Apogee

The mind!

One of the most enigmatic and mysterious things in the world. Conquer the mind and you will conquer the Universe. After all, aren’t these two related?

Why am I talking about this now? Though there are varied reasons, the prime one is the significance of the day. It is the 176^th aaradhana of Tyagaraja, one of the most prolific and genius composers the world has ever seen and whose name itself is enough to define music. Let me give just two samples of his genius.

The 7^th CharaNam of the first Pancharatna(these 5 kritis are considered to be the pinnacle) goes something like this – Omkaara panjara keerapura- which means – You are the parrot who lives in the cage of PraNavaa-, the swaras in ‘Omkaara’, being ‘Sa..sa…..’, that is, the upper Sa for Om and then just the sustenance on the lower sa, giving the sound of the PraNavaa(Om).

In the 1^st CharaNam of the 5^th Pancharatna, which goes like ‘Saama gaana lola’, he has composed in such a way that it just sounds like the Saama veda, the veda known for its musicality.

I know these are some advanced details and I have tried to simplify it as much as possible so that the intricacies are brought to light and the nuances are appreciated.

In the beginning, I spoke about the mind. Let us see a kriti of his which was used by ILaiyaraaja- who happens to be an ardent devotee of Tyagaraja. In fact, this kriti was used by him twice in two different movies. The one I am posting now is in the voice of Yesudass and Janaki from ‘Isai Paadum ThendRal’(1986).

For a change, I am not going to keep the description brief. But before that, I must tell you all that there are two versions to this kriti, ‘Manasuloni Marmamulu Telusuko’, one in Hindolam and the other in a raga called Varamu, which has the other variant of the ‘ga’. Raaja sir however has used only the Hindolam version in both the movies.

The bird call in the beginning sets the tone ideally. After all, isn’t our mind too like a bird? With pulsating weight, Janaki sings the akaaram. It is a beautiful sketch of that grand raga called Hindolam, whose Hindustani counterpart Malkauns is sung during the small hours in the morning after midnight, as per theory. The raga then moves with coherence and fluency, unfolding with great zeal, unravelling the beauty with grace and sensitivity. The overlapping of the swaras and the superimposition are like a rapier cut. Only difference is that this is soft and soothing.

Yesudass joins and continues the akaaram in his inimitable way. The brief rhythmic ensemble towards the end is the jewel in the crown.

‘Understand the inner yearning of my mind, Oh the One with the hues of the Emerald and whose heart if always filled with bliss!! In the past You protected me with your immense affection. Hold my hand now as I need You the most now’.

Applies to all, irrespective of caste, creed and religion.

Mind is the Universe. Universe is the Divine.

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When the swaras spoke and the violin sang..

It was a Saturday morning in the year 1986. With so many thoughts and expectations in my mind, I was rushing to catch a bus. Where was I rushing and what kind of expectations were there in my mind?

Cut back to the year 1980 when I started listening to Classical Music seriously (thanks to one gentleman!) and was getting exposed to names like Maharajapuram, D.K.Jayaraman, Ravi Shankar, Amjad Ali Khan, Ramani, MSG, Lalgudi… Over a period of time, I was able to identify and discern the various styles not only in vocal music but also in instrumental music.

Of all the instruments, the violin caught my eye (or is it the ear? perhaps the heart!) and the reason is not very difficult to understand. The violin always played a very important role in ILaiyaraaja’s music and it was natural for me to like the sound from this particular instrument. Moreover, no carnatic music concert is complete without the violin as an accompaniment.

As I listened to concert after concert-thanks to the radio and Madras ‘A’- the sound from the violins of two artistes was surely very different. One artiste was Shri.M.S.Gopalakrishnan. My exposure to Hindustani Music through a programme called ‘Sangeet sarita’ on Vividh Bharati every morning at 7.30 am made me a great fan of Hindustani form too and I found the Hindustani style predominant in Shri.MSG’s playing. That was the time when I was also listening to songs like ‘Jyan Jyan’(PoonthaLir) and ‘Yaar maamano’(Vetrikku oruvan) and I was able to relate to the Hindustani style of bowing very easily.

The sound from the other artiste was somewhat different. I could hear the violin speak(please note that I am not talking about ‘gimmicks’ in violin where some people imitate the human voice in violin throwing all classicism to the wind!). It was obvious that the musician was in love with each swara and the raga and caressed them with affection. It was almost like listening to vocal music. For the first time in my life, I felt the meaning of meditation, though I learnt meditation only 9 years after this.

The name of the musician is Lalgudi Jayaraman and I became instantly attached to his music.

It was to this great musician’s lecture/demonstration session that I was heading to on that Saturday morning in 1986 with excitement. I would be watching him for the first time and hearing him talk about music. Could there have been a better moment?

His talk was as sweet as his music and he touched various aspects of life itself. My respect for him grew by leaps and bounds when he said ‘If I say something that might hurt somebody, then it is ‘apaswara’ in real life’. I knew here was a man who respected life and enjoyed life to the fullest.

After this, I attended many of his lec/dems and concerts and each and every lecture/concert was an experience by itself. He would quote Bharati and go on to describe the beauty in a cuckoo’s call. His childlike enthusiasm while explaining the intricacies of a particular raga had to be seen to be believed.

As a person who appreciated all forms of music, it was not surprising that he loved ILaiyaraaja’s music. Once he said that this kind of music is surely the result of ‘puNyas’ from seven janmas. He was also very appreciative of Raaja sir’s orchestration and his ability to write music in a jiffy. In fact, the admiration was mutual. Raaja sir was a special guest in the audio release function of ‘Sringaram’, the music of which was scored by Lalgudi sir himself and remarked that he was a great fan of Lalgudi’s and that he simply loved the Thillanas of his composed in Hindustani raags with western style orchestration in the preludes and the interludes.

Today’s rare gem from the movie ‘Isai Paadum ThendRal’ is dedicated to this great legend. The speciality of this composition is that it has only the ‘swara korvais’.

The gandhrava voice of Yesudass sings only the Shadjamam and we hear only this swara for two cycles of Roopaka taaLam. The swaras ‘ri’, ‘ga’ and ‘ni’ join now and with the gamakams we clearly get to see the sketch of Kharaharapriya. The mridangam follows suit and plays a brief korvai of four avartanams in roopakam. It is 3 avartanams then and the mridangam starting at the ‘dha’ in the third avaratanam with the ‘dha’ being given the ‘kaarvai’ is a master stroke..

The violin joins the vocals rather subtly and from then on, the swaras move in single avartanam. Kharaharapriya smiles, caresses, fondles and dances. The ‘teermanam’ in the end is a connoisseur’s delight. The composition ends with the akaaram of Yesudass.

And we start humming ‘Samaanam evaru..(Jaya)Raama nee samaanamevru..Raaja nee samaanameveru..

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