THE DISCUSSION OF THE MATTERS FROM 2 ND AND 3 RD CHAPTERS.

Transcription

1 THE DISCUSSION OF THE MATTERS FROM 2 ND AND 3 RD CHAPTERS. Most Śyāma śāstri kr ti-s have 3 caran a-s. Tyāgarāja had also composed kr ti-s with one or more than one caran a. But normally, one caran a is sung, except in divya nāmāvali, panca ratna-kīrtana-s etc. The kr ti-s like divya nāmāvali have only pallavi and caran a-s. In the case of Dīkshitar, kr ti-s with multiple caran a-s cannot be seen. Dīkshitar composed kr ti-s, with samashti caran a-s ie, kr ti-s without anupallavi. Śyāma śāstri also composed one kr ti without anupallavi, Dēvi brōva in the rāga cintāman i. In Subbarāya śāstri s kr ti-s, we see kr ti-s with multiple caran a-s and swara sāhitya. He presented one, three and five caran a-s. It can be seen that Śyāma śāstri and Subbarāya śāstri took the freedom to introduce special features in their compositions which are not used in other composer s compositions, in that particular rāga. Yadukula kāmbōji swarajati of Śyāmaśāstri is an example of the presentation of the tāra stāyi madhyama. The presentation of alpa swara rishabha with importance in bēgada is an example from Subbarāya śāstri. kr ti-s. Commencement in mandra stāyi is a typical style of Śyāma śāstri Eg:- Swara jati-s

2 This style is adopted in Bēgad of Bēgada and Rītigaul a, Tyāgarāja also used mandra stāyi to commence the kr ti-s. Mukhāri of Subbarāya śāstri adopted commencing phrases from both Tyāgarāja and Śyāma śāstri kr ti-s for pallavi from Śyāma śāstri and for anupallavi from Tyāgarāja. Subbarāya śāstri adopted a full musical phrase from Tyāgarāja and Śyāma śāstri in Bēgada and Yadukulakāmboji: n s r s m g r s n n d p Pankaja sambhava sannuta Bēgada s,,,r, s,r, m,,, p,m,p, d,,, p,d, r,,s,,,,,, m,p, d,,p,,,,m, g,r, Sā..ra.sa.da..lā..kshasaran āgata jana vara.kr..pa.nidhivi Yadukulakāmboji The presentation of swara sāhitya fully with pancamavarjya prayōga-s (in Tōdi kr ti) is also inspired by the styles of Tyāgarāja and Śyāma śāstri. Tyāgarāja presented citta swara with pancamavarjya and Śyāma śāstri composed swara sāhitya with pancama varjya in Tōdi rāga itself. Śyāma śāstri and Subbarāya śāstri composed kr ti-s in praise of Dēvi. Both approached Dēvi as their mother. Both did not infuse their kr tis with serious philosophical thoughts. Wandering for Dēvi s blessings and affection can be seen in most of their kr ti-s. Though Subbarāya śāstri followed Śyāma śāstri in this, he did not present tantric words such as śri

3 cakra etc in his kr ti-s. Simplicity in theme and language can be seen in both composers kr ti-s. Tyāgarāja used a questioning style of communication towards Dēvi. His approach towards Dēvi was as towards both the mother and the Goddess. Subbarāya śāstri also used such a questioning style, but he used simpler themes and language. Like Tyāgarāja, Subbarāya śāstri did not introduce puranic stories and incidents in his kr ti-s. Though Dīkshitar also composed kr ti-s in praise of Dēvi, the theme is entirely different from Subbarāya śāstri s kr ti-s. Dīkshitar s kr ti-s included tāntric details and stalapurāna-s, which are not used by Subbarāya śāstri. Presenting one pāda (and melodic idea) without giving any pause is typical of Śyāma śāstri s style. An example for this style can be seen in the Mukhāri kr ti of Subbarāya śāstri. Here, the melody is distributed through one āvarta. But in Dalacinavāru the composer produced the melodic idea in the half āvarta of one tāl a like rāmakadhāsutha in madhyamāvati by Tyāgarāja. In Śri rāga, Subbarāya śāstri followed Tyāgarāja s school, but in its commencement and structure he followed his father. In melodic range, he followed the Trinity and sometimes gave expression to his individuality.

4 Eg:- In Tōdi, Śri rāga, and Hamirkalyāni he followed mainly Tyāgarāja and Dīkshitar. In the selection of rāga Dēśya tōdi and the arrangement of melody, Subbarāya śāstri was influenced by Tyāgarāja. Tyāgarāja is the only composer among the Trinity who composed in this rāga. Like bālē bālēndu in rītigaul a of Tyāgarāja, the melody of the caran a is the combination of pallavi and anupallavi in Subbarāya śāstri s kr ti janani ninuvina in rītigaul a. In the Bēgada kr ti, swara sāhitya produced sama and madhyama kāla-s together. The same style is used in the Bēgada kr ti of Śyāma śāstri. This kr ti did not admit swara sāhitya, and this feature is presented in the general section itself. Similarly, there is the application of madhyamakāla in the second part of the anupallavi and the caran a, like the kr ti Tyāgarājāya namaste in bēgada, and Annapoornē in sāma by Dīkshitar. Though the structure is like that of a Tyāgarāja kr ti, the Darbār kr ti retains its individuality in the area of range, tāl a and melody. Janani ninuvina - rītigaul a- Through different rendering styles Janani ninuvina is sung in cauka kāla by Brinda-Mukta. The records of various singers show the use of different styles. The rendition of Janani ninuvina by Brinda-Mukta differs from the popular version. Janani ninuvina is followed by the word amba. Today this

5 is sung in shadja. But Brinda-Mukta used to sing this as d,n s n d n p. This is a significant difference. M S Subbulakshmi has also sung this in slow tempo. But she had presented a lot of second speed phrases, especially in the anupallavi. Likewise swarasāhitya is presented in two degrees of speed. In the concerts of Brinda-Mukta, the dhātu and mātu of swara sāhitya were sung together. This style is not used now-a-days. M L Vasantakumāri sang it in medium tempo.the new generation singers, T M Krishna sings this kr ti in cauka kāla. But Shanmukhapriya- Haripriya collectively known as the Priya sisters have sung it in medium tempo. In the anupallavi, to the sāhitya manasija, M L Vasantakumāri and Priya sisters sang snnp in madhya stāyi. Sudha Raghunathan also sang these phrases. Brinda-Mukta did not use this phrase. They sang it as snnd. M S Subbulakshmi gave a slight touch to pancama in caran a portion and did not use it in anupallavi. Apart from these, T M Krishna sang this as snnm. The usage of snnp in madhya stāyi is not a traditional one. Subbarāma Dīkshitar has mentioned this in his grandha. This change is a gradual development which became popular. Except for these changes, the basic melody is almost same. Both kind of usages can be seen in the records of old and new singers.

6 Nowadays, this kr ti is sung in medium tempo. But youngsters like T M Krishna follows the chawka kāla. These changes are made by adopting various sangati-s without losing the depth of the particular rāga. Singing in cauka kāla gives more depth to the kr ti. Śankari nī- Bēgada This kr ti has been preserved in the records by Voleti Venkadeswarulu, M L Vasantakumar, Brinda-Mukta, S Soumya, Bombay Jayasree and Sudha Raghunathan. Whereas Voleti Venkadeswarulu used to sing Śankari..amba at first and secondly as Śankarinī..vani. Instead of this Brinda- Mukta used to sing as Śankari nī. Amba for three sangati-s. M L Vasantakumari, S Soumya and Sudha Raghunathan sang these portion as Śankari nīve. This has become the popular usage. Bombay Jayasree sang as Śankari nīve for the first three sangati-s and then sang as Śankari nīve yani ninu Others sing as Śankarinī vanininu. Actually, meaningwise, it is better to split as Śankari nīvu. The basic melody is almost similar in Brinda Mukta and Voleti s rendering. Among the singers of the young generation, Soumya s rendering

7 is very close to this style. The presentation of swara sāhitya by these three singers are same. In the swara sāhitya portion, Bombay Jayasree and M L Vasantakumari added a lot of changes, especially in the last āvarta. Except Brinda Mukta, all other singers added a sangati as:- m p d p s n r s m g r s n s d p d p m p g r, s san...ta..ta.mu.kō...ri va cci ti in the pallavi. Sudha Reghunathan has added a lot of speed phrases in her rendering.

8 CONCLUSION The study of Subbarāya śāstri kr ti-s and their comparison with the Trinity shows what he adopted from them and what the individual features of his kr ti-s are. Subbarāya śāstri Individual features: Among the twelve kr ti-s, he included mēlakarta, janya, upānga, bhāshānga varieties of raga-s. The composer handled gamaka pradhāna mēl akarta rāga-s, Tōdi and kalyān and gamaka oriented janya rāga-s Mukhāri, yadukula kāmbōji and bēgada. Vakra janya raga-s like darbār gives limited scope for ālāpana. Moreover, he handled a rāga with a hindustāni style Hamir kalān i. He also handled an upanga vakra rāga Dēśya tōdi, which is not very popular. While analyzing the kr ti-s of Subbarāya śāstri, it is evident that each kr ti has got its own individuality. Though he adopted much from the Trinity s kr ti-s, the composer integrated it very beautifully into his kr ti-s without evoking any feel of repetition. His individuality as a composer can be seen here. Subbarāya śāstri presented various kinds of structures in these twelve kr ti-s, such as: kr ti-s with pallavi, anupallavi, one caran a and multiple caran a-s kr ti-s with pallavi, anupallavi, swara sāhitya,with one caran a or multiple caran a-s.

9 One can understand the various structures used in carnātic music from these twelve kr ti-s itself. He introduced a special presentation in bēgada. Normally, rishabha is considered alpa swara in this rāga. But Subbarāya śāstri used this note as the commencing note of swara sāhitya with kāruvai-s which give a prominence to that particular note. Here the composer has taken freedom to introduce a speciality apart from the usual presentation of the rāga. Tāl a Tāl a-s are handled very simply by him. Sama and vishama are used to commence kr ti-s. Mostly, he used the same eduppu in all sections. Though he started kr ti-s in edam, he did not bring too many complexities there. He always applied sāhitya on beats. Off beat presentation cannot be seen. In the application of āvarta-s, Subbarāya śāstri did not follow anybody. In each kr ti, a different number of āvarta-s are used. Theme The main theme of Subbarāya śāstri kr ti-s is the Mother child approach towards Goddess Kāmākshi. Among the eleven kr ti-s, in Yadukula kāmbōji, he discusses a different thought that of rebirth. This composition is in praise of Pārdha sāradhi.

10 THE INFLUENCE OF THE TRINITY Though his kr Trinity can also be seen. ti-s stand individually, the influence of the Musical Selection of rāga-s The list in the previous chapter shows that Tyāgarāja composed many kr ti-s in all the rāga-s which are handled by Subbarāya śāstri. Here, except for Hamir-kalyān I and Śri, Tyāgarāja composed at least six kr ti- in all the other rāga-s. In Hamir kalyān I, he composed only two kr tis. Though he composed only three kr ti-s in Śri raga, one of them is the famous Pancaratna kīrtana. Dīkshitar did not compose kr ti-s in the rāga Dēśya tōdi. Likewise Śyāmaśāstri did not handle the rāga-s Hamir kalyān I, Darbār and Dēśya tōdi. So it can be clearly said that Subbarāya śāstri followed his guru in the selection of rāga-s. Melodic aspect Subbarāya śāstri adopted commencement phrases and style (mandra stāyi) from Tyāgarāja and Śyāma śāstri. The adoption of long phrases in bēgada and yadukulakāmboji also shows the influence of Śyāma śāstri and Tyāgarāja. In the adoption of prayōga-s like pancama varjya, he is greatly influenced by Śyāma śāstri and Tyāgarāja.

11 In the case of Śri rāga, Subbarāya śāstri followed the Tyāgarāja school. The influence of Dīkshitar can be seen in the kr ti-s, Hamirkalyān I and Bēgada (madhyama kāla). Structure The influence of Śyāma śāstri and Tyāgarāja can also be seen in the structure of the kr ti-s of Subbarāya śāstri. The composer produced swara sāhitya in eight kr ti-s which announces the influence of his father. He adopted supplementary anga-s sangati, swara sāhitya and madhyama kāla from Tyāgarāja, Śyāma śāstri and Dīkshitar, respectively. In the application of supplementary anga, Subbarāya śāstri showed a union of the styles of Śyāmaśāstri and Dīkshitar. In the kr ti Śrī kamalāmbike in Dēśyatōdi, the composer presented madhyamakāla in the swara sāhitya portion. This style is not common and not used in the kr ti-s of the Trinity. Tāl a The composer was influenced by the Trinity in various kr ti-s. Sama eduppu is a common style which is used by Subbarāya śāstri also. In some kr ti-s, Śyāma śāstri presented two anga-s in one edam and one in another edam. This can be seen in Darbār and Mukhāri. Eg:- Māyamma- Nāttakkurinji ādi - Śyāma śāstri

12 eduppu. Here, the pallavi is in sama and the other sections are in anagata (1/2) In Mukhāri of Subbarāya śāstri, pallavi is ½ edam, anupallavi and caran a in ¾ edam. In Darbār, pallavi and anupallavi are in sama and caran a is in ½ edam. In the tempo and tāl a (ādi 2 kal ai) of the Hamir kalyāni kr ti, Subbarāya śāstri also followed Dīkshitar. In the usage of tāl a, his father s influence is more strongly seen than that of others, though he did not use as many intricacies as his father did. Theme In the usage of theme, Subbarāya śāstri strictly followed his father. He adopted the style of presentation (questioning style) from his Guru Tyāgarāja. It can be concluded that Subbarāya śāstri was influenced by his father and his Guru to a great extent. Though he adopted styles from the Trinity, he retained his individuality in the melodic presentation of rāgas. Though these kr ti-s are very individualistic and knowledgeable in nature, still they are not very popular. So they should earn popularity with both the classes and the masses.

13 Further scope for the study While doing this work, some hidden areas have been found that are yet to be explored. Hopefully, the present work will be a basis for doing further studies like: a) A study on different pātāntara-s of Subbarāya śāstri kr ti-s. b) Kr ti-s of Subbarāya śāstri and his contemporaries a study. c) Dēvi kr ti-s of Subbarāya śāstri in comparison with those of Śyāma śāstri.