarajan at ThiruvaNaamalai. AruNagirinadar sang this Thiruppugazh that depicts the dance of Gods, Goddesses and the entire Universe.
It is also said that as he sang the fourth line(mayilum aadi nee aadi vara venum-you and your peacock should dance and come here), Lord Muruga appeared in the Court, in a dancing form with his peacock.
‘As Adisesha danced in the PaataLa loga. The Mount Meru danced on the Earth,
KaaLi danced and along with her danced Siva making her shiver,
BhoothagaNaas, the ghosts danced too,
Brahma perched on the Lotus flower danced with the melodious Saraswati,
The celestials and the Moon now joined the dancing party,
Muruga’s in-laws Lakshmi and Vishnu danced,
He who helped the PaaNdavaas defeat their enemies,
He who mesmerized the cows with his flute,
He who is lying on the milky ocean on a serpent,
He who measured the entire world with one his one foot,
He whose vehicle is the Garuda,
You are his favourite nephew(or son-in-law),
Please come and dance with your peacock here,
And make the King Praputa Devarajan’s heart dance with joy!’
அதல சேட னாராட அகில மேரு மீதாட
அபின காளி தானாட ...... அவளோடன்று
அதிர வீசி வாதாடும் விடையி லேறு வாராட
அருகு பூத வேதாளம் ...... அவையாட
மதுர வாணி தானாட மலரில் வேத னாராட
மருவு வானு ளோராட ...... மதியாட
வனச மாமி யாராட நெடிய மாம னாராட
மயிலு மாடி நீயாடி ...... வரவேணும்
கதைவி டாத தோள்வீமன் எதிர்கொள் வாளி யால்நீடு
கருத லார்கள் மாசேனை ...... பொடியாகக்
கதறு காலி போய்மீள விஜய னேறு தேர்மீது
கனக வேத கோடூதி ...... அலைமோதும்
உததி மீதி லேசாயும் உலக மூடு சீர்பாத
உவண மூர்தி மாமாயன் ...... மருகோனே
உதய தாம மார்பான ப்ரபுட தேவ மாராஜன்
உளமு மாட வாழ்தேவர் ...... பெருமாளே.
Look at the poetic beauty..And look how in the guise of praising Lord Muruga, he eulogises Lord Vishnu giving the gist of the Mahabharata and the Vaamana avatara in less than 4 lines.
That is AruNagirinaadar!
Now, let us briefly look at the different dance forms of India.
The treatise on classical dances of India is believed to be written by Bharta muni between the 2nd century BC and the 2nd century AD. More about this later in my forthcoming posts.
There are essentially seven major classical forms:
1.Bharatanatyam-a very classical form known for its aesthetic elements
2.Kuchipudi-originating from the village Kuchelapuram in AP
3.Kathakali-meaning ‘Story play’
4.Mohinyaattam-Dnce of the enchantress believed to be named after the Mohini avatar of Lord Vishnu
5.Manipuri-a graceful form that lays emphasis on devotion
6.Odissi- known for its soft touches
7.Kathak-Focusses on the footwork and movements
Each one has its own beauty and of course different sets of rules.
Bharatanatyam, a very popular dance form across the globe involves hand gestures, facial expressions, movement of feet and the body. In fact, almost all the organs are involved while dancing. Minute eye-movements, neck movements and the hand movements make it one of the most aesthetic experiences if performed well by the artiste concerned.
Bharatanatyam essentially has Nrittam-movements that add to the beauty, Nrityam-specific movements to convey a message and Natya- depicting a story using what is called as the Abhinaya.
We also have Aangika abhinaya- physical expressions, Vaachika abhinaya-verbal, Saatvika abhinaya- expressing inner feelings/emotions, Aaharya abhinaya- costumes/make-up.
We shall see about Bharatanatyam and the other forms in detail in the posts to follow.
Let us now focus on today’s special composition
The composition is very special for various reasons.
First of all, it talks (musically) about the major classical dance forms.
Secondly, it has only the percussion instruments and no melodic instruments.
Thirdly, it is a Ragamaalika –with 5 ragas including 3 Hindustani ragas. Within a few phrases, the flavour of each raga is brought out beautifully!
Fourthly, the ‘dance jatis’ are rendered by Raaja sir himself.
The composition is ‘Aavedanaa’ from the Telugu film Aalapana(1986).
It has a very unusual start with a shriek. This shriek alone means a lot as it gives the emotive touch to the entire composition. Can there be pleasure without pain?
Janaki starts the Pallavi in Madhukauns.This beautiful Raag is the pratimadhyama counterpart of Sudhdha Dhanyasi and its structure is
sa ga2 ma2 pa ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 pa ma2 ga2 sa.
As the Pallavi ends, we are in for another surprise.
A beautiful jati korvai in the voice of SPB welcomes us.
We see the Aangika, Saatvika, Vaachika abhinaya in full flow in unison with the Bhava Raga and Tala in classical Kamboji-sa ri2 ga3 ma1 pa dha2 Sa/Sa ni2 dha2 pa ma1 ga3 ri2 Sa ni3 pa dha2 sa.
It is Bharatanatyam.
The luminous jatis in the voice of Raaja shows us the vignettes of Kuchelapuram from where Kuchipudi was born.
It is an aural treat as one hears the jatis that are rendered with fluid ease.
Waves of sound..
SPB follows it up with a beautiful rendering of the line about Kuchipudi in Pantuvarali whose structure is sa ri1 ga3 ma2 pa dha1 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha1 pa ma2 ga3 ri1 sa.
‘Dhinta Dhinta Dhinta’…
Pulsating pleasantness wedded to Laya substance..
We hear Raag Bahaar whose structure is ni3 Sa ma1 ma1 Pa ga2 ma1 ni2 Dha2 Ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 Pa ma1 Pa ga2 ma1 Ri2 sa.
Raag Bahaar is considered to be the Raag of Spring season.
Maestro used it here to depict the dignity and grace of Manipuri.
One also gets to see the delicate nuances of this special raga in the sangatis.
The Pakhawaj and the gentle sound of the ankle bells give it a unique charm.
The softly textured charaNam phrase follows in keeping with the softness of Odissi.
We hear the melodic strains of a Raag called Miyan ki Malhaar.
Its structure is Sa Ri2 Pa ma1 Pa ni2 Dha2 Ni2 Sa/ Ri2 Ni2 Sa Dha2 ni2 ma Pa ga2 ma1 Ri2 sa.
It is a Monsoon raga and the combination of ‘ni dha ni Sa’ denotes the gathering of clouds.
The usage of this Raag for Odissi shows the sensitivity of the composer.
The breathtaking swirls and swings give us a breezy feel.
It is exuberance now as the majestic KathakaLi is depicted. The dynamism of this dance form comes out in full glory through the Carnatic raga AtaaNa- Sa ri2 ma1 pa ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha2 pa ma1 pa ga3 ri2 sa.
The use of pancha vadhyam here adds to the beauty and the majesty.
It is then the vivacious Tabla replete with graceful overtones. It weaves warp and weft into zigzag motifs making one feel Kathak.
The composition showcases a wide variety in expression and technique..
A panoramic view of major classical dances..
Variegated hues of Music and dance..
‘Idhi raga manohara ramya vikaasam lalita layatmaka laasya visesham..’
Dance is considered to be the hidden language of the soul. There is no life without dance.
Our beloved Raaja has composed many dance songs and these shine like rubies on his crown.
On this special day, I am starting this series on dance music of ILaiyaraaja. I would also be writing briefly about the various forms of dance and the features(a la the ‘Sculptor series’ where I discussed about the dance in Tamizh literature while describing the different songs from ‘ULiyin Osai’ about two years back).
The Hindu philosophy talks about the cosmic dance of Nataraja. I shall touch upon this in my forthcoming posts.But for a moment, let us imagine as to what would happen if everything in this world starts dancing?
The great tamizh poet AruNagirinadar-about whom I had written in this Blog while describing ‘tham tan a namthana’ )- imagines all the Gods and Goddesses dancing in front of him.
Legend has it that he was challenged by Sambanthaandaan in the Court of King Prapuda Devarajan at ThiruvaNaamalai. AruNagirinadar sang this Thiruppugazh that depicts the dance of Gods, Goddesses and the entire Universe.
It is also said that as he sang the fourth line(mayilum aadi nee aadi vara venum-you and your peacock should dance and come here), Lord Muruga appeared in the Court, in a dancing form with his peacock.
‘As Adisesha danced in the PaataLa loga. The Mount Meru danced on the Earth,
KaaLi danced and along with her danced Siva making her shiver,
BhoothagaNaas, the ghosts danced too,
Brahma perched on the Lotus flower danced with the melodious Saraswati,
The celestials and the Moon now joined the dancing party,
Muruga’s in-laws Lakshmi and Vishnu danced,
He who helped the PaaNdavaas defeat their enemies,
He who mesmerized the cows with his flute,
He who is lying on the milky ocean on a serpent,
He who measured the entire world with one his one foot,
He whose vehicle is the Garuda,
You are his favourite nephew(or son-in-law),
Please come and dance with your peacock here,
And make the King Praputa Devarajan’s heart dance with joy!’
அதல சேட னாராட அகில மேரு மீதாட
அபின காளி தானாட ...... அவளோடன்று
அதிர வீசி வாதாடும் விடையி லேறு வாராட
அருகு பூத வேதாளம் ...... அவையாட
மதுர வாணி தானாட மலரில் வேத னாராட
மருவு வானு ளோராட ...... மதியாட
வனச மாமி யாராட நெடிய மாம னாராட
மயிலு மாடி நீயாடி ...... வரவேணும்
கதைவி டாத தோள்வீமன் எதிர்கொள் வாளி யால்நீடு
கருத லார்கள் மாசேனை ...... பொடியாகக்
கதறு காலி போய்மீள விஜய னேறு தேர்மீது
கனக வேத கோடூதி ...... அலைமோதும்
உததி மீதி லேசாயும் உலக மூடு சீர்பாத
உவண மூர்தி மாமாயன் ...... மருகோனே
உதய தாம மார்பான ப்ரபுட தேவ மாராஜன்
உளமு மாட வாழ்தேவர் ...... பெருமாளே.
Look at the poetic beauty..And look how in the guise of praising Lord Muruga, he eulogises Lord Vishnu giving the gist of the Mahabharata and the Vaamana avatara in less than 4 lines.
That is AruNagirinaadar!
Now, let us briefly look at the different dance forms of India.
The treatise on classical dances of India is believed to be written by Bharta muni between the 2nd century BC and the 2nd century AD. More about this later in my forthcoming posts.
There are essentially seven major classical forms:
1.Bharatanatyam-a very classical form known for its aesthetic elements
2.Kuchipudi-originating from the village Kuchelapuram in AP
3.Kathakali-meaning ‘Story play’
4.Mohinyaattam-Dnce of the enchantress believed to be named after the Mohini avatar of Lord Vishnu
5.Manipuri-a graceful form that lays emphasis on devotion
6.Odissi- known for its soft touches
7.Kathak-Focusses on the footwork and movements
Each one has its own beauty and of course different sets of rules.
Bharatanatyam, a very popular dance form across the globe involves hand gestures, facial expressions, movement of feet and the body. In fact, almost all the organs are involved while dancing. Minute eye-movements, neck movements and the hand movements make it one of the most aesthetic experiences if performed well by the artiste concerned.
Bharatanatyam essentially has Nrittam-movements that add to the beauty, Nrityam-specific movements to convey a message and Natya- depicting a story using what is called as the Abhinaya.
We also have Aangika abhinaya- physical expressions, Vaachika abhinaya-verbal, Saatvika abhinaya- expressing inner feelings/emotions, Aaharya abhinaya- costumes/make-up.
We shall see about Bharatanatyam and the other forms in detail in the posts to follow.
Let us now focus on today’s special composition
The composition is very special for various reasons.
First of all, it talks (musically) about the major classical dance forms.
Secondly, it has only the percussion instruments and no melodic instruments.
Thirdly, it is a Ragamaalika –with 5 ragas including 3 Hindustani ragas. Within a few phrases, the flavour of each raga is brought out beautifully!
Fourthly, the ‘dance jatis’ are rendered by Raaja sir himself.
The composition is ‘Aavedanaa’ from the Telugu film Aalapana(1986).
It has a very unusual start with a shriek. This shriek alone means a lot as it gives the emotive touch to the entire composition. Can there be pleasure without pain?
Janaki starts the Pallavi in Madhukauns.This beautiful Raag is the pratimadhyama counterpart of Sudhdha Dhanyasi and its structure is
sa ga2 ma2 pa ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 pa ma2 ga2 sa.
As the Pallavi ends, we are in for another surprise.
A beautiful jati korvai in the voice of SPB welcomes us.
We see the Aangika, Saatvika, Vaachika abhinaya in full flow in unison with the Bhava Raga and Tala in classical Kamboji-sa ri2 ga3 ma1 pa dha2 Sa/Sa ni2 dha2 pa ma1 ga3 ri2 Sa ni3 pa dha2 sa.
It is Bharatanatyam.
The luminous jatis in the voice of Raaja shows us the vignettes of Kuchelapuram from where Kuchipudi was born.
It is an aural treat as one hears the jatis that are rendered with fluid ease.
Waves of sound..
SPB follows it up with a beautiful rendering of the line about Kuchipudi in Pantuvarali whose structure is sa ri1 ga3 ma2 pa dha1 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha1 pa ma2 ga3 ri1 sa.
‘Dhinta Dhinta Dhinta’…
Pulsating pleasantness wedded to Laya substance..
We hear Raag Bahaar whose structure is ni3 Sa ma1 ma1 Pa ga2 ma1 ni2 Dha2 Ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 Pa ma1 Pa ga2 ma1 Ri2 sa.
Raag Bahaar is considered to be the Raag of Spring season.
Maestro used it here to depict the dignity and grace of Manipuri.
One also gets to see the delicate nuances of this special raga in the sangatis.
The Pakhawaj and the gentle sound of the ankle bells give it a unique charm.
The softly textured charaNam phrase follows in keeping with the softness of Odissi.
We hear the melodic strains of a Raag called Miyan ki Malhaar.
Its structure is Sa Ri2 Pa ma1 Pa ni2 Dha2 Ni2 Sa/ Ri2 Ni2 Sa Dha2 ni2 ma Pa ga2 ma1 Ri2 sa.
It is a Monsoon raga and the combination of ‘ni dha ni Sa’ denotes the gathering of clouds.
The usage of this Raag for Odissi shows the sensitivity of the composer.
The breathtaking swirls and swings give us a breezy feel.
It is exuberance now as the majestic KathakaLi is depicted. The dynamism of this dance form comes out in full glory through the Carnatic raga AtaaNa- Sa ri2 ma1 pa ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha2 pa ma1 pa ga3 ri2 sa.
The use of pancha vadhyam here adds to the beauty and the majesty.
It is then the vivacious Tabla replete with graceful overtones. It weaves warp and weft into zigzag motifs making one feel Kathak.
The composition showcases a wide variety in expression and technique..
A panoramic view of major classical dances..
Variegated hues of Music and dance..
‘Idhi raga manohara ramya vikaasam lalita layatmaka laasya visesham..’
Saturday, 8 May 2010
ILaiyaraaja-Musician with Vaatsalyam..
Words, like music have emotions.
When we read or write, what is it that that makes us involved in the subject?
Situations.. Yes..Of course!
Characters.. well..maybe!
But how do we even understand or even feel all these unless they are expressed with appropriate words?
Can we even imagine comprehending anything without that great thing called ‘words’?
Can we imagine communicating anything without that powerful thing called ‘words’?
Of course, there are times in our life when the unspoken or the unwritten are felt. I shall come to this a little later.
Let us go back to my statement about words having emotions.
Apart from emotions and feelings, words have culture too..
..Most importantly they are culture-specific and language-specific.
Therefore, some words when translated from one language to another may not covey the emotions attached to it though it may convey the meaning to a certain extent.
‘Vaatsalyam’ is one such word.
I really cannot think of any appropriate translation in English. At the most, one can say tender loving care.
When a mother fondles and nurses her child, it is Vaatsalyam. In tamizh, we call this as ‘parivu’(பரிவு).
Rather than trying to translate the word-which is seemingly impossible- let me quote a paasuram from Naalaiyira Divya Prabhandam.
Vishnu Chittar- better known as Periyaazhwar-who lived in the 9th century, composed 473 hymns out of which some 250 hymns are considered very very special. They are special because he considered himself as Krishna’s mother and described the child through the eyes of a mother.
It starts with the birth of the child and goes up to the point where Krishna goes on his own to herd the cows.
The lullabies are so powerful that it would bring tears even in an atheist’s eyes!
In this hymn, he asks the Moon to play with his sweet child.
‘Oh Moon!The shimmering rays from your beautiful face may cover the entire world..But ..it is no match to the beauty of my little one.. Can you not see his little fingers waving at you, and inviting you? Come fast and play with him before he feels the pain in his cute little fingers’.
சுற்றும் ஒளிவட்டம் சூழ்ந்து சோதிபரந்தெங்கும்
எத்தனை செய்யினும் என்மகன் முகம் நேரொவ்வாய்
வித்தகன் வேங்கடவாணன் உன்னை விளிக்கின்ற
கைத்தலம் நோவாமே அம்புலீ! கடிதோடிவா.
This hymn is part of the 10 hymns in 'Ambuli paruva paththu'.
Most of us know how tiny tots get fascinated looking at the moon and how they wave at the moon with a smiling face.In fact, even now, children are fed in moonlight because of this reason.But how many of us have even bothered about the little fingers and the tiny hand that waves at the moon?
Periyaazhwar did..And that is Vaatsalyam!!
I mentioned in the beginning about words having emotions.
I also said that there are times when we feel the unspoken or the unwritten.
Yes.. this happens to us when we listen to music.
Coming to think of it, swaras play the role of the words. But aren’t there only 7 basic swaras while the number of words are much more(in millions in some languages)?
True! But it is the combination of these swaras that matter.One can have umpteen permutations and combinations and each one is different and unique.
So, while one combination of swaras can give us pleasure, some other combination can evoke a totally different kind of emotion- say sadness. That is the beauty of music!
The Raga system in Indian Classical Music is special not just because it is unique but also because each raga is known to evoke certain moods and emotions.
We have had composers who have understood this fact and have given us some immortal compositions. But still..I feel no composer in film music has understood, applied and executed this well than ILaiyaraaja.
He treats each swara and raga as his own child and fondles them.
But I feel, he also considers us as his children and treats us with Vaatsalyam.
Listen to his immortal compositions.
Don’t feel the tender loving care?
Don’t we feel the affection?
Don’t we feel the love?
Today’s composition is doubly special and you will soon know the reason.
This song is based on Shankarabharanam.
Shankarabharanam is one of the oldest ragas and is widely used in all major form of music.
It forms the major diatonic scale or the C Major in Western music.
It is called as Bilawal in Hindustani system and all the swaras used in this ragas are known by the word ‘shudhdh’(meaning pure).
It is called as ‘Pazhampanjuram’ in Tamizh PaN.
It is a very divine raga. It appeals to the senses and evokes a mood of sublimity. That is why it is considered to be the most superior amongst all ragas.
In Carnatic system, it is the 29th melakarta and has the following structure:
Sa ri2 ga3 ma1 pa dha2 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha2 pa ma1 ga3 ri2 sa.
The pratimadhayama counterpart of Shankarabharanam is Kalyani but there is a world of difference between the two ragas in the way they are sung. There are some special prayogas in both the ragas that make them distinct.
For example, ‘ga’ is a flat swara in Shankarabharanam and this itself gives a very soothing effect.There is minimum oscillation of ‘ni’ as well.
This is balanced by the strong oscillation of ‘ri’ and ‘dha’.
Therefore it is a raga that is calm and sedate but at the same time majestic too..
It is because of this reason that Neelambari, a raga derived from Shankarabharanam is widely used in lullabies.
As a matter of fact, Shankarabharanam itself has contours of lullabies.
And Raaja has exploited this fact well in many compositions- a classic example being ‘Poove iLaiya poove’.
Today’s composition also has shades of a classic lullaby.
The composition is ‘Sandhanamittu sadhiraadum mottu’ from ‘Rusi kaNda poonai’(1980).
The prelude itself brings a sense of calmness and sedateness.
The (electric) violin is lucid as the flute blossoms. The violin then glides adding more sangatis and the flute responds with equal flair. In fact, the Flute just repeats what the violin says and there lies the whole beauty. The surprise element is the piano base that make our hearts flutter. The stringed instrument then takes over and we can easily visualize a child prancing in front of us. The tune of the Pallavi now takes shape.
He teaches a lesson or two(as always) to all aspiring music composers on how a prelude should lead us to the Pallavi.
The percussion (tabla) makes an appearance now just towards the end of the Pallavi and that takes me to the Laya Raja aspect in this composition.
The composition follows the simple 8-beat cycle but let us see how he has beautifully used the tabla in line with the theme of the song and the tune.
As I mentioned, the Tabla appears towards the end of the prelude and it repeats the pattern played by the stringed instrument:
Ta – dhi-.
A simple pattern ‘ta ka dhi mi’ where only the first and the third syllables are played.
As the Pallavi starts the Tabla remains silent until the 5th beat. Thereafter, it plays only the first syllable ‘Ta’until the 8th beat where it plays the first and the third syllable(ta dhi).When the Pallavi is rendered the second time, the Tabla starts right from the first beat , again playing only the first syllable until the eighth syllable where it plays the first and the third syllable.
If we assume that this will be the pattern throughout, we are not genuine Raaja followers. For, all genuine followers know his propensity to spring a surprise and his fascination for trying out things differently.
The interludes that follow the ‘ta ka dhi mi’ pattern do not have any percussion instrument.
In the CharaNams, the Tabla appears only from the fourth beat-playing the first and the third syllable.The tabla continues from the second line playing only the ‘ta’ and playing the ‘ta ‘dhi’ every fourth beat.
We see this pattern in the first 6 lines(first 3 lines are repeated once).
The second part-from the 7th line ‘punnagai vizhiyil aada’ in the first charaNam and ‘kaigaLil thuzhuvum mullai’ in the second charaNam- is what makes him a Laya Raja.
The first time we hear, we expect the fourth beat to have ‘ta dhi’(despite being genuine Raaja followers!).But only the ‘ta’ is heard until the eighth beat when we hear the ‘ta dhi’ and this continues till the end of the charaNams.
When the Pallavi is rendered after the charaNams, the Tabla again joins at the 5th beat and the ‘ta dhi’ is heard at the 8th beat.
This is the pattern:
Pallavi from the time Tabla joins in the first line : ta – dhi –
Second line: ta- - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta- - - ta – dhi –
CharaNams:
First line from the time tabla joins: ta – dhi –
Second line:ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Third line: ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi – ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Fourth line: ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Fifth line: ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Sixth line: ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi – ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Seventh line: ta- - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta- - - ta – dhi –
Eighth line: ta- - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta- - - ta – dhi –
Look how a very simple ‘ta ka dhi mi’ pattern does wonders in the hands of Laya Raja.
Let us now go back to the Pallavi for the melodic and the orchestration aspects.
Only two lines but they are repeated and this itself gives a mesmerizing lullaby effect.
Both the lines have classical dignity with the voice of Suseela lending the right kind of impetus and sweetness.
The first interlude is suffused with deep colours of the raga.
It starts with the luminous bells. The single violin is intensely elegant and tantalizingly beautiful. We begin to immerse ourselves in this beauty not realizing that this is just a sample. The gait changes and three violins enter the party. The first one dazzles, the second one gives dart-like flashes and the third one captures the special fragrance of Western Classical Music.
A string of quicksilver passages arranged meticulously!
The CharNams are replete with classicism.
The first two lines are succinct and the third line in the higher octave gives radiant shades of the raga.
The lines are repeated again and the subtle sangati in the fifth line-which is a repetition of the second line- is Raaja Special.
The following lines weave well-knit patterns nourishing the already healthy child!
There is a plethora of phrases in the second interlude.
To start with we hear a synthetic blend of violins in western classical style. The Flute played with imperceptible finesse takes spiraling spins even as the violins continue in their immaculate style. Suddenly, the guitar dances with ecstasy and we see wonderful vistas. The violins wind up with a gentle flavour.
The composition is full of intricate detailing woven around gentle human emotions.
Vaatsalyam..
Is that not this composition all about?
உன்னிசை காதில் பட்டுத் தழுவும்பொழுது மலரும் மனது..
When your music enters our ears and embraces us, our minds blossom..
When we read or write, what is it that that makes us involved in the subject?
Situations.. Yes..Of course!
Characters.. well..maybe!
But how do we even understand or even feel all these unless they are expressed with appropriate words?
Can we even imagine comprehending anything without that great thing called ‘words’?
Can we imagine communicating anything without that powerful thing called ‘words’?
Of course, there are times in our life when the unspoken or the unwritten are felt. I shall come to this a little later.
Let us go back to my statement about words having emotions.
Apart from emotions and feelings, words have culture too..
..Most importantly they are culture-specific and language-specific.
Therefore, some words when translated from one language to another may not covey the emotions attached to it though it may convey the meaning to a certain extent.
‘Vaatsalyam’ is one such word.
I really cannot think of any appropriate translation in English. At the most, one can say tender loving care.
When a mother fondles and nurses her child, it is Vaatsalyam. In tamizh, we call this as ‘parivu’(பரிவு).
Rather than trying to translate the word-which is seemingly impossible- let me quote a paasuram from Naalaiyira Divya Prabhandam.
Vishnu Chittar- better known as Periyaazhwar-who lived in the 9th century, composed 473 hymns out of which some 250 hymns are considered very very special. They are special because he considered himself as Krishna’s mother and described the child through the eyes of a mother.
It starts with the birth of the child and goes up to the point where Krishna goes on his own to herd the cows.
The lullabies are so powerful that it would bring tears even in an atheist’s eyes!
In this hymn, he asks the Moon to play with his sweet child.
‘Oh Moon!The shimmering rays from your beautiful face may cover the entire world..But ..it is no match to the beauty of my little one.. Can you not see his little fingers waving at you, and inviting you? Come fast and play with him before he feels the pain in his cute little fingers’.
சுற்றும் ஒளிவட்டம் சூழ்ந்து சோதிபரந்தெங்கும்
எத்தனை செய்யினும் என்மகன் முகம் நேரொவ்வாய்
வித்தகன் வேங்கடவாணன் உன்னை விளிக்கின்ற
கைத்தலம் நோவாமே அம்புலீ! கடிதோடிவா.
This hymn is part of the 10 hymns in 'Ambuli paruva paththu'.
Most of us know how tiny tots get fascinated looking at the moon and how they wave at the moon with a smiling face.In fact, even now, children are fed in moonlight because of this reason.But how many of us have even bothered about the little fingers and the tiny hand that waves at the moon?
Periyaazhwar did..And that is Vaatsalyam!!
I mentioned in the beginning about words having emotions.
I also said that there are times when we feel the unspoken or the unwritten.
Yes.. this happens to us when we listen to music.
Coming to think of it, swaras play the role of the words. But aren’t there only 7 basic swaras while the number of words are much more(in millions in some languages)?
True! But it is the combination of these swaras that matter.One can have umpteen permutations and combinations and each one is different and unique.
So, while one combination of swaras can give us pleasure, some other combination can evoke a totally different kind of emotion- say sadness. That is the beauty of music!
The Raga system in Indian Classical Music is special not just because it is unique but also because each raga is known to evoke certain moods and emotions.
We have had composers who have understood this fact and have given us some immortal compositions. But still..I feel no composer in film music has understood, applied and executed this well than ILaiyaraaja.
He treats each swara and raga as his own child and fondles them.
But I feel, he also considers us as his children and treats us with Vaatsalyam.
Listen to his immortal compositions.
Don’t feel the tender loving care?
Don’t we feel the affection?
Don’t we feel the love?
Today’s composition is doubly special and you will soon know the reason.
This song is based on Shankarabharanam.
Shankarabharanam is one of the oldest ragas and is widely used in all major form of music.
It forms the major diatonic scale or the C Major in Western music.
It is called as Bilawal in Hindustani system and all the swaras used in this ragas are known by the word ‘shudhdh’(meaning pure).
It is called as ‘Pazhampanjuram’ in Tamizh PaN.
It is a very divine raga. It appeals to the senses and evokes a mood of sublimity. That is why it is considered to be the most superior amongst all ragas.
In Carnatic system, it is the 29th melakarta and has the following structure:
Sa ri2 ga3 ma1 pa dha2 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha2 pa ma1 ga3 ri2 sa.
The pratimadhayama counterpart of Shankarabharanam is Kalyani but there is a world of difference between the two ragas in the way they are sung. There are some special prayogas in both the ragas that make them distinct.
For example, ‘ga’ is a flat swara in Shankarabharanam and this itself gives a very soothing effect.There is minimum oscillation of ‘ni’ as well.
This is balanced by the strong oscillation of ‘ri’ and ‘dha’.
Therefore it is a raga that is calm and sedate but at the same time majestic too..
It is because of this reason that Neelambari, a raga derived from Shankarabharanam is widely used in lullabies.
As a matter of fact, Shankarabharanam itself has contours of lullabies.
And Raaja has exploited this fact well in many compositions- a classic example being ‘Poove iLaiya poove’.
Today’s composition also has shades of a classic lullaby.
The composition is ‘Sandhanamittu sadhiraadum mottu’ from ‘Rusi kaNda poonai’(1980).
The prelude itself brings a sense of calmness and sedateness.
The (electric) violin is lucid as the flute blossoms. The violin then glides adding more sangatis and the flute responds with equal flair. In fact, the Flute just repeats what the violin says and there lies the whole beauty. The surprise element is the piano base that make our hearts flutter. The stringed instrument then takes over and we can easily visualize a child prancing in front of us. The tune of the Pallavi now takes shape.
He teaches a lesson or two(as always) to all aspiring music composers on how a prelude should lead us to the Pallavi.
The percussion (tabla) makes an appearance now just towards the end of the Pallavi and that takes me to the Laya Raja aspect in this composition.
The composition follows the simple 8-beat cycle but let us see how he has beautifully used the tabla in line with the theme of the song and the tune.
As I mentioned, the Tabla appears towards the end of the prelude and it repeats the pattern played by the stringed instrument:
Ta – dhi-.
A simple pattern ‘ta ka dhi mi’ where only the first and the third syllables are played.
As the Pallavi starts the Tabla remains silent until the 5th beat. Thereafter, it plays only the first syllable ‘Ta’until the 8th beat where it plays the first and the third syllable(ta dhi).When the Pallavi is rendered the second time, the Tabla starts right from the first beat , again playing only the first syllable until the eighth syllable where it plays the first and the third syllable.
If we assume that this will be the pattern throughout, we are not genuine Raaja followers. For, all genuine followers know his propensity to spring a surprise and his fascination for trying out things differently.
The interludes that follow the ‘ta ka dhi mi’ pattern do not have any percussion instrument.
In the CharaNams, the Tabla appears only from the fourth beat-playing the first and the third syllable.The tabla continues from the second line playing only the ‘ta’ and playing the ‘ta ‘dhi’ every fourth beat.
We see this pattern in the first 6 lines(first 3 lines are repeated once).
The second part-from the 7th line ‘punnagai vizhiyil aada’ in the first charaNam and ‘kaigaLil thuzhuvum mullai’ in the second charaNam- is what makes him a Laya Raja.
The first time we hear, we expect the fourth beat to have ‘ta dhi’(despite being genuine Raaja followers!).But only the ‘ta’ is heard until the eighth beat when we hear the ‘ta dhi’ and this continues till the end of the charaNams.
When the Pallavi is rendered after the charaNams, the Tabla again joins at the 5th beat and the ‘ta dhi’ is heard at the 8th beat.
This is the pattern:
Pallavi from the time Tabla joins in the first line : ta – dhi –
Second line: ta- - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta- - - ta – dhi –
CharaNams:
First line from the time tabla joins: ta – dhi –
Second line:ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Third line: ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi – ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Fourth line: ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Fifth line: ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Sixth line: ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi – ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta – dhi –
Seventh line: ta- - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta- - - ta – dhi –
Eighth line: ta- - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta - - - ta- - - ta – dhi –
Look how a very simple ‘ta ka dhi mi’ pattern does wonders in the hands of Laya Raja.
Let us now go back to the Pallavi for the melodic and the orchestration aspects.
Only two lines but they are repeated and this itself gives a mesmerizing lullaby effect.
Both the lines have classical dignity with the voice of Suseela lending the right kind of impetus and sweetness.
The first interlude is suffused with deep colours of the raga.
It starts with the luminous bells. The single violin is intensely elegant and tantalizingly beautiful. We begin to immerse ourselves in this beauty not realizing that this is just a sample. The gait changes and three violins enter the party. The first one dazzles, the second one gives dart-like flashes and the third one captures the special fragrance of Western Classical Music.
A string of quicksilver passages arranged meticulously!
The CharNams are replete with classicism.
The first two lines are succinct and the third line in the higher octave gives radiant shades of the raga.
The lines are repeated again and the subtle sangati in the fifth line-which is a repetition of the second line- is Raaja Special.
The following lines weave well-knit patterns nourishing the already healthy child!
There is a plethora of phrases in the second interlude.
To start with we hear a synthetic blend of violins in western classical style. The Flute played with imperceptible finesse takes spiraling spins even as the violins continue in their immaculate style. Suddenly, the guitar dances with ecstasy and we see wonderful vistas. The violins wind up with a gentle flavour.
The composition is full of intricate detailing woven around gentle human emotions.
Vaatsalyam..
Is that not this composition all about?
உன்னிசை காதில் பட்டுத் தழுவும்பொழுது மலரும் மனது..
When your music enters our ears and embraces us, our minds blossom..
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
ILaiyaraaja-The Distinct Musician..
It is the City of Mythila.
Seeta is unable to take her mind off Rama. Their eyes had met just the previous day and they had fallen for each other instantaneously. Rama is about to break the bow in the main palace. But Seeta -quite unaware of the happenings in the palace – is restless. Her mind is clouded by only one thing-rather only one person.
She waits..hoping against hope that the ‘handsome man’ would certainly win her hands.
Waiting is painful.
We feel it more we expect certain things to happen..
We feel it more when we know we are in no position to control what we expect..
We feel it more when we doubt what we know..
And this happens to all of us irrespective of who we are, what we are and where we are.
But beyond this pain, there is beauty.
Kamban captures this beautiful pain.
He says,
“With her ‘life’ swinging here and there, she leaves the melting flower bed, goes towards a Lotus pond and sits on the flower bed made of ‘Chandrakantha’ stone”.
ஊசலாடு உயிரினோடும், உருகுபூம்பள்ளி நீங்கிப்
பாசிழை மகளிர் சூழப்போய், ஒரு பளிங்குமாடக்
காசில்தாமரையின் பொய்கைச் சந்திர காந்தம் ஈன்ற
சீதநீர் தெளித்த மென்பூஞ் சேக்கையை அரிதிற்ச் சேர்ந்தாள்.
She then looks at the Lotus flowers and says,’Oh..Lotus Flowers..I know you like this girl.I see the colour of his body (green) through your leaves and his eyes in you (lotus-eyes).I am happy and my worry has disappeared..but only temporarily.You have not shown me his ‘inner colour’(mind).Therefore, you are all misers..’
'பெண்ணின் உற்ற' தென்னும் பெருமையால்,அருமையான
வண்ணமும் இலைகளாலே காட்டலால் வாட்டம் தீர்ந்தேன்!
தண்ணறுங் கமலங்காள்!என் தளிர்நிறம் உண்ட கண்ணன்
உண்ணிறங் காட்டி,நீர் என் உயிர்தர உலோவினீரே!
Look how beautifully Kamban describes a girl with a restless mind. It is not just the description of the girl but rather he goes deep into her mind and brings out the feelings wonderfully.
What do we do when we are restless? Change places? And don’t we not feel the heat? And don’t the things we see that time remind us of the person we are thinking about?And don’t we also praise and then curse the things we see that time?
Here, Seeta shifts places-from a Hot Bed to a Cool Bed. She looks at Lotus and is reminded instantly of Rama. But she still doubts if he too is in love with her. Therefore, she starts cursing the flowers..
Psychoanalysis?
But History says Sigmund Freud was born in the 19th century while Kamban was born in the 9th century.
And look how beautifully everything is described..
Maybe one could call this as ‘Poetic psychoanalysis’.
At the same time, one is also awestruck by the poetic beauty!
This is what makes Kamban a distinct poet..
Getting into the skin of the character (or is it the mind?) and describe things aesthetically.
If Kamban did this poetically, ILaiyaraaja does this musically.
He understands the situation as narrated by the Director grasps it in few seconds and composes in few minutes.
One is able to understand the character (in the movie) just by listening to his music.
Like Kamban’s poetry, we are also mesmerized by the beauty of the composition.
If Kamban is a distinct poet, ILaiyaraaja is a distinct musician!
Today, let us see yet another composition of his.
The composition is ‘PalliyaRaikkuL..’ from Bala Nagamma(1981).
The entire song is visualized by the villain.That is it is his imagination.
The Villain-a magician- takes the heroine as his captive and wants her to be his ‘wife’ while she is unrelenting.She is also protected by the Goddess of Snakes.The Villain in a kind of drunken state goes to sleep and the heroine comes in his dreams and sings.
The Maestro’s brilliance is shown (yet again) here.
The composition is erotic but at the same time we do not feel the Heroine’s passion (unlike say a song like ‘En degam’ or ‘Nila Kayudhu’).
The rather unusual and different prelude itself speaks volumes. Let us see this a little later.
The composition is based on Vakulabharanam.
Vakulabharanam is the 14th melakartha and its structure is
sa ri1 ga3 ma1 pa dha1 ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 dha1 pa ma1 ga3 ri1 sa.
The meaning of Vakulabharanam is- ‘decorated with the Vakula flower’.
Vakulam is the name of a flower also called as ‘magizhampoo’ in tamizh. This flower is known for its special fragrance.
This Raga is also unique and is very fragrant.
It has an intrinsic Arabic quality and flavour.
Let us look at the composition.
As I said, the prelude is very different.
The guitar strums.The Trumpet tweets. Suddenly ,we are reeled in by the violin. Unexpected Vistas..Musical glissades!
Pure Spanish music in full flow.
The sounds coalesce and we see the grandeur of the raga.
The Pallavi starts with the succulent tone of Uma Ramanan.
The first line is luminous with the dense bass guitar following it very closely. The second and the third lines-‘Ennai Vida innoruththi yen’ and ‘Ennidaththil aththanaiyum thaen’- give delightful sketches while the ending-‘En Rassa’ and ‘Poovo Ponno Yaaro Naano’ is gripping.
The first interlude has a delectable layout.
The Bass Guitar twinges and there is a beautiful pause. The percussion continues with gusto. The Bass Guitar now cruises easily and is joined by a host of Arabic instruments. The pattern of the beats change now -with stress on the first and the third beat. It is lucid and cohesive with the Bass Flute galvanizing us.
The CharaNam brims with beauteous phrases.
The gait becomes slow as if they are under a spell (remember..the villain is a magician).
The first line is mesmerizing and is encrusted with the Arabic instrument.
The second line is fluid.
The gait changes again in the following lines as they wend and bend.
The second interlude is like an intertwined garland.
The Guitar starts with a flourish.
It is elastic.
It is profound.
We see the glowing threads.It depicts the vast spectrum of moods.
The mellifluous Arabian instruments then take over carefully guiding the guitar.
The third interlude is meticulously arranged with beguiling layers of rhythmic patterns.
The beats of the Melody-Rhythm ensemble are:
1. Ta - - Ta - - Ta - - - Ta – Ta - -
that is only the 1st, 4th, 7th,11th and the 13th beats are played.
This pattern continues 5 times with the strings in the background..
We hear only the tuned percussion in the following patterns:
2.Only the even beats are played now: - ka – ka – ka - ka
3.The next pattern is : Ta – Ta - (12 times-played twice)followed by ta ka ta ka dhi mi ta ka twice in ‘mel kaalam’ (faster mode).
The first part (ta ka) is played in ‘Usi’ that is only the odd beats (ka) are played.
This pattern is played twice.
Note that the previous pattern (2.) has only the even beats while the next one has only the odd beats.
4. The next pattern is ta ka dhi mi four times with only the ‘ta’ and ‘dhi’ played in the fourth time(twice).
5.Fourth pattern –ta ka dhi mi ta – dhi mi (4 times)
6.The last pattern-ta ka dhi mi (4 times) followed by ta - - -.
It unravels the wonders of the raga and the tala beautifully..
It captures the entire gamut of human emotions..
It takes us to an ethereal world..
Now, who is the real magician?
உன் இசை அத்தனையும் தேன்..
Your music is full of honey..
Seeta is unable to take her mind off Rama. Their eyes had met just the previous day and they had fallen for each other instantaneously. Rama is about to break the bow in the main palace. But Seeta -quite unaware of the happenings in the palace – is restless. Her mind is clouded by only one thing-rather only one person.
She waits..hoping against hope that the ‘handsome man’ would certainly win her hands.
Waiting is painful.
We feel it more we expect certain things to happen..
We feel it more when we know we are in no position to control what we expect..
We feel it more when we doubt what we know..
And this happens to all of us irrespective of who we are, what we are and where we are.
But beyond this pain, there is beauty.
Kamban captures this beautiful pain.
He says,
“With her ‘life’ swinging here and there, she leaves the melting flower bed, goes towards a Lotus pond and sits on the flower bed made of ‘Chandrakantha’ stone”.
ஊசலாடு உயிரினோடும், உருகுபூம்பள்ளி நீங்கிப்
பாசிழை மகளிர் சூழப்போய், ஒரு பளிங்குமாடக்
காசில்தாமரையின் பொய்கைச் சந்திர காந்தம் ஈன்ற
சீதநீர் தெளித்த மென்பூஞ் சேக்கையை அரிதிற்ச் சேர்ந்தாள்.
She then looks at the Lotus flowers and says,’Oh..Lotus Flowers..I know you like this girl.I see the colour of his body (green) through your leaves and his eyes in you (lotus-eyes).I am happy and my worry has disappeared..but only temporarily.You have not shown me his ‘inner colour’(mind).Therefore, you are all misers..’
'பெண்ணின் உற்ற' தென்னும் பெருமையால்,அருமையான
வண்ணமும் இலைகளாலே காட்டலால் வாட்டம் தீர்ந்தேன்!
தண்ணறுங் கமலங்காள்!என் தளிர்நிறம் உண்ட கண்ணன்
உண்ணிறங் காட்டி,நீர் என் உயிர்தர உலோவினீரே!
Look how beautifully Kamban describes a girl with a restless mind. It is not just the description of the girl but rather he goes deep into her mind and brings out the feelings wonderfully.
What do we do when we are restless? Change places? And don’t we not feel the heat? And don’t the things we see that time remind us of the person we are thinking about?And don’t we also praise and then curse the things we see that time?
Here, Seeta shifts places-from a Hot Bed to a Cool Bed. She looks at Lotus and is reminded instantly of Rama. But she still doubts if he too is in love with her. Therefore, she starts cursing the flowers..
Psychoanalysis?
But History says Sigmund Freud was born in the 19th century while Kamban was born in the 9th century.
And look how beautifully everything is described..
Maybe one could call this as ‘Poetic psychoanalysis’.
At the same time, one is also awestruck by the poetic beauty!
This is what makes Kamban a distinct poet..
Getting into the skin of the character (or is it the mind?) and describe things aesthetically.
If Kamban did this poetically, ILaiyaraaja does this musically.
He understands the situation as narrated by the Director grasps it in few seconds and composes in few minutes.
One is able to understand the character (in the movie) just by listening to his music.
Like Kamban’s poetry, we are also mesmerized by the beauty of the composition.
If Kamban is a distinct poet, ILaiyaraaja is a distinct musician!
Today, let us see yet another composition of his.
The composition is ‘PalliyaRaikkuL..’ from Bala Nagamma(1981).
The entire song is visualized by the villain.That is it is his imagination.
The Villain-a magician- takes the heroine as his captive and wants her to be his ‘wife’ while she is unrelenting.She is also protected by the Goddess of Snakes.The Villain in a kind of drunken state goes to sleep and the heroine comes in his dreams and sings.
The Maestro’s brilliance is shown (yet again) here.
The composition is erotic but at the same time we do not feel the Heroine’s passion (unlike say a song like ‘En degam’ or ‘Nila Kayudhu’).
The rather unusual and different prelude itself speaks volumes. Let us see this a little later.
The composition is based on Vakulabharanam.
Vakulabharanam is the 14th melakartha and its structure is
sa ri1 ga3 ma1 pa dha1 ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 dha1 pa ma1 ga3 ri1 sa.
The meaning of Vakulabharanam is- ‘decorated with the Vakula flower’.
Vakulam is the name of a flower also called as ‘magizhampoo’ in tamizh. This flower is known for its special fragrance.
This Raga is also unique and is very fragrant.
It has an intrinsic Arabic quality and flavour.
Let us look at the composition.
As I said, the prelude is very different.
The guitar strums.The Trumpet tweets. Suddenly ,we are reeled in by the violin. Unexpected Vistas..Musical glissades!
Pure Spanish music in full flow.
The sounds coalesce and we see the grandeur of the raga.
The Pallavi starts with the succulent tone of Uma Ramanan.
The first line is luminous with the dense bass guitar following it very closely. The second and the third lines-‘Ennai Vida innoruththi yen’ and ‘Ennidaththil aththanaiyum thaen’- give delightful sketches while the ending-‘En Rassa’ and ‘Poovo Ponno Yaaro Naano’ is gripping.
The first interlude has a delectable layout.
The Bass Guitar twinges and there is a beautiful pause. The percussion continues with gusto. The Bass Guitar now cruises easily and is joined by a host of Arabic instruments. The pattern of the beats change now -with stress on the first and the third beat. It is lucid and cohesive with the Bass Flute galvanizing us.
The CharaNam brims with beauteous phrases.
The gait becomes slow as if they are under a spell (remember..the villain is a magician).
The first line is mesmerizing and is encrusted with the Arabic instrument.
The second line is fluid.
The gait changes again in the following lines as they wend and bend.
The second interlude is like an intertwined garland.
The Guitar starts with a flourish.
It is elastic.
It is profound.
We see the glowing threads.It depicts the vast spectrum of moods.
The mellifluous Arabian instruments then take over carefully guiding the guitar.
The third interlude is meticulously arranged with beguiling layers of rhythmic patterns.
The beats of the Melody-Rhythm ensemble are:
1. Ta - - Ta - - Ta - - - Ta – Ta - -
that is only the 1st, 4th, 7th,11th and the 13th beats are played.
This pattern continues 5 times with the strings in the background..
We hear only the tuned percussion in the following patterns:
2.Only the even beats are played now: - ka – ka – ka - ka
3.The next pattern is : Ta – Ta - (12 times-played twice)followed by ta ka ta ka dhi mi ta ka twice in ‘mel kaalam’ (faster mode).
The first part (ta ka) is played in ‘Usi’ that is only the odd beats (ka) are played.
This pattern is played twice.
Note that the previous pattern (2.) has only the even beats while the next one has only the odd beats.
4. The next pattern is ta ka dhi mi four times with only the ‘ta’ and ‘dhi’ played in the fourth time(twice).
5.Fourth pattern –ta ka dhi mi ta – dhi mi (4 times)
6.The last pattern-ta ka dhi mi (4 times) followed by ta - - -.
It unravels the wonders of the raga and the tala beautifully..
It captures the entire gamut of human emotions..
It takes us to an ethereal world..
Now, who is the real magician?
உன் இசை அத்தனையும் தேன்..
Your music is full of honey..
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