composers of indian carnatic music after the trinity

41
Great Composers of Carnatic Music--the Trinity and After Vasan Sri The Trinity of Carnatic Music-- Thyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Shyama Sastrigal-- brought about a renaissance of music in South India with their soulful music devoted to Hindu deities. The traditions were further strengthened and developed by great composers in the 18th , 19th and 20th centuries . Their contributions are briefly discussed in this article. Their compositions are regularly sung in today's concerts, but rarely a few details are given about their lives and style of compositions or the 'baani' they propagated. Some information regarding their 'parampara' or lineage may be of great interest as well. Several distinct 'schools of music' developed which took deep roots in the 'sampradayas' [traditions] we find today.

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A detailed article on music composers of Carnatic music after the period of the Trinity with bio information, major compositions and styles of different schools that emerged [parampara] are given. A brief intro to the trinity--Thyagaraja, Muthuswamy Dikshitar and Syama Sastrigal are given. Several set of students, their contributions,certain anecdotes ,down to 20th century are written. Note that several nuances and types of singing are mentioned and specific lineage of certain teachers are mentioned. The enormous influence of modern teachers like veena Dhanammal,T Brinda, Tiger Varadachariar and others are included

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

GreatComposersofCarnaticMusic--the

TrinityandAfter

VasanSri

TheTrinityofCarnaticMusic--Thyagaraja,Muthuswami

DikshitarandShyamaSastrigal--broughtabouta

renaissanceofmusicinSouthIndiawiththeirsoulful

musicdevotedtoHindudeities.Thetraditionswere

furtherstrengthenedanddevelopedbygreatcomposers

inthe18th,19thand20thcenturies.Their

contributionsarebrieflydiscussedinthisarticle.

Theircompositionsareregularlysungintoday's

concerts,butrarelyafewdetailsaregivenabout

theirlivesandstyleofcompositionsorthe'baani'

theypropagated.Someinformationregardingtheir

'parampara'orlineagemaybeofgreatinterestas

well.Severaldistinct'schoolsofmusic'developed

whichtookdeeprootsinthe'sampradayas'[traditions]

wefindtoday.

Page 2: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Animportantfactorinthisnarrativeisthe

disseminationanddiffusionofkritisfromcomposersto

musicians.Thefamilytraditionsplayedamajorrolein

thisprocess,particularlyforthecompositionsofthe

Trinity.Somefamiliestreatedthecompositionsof

theirforefathersasheirloomsortheirprivate

propertyandwouldnotpartwiththemforothersto

renderthem.

Therewasanotherfactorinconsideringtheworkof

thesemasters.Theragasusedbythecomposersmaybe

changedduringthecourseofhandingdowntothenext

generation.

Mostmusicianshadonemainguruwhoshapedtheir

styleofsinging,butwouldhavebenefitedfromseveral

'upagurus'inearlystagesorforspecifictypeof

musictraining,suchaspallavisorpadamsorjavalis.

Thiswouldclarifymanydoubtsaboutthelineageof

manysingerswewilldiscussinthisarticle.

[Asamatterofrecord,"AllIndiaRadio"[AIR}played

Page 3: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

aprominentroleinpreservingthemusictraditions.]

TheTrinity--abriefintroduction

Letusbeginwithsomeinformationaboutthe

Trinity.Allthethreegreatcomposerswereborn

inthesametown-THIRUVARUR-famousforthe

templeof'Thyagaraja'Deityandequallyfamous

forthefestivalwithalargetemplecar.[

Thiruvarurisadifferenttownfromthevillage

Thiruvaiyaru,nearKumbakonam,whereSaint

Thygarajalived.]

ThyagarajacomposedsongsmostlyinTelugu,

andafewsongsinSanskrit.DikshitarandSyama

SastrigalbothsangmoresongsinSanskritanda

fewinTelugu.

Thyagarajacomposednearly20000songs;but

only700arewrittendown,mostlyduetothe

Page 4: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

effortsofRangaRamanujaIyengar.[Seehis

books"KrithiManiMalai'.]DikshitarandSastry

composedabout500songseach.Dikshitar's

kritiswereeasilyavailablethroughAmbi

DikshitarandlatercompiledbySundaramIyer

andDrVRaghavan.ArecentpublicationbyTK

GovindaRaoin1997isavaluablebook.

SaintThygaraja[1767-1847]wasinspiredby

PurandaraDasa,theDoyenofCarnaticmusicfrom

VijayanagaraEmpireinKarnataka.Thyagaraja

alsocomposedtwooperasormusicals:'Prahlada

bhaktavijayam'and'NaukaCharithram'.Hemight

havecomposedseveralotheroperasnotavailable

tous.

ItisimportanttorecallthatDikshitar

[1775-1835]traveledtoNorthIndianpilgrim

centersandspentafewyearsinVaranasior

Page 5: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Benaras.So,hisknowledgeofSanskritand

philosophywasdeep.Healsolearnedmuchabout

SriChakraworshipinTantricstyleandsang

manysongsonGoddessEaswari.Hewasalsoa

greatdevoteeofKarthikeyaorMurugaandhis

songscarrythesignatureormudraof

"guruguha".Dikshitar'sfatheriscreditedwith

thediscoveryoftheraga"hamsadhwani".His

navavarnakritisonKamalambalorNilotpalamba,

thedeityinThiruvarur,speakofhisdevotion

toMotherGoddess.Histeacher,Chidambaranatha

YogiinVaranasigavehimaveena.Dikshitar

preservedthisveena.

Hisendisremarkable:Hesang

"meenakshimeemudham"inPurvikalyaniwithhis

bandofdisciples,hadavisionofGoddess

Meenakshiandbreathedhislastwhentheline:

Page 6: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

"meenaLochanipapamochani'wassung.Legends

saythathewaspartiallyblindatthattime.

ShyamaSastrigal[1762-1827]wasdevotedto

hisfamilydeity'BangaruKamakshi"atTanjore

whichwaspreservedandworshipedbyhisfamily

forfivegenerations.[TheidolofKamakshiis

madeofgold(bangaru)andwasbroughtfrom

KancheepuramKamakshitemple.]

Hewasalsotaughtmusicbyonemonk,Sangita

Swamibyname.Hisfatherhadreceivedland

grantsfromtheMaharajaofTanjoreforthe

maintenanceoftempleofKamakshi.

SyamaSatrigal,attheinstanceofSarfoji,

MaharajaofTanjore,facedacontestinmusic

againstahaughtyvidwanfromBobbiliinAndhra;

beforethecontest,Sastrigalworshipedhis

Page 7: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

favoritedeityandcried"Devibrovasamaya

midhe"[Chintamaniraga].Hewonthecontest.

Hecomposedninesongs"navaratnamalai"for

MaduraiMeenakshideity.Sastrigalalsocomposed

songsfordanceteacherslikeVadivelu[and

Sivanandam,PonnaihandChinniahPillai]

['Tanjorequartet"]andintroduced'swarajati'

style.

WeknowmoreaboutSastrigalthantheother

twocomposers,becausehissonSubbaRaya

Sastrigalwashimselfagreatcomposerandleft

alineage,aswewilldiscussinsubsequent

sections.[ArecentPhDthesisofDrY

SaradhambalofTrichycontainsmuch

information.]

GreatcomposersaftertheTrinity

Page 8: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Somegeneralremarksaboutthecomposersmaybe

madeattheoutset.Almostallofthemhailed

fromTanjoreregionandsangsongsinTelugu,

SanskritandsomesongsinTamil.Theyware

directlyrelatedtheTrinityorweretheir

disciples,exceptafew,likeNayinaPillaiof

Kancheepuram.Therewereseveralgreatcomposers

in18thand19thcentfromdeepsouth,thatis

,MaduraiandThirunelveliandRamnadregions

too.

Thesecomposerswouldoftenperform

'kathakalakshepam'ormusicaldiscourseswith

theirowncompositions[hundredsofthemina

sequence]andalsocreated'Natakams'--operas

ormusicaldramas--whichwereperformedby

severaltroupesinmanyplacesintheSouth.For

instancetheopera"NandanarCharithram',the

Page 9: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

storyofNandan,adalitwhowishedtoenter

Chidambaramtemplebutcouldnotduetocaste

prohibitions,thisoriginalstoryofa

'nayanmar'fromPeriaPuranamofSekkizhar,was

writtenasanoperabyGopalaKrishnaBharati.[

Thiswasaveryfamousoperaandevenmadeinto

amoviewithMMDandapaniDesikarcastas

Nandanar.]

Duringthisperiod,manymaharajasorlocal

princessupportedthecomposerswithgiftsand

landgrantscalled'brahmadeyam":Maharajaof

Mysore,MaharajaofTravancore[Trivandrum]and

MaharajaofTanjorewereintheforefront,and

severalsmallerrajasandzamindars

[Ettayapuram,Ramanathapuram,Pudukottai,

Vijayanagaram[AP],Pithapuram{AP],

Udayarpalayamamongothers.]Someofthelater

Page 10: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

composersbecameveryaffluentandleda

comfortablelife.

Webeginour'rollcallofhonor"with

SubbarayaSastry.

SubbarayaSastry[1803-1862]

SonofShymaSatrigal,SubbarayaSatrigalhad

therarepriviligeofstudyingwithallthe

threecomposers,theTrinity.Thistraininghad

tremendousinfluenceonthekritishecomposed.

Oneofhisfamouskritis"JananiNinnuvina"in

Reethigowlamissungbyalmostallmusicians.

'NannuBrochutaku'inTodiisalsoawellknown

song.

HelatersettledinUdayarpalayamzaminasthe

courtmusician.Hetaughtseveralgreat

musiciansincludinghisadoptedsonAnnaswami

SastryandthefamousTanjoreKamakshi,mother

Page 11: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

ofVeenaTDhanammal.

OOTHUKADUVENKATASUBBAIYER[1700-1765]

HewasalsoknownasVenkataKavi.Hisperiod

slightlyprecedesthetrinity,butIincludehim

becausehebelongstothesameperiodasthe

Trinityandhehadanenormousinfluenceon

Carnaticmusic.Helivedforthemostpartin

Tanjoreunderthepatronageofthemaharaja.He

composedmorethan500songsandseveraloperas

.MostofhisworksareinTamil.

Hisfamouscomposition"ThayeYeshoda"[inTodi

]describingthepranksofLordKrishnaasaboy

ineightcharanamsisjustifiablythemost

famous.[ThereisanothersetofrepliesbyLord

Krishawith"illai,Illai"too.]Hecomposedan

entireoperaonKrishna'slife.Hissongson

Page 12: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Krishnaareallfullofdevotionalfervor,for

heconsideredLordKrishnahimselfashisguru.

Healsosang'navaavarnakritis'onDevi.Hemade

operasonRamayanaandBhagavatamandother

puranic[mythological]stories.

Histwofamouscompositionsare'alaipayudhe'

[Kaanada]and"swagathamkrishna"[mohanam],

bothrenderednicelyinrecenttimesbyDr

Jesudas.!

[ArecentbookbyNRavikiran,titled'Oothukadu

VenkataSubbaIyer--Lifeandworks"[2007]can

beconsulted.Pub:InternationalFoundationfor

CarnaticMusic.]

GopalaKrishnaBharati[1811-1896]

AgreatTamilpoetandagreatcomposer,he

wasacontemporaryofSaintThyagaraja.Bornin

Page 13: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Narimanam,helivedmostlyinMayavaram[

Mayiladuthurai.]HesangmanysongsonLord

Siva.DuringhisvisittoThiruvaiyaru,

ThygarajaaskedhimtocomposeasonginAbhogi.

Bharaticomposedthefamoussong"Sabhapathiku

verudeivam"onTillaiNataraja.

Hissongalsomentionshowthecompassionate

LordSivagave'moksha'to'puliars'ordalits.

Thisthemeseemstorecurinhisworks.His

opera"NandanarCharitram",asmentioned

earlier,basedonthestruggleofNandan,adalit

becameveryfamous,wasplayedinmanypartsof

TamilNaduandmadeintoamovie.

GopalaKrishnaBharatiwasinspiredtowrite

theseoperasbytheworkofearlierTamil

composerArunachalaKaviRayar[1711-1779]

whowroteseveralopearas,including'Rama

Page 14: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Natakam".

[Forsomeinformationonpre-trinitycomposers,

readthearticleofMVRamanaintheInternet.]

Someofhisfamoussongsare:

--"Eppovaruvaro"inJonpuri

--"guruvarulumthiruvarulum'inAbhogi,

--"innamumsandhekapadalamo"inKeeravani.

Hissongscarrythesignatureormudra"gopala

krishna".

HissongsbecameverypopularinTamilNadu

especiallywithextensiverenderingofhis

songsbyMaduraiManiIyer,amongothers.

SadashivaBrahmendrar[17thor18thCentury]

Sadashivawasagreatsaint,mysticand

Advaitin.Nooneknowshisperiodforsure--When

washeborn?Whenheattainedsamadhi?

Page 15: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Weknowthathissamadhiplaceoradhisthanam

isatNerurwherepujasareperformed.Butthere

aresomewhomaintainthathewasinterredat

Manamadurai!

Therearemanymiraclesattributedtothis

mysticwhowanderedaroundnakedmostofthe

time.[SomeanecdotesaregiveninParamahansa

Yogananda'sclassicbook"Autobiographyofa

yogi",storieshecollectedwhenhetraveledin

TamilNadu,sometimein1935.Hisbookmentions

thedateofSadashivaas1750.]

Sadashivagotmarriedatayoungage,butwhen

hiswifeattainedpuberty,hewalkedawayfrom

homeasasannyasi.Hewastalkativeand

argumentative;butwhenhisguruadmonishedhim

andaskedhimtoshutup,hesaid:"Yes,from

thismoment";heneverspokeagain.Heusedto

Page 16: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

keepastoneashispillow.Butwhensomeone

mockedathimforseekingcomfortwiththe

stonepillow,hestoppedusingeventhatstone.

HisschoolmatesatVedicschoolwere

ThiruvisanallurAyyaval[1635-1720](ofBhajana

sampradaya)andThayumanavar(1705-1742).[From

thesedates,weinferthatSadashivacouldhave

beenbornsometimearound1630oraround1705!.]

HewaspatronizedbyRajaofPudukottaiandhe

evenwroteasetofinstructionsforthekingto

follow.

Hecomposedmanysongsinsweetwords,all

embodyingbhakti,advaitaandrenunciation.He

wroteseveralbookson"Advaita".

Hisfamouscompositionsinclude:

--Pibareramarasam[Ahir-bhairavi]

--Bhajaregopalam[Hindolam]

Page 17: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

--ManasaSancharare[Sama]

--Tungatarangegange[Hamsadhwani]

--Bruhimuhundheti[Gowla]

[IhadabookonSadashiva'scompositions

compiledbySemmangudiSrinivasaIyer.Iam

unabletotraceittofinditspublisher.]

----------------------------------------------

PattinamSubramaniaIyer[1845-1902]

HewasborninThruvaiyaru,butspentmanyyears

inChennaiorChennaipattinam;hencethename

"pattinam"wasattachedtohisname.

HewasadiscipleofManambhuchavadiKrishna

IyerwhowasadirectdiscipleofThyagaraja.

ThusPatnamSubramanyaIyerisindirectlineage

ofThyagaraja.Hewasalsocalled"Chinna

Page 18: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Thygaraja"byhisadmirers.Thisissignificant

becausemanygreatmusiciansweretrainedby

SubramaniaIyeraswewilllisthere.

Hewasrecognisedeasilyasagreatcomposer

andsingerthatmanyMaharajaspatronisedhim.

ChamarajaWadiyarofMysoregavegiftsofgolden

braceletstohim.Hewasalsoacourtmusician

inTravancore[Trivandrum],Ramanathapuramand

VizianagaraminAndhra.

Severalofhiscompositionsareregularlysung

today:

--Raghuvamsasudha[kathanakudhukalam]

--Evaribodhanna[abhogi]

--mariverathikkuevarayyarama[shanmuga

priya]

--Parithanametchitepalincu[bilahari]

--varamulosagobrochuta[keeravani]

Page 19: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

--Aparathamulane[latangi]

Hisstudents,withdistinctstyle[baani]of

PattinamSubramanyaIyer,weremany:

*PoochiSrinivasaIyengar[andhisstudent

AriyakudiRamanujaIyengar]

● TigerVaradachariar[andhisstudents,MD

Ramanathan,SRamanthan,ManiKrishnaswami]

● MysoreVasudevachariar.

--------------------------------

WalajapetVenkataramanaBhagavatar

[1781-1874]

BorninAyyampettai,Bhagavatar,a

Sourashtrabrahmin,wasadirectdiscipleof

Thyagarajaandwasapersonalattendantto

Thyagarajafornearly25years.Herecorded

thesongsofthemasteronpalmleaves.His

son,KrishnaswamyBhagavataralsobecamea

Page 20: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

discipleofThyagaraja.

TheWalajapetschoolbythisbhagavatar

familydevelopedadistinctstyleof

singing.Manylatersingersandteachers

collectedThyagaraja'skritisfromWalajapet

school.MaduraiManiIyeronceremarkedthat

hecollectedseveralrarekritisfromthe

descendantsofVenkataramanaBhagavatar.

ItislikelythatNainaPillaialso

collectedthekritisfromtheWalajapet

family.

SaintThyagarajavisitedWalajapetand

stayedwithBhagavatarfamilyfor12days.

AtthetimeofmahasamadhiofThygaraja,the

saintleftallritualmaterials,idols,his

padukaandtamburawithVenkataramanawho

preservedthemforposterity.[Theserelics

Page 21: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

arekeptintheSourashtraSamajamin

Madurai.]

Bhagavatar'scompositionsinclude:

--NeeveNannu(Darbar),

--Ramaravikulasoma(Kedaragowlam).

SwatiThirunalRamaVarma(1813-1846)

AprincefromTravancorefamily,helearned

musicfromSubbaRaoofTanjoreandlater

wasinfluencedbythe'Tanjorequartet'of

Vadivelubrothers.Helearnedtocompose

varnams,padamsandtillana.Healsocomposed

twooperas:KuchelaUpakyanamandAjamila

Upakyanam.

Heruledthestatefor17years.Duringhis

rule,hegavegreatencouragementtomusic

anddance,byinvitingstalwartsfrom

Page 22: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Tanjoreregion.

Hisfamouscompositionsinclude;

--Bhavayamiraghuramam[raga-malika]

--KripayapalayaShaure[charukesi]

--Devadevakalayamidhe[mayamalavagoulam]

-------------------------------------------

HarikesanallurMuthiahBhagavatar

[1877-1945]

Agreatcomposerandteacher,hecreated20

ragasandcomposednearlyfourhundred

songsduringhislonglife.Hisforemost

disciplewasMADURAIMANIIYER.[MMI]

Hewasborninanaffluentfamilyanddid

notfacefinancialproblems.Buthechosea

verysimplelifestyle.Inlaterlife,

however,helivedinaregalstyle.

Heiscreditedwithstartingthefirst

Page 23: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

'musicschool'totrainyoungsingers,

besidesthe'gurukula'systeminwhicha

studentlivedwiththemasterforseveral

years.

HisteacherwasSambasivaIyerin

Thiruvarur,whowasadiscipleofSt

Thyagaraja..HeintroducedmanyHindusthani

ragaslikesohiniandsarangmalhar--sohini

wasadoptedas'hamsanandi'.Hepublisheda

bookin1943containing101kritisofSwati

Tirunal,collectingfromseveralsourcesin

Kerala.

Hewasalsoagreatmusicologistand

obtainedhonorarydoctor'sdegreefrom

KeralaUniversity.Hewasalsoacourt

musicianinMysore.

Someofhisfamoussongsregularlysungby

Page 24: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

manymusiciansare:

--HimagiriThanayehemalathe[suddha

danyasi]

--Sudhamayesudhanidhe[Amritavarshini]

--Bhuvaneswariyanemmemanasave[Mohana

Kalyani]

--Sarasamukhi[GowdaMalhar]

-------------------------------------

PoochiSrinivasaIyengar[1860-1919]

AnillustriousstudentofPattinam

SubramanyaIyer,hebelongedtothe

Tyagarajatradition.Hecomposedmorethan

100songs,withthemudra'srinivasa'.

HisforemoststudentwasAriyakudiRamanuja

Iyengarwhointroducedthe'kutcheri'

[concert]formatformodernaudiences.

AnotherstudentwasKoteeswaraIyer.

Page 25: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Poochiisbestknownforseveralvarnams

including"ninnukori"inMohanam.Thesong

"Sadguruswamike'composedbyhimwas

dedicatedtoSaintThyagaraja.

PalghatKVNarayanswamycarriedonthe

traditionofAriyakudi.

---------------------------

MysoreVasudevachariar[1865-1961]

AnotherillustriousstudentofPattinam

SubramaniyaIyer,Vasudevachariarwasfully

supportedbyMaharajaofMysorewhenhe

studiedwithSubramanyaIyer.Healso

learnedmusicinearlyyearsfromVeena

PadmanabhiahinMysore.Laterhebecamethe

courtmusician[AsthanaVidwan]atMysore

wherehestayedformostofhislife.He

spentthelastyearsatKalakshetra,Adyar,

Page 26: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Chennai,whereTigerVaradachariarandhis

studentMDRamanathanalsotaught.

Withmudra'vasudeva'hecomposednearly200

songs.Hissongswerealwaystouchedwith

deepnuancesofdevotionandmelodious

rhythm.Towardstheend,hewrotehisown

autobiography[inKannada,]whichisarare

practiceformusiccomposersandmusicians.

Healsocompiledhissongsinabook;

"VasudevaKirtanaManjari".

Someofhisfamoussongsarethefollowing:

--BrocheVarevarura[Kamaj]

--MamavatuSriSaraswati[Hindolam]

--Rararajeevalochana[Mohanam]

--SriChamundeswari[Bilahari]

Healsocomposedseveralvarnams,javalisand

thillanas.

Page 27: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

KaviYogiSuddhanandaBharati[1897-1990]

AfreedomfighterandacloseassociateofV

VSIyer,SSatyamurthiandBGTilak,

SuddhanandaBharatiiscreditedwith

thousandsofsongsincludingsongsfor72

melakartharagas.

HelivedclosetoNerurandusedtoprayat

thesamadhiofSadashivaBrahmendra.

HealsotooklotofinterestinChristian

teachings.

Hisepicpoem"BharataSakti"awakened

peopleforfreedomstruggle.Helivedfor

manyyearsatPuducherryincloseproximity

toSriAurobindo.Hisfamouscompositions

include:

--EppadiPadinaroAyya[bhimpilasi]

Page 28: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

--Kannaneenkanavan[kalyani]

--ThookiyaThiruvadi[sankarabharanam].

NeelakantaSivan[1839-1900]

NeelakantanlivedinPadmanabhapuram,the

oldcapitalofTravancorestate[near

Trivandrum].Heservedasvillagemagistrate

fornearly15years.Thenhehadavisionof

GoddessEaswariandwrote"Thiruneelakanta

Dasakam".Hecomposednearly2000kirtanas.

Hecalledhimself"Neelakantadasan".Then

hebecameawanderingminstrel--hevisited

severalSivatemplesandsangsongsineach

temple.Hewasevenconsideredasthe64th

'nayanmar'bysomedevotees.

Hisfamouscompositionsinclude:

--Anandanatanamaduvarthillai

Page 29: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

[purvikalyani]

--OruArumughane[reetigowlam]

--EnraikkuSivakripaivarumo[mukhari]

HisillustriousdisciplewasPapanasam

Sivan.

--------------------------------------

PapanasamSivan[1890-1973]

Hewasalsoknownas"TamilThyagaraja"--a

fittingtitleforhisprodigiousoutputof

Tamilcompositions.BorninTanjore

district,hespentsomeyearsatTrivandrum.

LaterhesettledinMylapore,Chennaiand

wasdevotedtoKapalaeeswarartemple.

HisearlysongswrittenforTamildevotional

movies,sungbyMKThyagarajaBhagavatar,D

KPattammalandMSSubbulakshmi,were

extremelypopular.Hewasoftenseenin

Page 30: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

templeprocessionsleadingthemusical

troupeinMylapore.

SomeofthegreatsongsofPapanasamSivan,

madefamousbyMaduraiManiIyer,arethe

following:

---KavavaKandha[varali]

--KanaKanKodivendum[Kambodhi]

--Ennathavamseithanai,Yasodha[Kaapi]

-------------------------------------

Othercomposersandsingers

Wemaybrieflyconsiderothercomposersand

singersindirectlyinfluencedbytheTrinity

andtheirdisciples.

KancheepuramNayinaPillaihaddistinct

styleandhewasarepositoryofhundredsof

songscomposedbyThygaraja.Hemighthave

Page 31: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

collectedthesongsfromWalajapetschool.

Thoughhislifewasshort,hedevelopeda

'NainaPillaischool'whichgrewwithhis

disciplessuchasChittorSubramaniamPillai

andhisdiscipleMaduraiSomasundaram.Naina

PillaialsotaughtTBrinda,granddaughter

ofVeenaiDhanammalhundredsofThygaraja's

kritis.DKPattammallearnedmanypallavis

fromNainaPillaiwhomsheadmiredsomuch

andemulatedhisstyle.DKPwasoften

called"PallaviPattammal".

TheinfluenceofVeenaiDhanammalis

pervasiveinCarnaticmusic.Hermother

TanjoreKamakshilearnedfromSubbaraya

Sastry,sonofSyamasastrigal.The

distinctivestyle,knownas"Dhanammal

bani",withslowrenderingwithgamakamin

Page 32: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Veena,[alsocalled"sankyamusicorrelaxed

music,]wasreverentlyfollowedbymany

singersandveenaplayers.TBrindaandT

Mukta,granddaughtersofDhanammal,and

theirsiblingsdevelopedadistinctstyle

,thoughfastpacedmusicwassoonbecoming

popular.

RamnadKrishnan(1918-1973)andTKGovinda

Raowereothersingersinfluencedby

DhanammalstylethroughTBrinda.Ramnad

Krishnanearnedtheepithet-"amusician's

musician".

RangaRamanujaIyengarwhocompiled'Krithi

ManiMalai'andalsowrote"Historyof

CarnaticMusic",wasanardentdiscipleof

Dhanammalandkeptamarblestatueofher

inhishousewhichIusedtofrequentasa

Page 33: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

boyinEgmore,Chennai.

[RRIyengarwas,however,abittercritic

ofthestylesfollowedbyothermusicians

thathekepthimselfawayfrommainstream

musicologistsandmusicians.Hespentafew

yearsatWesleyanUniversity,Connecticut,

USAasavisitingprofessor.]

TKGovindaRaowasguidedbyTBrindaand

hecompiledmanykritisofDikshitar.His

studentswereCSarojaandCLalita.

Onewouldenjoyasimilarslowmovementfrom

DwaramVenkataswamiNaidu'sstyleofviolin

performances.Dwaramspentmuchofhislife

atVizianagaramnearVizgandChennai.

Likewiseonecandistinguishthestyleof

ParurSundaramIyeronviolin.Hissweet

handlingof"manavialakincharathade"in

Page 34: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Nalinakantisetthestampofhisstyle.He

learnednuancesofHindusthanimusicfrom

suchmastersasPtVishnuDigambarPaluskar

andPtOmkarnathThakur.HisnephewMS

GopalaKrishnanwastoextendthisstyle.

-------------------------------------------

GNBalasubramanian[1910-1965],popularly

knownasGNB,cametomusicaftercollege

studies;helearnedsomeformalinstruction

atAnnamalaiandMadrasuniversities,

partlyfromTigerVaradachariar.Hetook

Ariyakudiashis'manasikaguru'.Hewould

develophisownstylewithswaraprasthara

andlaterintroduced'sruthibedam'inabig

way.Hehad250compositionstohiscredit.

HisforemostdisciplewasMLVasantakumari.

Hisstyleorbaniisbeingcarriedon

Page 35: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

byhisearnestdisciplessuchasThrisur

RamachandranandMLV'sdisciple,Sudha

Raghunathan,amongothers.

SomeofthewellknowncompositionsofGNB

arethefollowing:

--bhuvanatraya--[mohanam]

--gathivaravarama[bhairavi]

--kavalaiellam[saraswati]

--needhayaradha[andolika]

-------------------------------------

MMDandapaniDesikar(1908-1972)

HewasborninNannilamandwasa

discipleofManickaDesikarandlaterKumbakonam

RajamanickamPillai,anotedviolinistwho

accompaniedalmostallstalwartslikeAriyakudi,

MMIandGNB.Desikarcomposedseveralkritisin

TamilandusedtosingwithfervorinTamilIsai

Page 36: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

VizhainChennaieveryyear.Hehadsungafew

songsofPapanasamSivanformovies.[Alisting

ofhiscompositions,compiledbyLakshman

Regde,isavailableintheInternet.]

PeriasamyThooran[1908-1987]

composednearly700songs.Hewasbornin

Erodeandwasactiveinfreedomstruggle.He

wasaclosefriendofPalghat(KV)

NarayanaswamyandTVSankaranarayanan,

nephewofMMI.

Hisfamouscompositionsinclude:

--Kaliyugavaradan[Brindavanasaranga]

---Punniyamorukoti[Keeravani]

--Samaganapriye[AnandaBhairavi]

--Muruga,Muruga{Saveri]

--Engunaanselvenayya[Kedaram]

Page 37: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

MDRamanathan[1923-1984]

ThisillustriousstudentofTiger

Varadachariar,ateacherinKalakshetra

wherehestudiedearlier,wasagreat

musicianandalsoagiftedcomposer.He

composedmorethan200songs.Severalofhis

compositionsaresunginthepasttwo

decades.Somewererecordedinhisownbass

voice:

--Saagarasayenavibho[Bageshri]

--Dandapani[Ramapriya]

--Dharmavati[Dharmavati]

--Ennakutramseytheyno[Huseni]

--------------------------------------------

MahakaviSubramaniaBharatiar(1882-1921)

ThislistingwillbeincompleteifIdonot

mentionSubramaniaBharatiar.Besides

Page 38: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

patrioticsongs,hehadcomposedseveral

devotionalsongs.HissongonGoddess

Saraswati,popularisedbyMaduraiManiIyer,

"Vellaithamaraipooviliruppal"[bimpilasi]

hadbeenafavouriteofmanysingers.His

songsdevotedtoShaktiarefieryin

diction.DKPattammalsetthetunesfor

manyofBharatiar'ssongs.

Prologue

Iamawareoftheseriouslimitationsof

thisarticlewhichdoesnotincludeseveral

othercomposersandmusicianswithgreat

styleor'bani'oftheirown.Ihavenot

mentionedthegreateffortsofviolinists

,veenaandfluteplayersorthetalavidwans

andnadaswaravidwans.

Page 39: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

Manyofthedatesandevenyearofbirth

ofsomecomposersarenotknownwith

certainty.Muchresearchwithhistorical

primarydocumentsisrequired.

Therearemanysaintswhosecompositions

areregularlysung[forinstance,Andal's

'Thiruppavai'songs,otherAlwars,thoseof

Vallalar[RamalingaAdigal]andthoseof

Arunagirinatharandnayanmars]whichIhave

notdiscussedhere.Inmostcases,some

informationcanbegleanedfromreligious

literature.

Therearecertainstyleslikethatderived

fromdancemasters,nadaswarammasterslike

TNRajarathinamPillaiandKarukurichi

Arunachalam,andfolksongstraditions

Page 40: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

[example:siddharpadalgal]andkuravanji

formats;theseformadifferentclassof

compositionsanddeserveaseparate

article.]

Thereisaneedforreprintingorcompiling

ofseveralbookspublishedpreviouslyby

smallpublishersorselfpublishedbysome

authors.Manybooksaredifficulttogather

sinceseveralpublishershadclosedtheir

offices.

Ifthisarticlehelpsinsomewaystudents

andloversofCarnaticmusicanywhereinthe

world,Iwouldfeelamplyrewardedformy

efforts.

Note:Constructivecommentsonthisarticle

aremostwelcome.Contact:

[email protected]

Page 41: Composers of  Indian Carnatic Music after the Trinity

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