Introduction: The selection of vocalists for coverage in
this series of essays is guided by stylistic or historical
significance rather than acknowledged stature or greatness as
commonly understood. Selected vocalists will always represent a
respectable level of musicianship, while the essays will attempt to
justify their selection for the Sruti reader's attention. The
order of release will be guided by the need to sustain reader
interest through variety. -- Deepak S. Raja.
For over a century now, the Benares
Hall of Fame has read like the "Who's Who" of Hindustani music. The last
addition to it is Girija Devi. Born in 1929, she is amongst the most
distinguished vocalists of our times, and the reigning queen of the Benares
tradition of thumri and allied genres. In a career spanning almost six decades,
she has charmed three generations of Indian music lovers. In the 1990s, she
started performing abroad, and acquired an enthusiastic following in Europe and
North America.
Two Indian universities have conferred D. Litt. degrees on her. She has been
decorated with the Sangeet Natak Akademi award (1978), and the Padma Shri (1973)
and Padma Bhushan (1989). The Grand Dame of the thumri has served a long stint
as a Guru at the ITC Sangeet Research Academy in Kolkata, and continues to guide
students at the institution.....
The Benares tradition of semi-classical music
The sanctity of art
Girija Devi spoke to the author on February 24, 2004 [Excerpts reproduced here -- for full interview see hard copy]
When I was five or six years old, my father
placed me under the tutelage of Sarju Prasad Mishra. In those days,
girls from genteel society did not go to the teacher's house to
learn; they were taught music in their own homes. Sarju Prasad
Mishra was a very good singer, but performed as a sarangi
accompanist. For the first three years, I was taught the basics--
just the scale and its transpositions and transformations. Then, for
a couple of years, I was taught khayal-s in the major raga-s: Yaman,
Bhairav, Bilawal. Alongside the khayal, I was introduced to tappa-s
and thumri-s.... Sarju Prasadji taught me by singing, but mostly
accompanying me on the sarangi....
My second guru, Shrichand Mishra was a vocalist, and a master of the tabla,
who also played several other instruments-- sitar and sarod-- as a hobby. He
belonged to the Seniya tradition (lineage of Miya Tansen)....
I do not see any conflict between thumri and khayal. They are
distinct genres, each with its own character....
My approach to the khayal is based on the "santa" rasa (the
tranquil sentiment). My thumri renditions interpret "sringara" rasa
(the romantic sentiment) in an Indian way, without explicit
eroticism....
I get invitations to perform with "fusion" groups. The idea seems
outrageous to me....
The music of Girija Devi
In the emerging paucity of specialist thumri
performers after Independence, Girija Devi could have comfortably
forgotten all about the khayal and encashed her scarcity premium.
Instead, she struggled successfully to restore to the Benares
tradition its prestige as a reservoir of multi-dimensional
musicianship.
I make these observations based on over four
decades of hearing Girija Devi. By way of purposive and systematic
analysis, however, I rely on two CDs recorded by her for India
Archive Music in 1992, and two CDs of All India Radio broadcasts
from 1967 and 1977 released by Super Cassette Industries (SVCCD 084
and 085). In addition, I studied two concert recordings from the
1970s lent to me by the archivist, Kishor Merchant. The study is
based on about seven hours of her music spread over a sufficiently
long period to enable defensible inferences. The sample includes
five renditions of khayal, three renditions of tappa, one tarana,
and nineteen pieces of semi-classical genres such as thumri, dadra,
chaiti, kajri. The spectrum of raga-s covered is also large enough,
though biased towards "Thumri raga-s": Madhuvanti, Abhogi, Poorvi,
Devagandhar, Yaman, Behag, Kafi, Desh, Bhairavi, Ghara, and Pahadi.
Girija Devi, the khayal vocalist
Girija Devi's khayal repertoire is centred around popular
raga-s..... Mechanistic and stereotypical taan patterns, commonly
found in present-day khayal music, rarely appear in her
renditions.....
Girija Devi in the semi-classical genres
As an exponent of the romanticist genres, Girija
Devi is an original musician. In its detail, or even in its broad
approach, her music cannot be compared with the Benares stalwarts of
the earlier generation-- Rasoolan Bai and Siddheshwari Devi. Her
thumri-s induce a state of sustained inebriation because of the
unique interaction she engineers between the poetic, melodic and
rhythmic elements.
This heady quality owes a great deal to the manner in which
Girija Devi deploys rhythm....
The musical personality
Central to her khayal as well as semi-classical
renditions is Girija Devi's musical personality. She shuns excessive
aloofness in khayal-s as much as she steers away from seductive
intimacy in her thumri-s. Her command over the melodic and rhythmic
elements is such that she can deploy them within any framework with
equal facility. Her depth of involvement in the poetic element
drives the melodic element to achieve the appropriate emotional
communication. For this, she requires neither the aggressive
vocalisation and intonation found in some styles of khayal, nor the
ornate embellishment of melody normally encountered in the thumri.
Graceful melodic contours defined by elongated meend-s (glissandi)
are her primary device for communicating the musical idea. And, it
works equally well in the classicist and the romanticist genres....
It is not necessary to compare Girija Devi with
earlier generations of stalwarts from the Benares tradition to
acknowledge her versatility and musicianship. Nor does she require
the nostalgia premium of being the last great representative of the
tradition. She stands tall amongst contemporary Hindustani
vocalists, independently of these considerations.
Acknowledgment:
This essay draws on commentaries written by the
author for recordings of the artist made by India Archive Music
Ltd., New York.
SPECIAL FEATURE
Some Dance Costumes: Past And Present Arangetram And After
Shortly before he passed away in 1998, DR. ARUDRA gave Sruti some pieces
on dance costumes and ornamentation. One part, on the dressmaker Aiyyelu along
with an interview by Arudra, was published in Sruti 168 (Sept. 1998). The rest
was to appear later but was overlooked by inadvertence. We take pleasure in
publishing a composite version, both as a mark of respect to the memory of this
scholar-writer and as a historical survey of the subject. The period covered, of
course, stops with the mid-nineties.
From time immemorial, the wearing of new clothes, for
both men and women, young and old, on festival days has been mandatory. For a
dancer, the arangetram-- debut dance recital, is a festive occasion to be
cherished throughout her life. What sort of costume should be worn on that day?
What was the old custom? For an answer we may begin with the rangapravesam of
Kadur Venkatalakshamma at the age of 13, in 1919 at Mysore.
It is customary that no article of clothing of the debutants should have been
used before. Venkatalakshamma was dressed in a new pair of pyjamas over which
was tied a new nine-yards saree. Since she, like other dance aspirants, had
practised dancing wrapped in nine-yard cotton sarees all along, she was not
intimidated by the length of the garment. The saree was kalapattu or kinkappu
quality silk with gold lace work. The pallu of the saree was gathered and tucked
in front, prominently displaying the zari work. Around her waist was a gold
oddiyanam or waist-belt. Her plaited hair ended in a kucchu (kunkulam) and was
decorated with appropriate jewels. Her neck was adorned with a kaassina sara
(chain of gold coins or kaasu maalai), addiga (necklace) encrusted with precious
stones and such other ornaments. These jewels were made of genuine rubies,
diamonds, emeralds, pearls and gold. There was no suggestion of cheap glitter
(Sruti 37/38, p. 22).
The year before (1918) saw the birth of T. Balasaraswati
who was to become a legend in her lifetime. As a child prodigy born and brought
up in a musical family with a dance environment, she started imitating her
mother Jayamma's singing and Mylapore Gowri Amma's dancing when she was just
four years old. She would dress up exactly like Gowri Amma in an inexpensive
white organdy threaded with either gold or silver cords, which was called a
jenti or tuya saree. and wear her own jewellery. So this was Balasaraswati's
pre-training and pre-arangetram costume. She started her training at the age of
five and had her arangetram just two years after at the Ammanakshi temple in
Kanchipuram, in an attire suitable to her tender age. After that her costume and
jewellery strictly adhered to the norms of her hereditary mode.
A decade and a
half later, the mode of dress for a non-hereditary dancer's debut recital was
different.....
See hard copy for rare photos and more details of the costume and jewellery
of dancers like :
l Rukmini Devi l 'Baby' Kamala l U.S. Krishna Rao
and Chandrabhaga Devi l K.J. Sarasa l Lakshmi Viswanathan l Chandralekha
After the first two decades of its revival, Bharatanatyam spread far and
wide. Many metropolitan and urban centres became the new headquarters of several
hereditary senior dancers, nattuvanar-s and their families. The glamour of the
new dance dialect captivated the minds of many middle class and upper middle
class parents and they began to entrust their children to Bharatanatyam teachers
for tuition. Bombay, Delhi and Calcutta were witnessing a new cultural milieu;
arangetram-s of the children turned out to be status symbols of the family.....
See hard copy for details of dress and jewellery of:
l Chitra Visweswaran l Alarmel Valli l Malavika Sarukkai l Lakshmi
When Saskia Kersenboom, an Indologist, trained ballet artist and Bharatanatyam
dancer from Holland approached P. Ranganayaki, the temple dancer of Tiruttani
for vidya daanam, (gift of knowledge), the latter, after being satisfied with
the qualifications of the student, first adopted her as a family member
(devadasi-s can adopt any person of the "upper" strata to increase their
numbers), and tied a tali-bottu around the neck of the disciple. Clad in choli
and saree, and observing `madi' (ritual purity), Saskia learnt all the dance
items that are to be performed in the temple. She was asked to perform them in
front of family members and neighbours. Whenever Saskia comes to India, she dons
a saree and choli as her normal daily dress.....
In the first two decades after the revival of Bharatanatyam, several modes of
dance costumes came into vogue and a few of them became role-models. Even a
casual perusal of some costumes and ornamentations will reveal several points of
interest....
l Rukmini Devi,
Mrinalini Sarabhai and Shanta Rao l Kalanidhi l Indrani Rahman l Padmalochani l Roshan Vajifdar l Sudharani
Raghupathy
Almost all the senior dancers can elaborate on their choices and innovations in
the traditional dress modes but the majority of the rest are for the
conventional types. Master Costumer D.S. Aiyyelu in an interview has listed all
the varieties in vogue in the nineties (see Sruti 168).
BRIEF NOTES
Selected
JSri Krishna
Gana Sabha will confer the title Sangeeta Choodamani on Carnatic vocalist Bombay
Jayashri Ramnath and the title of Acharya Choodamani on veteran vainika and
teacher Kalpagam Swaminathan during the Gokulashtami music series this year.
Bharatanatyam dancer Rajeswari Sainath will receive the title of Nritya
Choodamani and Bharatanatyam dance teacher Anita Guha the title of Acharya
Choodamani in December 2005 during the annual music and dance festival of the
Sabha.
Formal Debut
B Pooja
(Bharatanatyam), daughter of Mrs. Parul & Mr. Sharad Panchal, and disciple of
Radhika V. Pillai (Kalyani Natyalaya); 5 March in Ahmedabad.
B Pritika
(Bharatanrityam), daughter of Mrs. Shoba & Prof. E. Krishnakumar, and disciple
of Jayashree Rajagopalan (Nrithyodaya, Bombay); 10 April in Mumbai.
BACK OF BOOK
Postage Stamps: Windows To Music &Dance
Stamps On Saints And Poets - Part 7
Jnaneswar - S. SANKARANARAYANAN
The Jnaneswar (also called Jnanadev and Dnyaneshwar) lived in
the 13th century AD in Maharashtra. Jnaneswar and Namdeo were contemporaries.
And it was the latter who has given us an authentic biography of Jnaneswar.
Stamp on Jnaneswar
The Dept. of Posts
issued a stamp on Jnaneswar on 5 March 1997. (The Dept. followed the Marathi
spelling Dnyaneshwar.) It is a multi-coloured stamp, in the denomination of Rs.
5; perf. 13; and printed on un-watermarked adhesive gravure coated stamp paper
by photogravure process in India Security Press, Nasik.
Life of Jnaneswar
Jnaneswar was born in Saka 1197 (1275 AD) to Vithalpant and
Rukminibai who were known for their deep devotion to Lord Vithoba of Pandharpur.
They had three more children-- Nivrittinath and Sopanadev (sons) and Muktabai
(daughter). Nivrittinath was elder to Jnaneswar by two years. Vithalpant had
settled down in Alandi and all the children were born there.
Some time after the thread ceremony of his sons, Vithalpant went to Prayag
with his wife and, on the advice of his guru Swami Ramananda, put an end to his
life by drowning himself in the Ganga. His wife too did the same.
After the departure of the parents, the children shifted their residence to
Newase in Ahmednagar District. In course of time, all of them acquired spiritual
knowledge and became authorities in many branches of learning.
When he was barely seven years old, Nivrittinath was initiated in the path of
Yoga by one Gahininath. In turn, Nivrittinath gave initiation to Jnaneswar.
Thenceforth, Jnaneswar looked upon Nivrittinath as his spiritual mentor and not
just an elder brother.
Jnaneswar composed his magnum opus,
Bhavartha Deepika (Bhaavaartha Deepikaa), also known as Jnaneswari
(Jnaaneswaree), his commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, in 1290 AD. It
contains 9033 ovi-s (stanzas). He was just 15 then!
Around that time he became acquainted with Namdeo and, through him, joined
the Varkari (Vaarkaree) sect of devotees and eventually became a leader of that
sect. Along with Namdeo, he undertook a long pilgrimage to several parts of
north India.
Jnaneswar returned to Alandi in 1296 AD. He was 21. It is said that, on the
13th day of the dark half of the Kartik month, Jnaneswar entered into
jeeva-samadhi (getting buried alive while in meditation) in the presence of his
brothers and sister. Also present on the occasion were Namdeo and his four sons
and scores of devotees. Since then, Alandi has become a centre of pilgrimage,
and the date of samadhi a sacred day, for the Varkari cult in Maharashtra.
Within a year of Jnaneswar's samadhi, his brothers and sisters followed
suit-- Nivrittinath attained samadhi at Triambakeswar, Sopanadev at Saswad and
Muktabai at Adilabad.
Jnaneswar's works
As already noted, Jnaneswar's best known work is Jnaneswari. He also
authored Amritanubhava, Changdeva Prasasti, Haripath, Naman, and hundreds
of abhang-s.
Amritanubhava is said to be the greatest philosophical work of
Jnaneswar. It contains his spiritual experience and insight.
Changdeva Prasasti is addressed to Changdeva, a Hatha Yogi.
Haripath consists of 28 abhang-s. In these abhang-s, Jnaneswar avers
that nama-japa is the royal road to God-realisation.
Naman contains 108 ovi-s and is a hymn describing the importance of
prayer.
About 600 abhang-s have come down to us and these are sung during bhajan-s.
Jnaneswar wrote all his works in Marathi, his mother-tongue and the language
of the masses of the region.
He was against rituals. He advised people to perform their duties as an act
of worship to God. His philosophy of universal love and devotion to God
formed the foundation for the Bhakti Movement in Maharashtra.
Some abhang-s of Jnaneswar
Adhik dekhne tari niranjan paahane, Ek tatva nam, Ivalese rop, Pandharpuricha nila, Soniyacha divas, Tuj sagun mhano ki, Tuziye nidhali, and Yogiya durlabh.
Jnaneswari
At the instance of Nivrittinath,
Jnaneswar gave a series of extempore expositions of the Bhagavad Gita at
Newase (Ahmednagar Dist.). This was in Saka 1212 when he was 15 years old! One
of his disciples, Sachchidananda, took down notes of the talks and later
compiled them. The commentary was originally known as Bhavartha Deepika;
later on it came to be known as Jnaneswari Geeta, or simply,
Jnaneswari, after the name of the saint-author.
While closing the exposition on each chapter, Jnaneswar explicitly says that he
was giving his commentary by the blessings of his guru, Nivrittinath.
Jnaneswari has been translated into many languages. It was translated into
English by R.K. Bhagwat (1879-1956) and published by Samata Books, Madras, and
into Tamil by T.K. Kotandarama Iyer (1861-1934), and published by Bharatiya
Vidya Bhavan.
Stamp on Jnaneswari
The stamp on Jnaneswari (Dnyaneshwari) was issued in the 700th year of the work,
on 31 December 1990. It is also a multi-coloured stamp, denomination Rs. 2; perf.
13; and printed on imported un-adhesive gravure coated stamp paper by
photogravure process at the India Security Press, Nasik.
The Book Shelf
ETHNOMUSICOLOGY - A Study of Intercultural Musicology. By Dr. S.A.K. Durga. [B.R.
Rhythms, Delhi 110 052. 2004. Pp. xiv + 138. Rs. 300].
N. RAMANATHAN
This is a small book on Ethnomusicology, a subject that is
devoted to the study of music cultures of the world with a socio-cultural
perspective (p. v). From Dr. Akin Euba's foreword to this book one learns that
this discipline of 'Ethnomusicology' was founded with an ethnic slant, referring
to the work of musicologists of Western origin devoted to the study of
non-Western 'musics' (the plural form perhaps being an off-shoot of the
Ethnomusicological movement) as different from "Musicology" referring to the
study of Western music alone. And the qualifying phrase "Intercultural
Musicology" is taken by him to represent a wider discipline which would subsume
the term 'Ethnomusicology' although Dr. Durga would like to modify the
definition of 'Ethnomusicology' itself to denote a study of Intercultural
Musicology.
The book itself could be viewed as being in two equal parts
with the first four chapters being devoted to the definition, methods and tools
of the discipline, and the remaining four discussing the ethnomusicological
aspects of musical and theatrical events in some of the countries in East Asia.
The first chapter takes up the evolution of the discipline 'Ethnomusicology'.
This chapter also tells us that while the subject of Ethnomusicology was
developing, it also kept redefining itself. The first chapter ends with an
introduction to the research method that Ethnomusicology follows which is also
the dominant subject discussed in the second chapter.
Research on Folk Music is the subject of the third chapter of
the book and the thrust is on the description of the Documentation method to be
adopted while doing field work. The Musical Event, Context, Recording method,
format of the data sheet, Details of the musicians and music are the aspects
covered.
The fourth chapter presents information about
ethnomusicological studies made in India from early times and mentions the works
of William Jones (1784), Augustus Willard, Col French, St. Meadows Taylor, Fowke,
William A. Stafford, J.D. Patterson, C.R. Day and others. And we have
interesting information such as the use of the Western violin in India in the
early part of the 17th century itself.
As mentioned in the beginning, after dealing with the
definition of Ethnomusicology and its methods in the first four chapters, the
author devotes the remaining four chapters to illustrate aspects of 'Interculturalism'
in music and theatre. The influence of the music of the West on the music of the
countries in the East is detailed first.
This book by Dr. Durga is certainly not the first one by an
Indian writer on the subject of Ethnomusicology, works of Sudhibhushan
Bhattacharya and Ashok Ranade having appeared earlier. But what is commendable
about this work is that Durga is perhaps the first writer to present and discuss
the concept of Ethnomusicology on the lines delineated by scholars from the West
and to cover the music of so many countries outside India, a rare achievement by
an Indian scholar. Perhaps this itself is an interesting cultural subject too to
ponder over, namely, why it is that Indians rarely take interest in studying
cultures outside their own or how it is that the West has so much time, energy
and resources to look outside into other cultures. And that also leads to one
issue that has always troubled Ethnomusicologists [see Jairazbhoy, NCPA
Quarterly Journal Sept. 1984], namely that of 'insider'-'outsider' which holds
that the expertise of a scholar-musician from an outside culture will not equal
that of one born in that culture-- an issue Dr. Durga has chosen not to bring up
There are some minor drawbacks in the book. Many statements
and facts get repeated, as for instance, the documentation of musical events
(Pp. 7-8 and Pp. 24-25); Nottuswara sahityam and Brass band music (p. 50 and p.
60). After mentioning the work of C.R. Day the author says, "The next phase in
the historiography of Ethnomusicology in India is that the English writers were
Indian civil service officers and not musicologists!" (p. 38). Earlier writers
like Augustus and C.R. Day too had been Captains in the Army and not
musicologists. Towards the end of the fourth chapter (p. 40) the author, after
mentioning the work of early foreign scholars, adds that "The American
Ethnomusicologists of the present day have made further developments in the
methodology by introducing..." and lists, `Field work', `transcription', `use of
technological equipments', `Charts and Tables' as examples. However these very
tools of research had formed a part of the studies of even pre-American scholars
like, Fox Strangways and Arnold Bake. The wire recordings of the music of that
period are available even today. With reference to Carnatic music the author
says that "It does not have any Moghul influence" (p. 59). Scholars like Acharya
Brihaspati (Musalman Aur Bharatiya Sangeeta) have said quite the opposite and
claim that the Muslim influence has been quite strong in the Southern part of
the country and point their fingers at the `Paarasika raga-s' like Hejjujji and
Husseni and the Maqam influenced Mela system. However these are insignificant
points. The book is a scholarly contribution. One really hopes that Dr. Durga's
efforts will pave way for the establishment of courses in Ethnomusicology in
Indian Universities.
RECORD RACK
72 MELA RAGA MALIKA OF MAHA VAIDYANATHA
SIVAN. By Prof. S.R. Janakiraman. [Ph.: 2811 1038 & 5516 0023]. CD Vol.
1 (Suddha Madhyama Mela-s) & Vol. 2 (Prati Madhyama Mela-s). Rs. 150 each].
-JAMBUNATHAN
Sangeeta Kala Acharya Prof. S.R.
Janakiraman is a musicologist of great eminence who wears several different caps
such as performer, guru, author, tunesmith, and administrator. He has had the
privilege of being closely associated with doyens like Budalur Krishnamurthy
Sastrigal, Tiger Varadachariar, T.K. Ramaswami Iyengar, Musiri Subramania Iyer,
Tirupambaram Swaminatha Pillai, Mayavaram Krishna Iyer and T. Brinda. His
theoretical knowledge reinforced by performing skills, his analysis of original
treatises and the evolution of his own ideas and concepts have earned him an
honourable niche in an exclusive zone. His stentorian voice, sensitive to subtle
musical nuances has also a pleasing mellifluence that sets the tone for
emphasising the aesthetics and grammar of our unique Carnatic system. His
dissertation on the 72 melakarta-s with reference to the 72 mela ragamalika of
Maha Vaidyanatha Sivan under the banner of the Saraswati Vaggeyakara Trust, is a
monumental work driven by relentless zeal and passion for the art.
Invoking the blessings of Lord
Vinayaka, the first deity in the Hindu pantheon with Dikshitar's Easamanohari
kriti Sree Gananatham bhajare, Janakiraman speaks about Vaidyanatha
Sivan's life, the asampoorna and sampoorna mela paddhati-s of Venkatamakhi and
Govinda, and vividly describes the 12 swara-s that adorn the mela raga-s. His
practical demonstration of the swara-s in their exact grooves is a model lesson.
The 12 chakra-s, groups of six raga-s in each, 40 of them being vivadi mela-s,
are sung with pinpoint precision with praiseworthy diction and melodic
substance. The arohana and avarohana of each raga, the exclusive beauty of the
vivadi raga-s such as Kanakangi, Chalanata, Salagam, Neetimati and Rasikapriya
to name just a few, and the beauty of the sloka-s and the devotional content in
this masterpiece are all painted on the musical canvas to great effect.
The vivadi raga-s have a special
attractiveness of their own. There is a widespread notion that these raga-s,
because of the discordant notes, spell inauspiciousness. Even revered vidwans of
the bygone era, treated these melodies as second class citizens. There is
another more positive view: that if these raga-s were not auspicious, why would
Tyagaraja choose Nata for the first of his Pancharatna gems? What about
Vachamagocharame in Kaikavasi, Dikshitar's Ramasevitam in Nasamani
and Santanamanjari in Santanamanjari, and Syama Sastry's Parvati ninu
in Kalgada? All raga-s, vivadi or otherwise, are divine and sublime, and when
they receive aesthetic musical expression from great saint poets, what else
would they signal, except propitiousness!
The vivadi notes have to be sung with
absolute accuracy, that needs musical sensitivity and maturity. Even the
anuswara-s have to be handled with great care and when the swarasthana-s are
immaculate, the raga-s become things of beauty and joy for ever. S.R.
Janakiraman's demonstration clearly illustrates that a vivadi raga need not be
regarded as a Frankenstein monster-- it is as beautiful as any of the 32 non-vivadi
raga-s in the melakarta scheme.
The Saraswati Vaggeyakara Trust
deserves plaudits for promoting this project.
These albums should be added to the
collection of libraries, music organisations, colleges and government
institutions such as the All India Radio, the Eyal Isai Nataka Manram, etc. for
the benefit of performing artists, students and rasika-s.
Devotional
SRIMAD BHAGAVAD GITA CHANTING AND
BHAJANS. By Nalini Ramprasad. [Nalini Ramprasad. Ph. 5210 8400 & 98401-88233.
Rs. 250]. -S.S.R
The devotional music group headed by Nalini Ramprasad was started in 1998 and
has given performances at various venues and on various occasions. In this
Compact Disc in MP3 format, the group has presented a recitation of the Bhagavad
Gita, interspersed with a few bhajan-s and a final aarti. The recitation and
bhajan-s, lasting four hours and 37 minutes, are pleasing. The recitation of the
Gita is without any musical embellishments and is a purely devotional offering.
A welcome offering for devotees.
DWARAKA TIRUMALA (CHINNA TIRUPATI)
SRI VENKATESWARA SWAMY VARI SUPRABHATAM. By M. Balamuralikrishna and
Vijayalakshmi Subrahmanyam. [Sri Venkateswaraswamy Devasthanam, Dwaraka Tirumala,
West Godavari District. Rs. 30]. -S.S.R
This is a musical recitation, by the
redoubtable Balamuralikrishna and Vijayalakshmi Subrahmanyam, of the Sanskrit
and Telugu versions of the Sree Venkateswaraswamy Vari Suprabhatam,
authored in Telugu by Dr. Pappu Venugopala Rao, scholar and musicologist. The
Sanskrit reconstruction is by Dr. Rao and Dr. M. Narasimhachary (Sanskrit
scholar and Editor of Nrisimhapriya).
Throughout, the rendering is serene
and musical, without any overdoing of musical display. The words are beautiful
and peace-inducing to hear.
A recording which will be valued
highly by devotees of Lord Venkatesa.
sruti.com