ILaiyaraaja – Musician with a Desire

 

Is longing for something bad?

If we long for something or yearn for somebody, we become obsessed with that thought and we set aside everything in life focussing only on one thing, which seriously impacts our life itself.

So, is it good or bad?

Before we sit on the Judge’s seat, let us look at something.

Here is a girl who pines for a man and in the process goes to an extreme. Who that man is and what that extreme is, will be known in a bit. First, the verse:

 

மச்சு அணி மாட மதிள் அரங்கர் வாமனனார்,

பச்சைப் பசுந்தேவர் தாம் பண்டு நீர் ஏற்ற

பிச்சைக் குறையா ஆகி, என்னுடைய பெய்வளை மேல்

இச்சை உடையரேல் இத்தெருவே போதாரே?

 

The one who lives in the place called Srirangam- which is full of decorated walls- once took the form of a dwarf , went to an Emperor and asked for alms. Even after getting the entire Universe as a ‘gift’, He was probably not happy. But wouldn’t his longing be fulfilled if he looks at my bangles and therefore wouldn’t He just pass through this street(where I am standing right now)?

If by now you haven’t guessed who that ‘she’ is, let me tell you that her name is AandaaL and that this is from her immortal work called ‘Naacchiyaar Thirumozhi’.

At the surface, the verse may not convey much except for the rhyming words. But scratch the surface and meanings- esoteric, poetic and philosophical- will gush out just like water let out from a dam.

First- the contrasts.

He is rich as the place where He lives is surrounded by huge and beautiful walls. At the same time, He went for ‘begging’ as a dwarf. Here too there is a contrast- High walls/Dwarf/

Second- psychology.

It is she who longs for Him and yet she imagines and believes that it is He who longs for her.

Third- Poetic imagination.

This requires no explanation. Nor do other elements because of reasons that are obvious.

So, is longing good or bad?

A true artiste (by ‘artiste’, I mean one who looks at the world with an artistic eye) longs for beauty. Beauty in whatever he or she does; beauty in the world; beauty in thoughts.

Example : AandaaL

Example : AandaaL’s Ranganatha

Example : ILaiyaraaja.

While I have already given explanation for the first two, I would refrain from doing it for the third because I have done it innumerable times here. Therefore, let me straightaway go to explaining yet another composition of his.

What strikes one the moment one listens to ‘KaNNa Varuvaaya’ (Manadhil Urudhi VeNdum – 1987) is the hidden silence. If silence itself is beautiful, imagine how beautiful hidden silence could be. There is that sense of poignancy too which in a way is intrinsic in the raga called Gowrimanohari.

This raga is sandwiched between Kharaharapriya and KiravaNi-two ragas with contrasting emotions- but is unique and has a charm of its own. By the way, some classify ‘KaNNa Varuvaaya’ under Patdeep- supposedly the Hindustani counterpart of Gowrimanohari- but I feel it is wrong because the former has only 5 swaras in the aroh while the latter has all the seven both in the aroh and avaroh and the fact that this composition too has the ‘ri’ and ‘dha’ in the aroh(and yes, in the avaroh), rules out the Hindustani raag.

I was talking about the ‘silence’ and ‘poignancy’. The composition starts with the humming of the chorus which can be called tenebrous. One gets to see the lambent light when the keys enter and play ‘ta ka dhi mi/ ta ka’. But the mystic feeling is accentuated by the single- stringed instrument which follows and the subtle flute which ‘sings’ along with the chorus. The tabla trots up and down in tisram playing ‘ta ki ta’ eight times and the Pallavi begins.

The Pallavi in the voice of Chitra is marked by the mid-octave swaras to start with, but suddenly there is a surge. In the second line, the higher-octave ‘Ri’ and the upper ‘Sa’( twice ) appear in the second phrase- mannan- showing the creative genius of the composer. But even this is nothing when compared to the last line in which the lower ‘ni’ follows the mid-octave ‘ri’ (maalai malarcholai) and when the upper ‘Ri’ appears immediately after the mid-octave ‘ri’(nadhiyoram) which is followed by the upper ‘Ma’ and a slide-Ga Ri Sa ni dha pa ma- and this in my view, is simply magical.

What is also magical is the first interlude. If the bell sound being followed by the strings-which give the contours of WCM- shows one kind of contrast, the veena and the strings beguile us with a different kind of contrast. The strings play in higher-octave with flourish with two different sets playing ‘second fiddle’ in different octaves. Layers?

The percussion stops now letting the flute vivify the atmosphere with the strings providing the contrast yet again.

The voice of Yesudas starts the first CharaNam which yet again has different permutations and combinations of the swaras in Gowrimanohari, with the higher-octave swaras being juxtaposed with that of the mid-octave swaras and finally ending with the signature ‘Ga Ri Sa ni dha pa’. But this is just theory and is of academic interest. The entire CharaNam conveys love, separation, longing, and yearning.

As I keep saying, raga and swaras are just tools to convey and invoke the emotions. A composition goes much beyond these, a fact proved yet again here.

The solo-violin pines. The group of strings responds. The solo-violin pines again. The group of strings responds again. This interplay of emotions happens in the beginning of the second interlude and this segment goes sans percussion, adding to the feelings.

The chorus continues and is backed only by the single-stringed instrument making it tantalisingly beautiful. The percussion says ‘I can wait no longer’ and backs the veena and the metallic western instrument which alternate between each other even as the chorus continues its journey. There is brief silence yet again with the veena scything through the silence in its inimitable style and the strings responding in kind.

The second CharaNam is different from that of the first CharaNam in terms of the gait and in terms of the combination of swaras. It goes in the next speed and each line is divided into three 4s-ta ka dhi mi/ta ka dhi mi/ta ka dhi mi. The first two lines go ascending while the next two lines go descending. If one sees the contrast again here between the first two lines and the next two lines, one can see yet another contrast in the structure of the second set(third and fourth lines) with the first half sliding from the upper Sa and the second half sliding from the upper Ga. It reaches a crescendo in the end.

Is longing full of contrasts?

Then, is it good or bad?

AaNdaaL, ILaiyaraaja and Ranganatha might give an answer.

Maybe, they may not…

ILaiyaraaja- The Adorable Musican

 

What makes certain people or certain things likable?

And what role does subjectivity play in this?

Let me park these questions for a while and take you all through something.

A young girl decorates the streets with fine white sand. She then lights a fire- literally and figuratively from a bundle of sticks shorn of thorns and invokes the God of Love- Kaamadeva a.k.a Manmatha and makes a request:

‘’Oh Manmatha. Brace your bow with honey-filled flowers, mentally writing the name ‘the ocean hued one’, and aim at me so that I unite with the One who killed the Demon in the form a bird, by tearing its beak’’.

 

வெள்ளை நுண்மணற்கொண்டு தெருவணிந்து வெள்வரைப் பதன்முன்னம் துறை படிந்து

முள்ளுமில்லாச் சுள்ளி எரிமடுத்து முயன்றுன்னை நோற்கின்றேன் காமதேவா

கள்ளவிழ் பூங்கணை தொடுத்துக் கொண்டு கடல் வண்ணன் என்பதோர் பேர் எழுதி

புள்ளினை வாய் பிளந்தான் என்பதோர் இலக்கினில் புக என்னை எய்கிற்றியே.

Here is a young girl just around 13, who after having decided that the Lord is her lover and that He will be her husband, invokes the God of Love to help her in her mission. Forgetting the mystical part, look at the way the poem sounds. White stands for purity. So does a thorn less faggot. So does fire. So do flowers. So does the ocean. Using all these in a single verse is called poetic beauty. But there is more too. Even if one has all the positives in a poem, it is the contrast which gives it that sheen. And this appears in the last line- ‘The One who tore the beaks of the Demon who was in the form of a bird’. See the line before that- Honeyed flowers- and you will know what kind of beauty this contrast offers!

This is precisely the reason for AaNdaaL, who incidentally composed 143 verses, is liked by many even after 1300 years!

Is this subjective or objective?

Before one breaks his/her head yet again in finding an answer, let us look at a gentleman who after composing 6000+ songs, is liked by many even after 46 years, which might sound too less compared to 1300 years but will sound huge when one takes into account many other factors, period being the major one.

Why don’t we look at yet another composition of his today and see how it sounds as likable as the poems of ‘Choodi Koduththa ChudaRkodi’?

‘Meenkodi Theril Manmatha Raajan’ from ‘Karumbu Vil’(1980) shimmers with exquisite beauty not least because of the raga it is based on.

Not many ragas evoke a sense of love and romance just by mentioning the name. In fact, the beauty of Mohanam lies as much in its name as in its sound. That is why, it is found in other forms of music, say, the South East Asian and Western Classical, Jazz and Blues as a scale. The five notes – sa ri2 ga3 pa dha2- give a special colour even when rendered plainly. One can then imagine the kind of feelings and emotions it would give if these notes were oscillated. It is not without any reason that Tyagaraja called Rama ‘Mohana Rama’ and that one of the names of Krishna happens to be ‘Mohanan’.

If I say that ILaiyaraaja has played around in this raga like no other film music composer has done, I will not be exaggerating. So much so that he has never hesitated to take many liberties with this raga by gently and brilliantly introducing some alien notes, enhancing the mood of the composition in the process.

However, in ‘Meenkodi Theril’, he chose not to do it. On the other hand, he used the appropriate swara combinations giving subtle oscillations of swaras wherever required, at the same time not making it sound too classical and most importantly used some beautiful instruments in the orchestration. What one gets to see and hear is Mohanam in its pristine beautiful form.

The song opens with a kind of mystical sound. Even as one is shaken up by this sound, the bass sound from yet another instrument appears like a rapier cut in chatushram and this alone is enough to give that spark. The spark becomes a huge musical fire, a kind of fire which is harmless and is a spectacle to watch.

What happen are many things. One, the chorus voice in pure Mohanam. Two, a kind of ‘kolaattam’ in the background. Three, the two sets of percussion which alternate with each other, with the first one playing only the first syllable-ta- and leaving the other 3 blank and the second one playing ‘ta – dhi mi’ and producing different kinds of sounds. Four, the humble and subtle bass guitar playing with a touch of nonchalance. Five, the sound of ankle bells which appears after every second beat.

As if to show the auspiciousness of the occasion, the Shehnai unfolds with great zeal and gives a sketch of Mohanam in its inimitable style. The santoor pitches in towards the end and guides us to the Pallavi.

The Pallavi starts in the voice of Yesudass. One cannot afford to miss the subtlety here as well. The first line has no percussion when it is rendered the first time, though the time signature remains the same. The percussion appears the moment the first line is rendered again and follows the same pattern as that of the Pallavi. The entire Pallavi gives a soothing touch not least because of the structure of the swaras and the rhythmic pattern. The descending swaras at the end- Sadhapa/dhapaga/pagari/garisa- shows the kind of grip the composer has on this raga.

The vivacity of the guitar in the beginning of the first interlude is striking. It just plays a few notes of Mohanam and that too without any oscillation and yet it makes us sway.  The chorus appears again and we continue to sway with the musical elegance. After a guitar melody which is full of grace, the flute enters with an ebullient swirl and goes around playfully enveloping us with a spiritual fragrance. It is left to the santoor again to complete the task and it does it effectively and efficiently, bespattering the swaras with a grin.

Without a trace of doubt, it is the rhythmic pattern- about which I have already written earlier- which is the leitmotif of this composition. In a way, it even defines this composition.

Now, the CharaNam starts sans percussion in the first line a la Pallavi, though there is that subtle bass guitar. The percussion-which of course follows the same rhythmic pattern- appears after the first few phrases, but it is the santoor which appears between the lines, that steals the show. The litany of swaras played with coherency and fluency, lights up the lines.

We are in for some abundant melodic phrases in the second interlude. The group of Shehnais play an amazing melody in higher-octave which is hauntingly charming. Suddenly and from nowhere appears that long Hindustani flute. Playing with alluring depth and with felicity, it goes deep inside the soul. The chorus takes over and sings in higher-octave showing us a beauteous bride.

A bride on a white sand who is as likable as the musician with the trademark Harmonium!

 

 

ILaiyaraaja – The Ultra-fine Musician

 

What distinguishes a normal life from that of a beautiful life is something called subtlety. If one is able to appreciate the nuances in each and everything in nature, his/her life acquires new meanings. Meanings which cannot be expressed in words and which can only be felt and experienced. Such people see new things in old things and older things in new things. They not only look for details within details but also know how to express what they see and what they feel. Aesthetics is a way of life for these people. And this gets reflected in their works.

AaNdaL is a classic example. Yes, she was a Bhakti poet who was truly in love with Krishna. But she also loved nature and was an expert in human psychology. Her poems explored Bhakti, Nature and Human behaviour in the broadest sense minutely.

Here is one sample:

கீசு கீசு என்றெங்கும் ஆனைச் சாத்தன் கலந்து

பேசின பேச்சரவம் கேட்டிலையோ பேய்ப்பெண்ணே

வாச நறுங்குழல் ஆய்ச்சியர் மத்தினால்

ஓசைப்படுத்த தயிரரவம் கேட்டிலையோ?

நாயகப் பெண்பிள்ளாய்! நாராயணன் மூர்த்தி

கேசவனைப் பாடவும் நீ கேட்டே கிடத்தியோ

தேசமுடையாய் திறவேலோர் எம்பாவாய்.

 

In the poem under reference- Keesu KeesenRu- she describes things around her and uses these to wake he friend up. This ‘waking up’ and the ‘friend’ are esoteric and therefore are better left alone here as the focus now is on her aesthetic sense and her propensity to relate things around us to the Divine.

She first talks about the birds. ‘Aanaichaatthan' is a species of birds found in villages in South Tamizh Nadu. These birds are also called ‘Bharadhwaja pakshi’. She hears their sound at dawn and tells her friend, ‘Can’t you hear their sound?’ But what is to be noted here is that she refrains from calling it a ‘bird song’. She calls it a ‘conversation’. Wonder how many can even view the bird calls as ‘conversations’. Most significantly, she calls it a ‘screech’!

She addresses her friend as ‘Demon girl’ here but more on this in a bit.

She then moves on to the milkmaids who churn the butter milk to get curd(here too, I am skipping the esoteric meaning). ‘Milkmaids -whose fragrance of the hair permeates the air- churn the butter milk with their bangles and chains moving here and there. Are you not able to hear this sound too?’ asks she.

‘You are lying on the bed despite all these and despite us singing paeans on NarayaNa. Come, open the door and join us’, she concludes.

Forget even the description for a moment. Just observe as to how she brings all the five senses into play here.

Sound of the birds/milkmaids/paeans on VishNu- Hearing.

Fragrance of hair- Smell.

Butter milk to Curd- Taste.

Lying down with half-eyes open- See.

Lying down cosily on the bed – Touch.

And now let us see how she addresses her friend. To start with ‘ a demon girl’. Somewhere in the middle(5^th line)- ‘Heroine/Head of all girls’. Towards the end – the lustrous/ the one with tejas!

Details..Mini details, Micro details, Nano details..

And that is AaNdaaL for you.

Needless to say, ILaiyaraaja whose love for nature, eye for detail, his proclivity for music and above all his passion, is like AandaaL.

Now, take ‘KaatRodu Kuzhalin Naadame’ from ‘Kodai Mazhai’(1987). Based on a classical raga called Simhendra Madhyamam, the composition blows, saunters, drifts and floats like a breeze. This is as far as beauty is concerned. But being a musician who believes in getting into the skin of the character, he delves deep and the output is there for all of us to see.

All that the director would have told him was this – ‘’It is a classical dance sequence’’.

The Maestro would have instantly plunged into the world of dance.

The composition starts with the akaaram of Chitra in pure Simhendramadhyamam.

The mridangam sounds just the first syllable in the beginning of the 8-beat taaLa cycle and sounds 5 micro-beats at the 4^th beat. This continues for three full cycles (one full cycle is called ‘aavartanam’ in Carnatic Music parlance). The mridangam takes over in the 4^th cycle and plays a micro-korvai for one cycle.

Dance of the taaLa!

This continues in the Pallavi too with the mridangam taking over again after the first lines is rendered and playing yet another korvai with Chitra extending the ‘naadame..’.Resonance at its best!

Not to be left behind, the flute sounds too in the segment that follows coalescing with the vocals, symbolising the wind and of course justifying the meaning- resonance of the flute along with the wind.

‘Taam taam ta ri ki ta taam’ says the mridangam in the beginning of the first interlude.

The tabla echoes it.

‘ta ka dhi mi ta ri ki ta taam’ says the mridangam.

The tabla echoes again.

The romance between the two continues again with ta ri ki ta taam/ ta ri ki ta taam , taam ta ri ki ta taam/taam ta ri ki ta taam and then finally ta ri ki ta taam.

Magic of Laya!

The magic happens again in the CharaNam with the percussion instrument playing with gusto and robustness exactly at the 4^th beat of each cycle. It is not that there is no percussion during the other beats. It is just that it makes a special sound during that beat which gives sheen to the entire CharaNam.

The VeeNa gliding with an unmatched grace and the last line being split as ta a a a/ta a a a/ ta ka dhi mi/ta ka dhi mi/ta ka dhi mi/ta ka dhi mi with the last four ta ka dhi mi s in the second half of the cycle, show the master craftsman in full cry.

The swaras drizzle from the flute. These drizzle from the veena too. But it is two different drizzles.

This happens in the beginning of the second interlude.

The two classic instruments then go on a friendly rampage twisting, twirling and then dazzling. The flute decides to go on its own now for a while even as the veeNa takes a pause. It is the turn of the latter to go on its own then. The end result- That classical raga called Simhendramadhyamam shown to us in all its splendour.

The two join together again and lead us to the second CharaNam. Now the vocals render one line lasting one cycle with the cheNda(percussion used mainly in Kerala) playing in the next cycle with the mridangam and jaalra backing it.

A litany of swaras follows making us spell bound.

Details..Mini Details.. Micro Details.. Nano Details..

I can now hear the conversations of Aanaichaattan. Can you all too?

 

 

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ILaiyaraaja - The Multi- layered Musician

What defines a complete artiste or a complete poet?

Is it the aesthetics in their works?

Is it their knowledge and command over their subject?

Is it the way they express themselves?

While all these are necessary and are intrinsic to an artiste or a poet, there is something more which gives that completeness. In fact it is this X factor which differentiates a great artiste or a poet from a normal artiste or a poet. It is this factor which shows us the difference between ordinary and extra ordinary.It is this factor which makes the works of such people eternal. This factor is the Magnitude or Extent or to put it succinctly the Dimension.

We mortals are either uni-dimensional or two-dimensional. Some among us are three-dimensional. We do not go beyond these three dimensions because of various reasons, reasons which would need a detailed analysis and therefore are not relevant here. But there are few people who go beyond these 3 dimensions. Such people are complete and the more we read or listen to their works the more we learn.

AaNdaaL was one such poet.

If her 143 verses known by the name Naachiyaar Thirumozhi combine eroticism with Bhakti, the 30 Thiruppaavais stand out for their esoteric value. What is common between these two works which of course are part of Naaliyira Divya Prabandham is the beautiful and chaste Tamizh language.

Look at this Thiruppaavai:

மாயனை மன்னு வட மதுரை மைந்தனை

தூய பெரு நீர் யமுனைத் துறைவனை

ஆயர் குலத்தினில் தோன்றும் அணி விளக்கைத்

தாயைக் குடல் விளக்கம் செய்த தாமோதரனைத்

தூயோமாய் வந்து நாம் தூ மலர்த் தூவித் தொழுது

வாயினால் பாடி, மனத்தினால் சிந்திக்க,

போய பிழையும் புகுதருவான் நின்றனவும்

தீயினில் தூசாகும்; செப்பேலோர் எம்பாவாய்.

This can be translated as- Pray with flowers with a pure heart to the One who is an epitome of Maya, the One who ruled Mathura on the banks of Yamuna, the One who was the radiant lamp of the cowherd clan and the One who cleaned the womb of His mother- with your lips singing His songs and your mind focused on Him and all your sins will disappear like cotton in the fire.

That is if we look at it at a superficial level. But a closer look suggests many things and I am giving just some of these here.

The very beginning is deep. ‘Maaya’ is illusion. Is the Divine illusory? Is it not Omni present and Omni potent? AandaL gives us the answer. Surrender yourself to that power with a focussed mind by offering flowers. Flowers here denote pure love and thinking. What will happen then? Your sins will be burnt. Generally we say it will all be washed away. But here she says it will be burnt. Can you make out the difference? If not now, think about this later.

Notice also as to how cleansing runs as the undercurrent. Look at the contrasts too. Yamuna water and the fire. And then the line on singing with your lips and thinking with your mind. How many of us are focused while we sing? And see how singing precedes thinking here.

But the clincher according to me is the use of the word Mainthan. Sometime ago, I mentioned the difference between Mainthan and Magan in Tamizh. While the latter is just a son, the former not only protects his parents but also the entire family and even the entire society. This is what AruNagirinathar meant in the line Maintha varuga Maganae ini varuga in the Thiruppugazh 'Thonthi sariya' which was quoted by me in one of my earlier posts.

AaNdaaL and AruNagirinathar- Multi Dimensional.

But this has not stopped with just the 8^th Century and the 10^th Century. Our land has seen people who are multi dimensional with that X factor because of which their works are eternal.

ILaiyaraaja is one such artiste.

Each and every composition of his has many gems hidden inside and the more one digs, the more treasure does one find. This is not just because of the kind of ragas he has used. This is not just because of the kind of instruments he has handled. This is not just because of the way the compositions are structured. No doubt it is a combination of all these but beyond this there is that X factor which makes the compositions shimmer like the full moon on a clear sky.

The special song of this special day is one such composition. What makes this more special is the fact that it is based on a raga which itself can be called Multi Dimensional because of its not following a particular structure and yet having a unique identity. And that is why it is loved alike by the commoner and the cognoscenti.

The name of this raga is Sindhu Bhairavi and the composition Oru NaaLum Unai Maravaadha from Ejamaan(1993) shows the different dimensions of this raga in a matter of 6 minutes. But most importantly it shows us an array of emotions and feelings.

Take the beginning. It starts with the chorus singing a kind of Viruththam in the higher octave to welcome the new bride and the groom. If the bells backing the chorus show us the auspiciousness of the occasion, the tune here itself sounds like the veda mantram. But it is the akaaram towards the end which is the clincher. It sounds sa pa Sa  the sequence of swaras rendered by a classical musician before the shruti alignment.

The entire chorus section goes without percussion but the fact that it follows ta ki ta/ ta ki ta/ ta ka cannot escape the ears of a trained musician or even anybody who follows music with a passion.

If the prelude sans instruments has this hidden magic, the Pallavi is no different.

The first part of the first line uses just two swaras pa and dha and yet one feels the raga. The third line goes ascending and the fourth line continues the ascent albeit touching the higher octave notes of  Sa Ri and Ga. This raga is defined by the alien notes and one of the alien notes peep in like the sun amidst white clouds in the sky when the chorus hums in the end.

This is as far as the technical details are concerned.

But look at the emotions and feelings hidden inside. One feels the yekkam, thaabam, the surrender and finally the fulfillment. The percussion taking a pause in between suggests how one should take a pause if one has to surrender himself or herself.

The conversation between the chorus and the instruments- first the strings and then the flute- itself makes the beginning of the first interlude intriguing. The first time the chorus sings, the strings reply with vigour. The second time, the vivacious flute joins the strings and we see a blend of intuition and expression.

It is veda mantram again with the strings playing in higher octave with great discernment. In fact, this piece can be called the leitmotif of the composition.

We see the ascent and the descent in the lines of the CharaNams in which the higher octave notes romance with the mid octave notes. The first part of the CharaNams shows us compassion while the second part shows Love. The third part symbolizes complete surrender.

ILaiyaraaja- the Master of all forms of music comes to the fore in the second interlude. The multiple sets of strings combine with the flute and the guitar to give us a glimpse of Western Classical Music. If this gives us serenity, the leitmotif which follows symbolising the veda mantras soak us in spirituality.

Our thoughts are organised. Our body is in alignment with the mind. We feel cleansed.We feel the inner power. We feel the inner joy. We feel the water. We feel the fire. We feel the air. We feel the earth. We feel the infinite. 

We stop feeling anything and everything.

PS: This post was written exclusively to celebrate the 6th Anniversary of the Group on FB- ILaiyaraaja- The Master and was read out to an invited audience on zoom on the 4th of October 2020 as part of Raaja Deepam -10.  

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1507214112852552
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ILaiyaraaja- The Light- Hearted Musician

While AandaaL is considered to be one of the greatest Tamizh poetesses because of her mastery over the language of tamizh, because of her poetic brilliance and above all due to her eloquence, not many have looked at the sense of humour in her verses. This could be due to various reasons which would include the presence of deep philosophical content in her verses, her spiritual inclination, her devotion, her rather different and unique life- history and most importantly our proclivity to look at Bhakti literature with a tunnel vision.

However, the fact remains that there is enough humour-laced with innocence - in a majority of her 143 verses. As a sample, read her Thiruppaavais from no.6 to no.15 in which she tries to coax her friends to join her in her mission. That ‘coaxing’ is for making them get up from the bed in the chilly mornings of Margazhi and that ‘mission’ is to pray to KrishNa.

Let us look at no.9 as a sample of samples:

தூமணி மாடத்து சுற்றும் விளக்கெரியத்

தூபம் கமழத் துயிலணைமேல் கண்வளரும்

மாமான் மகளே மணிக்கதவம் தாழ் திறவாய்

மாமீர் அவளை எழுப்பீரோ உன் மகள்தான்

ஊமையோ அன்றி செவிடோ அனந்தலோ

ஏமப் பெருந்துயில் மந்திரப் பட்டாளோ

மாமாயன் மாதவன் வைகுந்தன் என்றென்று

நாமம் பலவும் நவின்றேலோர் எம்பாவாய்.

It is a beautiful hall illuminated with lamps glowing all around with incense stick spreading the fragrance. The girl is fast asleep. AaNdaaL and her friends are knocking at the door decorated with the bells. The girl refuses to get up. In fact, she does not move an inch. After making all kinds of noises, AaNdaaL seeks the help of the girl’s mother. ‘Is your daughter dumb? Or is she deaf? Or is she the laziest? Or is it that she is cast by a spell to sleep for eternity?’

Now, look at the sarcasm in each and every line. The first 3 lines talk about the richness and comfort. But it also says, ‘Lights and Sound all around and yet..she is sleeping’. Calling a friend dumb, deaf, indolent and slothful in a normal conversation nowadays is not uncommon. But what sets this verse apart is the suddenness with which these words appear –after describing the house and the surroundings using hyperboles.

And to think that this is a Bhakti poem makes it significantly beautiful.

It also goes to show at least 2 things:

1.Even a serious thing can be said in a lighter vein without in any way diluting the seriousness.

2. We often tend to box people and their works as per our perception, thus missing the wood for the tree.

One of the many false perceptions about ILaiyaraaja is that he is very serious. But contrary to this belief, he has a huge sense of humour which even gets reflected in his works. His background scores in many comedy movies and in comedy scenes in all movies speak volumes of his humorous sense. But the fact that many of his songs too show his propensity for humour may not be known to many.

Today’s song is just one example.

‘VandaaL Mahalakshmiye’ from ‘Uyarndha ULLam’(1985) oozes with humour. What stands out is not just the humour but also the classicism inherent in the composition. It is indeed tough to say if humour runs as the undercurrent in the classical song or that classicism runs as the undercurrent in a humorous song.

One sees a host of multifarious elements in this composition based on KalyaNi in which SPB shows his multi dimensions as a singer yet again.

What strikes us first is not just the absence of a prelude but the presence of the upper ‘Sa’ in the very first phrase, an occurrence which is somewhat uncommon. The second phrase –Mahalakshmiye (Sani riSa nidhaniSa)- itself gives a sketch of KalyaNi even without using the prati madhyama. The two swaras-ri and ni- are the jeevaswaras(ones which give life) to KalyaNi.Is it for no reason that he is called the Isaignani?

There  is one more subtlety in the Pallavi. After SPB renders ‘VandaaL Mahalakshmiye’, he pauseS for half aavarAtna(taaLa cycle) and the mridangam plays ta - - -/ta ka dhi mi/ta ka dhi mi/ ta - - - giving kaarvai in the first and the fourth parts with the jaalra playing the last syllable and this pattern is repeated in the next two phrases-EndRum AvaL Aatchiye. He then renders the full line, this time adding ‘en veettil’ between the first two and the last two phrases. In tamizh there is a word called ‘kuRumbu’ which can be loosely translated as ‘mischief’ and isn’t it apparent here?

After a soulful ‘akaaram’ for 2 cycles by SPB, the Veena-VeNu starts painting the canvas with classical KalyaNi in the beginning of the first interlude.It is tender and mellow and is embroidered with simple and yet intricate patterns. The percussion too responds in style and it is a raga-laya delight. What is to be noted is silence of the percussion when the VeeNa-VeNu plays.

The Guitar enters suddenly and tee-hees in KalyaNi. Here too, the suddenness is striking. The Guitar internalises the charms of the raga and externalises it in its unique style with the Bass guitar and the Indian percussion backing it with glee. After exactly 3 aavartanaas in western KalyaNi, the Indian KalyaNi reappears with the VeeNa, Sitar and the VeNu. With smile written on their faces, these seem to tell each other- ‘We have had enough fun.Let us continue later and watch the CharaNam'.

The first half of the CharaNam is dominated yet again by the higher octave swaras(Ri, Ga and Sa) and in a way this is responsible for the mood which is further enhanced by the rendering of SPB. The composer’s grip on Laya is well-known and one gets to witness this again here as the first line of the CharaNam starts after the Samam with the last line ending in the last beat of the taaLa cycle.. The change of gait of the percussion (from the third and the fourth lines), the penultimate line going as ta ka dhi mi/ta ka dhi mi/ta ka dhi mi/ta ka dhi mi and the last line going as ta dhee ta/ ta dhee ta/ ta dhee ta/ta dhee ta in a very typical classical style are not unexpected from the master of Laya.

But what is unexpected is something in the following CharaNam.

 Before that there is the second interlude where the West and the East meet. First, the Guitar and the Bass guitar sound repetitive notes with the VeeNa giving a very brief repartee. Even as the Guitar brothers continue the same repetitive notes, the VeeNa expands the melody with gentle nobility of involvement. It is an entrancing portrayal of the hidden beauties of KalyaNi in particular and music in general.

The first part of the second CharaNam starts and is totally different from the first CharaNam. The swara ‘ma’pairs with ‘pa’ and ‘ga’ and this janta prayoga shows yet another dimension of the raga. What happens after the first two lines is what makes ‘Ee laya Raaja , a musician par excellence. The lines now are rendered in ‘usi’. Note that I am not talking about the percussion which goes normally. But the vocalist is made to render the lines giving stress in the even syllables. Honestly, I haven’t come across such an innovation even in any classical concert.

After ‘Mayanginen’, the composer and the singer decide to mesmerise us with a claasical swara korvais- an incredible array of swaras.  The group of upper ‘Sa’s following the group of mid-octave ‘sa’s, with the lower octave ‘ni.’ in the ‘sarisani.’ group which follows in the second line, the higher octave group of ‘Ri’ s following the mid-octave ‘ri’s and the ‘pa ma dha ni.’each in a group of  4 first and then in a group of 6 towards the end shows the mischievously beautiful musicality of the composer.

And the ‘mischievous musicality ‘ continues till the last line of the CharaNam where one hears the akaaram which giggles, chortles, sniggers, titters and sneers.

Humour makes a genius, a super genius-whether it is AandaaL or it is ILaiyaraaja.

Does anybody disagree?

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ILaiyaraaja - The Aesthetically Imaginative Musician

While praying to Kamadeva to unite her with the Lord, the great poetess AandaaL does something beautiful, which can be called as poetic creativity at its best. In fact, all her 143 verses in ‘Naachiyaar Thirumozhi’ and the 30 ‘Thirpuppavais’, brim with beauty and  exude creativity, and are without a trace of doubt, ‘poems with excellence’.  In the past, I have quoted her poems in this thread and the verse I am referring to now, is just a sample.

வெள்ளைநுண் மணற்கொண்டு தெருவணிந்து

வெள்வரைப்பதன்முன்னம் துறைபடிந்து

முள்ளுமில்லாச் சுள்ளி எரிமடுத்து

முயன்றுன்னை நோற்கின்றேன் காமதேவா

கள்ளவிழ் பூங்கணை தொடுத்துக்கொண்டு

கடல்வண்ணன் என்பதோர் பேரெழுதி

புள்ளினை வாய்பிளந்தானென்பதோர் இலக்கினில்

புகவென்னை எய்கிற்றியே.

Oh Kamadeva! Ardently do I penance and beseech you,

Bathing in water courses in early dawn,

Decorate beautifully the streets with fine sand-white,

And also offer twigs-sans thorns, in the kindling fire,

Oh Cupid! Throw me unto Him

By your flowery arrows with odorous pollens

With nectarine driblets, inscribing Lord’s name,

Who in hue like bluish sea

Tore the beak of ‘Baka’ the demon!

What I find the most beautiful in this poem is the fact the she is considering herself as an arrow to be ‘thrown’ along with the Manmada’s usual flowery arrows.

Ingenious innovation or artistry?

Probably both!

Needless to say all geniuses share such traits. I have been discussing and analysing nuances and intricacies in ILaiyaraaja’s compositions to show as to how enterprising and ingenious he is. No two compositions are alike and even in cases where the tune remains the same, there would be some subtle changes or variations. Most importantly, he thinks out of the box and comes up with unique designs.

Now, take ‘Poo Pookkum Maasam Thai Maasam’ from ‘Varusham 16’(1989). It is a romantic setting with the girl accepting the proposal of her lover. To start with, the composer set it in Keeravani, a deep classical raga. In a way, there is nothing surprising about this, given the fact that this raga as a scale is the harmonic minor in western classical music and therefore is widely used in film music. ILaiyaraaja himself has used this raga ubiquitously.

But as I have said before, it is the usage that matters more than the raga. All said and done, KeeravaNi has the shadja, chatushruti rishabha, saadharaNa gandhara, suddha madhyama, panchama, suddha dhaivata and kaakali nishadha –as per Indian Classical or C, D, D#, F, G, G# and B - as per Western Classical- and anybody with some background in either of these forms can combine the notes and compose (nowadays, one doesn’t need even this as there are gadgets which will take care of everything).

How does he play with these 7 notes?

Let us see that. We shall also see as to how innovatively he has used the taaLa/percussion in keeping with the situation.

Probably, we shall see the second one first. The composition is set to chatushra eka taaLa- the 4-beat cycle. He breaks this into 16 micro-beats per cycle as

ta ki ta/ ta ki ta/ ta ka (twice).

The composition starts without an instrumental prelude. In fact, it has the vocals. Suseela renders ‘Pongalu Pongalu Vaikka..’ and the chorus follows suit.

Now, ‘Pongalu Pongalu Vaikka’ is one ta ki ta/ta ki ta/ta ka. Same is the case with ‘ManjaLu ManjaLu Edu’ and ‘Thangachchi Thangachchi Thangachchi’. We feel the deep seated rhythmic impulses as the resonant percussion sounds only the first syllable and the last two syllables, backing the vocals. As the first line ends, the percussion rounds off playing in mel kaalam(faster mode).

The following line also follows the same pattern in terms of the micro- beats(ta ki ta/ ta ki ta/ta ka) but there is a difference in terms of the percussion. The percussion instruments play all the syllables. As an additional bonus, the bass guitar too joins the party.

Creatively innovative!

The Pallavi in ‘anaagata eduppu’ -starting after the ½  beat- also has a surprise in store with some unusual prayogas. It starts with ‘pa ri ga’ and touches the lower octave ‘ni’. Most importantly, it totally skips ‘ma’ and yet gives the colour of Keeravani.

The flute and the strings which appear as an interjection between the lines is as mesmeric as ever.

If this is just the introduction, how will the main piece be?

Of course with more ingenuity and artistry- says the first interlude.

With power-packed vitality, three different sets of strings play different melodies vivifying the various shades of the raga. After 2 cycles, a single violin takes over and plays with unobtrusive continuity. The group of violins join this now and then subtly and majestically. It is tantalisingly beautiful.

What follows after 6 cycles is yet another magic. The sitar along with the tabla tarang, sounds

 ta ka ta  ki  ta/ta ka ta  ki  ta/ ta ta ta ta ta ta (5/5/6) .

To a discerning ear, it sounds like a veda mantra.

The sitar and the flute are then involved in a dialogue and this musical dialogue shows the grandeur of Keeravani.

The tenderly structured CharaNams have a plenitude of graceful movements and here too, the very sparing use of ‘ma’ cannot be missed. In fact, it is almost like a pentatonic raga with even the ‘ni’ making a rare appearance. Yet, it has the KeeravaNi flavour.

The bewitchingly beautiful flute in the second interlude plays the raga with repose, beautifully aided by the tabla. It is gentle; it is delicate; it sways. The chorus renders the humming with sedateness and the strings play the minor scale like a flash with élan.

‘Creativity is piercing the mundane to find the marvellous’, said somebody.

Here, music pierces us with flowery arrows with the nectar dribbling as droplets.

Isn’t this what is called as Artistic Excellence?

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