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Section Synopsis (JUNE 2007)
NEWS & NOTES
Three residential dance camps
 Dance is a holistic art form. A knowledge of music, yoga, literature, fine arts and aesthetics helps the dancer to embellish her art. There is growing awareness of the need for an inter-disciplinary approach. As the lines between bani-s are becoming porous, and artists are interested in learning more about other dance forms, the concept of conducting dance camps has become popular as more and more dancers are eager to attend them. The following are reports on three dance camps held in different parts of India.
Natyarangam's Natya Sangraham
Natyarangam, the dance wing of the Narada Gana Sabha, Chennai, hosts an annual camp for dance students at Dakshina Halasyam, Thennangur, about 110 kilometres away from Chennai. Home of an awesome Panduranga temple, this kshetra was envisioned by Swami Haridos Giri of the Gnanananda Peetham. For the three days of the Natya Sangraham camp, a retreat and a spell of regeneration for dance aspirants, the village comes alive with activities from dawn to night that include sessions of yoga, technique classes, demonstration performances, as well as creative explorations in music, dance and poetry. Temple rituals such as Dolotsavam, Garuda Seva and Kalyana Utsavam are the medium through which the dancers offer Nritya Seva, sharing their joyous experience with the host community of villagers and visiting pilgrims.
Bhaaskara's Natya Gurukulam
Bharatakalanjali, jointly with Bhaaskara Art & Education Trust, conducted a Bharatanatyam training camp from 23 April to 6 May, at the Bhaaskara campus in Payyanur, Kerala. The Dhananjayans had revived the summer camp after three years. Nearly 45 students attended the two-week residential camp at the picturesque hill of Trikutteri. It was an experience to cherish. Yielding to the request of the enthusiastic crowd present on the final day, V.P. Dhananjayan announced that he would consider their request and hold periodic camps hereafter.
Mahagami's Gurukul
Mahagami Gurukul, established in Aurangabad in 1993 organised the eighth Sadhana Gurukul camp from 1st to 15th May. The 'sadhaka-s' (participants) of the camp were offered 'full-day' training in various art forms with an integrated approach in the traditional gurukula ambience. In the Sadhana camp, Mahagami attempts to nurture the values of the time-honoured gurukula system. Conceptualised by its Director, Kathak and Odissi dancer Parwati Dutta, the Gurukul camp has been an opportunity for the participants to discover the creative space within.
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Vasantotsava- national Sanskrit drama fest -NANDINI RAMANI
 What is the future of Sanskrit!" asks a recent write-up in a news column. The answer is: "Sanskrit language is `ajaraa' (ageless), and `amaraa' (eternal), and it will always find new venues of expression to prove its ever vibrant quality. With all its ancient, yet ever new concepts, with all its works of literature- the texts and the contexts, the theory and practice, the language is being explored in a timeless journey of quest for knowledge, innovating from its own ever-resourceful base. Sanskrit is the perennial source of all that is part of the Indian Heritage.
Witnessing the plays presented at the 4th Vasantotsava- Sanskrit Nataka Mahotsava, as an invited judge, dispelled all doubts about the sustenance and continuity of Sanskrit as the Mother of languages, although it is referred to by some as a dead language. The festival was conducted by the Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan under the able guidance of its Vice Chancellor Prof. Vempati Kutumba Sastry, who was assisted by a dedicated team of staff members.
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Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards 2007
 The Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META) have been a major positive development in the Indian theatre scene. The Mahindra & Mahindra sponsored MET Awards were instituted in 2006 to showcase and reward the best productions of the year past in Indian theatre.
This time, the second year of the awards, an English play by JustUs Repertory, Chennai and a Tamil play by Thalai-k-kol Pondicherry, were among the ten plays chosen from among 87 entries to compete for several awards in various categories. The META awards were presented in the first week of March in New Delhi. The event enjoyed massive sponsorship but was not well attended because of inadequate publicity.
Mirage, the Tamil play, was written by Dr. V. Arumugham. The JustUs Repertory play Dark Horse: Walking Down Arun Kolatkar's Lane, written and directed by Gowri Ramnarayan (who also scored the music) won the award for Best Sound Design and received a Special Mention by the Jury in the Best Play Category.
The Best Play award went to Cotton 56 Polyester 84 (Hindi), written by Ramu Ramanathan, directed by Sunil Shanbag and produced by Arpana of Mumbai. Eminent persons like Amol Palekar and Shyam Benegal were on the jury this year. The jury decided that the best actor (female) award would be shared by all the actors who played the part of Binodini (the lead character in the play Nati Binodini) in the various stages of her life.
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Prakriti's dhrupad fest in Chennai - LAKSHMI SREERAM
 Encouraged by the response to the dhrupad festival in 2006, the Prakriti Foundation offered another series of rare dhrupad concerts this year. The 'Gharana' Music Festival was held from 30th March to 1st April at the Museum Theatre in Chennai. The first day featured Fahimuddin Dagar in a vocal recital, the second day showcased Dhruba Ghosh on the sarangi, and the third Pushparaj Koshti on the surbahar..
Fahimuddin Dagar, one of the seniormost dhrupad maestros in the country, chose to sing Hamsadhwani, a real surprise. Dhrupad has little place for new raga-s and Hamsadhwani is a raga of recent import into Hindustani music from Carnatic music, we thought, until the Ustad said that it had been part of the Dagar repertoire for centuries. Indeed, the composition he sang was attributed to Nayak Baiju (12th century according to the Dagar tradition).
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COVER STORY
Ashwini Bhide-Deshpande Kishori's heiress....and more -DEEPAK S. RAJA
 Is Ashwini an elitist or a populist? Is she a classicist or a romanticist? Is she an original or yet another Kishori Amonkar Xerox? When questions like these begin to get asked, you know you are looking at a significant musician. But, when they defy easy answers, you could be looking at the makings of greatness.
In a career spanning over two decades, Ashwini Bhide-Deshpande (born 1960) has achieved a rare combination of popularity and stature. Stylistically, she now dons the mantle of Kishori Amonkar, the reigning empress of khayal vocalism. Ashwini is a top grade artist of All India Radio, has attained an abundant presence on the concert platform as well as on the shelves of music stores, and has made eminently successful concert tours of the U.S., Europe, Australia and Japan..
 Ashwini belongs to a generation in which any girl who could sing, wanted to sing like Kishori Amonkar (b. 1931). Fortunately for Ashwini, her own mother, Manik Bhide, was a distinguished student of Kishori Amonkar. With the advantage of being one step removed from the fountainhead of inspiration, Ashwini could access the musical wisdom without the risk of a stifled individuality.
Just a good musician
Ashwini spoke to the author on 9th September 2000, and on 13th August 2001.
In my family, we studied music just as we studied mathematics, grammar, science, history and geography. Only the schools were different. Ever since I can recall, Narayanrao Datar, a vocalist of the Vishnu Digambar (Gwalior) tradition came home three times a week. Three generations of the family's women would learn with him, one after the other. Over and above this, all family members, my parents included, were enrolled at the Maharashtra Music School where we attended classes thrice a week.
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HERITAGE
Sangeeta Sthalam-s The Valmiki Mandapam in Tiruvaiyaru -SRIRAM.V
The Tyagaraja Samadhi at Tiruvaiyaru was originally a simple cylindrical structure made of baked clay, with a receptacle at the top in which soil was filled and a tulasi plant grown as per the sastra-s. His disciples Krishna Bhagavatar and Sundara Bhagavatar converted it into a granite monument in 1903. In 1925, Bangalore Nagarathnammal completed the construction of a superstructure over the samadhi by building a gopuram. The samadhi itself was closed at the top and a linga was enshrined on it, an act which 'Bharatam' Nallur Narayanaswami Iyer denounced as one of the five original sins! .
Nevertheless, Nagarathnammal went ahead and also installed a statue of Tyagaraja in front of the samadhi. This is now worshipped every year during the Aradhana. Surrounding the simple structure that Naga-rathnammal built came the Valmiki Mandapam which is our 'Sangeeta Sthalam' for this month. The story of its construction, begun in 1956, is a fascinating one.
Today, as visitors walk around the Tyagaraja Samadhi in Tiruvaiyaru, they stand and read the kriti-s of the saint, inscribed on slabs of marble on the walls of the shrine. Many do not even glance at them and just hurriedly move away. If they could only speak, the slabs would have a strange tale to tell- the story of an ordinary man, who dreamt of inscribing Tyagaraja's works on the walls of his samadhi.
Srirangam Sundaram Iyer, a Postal Department employee who worked as a sorter in the Railway Mail Service, was known as RMS Sundaram Iyer. Visiting the Tulsi Manas Mandir in Varanasi, courtesy the Railways, he saw the Ramcharitmanas inscribed on the walls, and wanted to do something similar for Tyagaraja. Unable to muster the necessary resources as a clerk in the railways, he decided to approach musicologist- railway official T.S. Parthasarathy for help.
The year was 1955. TSP was then living in Murray's Gate Road in Madras. He had already begun the translation of Tyagaraja's kriti-s into Tamil at the behest of Dr. Krishnaswamy of Glaxo, a brilliant, but visually challenged, scientist, and a great devotee of the composer. One morning, Sundaram Iyer walked in and spoke to TSP about his ambition. It was a daunting task. But the excited Sundaram Iyer, his tuft wagging away, had it all planned out- he would collect funds from the common people, at the rate of one rupee per person. .
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SPOTLIGHT
Prof. S.R. Janakiraman Musician and musicologist
 Professor SRJ, as S.R. JANAKIRAMAN is popularly known, is a musician and a musicologist. During the last 'Music Season' (2006-2007) in Chennai, he was awarded the title of Nada Yogi by Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha. In conversation with GAYATHRI SUNDARESAN he shared his rich experience and his views on matters musical..
Janakiraman was born on 12 July 1928 in Lalgudi. His father was a mathematician and Headmaster of the Lalgudi High School. At the age of three, a severe form of pox robbed the little boy of sight in his left eye, and left very little vision in the right. In spite of this handicap, SRJ maintains a cheerful, enthusiastic disposition. Even now, as he marches towards the satabhishekam milestone, his ability to commit things to memory is of a very high order.
Not hailing from a family of musicians, it was his younger sister's music lessons that drew him towards music. At the age of ten, he too began formal lessons with Lalgudi Neelamegham Pillai, a violinist. As he started attending music classes with his sister who was already learning varnam-s, Janakiraman straightaway started with the navaragamalika varnam, without going through the varisai-s formally. Up to 1945, he had a succession of teachers as his father's transfers took the family from place to place. He considers Tanneerpalli Krishnamoorthy, one of his teachers, to be a "mahavidwan" who he feels would have been second to none had he not been snatched away at the young age of 27. Another tutor, Saptarishi Iyer, a disciple of Alathur Venkatesa Iyer, travelled from Tiruchi to Musiri to teach the youngsters during weekends.
By 1945, Janakiraman was competent enough to launch upon advanced study in music. He enrolled in Kalakshetra as a student of music. His years there (1945 to 1949) were memorable as he had no less a person than Tiger Varadachariar as his teacher. As Janakiraman was found to be more proficient than his classmates in practical music, he was clubbed with M.D. Ramanathan, who was a year senior to him, to attend practical classes. According to SRJ, MDR passed the Sangeeta Siromani course with a Second Class because his subsidiary subject- violin, pulled him down. Parur Sundaram Iyer told MDR that he was being passed only because of his vocal prowess, and warned him never again to touch the violin- this in spite of MDR's father being a violinist!
At Kalakshetra, Veena was SRJ's subsidiary subject. K.S. Narayanaswami's nephew K.K. Sivaraman was an excellent veena teacher in the first year, but after he shifted to Tiruvanantapuram, there was a vacuum. Then Kalpagam Swaminathan joined the faculty, and it was entirely due to her coaching that Janakiraman could breeze through his veena examinations. P.K. Rajagopala Iyer was the lecturer for theory, and he was the one who awakened SRJ's keen interest in musicology..
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SPECIAL FEATURE
Brinda-Muktha: Bastions of a Glorious Tradition - RAVI & SRIDHAR
 It was October 19th in the year 1988.
The location: Sastri Hall.
The occasion: A concert by two sisters.
The occasion was really big, for the sisters were singing together after a gap of 20 years; and, it was the occasion of the 50th death anniversary of their grandmother, Veena Dhanammal. Many of those attending that concert had not heard the sisters together, though they might have heard either of them singing alone. T. Brinda and T. Muktha, popularly known during their heydays as Brinda-Muktha, had parted ways in 1968 after more than forty years of making music together.
All roads that day led to Sastri Hall. The sisters sang compositions that were directly taught to them by their grandmother, the inimitable Dhanammal. Songs like Dikshitar's Brihannayaki, Annaswami Sastri's Inkevarunnaru and Kshetrayya's Rama Rama prana sakhi brought out the thrilling effects of the Dhanammal bani and had rasika-s wondering why the sisters parted ways at all. The wholesome effect of the Dhanammal bani of Carnatic music was truly reflected in the sisters' tandem singing. The memories of the sisters' concerts of yesteryear and of the unique history of one of the greatest musical families of Carnatic music and dance in more than two centuries unfolded in the minds of many veteran rasika-s of these twin arts on that day.
The story of Tanjavur Brinda and Tanjavur Muktha begins about two centuries before they were born. Papammal was a dancer in the Tanjavur court, as were her daughter Rukmani, and Rukmani's daughter Kamakshi, who danced in the court of Sarabhoji II. Kamakshi had learnt music from her mother and from the Vayyacheri based composers Anai and Ayya. In later years, with the decline of the Tanjavur court, Kamakshi shifted to Madras and set up home at Nattu Pillaiyar Koil Street, George Town. Here, she learnt music from Subbaraya Sastri, who was living in Madras at that time. In fact, Subbaraya Sastri (the son of Syama Sastry) spent the last twelve years of his life, from 1850 to 1862, in Madras.
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OPINION COLUMN
Original' pathantaram-s of kriti-s Some thoughts - P.K. DORAISWAMY
One of the debated topics in Carnatic music is the deviation by musicians from the so-called 'original' pathantaram of kriti-s. This article is not an attempt to provide a conclusive answer to end the debate but a constructive provocation and an invitation for opening up the topic for a wider debate.
Though 'pathantaram' normally means the musical phrasing of a kriti, I use it here in a broader sense covering not only the musical phrasing but also the raga in which the kriti is sung, its arohanam-avarohanam and its parent melakarta. I am ignoring sahitya for the present though there could be serious deviations in it. For example, in Endaro mahanubhavulu, even senior musicians sing the second line as "chanduru varnuni" meaning one whose complexion is like that of the moon, i.e. fair. But this is contrary to the common belief that Rama's complexion is dark blue like that of a cloud. In Muddu momu, the line 'ghananibha dehuni janana swabhaavamao' clearly brings this out.
Obviously the word 'vadanuni' has got distorted into 'varnuni'. In fact, in sahitya, a deviation may sometimes correct a mistake on the part of the composer. For example, in Saraguna palimpa, Poochi Iyengar, apparently with limited knowledge of Telugu, uses the word 'gajarajudu', a word which does not exist in Telugu and ought to be simply 'gajaraju' as in 'khagaraju' in Nagumomu.
Sruti had suggested in one of its editorials that this topic be researched thoroughly and such kriti-s recorded according to their authentic pathantaram-s for posterity. Dr. R. Vedavalli is a strong proponent of the view that the original pathantaram-s of kriti-s as created by the great composers, especially the Trinity, should be strictly adhered to and that they should not be deviated from even if musicians or the audience consider alternative pathantaram-s to be more attractive or easier to sing. Some time ago, she gave a special lecdem on the above topic at the IIT Music Circle, Chennai.
She also demonstrated singing Nagumomu in Abheri with suddha dhaivata (instead of chatusruti dhaivata as is commonly sung) and Gnanamosagarada in Shadvidhamargini (instead of Poorvikalyani as is usually sung) which, according to her, was how Tyagaraja had originally composed these kriti-s.
When the original music of a com-poser is lost, not only is it permissible, but there is no choice for others except, to tune the kriti-s in raga-s of their choice. This has happened in the case of the compositions of Annamacharya, Jayadeva, Purandaradasa, Sadasiva Brahmendra, Arunagirinathar, Muthu Tandavar, Arunachala Kavi and others. Some re-tuners like Semmangudi, Govinda Rao, Nedunuri and Balamurali have done an outstanding job with some of these kriti-s. (Though, technically, Semmangudi is supposed to have merely systematised and polished kriti-s of Swati Tirunal, I have a strong suspicion that he must have done quite a bit of re-tuning as well!) Even here, there are some who feel that if the actual tune is lost, and if the composer had mentioned the name of the raga, the new tune should be in the same raga by way of at least partially honouring his original intentions (except, of course, in the case of raga-s whose identity is not known now as with some raga-s mentioned by Annamacharya). Some modern composers like Periasami Thooran and Ambujam Krishna have merely composed songs, leaving it to professional musicians to tune them.
Let us take Nagumomu in Abheri as an example of issues that such a debate could throw up. The debated departure in this case is not from the original musical phrasing of the kriti but in respect of the mela- whether the raga is in Natabhairavi mela using suddha dhaivata or Kharaharapriya mela using the chatusruti dhaivata. According to most older music texts, the raga is said to belong to the Natabhairavi mela, Dikshitar's Veenabheri being a prominent example, and, therefore, should use suddha dhaivata. The Experts Committee of the Music Academy, in its deliberations on raga lakshana-s, also concluded that it belongs to the 20th mela. Some also argue that the suddha dhaivata brings out the pathos in the kriti better than chatusruti dhaivata which sounds somewhat breezy and brisk. While this may be partly so, it also depends on one's understanding of the sahitya and style of rendering. Balamurali's rendering of chatusruti dhaivata-based Abheri, for example, does bring out the mood and sentiment of the kriti quite well whereas Musiri's chatusruti dhaivata-based rendering, in spite of the natural wailing quality of his voice, does sound too vervy and breezy for the mood and content of the kriti.
The change to chatusruti dhaivata, according to some, perhaps took place nearly a hundred years ago, in the very early nineties. Some recent texts put it under the Kharaharapriya mela and, therefore, chatusruti dhaivata comes into play. Some others suggest that, though the raga belongs to the Kharaharapriya mela, suddha dhaivata occurs as the anya swara in some phrases and, therefore, it is a bhashanga raga. (I am not aware whether anyone has suggested that chatusruti dhaivata occurs as the anya swara with suddha dhaivata as the basic swara, thus completing the cycle of confusion!). Some try to resolve the controversy by suggesting that the raga using suddha dhaivata should be called Abheri and the raga using chatusruti dhaivata could be called Karnataka Devagandhari or Bheemplas (something similar to the mix-up about Bhoopalam and Revagupti). Some speculate that liberty has been taken with the dhaivata because it is neither the vadi nor the nyasa swara of Abheri and no gross distortion or destruction of the rasanubhooti of the raga could, therefore, take place.
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Did You Know?
An akshara is that which is 'indestructible'.
The shadja (shat) is so called because it is born (ja) from six places: nostrils, throat, cheeks, lips, tongue and teeth.
Kandan karunai puriyum Vadivel in Bheemplas made famous by Madurai Mani Iyer is set to the tune of Beena madhura madhura from the Hindi film `Ram Rajya'. It was the composition of K.S. Ramaswami who wrote plays and songs under the pen-name `Guhan'. Another song, Kannan madhura ithazhai adaindaai, sung by D.K. Pattammal is also in this tune.
Poonguyil koovum poonjolayil oru naal, composed by Kalki and sung by D.K. Pattammal who cut a 78 rpm record of the song, is set to the tune of `Baalam aaye baso mere man me' sung by K.L. Saigal in the film `Street Singer'.
The title Sangeeta Ratnakara was conferred upon Ariyakudi by the Vellore Sangeetha Sabha run by V. Gopalachariar, father of Vellore Ramabhadran. When she heard about it, Veena Dhanammal quipped that she was under the impression that it was the name of a book (which, indeed, it is).
Some gayakalakshana-s or qualities of a singer as mentioned in music treatises are- a cultivated voice in perfect trim, with three-octave range, an unerring sense of sruti values, a harmonious blending of swara, laya, varna and pada.
The five sacred spots (sabhai) associated with Siva Tandavam are: Rajata Sabhai in Madurai, Tamra Sabhai in Tirunelveli, Kanaka Sabhai in Chidambaram, Chitra Sabhai in Kutralam, and Ratna Sabhai in Tiruvalangadu.
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Generation Next
-Mythili Prakash
When she speaks, her accent is typically American, but when she dances she seems totally Indian. Californian born and bred Bharatanatyam dancer Mythili Prakash has blossomed into a versatile dancer.
Daughter and disciple of Bharatanatyam dancer-teacher Viji Prakash, Mythili was put through her paces at the age of four. Her arangetram (formal debut) at the age of eight was a memorable one as she had the rare opportunity of dancing in the presence of 'grand-guru-s' T.K. Mahalingam Pillai and Kalyanasundaram of Sri Rajarajeswari Bharata Natya Kalamandir, Mumbai, who were her mother's guru-s.
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News You Can Use
Reminiscences of S. Rajam - Part 1 Mylapore — Musical hub of Madras
The Birth Centenary of the late K. Sankara Menon falls on 22nd September 2007. A Centenary Celebrations Committee has been constituted with Justice S. Mohan as Chairman, and V.R. Lakshminarayanan as Convenor. A book on Sankara Menon will be released on the occasion. Articles from his friends,artists, students and teachers of the Besant School and Kalakshetra, are welcome. Articles may be sent before 20th July 2007.
E-Mail : tapasya_ks@yahoo.co.in
or sent by post to:
G. Sundari, c/o Tapasya Kala Sampradaya
New No. 5, 8th Cross Street,Sastri Nagar,
Adyar, Chennai 600 020
Ph:42019497,9841532382.
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