ILaiyaraaja – The Sempiternal Musician

 

Time stood still.

Time froze.

It is timeless.

Time rolls on.

Time moves.

Long time ago.

These are just some of the statements about Time. Do you see a paradox between the first three and the last three? It typifies Time. After all, Time itself is a paradox.

Rather than analysing this and questioning this, let us move on and focus on the topic. For, Time never waits for anyone!

Here is a lady who has not heard from her man for quite a while. Rather than call Time on her Love, she waits. Her friend spots the pallor and is worried. But the lady is unperturbed.

She says, “Do not worry about my pallor. It is surely not because of him, that man from that country where peacocks squawk even as they sway their long plumes, on the banks of the forest river which swells because of the heavy rains”.

கலி மழை கெழீஇய கான் யாற்று இகுகரை

ஒலி நெடும் பீலி துயல்வர இயலி,

ஆடு மயில் அகவும் நாடன் நம்மொடு

நயந்தனன் கொண்ட கேண்மை

பயந்தக்காலும் பயப்பு ஒல்லாதே.

(KuRunthogai – 264- Kapilar)

 

Rajendra Kumar · Kurunthogai 264

While the fact that she compares herself to the happily dancing peacocks cannot be missed, what should not be missed is her firm conviction – Whatever happens, my love for him will be the same!

Whether it is the 2500-year-old KuRunthogai or a 40-year-old musical piece, certain things remain the same.

Take this composition Kaalam Maaralaam from Vaazhkkai (1984). Does it not sound as fresh as a daisy after so many years and does it not make us yearn for more?

Is the reason the melody or is there something else as well? Well, it could be both.

Sounding as soft as possible, the guitar plays ‘ta ka dhi mi’ four times and one clearly hears a few swaras of Hamsadhwani. Just as the fourth ‘ta ka dhi mi’ starts, SPB enters and sings the akaaram. After one cycle, we see the entry of VaNi Jayaram, who sings the akaaram, but a melody different from that of SPB’s. Both move together and it is a counter-point in Hamsadwani. The lilting akaarams keep going around us in two concentric circles.

After a while, SPB just hums in Hamsadhwani and VaNi Jayaram responds with the same humming. What is sandwiched in between is that sound of the veeNa, subtle and nuanced! It sounds again after the humming of VaNi Jayaram, and then we are in for a surprise!

Did I say ‘surprise’? Well, can anything be a surprise if one knows this composer well?

The electric guitar plays in Hamsadhwani, but don’t we hear an alien note?

Hamsadhwani has sa ri2 ga3 pa ni3, both in ascending and descending, but there is a clear sound of the dhaivatam (dha1) too. Raga texts define this scale/raga as ‘TaraLam’, derived from the 27^th meLa, Sarasangi. Has any other composer used it? I am not sure. But this composer had used it before. Keep thinking about that song, which some people still think is based on Latangi.

In a way, TaraLam sounds like Latangi but the absence of the swara ‘ma’, gives it a uniqueness. The fact that the dhaivatam gives it a poignant flavour cannot be denied.

What cannot be denied is also the fact that there is a kind of freshness in this raga/scale.

The prelude ends with the guitar playing ‘ta ka dhi mi’ four times again in Hamsadhwani, making it a circle.

Isn’t life itself a circle?

SPB starts the Pallavi. The Master of varieties, whose other name is ILaiyaraaja, gives rest to the percussion and makes rhythm guitar the backing instrument when the first line is rendered the first time. And he also starts the composition with the descending notes (Sa ni pa ga) and then goes to the ascending notes (sa ri ga pa). If the mandra staayi (lower- octave notes) in the beginning of the next two lines, is not a surprise, the last line (after which the Pallavi starts again) is not a surprise at all. It goes ri ga pa ni (ini varum) and then Sa ni ni pa ga- ascending and descending.

Circle of life again!

Note that the entire Pallavi is in pure Hamsadhwani.

So is the first half of the first interlude. The strings sound ta ka dhi mi in mid-octave Hamsadhwani thrice with a new set of strings joining in during the third ta ka dhi mi and sounding the same in higher-octave. The last part is sounded by the keys. Vivifying the atmosphere, a set of different keys moves with agility and the veeNa responds in its own style. The electric guitar enters now and brings in the dhaivatam, transforming Hamsadhwani to TaraLam.

Gracefully transiting to the western classical style, the strings play in the higher-octave intercepted now and then by a couple of instruments that play different sets of notes (mainly descending). But it is the flute that steals the show by showing a sudden flash of light, towards the end, aided by the stringed instrument.

Don’t we see such sudden flashes of light in our life as well?

TaraLam is in full flow in the first half of the CharaNams in which the tabla sounds just the first and the third syllables (ta, dhi) with intensity and with a very subtle percussion sounding just the first syllable in the next half. It goes thus – ta – dhi - / ta - - -.

Hamsadhwani returns in the second half and a close observation suggests that the lines are the same as that of the second and third lines of the Pallavi, except that these are in the next octave.

Laya Raaja does it again in the second interlude. The Pallavi is sung again first by Vani Jayaram and then by SPB. When he finishes ‘MaaRuma’, the taLa cycle is on the third beat. The bass strings take over and play ‘ta ki ta’ for each beat and this happens seven times. The eighth time is the samam and it plays just ‘ta ki ta’ and moves away. Note that 3x8 = 24, which is divisible both by 3 and 4.

With finesse the flute goes on, interjected now and then by the electric guitar. The banter between the two is tantalisingly beautiful. The strings take over and like a clear stream, move on..

Time rolls on.

Time stands still.

Paradox? There lies the beauty of Life!

P.S. This post is written on the occasion of the 11th anniversary of the Group, 'ILaiyaraaja - The Master' on Facebook.

ILaiyaraaja- The Bewitching Musician

What determines the aesthetic sense of an individual?

First of all, what is aesthetics? Anything concerning beauty and its appreciation?

What is beauty then? Without getting into that old cliché about ‘beauty’ and the ‘beholder’, let me ask myself if the concept of beauty is subjective. Or should it be like the case of the goose and the gander?

Despite the danger of being branded as ‘subjective’, I feel there are certain things considered to be pleasing and beautiful and the more refined one is, the more he/she is able to appreciate it. That ‘refinement’ is what is called as ‘developing good tastes’.

Now the question asked in the beginning can be interpreted in two different ways-

1. How does one have aesthetic sense?

2. How do we know the person has that aesthetic sense?

Answer to (1.) is ‘a lot of factors’ and this includes genetics, upbringing, environment, exposure..

(2. ) can be answered in many ways too. ‘when the expression of a person genuinely suggests he/she is appreciative of the music being played/the artwork displayed/the poem read out..’ the person has aesthetic sense. In fact, even the way a person leads the life suggests a lot about the person’s aesthetics.

It then goes without saying that an artiste or a poet has that sense of aesthetics. Or  does it?

Since this is a slightly debatable issue, let us move on and see one very important aspect which is relevant to this post.

Though all artistes/poets are believed to be endowed with the sense of aesthetics, only in some cases do we see that sense permeate common men/women like us. So much so that even people without that ‘a’ word are able to appreciate their works. This also ends up in making the unaesthetic, aesthetic. Of course, the lucky ones who already have the aesthetic sense because of the factors mentioned in the answer to (1.), fine tune their sense while experiencing the works of such geniuses.

Without a doubt, Kamban was one such genius.

I keep quoting his verses time and again because I am enamoured of his poetic sensibilities and brilliance. In my write-up on ‘Devathai oru Devathai’ posted on the 22^nd of March, 2015 here, I quoted a verse which talks about the women of Mythila being enthralled at the sight of Rama as he goes around the city, post- the breaking of Shiva Dhanush. The verse I am quoting today is also from the same chapter but is different in the sense that it describes the condition of a particular lady (not Sita, by the way) while the previous one described about the state of women in general.

A woman with a dense and wavy hair walks like a beautiful creeper with her jewellery on the waist and the ankle bells making a musical sound. Alas! She had to be carried away by her friends.

Reason?

Let us first look at the original:

அலம்பு பாரக் குழலி ஒர் ஆயிழை
சிலம்பும் மேகலையும் ஒலி செய்திட
நலம் பெய் கொம்பின் நடந்து வந்து எய்தினாள்
புலம்பு சேடியர் கைமிசைப் போயினாள்.

The first three lines are devoted to describing the beauty of the lady. She walks with an uncontrollable excitement. The ‘sound’ from her ornaments shows this to us. But the moment she looks at Rama, she is spellbound. Unable to bear His beauty and unable to come to terms with her emotions, she faints and is carried by her friends.

Note the subtle and obvious contrasts. ‘எய்தினாள்’/ போயினாள்’(reached/went away).

‘Dense and heavy’ in the first line; ‘was carried away lightly’ in the last line. ‘Made noise’ in the second line; ‘went without a trace’ in the last line.

Aesthetics combined with Brilliance.

Kamban- Sollin Selvan.

I am sure by now some of you have guessed where I am coming to. If Kamban was ‘Sollin Selvan’, ILaiyaraaja is ‘ Isiayin Selvan’. His sense of aesthetics is apparent in the way the orchestration is done while his brilliance is seen in the way he uses a raga and a taaLa.

As I keep repeating, the greatness of a composer does not lie just in the use of a particular raga or a taaLa but in the way these are used.

Today’s song for discussion is a classic example.

‘Maan KaNden Maan KaNden’ from ‘Raja Rishi’(1985) is based on Vasanta and follows the Tisram pattern. But anybody with some knowledge in classical music can do this. Are Vasanta and Tisram alone enough to make the composition sound nice?

 How to use the swaras of the raga, where to give the essence of the raga, where to bring in akaaram, how to make instruments sound great, how to use tisram, where to use the percussion, how to divide the maatras and how to make the percussion sound the syllables…

All these determine how good the song will be and here is where that ‘a’ sense which I described in the beginning comes into picture.

Let us look into the composition and try and see how he has answered all those ‘how’ s.

The beginning itself presents and image of profundity with the chorus singing the ‘akaaram’ beguilingly backed by the piano keys and the guitar. Two different sets of swaras and yet the same ragam. In fact, in a split second, one sees the clear sketch of Vasanta on the canvas. The sharp flute continues the embellishment of Vasanta with the bass guitar moving along with it. The percussion joins only as the flute enters and plays in tisram. The frisky keys take us to the Pallavi even as the flute welcomes it.

The Pallavi - in the honey-soaked voices of Yesudass and VaNi Jayaram- is a classical flow of expression with the upper Sa dominating the first two lines and the ‘ma’ and ‘ga’- swaras that give the raga its life- appearing in the last two lines. But what makes it more aesthetic is the taaLa pattern. As mentioned earlier, the composition follows the 3-beat cycle tisram. This ‘3’ is subdivided into 6 syllables-ta ka dhi mi ta ka- and the percussion sounds the first 5 syllables -with a kaarvai  for the last syllable- for every alternate tisram. This pattern does add a beautiful shade to the entire composition though it appears only whenever the pallavi is rendered.

There are different patterns in the interlude too which we shall see as we move on.

The first interlude starts with the violin playing with an expression of spontaneity. We feel the compassion too as the group of violins respond to the solo violin. The percussion joins only after 8 tisrams. Now, the percussion sounds ‘ta’ while the rhythm guitar-which acts as percussion- sounds ‘ka dhi mi ta ka’ as the violin moves intricately with intense emotional luxuriousness drawing four lines in Vasanta. The lilting flute responds after the first and the third lines. The guitar and the keys take over briefly and playing with poise without the percussion, lead us to the first charaNam.

The CharaNams show how creative inspiration can get translated into expression.

The first part of the two lines sees the repetition of the swara ‘ma’ while the following two lines have the ‘podi sangatis’.  If the transition from the ‘sa’(mid-octave) to ‘Sa’(upper octave) in the beginning of the last two lines and the akaaram at the end descending from the upper ‘Ma’ to the ‘Sa’ covering the ‘Ga’ and ‘Ri’ in between, show us the beautiful mind, the arohaNam(sa ma ga ma dha ni Sa) appearing after the avarohaNam(sa ni dha ma ga ri) in the akaaram, show the musical mind.

And what can one say about the chorus backing the vocals in the first two lines with the ‘akaaram’, the flute playing briefly after the next two lines and the keys backing the last two lines?

This is what is called as aesthetically brilliant!

The second interlude starts with the ‘akaaram’ in the male voice with only the rhythm guitar as the percussion. Bubbling with emotional ripples, the piano keys responds to this ‘akaaram’ charting its own melody in Vasanta. After 16 tisrams, the guitar and the keys take over and move with great solicitude. What follows is a plenitude of graceful sanchaaras with chorus singing a ‘tillana’ with the keys joining in the last four phrases with infectious passion.

Enthralled by the beauty, we too fall like the lady in Mithila, but into the hands of musical angels..

Check this out on Chirbit

ILaiyaraaja-The Effulgent Sun..

‘The cuckoos get married. The peacocks dance. The bees sing a beautiful tune to wake up the royal swan which is sleeping on a bed of flowers.’

குயிலினம் வதுவை செய்யக் கொம்பிடைக் குனிக்கும் மஞ்சை,

அயில்விழி மகளிர் ஆடும் அரங்கினுக்கு அழகு செய்யப்

பயில்சிறை அரச அன்னம் பன்மலர்ப் பள்ளி நின்றும்

துயில் எழத் தும்பி காலைச் செவ்வழி முரல்வ சோலை.

This is the description of a forest in the Kosala Kingdom by Kamban. Kamban was a Master of descriptions and we have seen some very beautiful and interesting verses of ‘Kavi Chakravarti in this blog.

Look at the aforementioned verse.

How many can even imagine cuckoos getting married and peacocks dancing to celebrate the occasion? Or the bees singing a Sevvazhi paN( raga) to wake up the swan?(‘sevvazhi paN is the equivalent of the Yadukulakambodhi ragam)?

Most importantly, the verse conveys the harmony between the living creatures in the Kingdom of Kosalam.

The ability to interweave some beautiful stories in each of the verses, the choice of meaningful shimmering words, creative imagination, making the readers literally visualise the scene-these are some of the things that set Kamban apart.

That is why, his poems smile with effulgence even centuries after these have been composed.

If Kamban was an Emperor of Poetry, ILaiyaraaja is the Emperor of Film music.The works of both these geniuses shine like the effulgent sun.

What makes his compositions great is not just the choice of ragas but also the way he has handled these.

As we have been seeing in this blog, he has used very popular ragas, not so popular ragas, and relatively unknown ragas. Some of these ragas had hardly been used in film music while some had not been used even in classical music.

The song of the day falls under the former category.

The name of the raga is ‘Deva Manohari’ and the song is ‘Suga raagame’ from the film ‘Kanni Rasi’(1985).

The structure of Devamanohari is very interesting:

sa ri2 ma1 pa dha2 ni2 Sa/Sa ni2 dha2 ni2 pa ma1 ri2 sa.
If one looks at the scale, it is nothing but Madhyamavati plus ‘dha’.

However, the raga sounds different from Madhyamavati because of the way it is sung.

In fact, that is he basic difference between a scale and a raga. While the plain notes combine to give a scale, the notes are full of life in a raga.Moreover, some notes acquire special status in some ragas making the respective ragas unique.

For example, in Madhymavati, the swaras ‘ri and ‘ni’ are very special and are called as the ‘jiva swaras’. In Devamanohari, these swaras are not that special.

Devamanohari’s structure is also very similar to Narayani-the only difference being the absence of ‘ni’ in the arohaNam of the latter.

The other raga close to this is ‘MaNirangu’ whose structure is ‘sa ri ma pa ni Sa/Sa ni pa ma ga ri sa.

I have come across some sites that classify ‘Suga ragame’ under MaNirangu but I differ from this view because the ‘dha’-which is totally absent in MaNirangu- is somewhat prominent in the composition and ‘ga’ which is present in MaNirangu is not found except of course once towards the end of the pallavi.But since this appears as an accidental note and never occurs again, the composition is based on Devamanohari only and not in MaNirangu.

There are many compositions in Devamanohari in Classical music.

Some of these are- ‘Evarikai avataaram’, ‘Kanna tandri naapai’-both of Saint Tyagaraja and ‘Yaarukkuthaan theriyum’ of Gopalakrishna Bharati.

‘Sugaraagame..’ starts with the mirudangam sounding ‘ta ka dhi mi’ twice completing 8 beats. This sharp and sustained percussion sets the tone for the marvel that is to follow.The Veena plays with comely grace and it is joined by the enlivening flute after exactly 8 beats. They coalesce to present a dexterous delineation of the raga.

There is a pause for 4 beats and the Pallavi starts in a very different voice of Malaysia Vasudevan-who mimics the voice of yester-year singer and legend Chidambaram Jayaraman.

The Pallavi is lucid and is rendered with zeal by Vasudevan and VaNi Jayaram. The Veena piece that appears between the lines gives a touch of serenity.

In the first interlude, the Veena gives a brief spell of shiny phrases in the beginning.The Jalatarangam and the Tabla play with each other with glee first in different variations of 4 beats producing some colourful patterns. The flute combines with a bass instrument showing the beauteous facets of the raga. The Jalatarangam and Tabla join again continuing the colourful sequence.

The CharaNam is peppered with lovely phrases.
The first part gives succinct expressions while the second part is steeped in classical canons. The last part is scintillatingly brilliant.

The second interlude shows the nuances of the raga beautifully.

The sympathetic/resonance strings nod their heads and the flute sparkles. The chorus sings the syllables with the Tabla moving with the micro count of 6-ta ka dhi mi ta ka. This tuneful rhythmic pattern that creates kinetic images lasts for 4 cycles.The flute takes over with an aesthetic flourish.

Scintillatingly brilliant!

The second charaNam sees the original voice of Malaysia Vasudevan and a variation of the Chatusram pattern.

Suga raagams always emanate from Isai Raaja’s veena..

ILaiyaraaja- The Metaphysical Musician..

Who or what is God?

To some, it is a form. To some, it is without a form. To some it is definite. To some it is indefinite. To some it is finite. To some, it is infinite. To some it is non-existent. To some it exists in the form of Love.

Well, the argument or debate continues and will continue forever.
Whether God exists or does not exist, the very fact that there is always a debate about Him speaks volumes about Him and finally He emerges victorious.(can there be victory or defeat for God?-point to ponder).

Let us look at this verse written by Appar (also called as Thirunaavukkarasar which literally means the one who is the King of the Tongue or Words)

விரிகதிர் ஞாயிறல்லர் மதியல்லர் வேத விதியல்லர் விண்ணு நிலனுந்
திரிதரு வாயுவல்லர் செறுதீயு மல்லர் தெளிநீரு மல்லர் தெரியில்
அரிதரு கண்ணியாளை ஒருபாக மாக அருள்கார ணத்தில் வருவார்
எரியர வாரமார்பர் இமையாரு மல்லர் இமைப்பாரு மல்லர் இவரே.

viri kadhir nyaayiRallar madhiyallar vedha vidhiyallar vinnm nilanum
thiritharu vaayuvallar cheRutheeyumallar theLi neerumallar theriyil
aritharu kanniyaaLai oru baagamaaga aruL kaaNaththil varuvAr
eriyara vaara maarbar imaiyaarumallar imaippaarumallar ivare


He is not the radiant sun nor is He the moon; He does not rule the Vedas; He is not the earth, He is not the sky, He is not the wind that moves around; He is not the glowing fire nor is He the water. He- whose garland is the fierce snake, appears with His consort on one side of his body- is neither a Deva nor a man.

This is one of the beautiful verses that gives the meaning of God in just four lines.

He is not the elements, the poet conveys that He cannot be measured or defined. At the same time, He can take any form-Man or a Woman or both(in fact this particular concept or form of the Masculine and Feminine is called as the Ardhanareeshvara. He was not born. He does not die.

Divine-The one with a form and without a form.

The essence of spirituality.

ILaiyaraaja’s spiritual outlook is well-known. His compositions exude divinity.His music is an external dimension of his spirituality.

As a matter of fact, if one scratches the surface of many of his compositions, one can discover many hidden gems not just in terms of musical value but also in terms of spirituality.

On this very special day as he steps into his 70th year, I am taking up a composition of his that symbolises the Saiva Siddhanta( or the concept of Shiva).

As per Saiva Siddhanta, the Supreme in constantly involved in 5 deeds:

1.Srushti- Creation
2.Stiti- Protection
3.Tirobhava-To obscure/hide (also test)
4.Samhaara- Dissolution
5.Anugraha-To grace

The song ‘Andela Ravamidi’ from the Telugu movie ‘SwarNa Kamalam’(1988) symbolises Saiva Siddhanta.

1.Srushti-

‘My Salutation to such a Guru, who is the Supreme Being’.

The sloka gives an introspective touch and raises our level of consciousness. The raga is Lataangi whose structure is sa ri2 ga3 ma2 pa dha1 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha1 pa ma2 ga3 ri2 sa. The akaaram at the end of each phrase in the clear voice of VaNi Jayaram adds sobriety.

The veena flows like a clear stream. The tabla tarang(melodic percussion) that appears for exactly 4 beats at the end of each avartanam symbolises the smiling buds ready to blossom.

There is a pause.

It is then a panoramic sweep as the raga changes to Dharmavati-whose structure is sa ri2 ga2 ma2 pa dha2 ni3 Sa/Sa ni3 dha2 pa ma2 ga2 ri2 sa- and the TaLa pattern changes to the 3-beat cycle Tisram.

It is Creation as the sloka on Shiva is rendered with clarity and coherence by SPB and VaNi Jayaram. The sloka as well as the percussion follows ‘ta ka/ta ka dhi mi’.

The Tala pattern now changes to Chatushram as we see the beauty of Creation in the Veena that plays the silken strands of Dharmavati.

The ‘ta ta/ ta ri ki ta ta aam’ is played by the mridangam and the ghatam leading us to the Pallavi that has a ‘anaagata eduppu’ with the song starting after the Tala (at 3/4th place).

‘The melodious music from my anklets-is it from my dance steps or is it from the heightened state of my mind’?

‘Does this divine song emanate from my lips or is it just the natural flow of happiness’?

‘This is the fruition of yaagas and the yoga’.

‘PraNava Naadam- the Life’.

Though these are the words of the lyricist( Shri.Sitarama Sastry), the swara patterns themselves convey the meanings.

The entire world reverberates and jumps with joy as the flute and the veena gleefully show a myriad of melodic phrases. The violins move with delicacy and dexterity.

The solo flute shows vivid vistas and the percussion leads to the first charaNam.

Ta ta ri ki ta thom ta ka ta thom thom ta ki ta

2.Protection:

‘Ankle bells sound like the thunder and the movements are like the lightning’

‘I am like the cloud that brings the rains happily, I move like the wind’

‘It is the flow of the Ganga River, expressions like the myriad hues of the sky, True meanings to the art (of life)

‘It is the Dance of the Universe, Song of the water-falls, greenery all around. It is Parvati Devi’

The swara structure in the first line is majestic and beautiful.

The swaras amble across in the second line while the third line shows flexible movements-breezy and reposeful.

The last line shows the classical depth of the raga.

3. Tirobhava:

The chorus sings with an yearning with the sitar going around looking for answers. The search for the ‘hidden’ continues with the flute and the violins tugging at the heart strings.

4.Samhara:

The percussion plays the korvai
Ta ka ta ki ta/ ta ka ta ki ta/ ta ka dhi mi ta ka dhi mi ta ka dhi mi( twice with the one shown in bold played in ‘mel kaalam’)

Ta taangu (5)/ta ka tham(4)/ta ki ta thaam(5)/ta ka dhi mi thaam(6)/ta ka ta ki ta thaam(7)/ta ta thaam(4)/

/ta ta thaam (4)/

ta ka ta ki ta (5)/ ta ri ki ta ta ri ki ta thom (5 in keezh kaalam)/

ta ka ta ki ta(5)/ ta ri ki ta ta ri ki ta/thom (5 in keezh kaalam)/

ta ka ta ki ta(5)/ta ri ki ta ta ri ki ta thom((5 in keezh kaalam).


5.Realisation and Grace:

The glowing eyes -Na
Determination of mind- -Ma
Movement of Breath -Shi
Desire -Va
Thought -Ya

Naadam, Mantram, Stotram,Vedam, Yagyam-

Namashivaya!

At the basic level, meaning of Namashivaya
At the next level, the range of Dharmavati ragam.
At the highest level, salvation.

It is the TaaNdava, Ananda TaaNdava.
It transcends Time, Space, and Form.

It is the Ultimate Truth!

Brathuku pranavamai mrogu kadha..


PS: This is my 100th post in this Blog.I thank all the people who have been supporting and encouraging me.My aim is to make at least 500 posts and I am sure it will be possible with His blessigs!