MDR teaches us some hamsadhwani

Finally, I move on - leaving behind the bhairavi theme that so captivated me for several weeks. In the last of the bhairavi posts - tanayunibrOva - I suggested that MDR would sometimes wear, what I like to call as, a "teacher's cap" when singing. As it turned out, MDR was in a teaching mood during the whole of that concert. I wonder what prompted MDR to get into such a frame of mind? In fact, this was a concert without any live audience! MDR's most popular studio recording (an LP with T. N. Krishnan and Vellore Ramabhadran accompanying him, and containing mahAgaNapatim, sAmajavaragamanA, hariyum haraNum, giripai nelakonna and a kApi tillAnA) also showcases MDR in a teaching mood. Probably it was just the time-boundedness of studio recordings which forced him into that mood - resulting in crisp and measured renditions, without experimentation or sophistication; although, there are many examples of MDR-the-teacher in live concerts also.

In any case, today's post is a tyAgarAjA kriti, srIraghukula in hamsadhwani, from that tanayunibrOva concert (V. Thagarajan and Vellore Ramabhadran were the accompanists). MDR probably loved hamsadhwani and there are some truly brilliant hamsadhwanis in his catalogue. Here, of course, MDR just keeps it clean and simple, yet simultaneously beautiful and melodious. You definitely don't need a diploma in karnATic music either to enjoy this piece or learn some hamsadhwani. Here is one for the masses.

A great bhairavi canvas - part IV

I am back after a long gap (and yes, there were some really strong excuses for the gap). Nevertheless, continuing from where I left the last time around, today's post is (what I imagine will be) the final installment of the bhairavi-canvas theme. tanayuni brOva is another lovely bhairavi kriti by tyAgarAjA, and this time, MDR wears a teacher's cap - something, I believe, he used to do quite often. MDR eschews sophisticated phrases and sangatis, and keeps it very simple, yet eminently enjoyable. For example, in the AlApana, he shows how even a plain phrase like sa pa sa pa ri, can be made to sound unmistakably full of bhairavi. As for the kriti itself, MDR is in his usual unhurried mood, keen on rendering with a clarity that is easy to learn from. Almost anyone (with even just half-a-decent pair of vocal chords) would hum some reasonable bhairavi after listening to this! There are dozens of examples of such teaching-style renditions, as I call them, in MDR's catalogue. After all, it is not for nothing that he is referred to as a musician's musician.

A great bhairavi canvas - part III

As we continue to explore MDR's bhairavi portfolio, we come upon MDR's rendition of upacAramu, a lovely little kriti by tyAgarAjA. In contrast to the amba kAmAkshi posted earlier, upacAramu, here, is really short - barely touching the four minute mark. MDR has this rare ability to treat the same rAgam (or even the same song) at different levels of granularity in different renditions. Today's post is a case in point. My personal all-time-favourite rendition of a bhairavi has always been (and will always remain) MDR's grand amba kAmAkshi, but upacAramu is an important element in MDR's diverse bhairavi canvas. His succinct treatment of bhairavi here, however, may be more "accessible" and much easier to "get" to the many who are uninitiated to MDR's brilliance-in-detail.

A great bhairavi canvas - part II

MDR's vilambakAla rendition of the shyAmA sAstri magnum opus, amba kAmAkshi, is a masterpiece. From AlApana to kalpana svaram and most importantly, through eight wonderful caraNams in-between, MDR takes us through a spectacular journey of bhairavi. shyAmA sAstri composed the caraNams beautifully -- the first caraNam begins with sa, the second with ri, the third with ga, and so on until the last caraNam, which begins again with sa (but of the next octave). Such a composition allows MDR to explore the full range of bhairavi's nuances. As always, MDR pays attention to the words, e.g., dikkanusu, nammitini, sampadala niccEvippuDu, etc. are never split in ungainly ways. But this is only part of the story. The most striking feature is the depth of delivery -- MDR dwells and rests on each note, caressing note after note, allowing the listener to absorb their each individual resonant quality. In the seventh caraNam (that begins ni ri sa ri ni ri ni da pa) notice how beautifully MDR sings the svara sequence sa ri ga ma pa, sa ri ga ma pa da, ma pa ga ri ga ma~ -- the last ma~ (with brugA) being the most beautiful note of them all! When he next sings the corresponding sAhityam, he strikes this beautiful ma~ once again -- aparimita vaibhavamugala nIsmaraNa madilo~!! The entire rendition is full of this kind of brilliant detailing. MDR ends, typically, with some simple but striking kalpana svara phrases - check out, e.g., ni ni ni ni~ da pa da ni da pa da ma ma, ma ma ni da ni pa da ma!

A full forty minute track is not in the least bit blogosphere-friendly and I had to cut it down cruelly to half its length in the version below, retaining only three of the eight caraNams (first, seventh and eighth). I urge you to listen to it and if you do not enjoy it, I urge you to try again, perhaps more than once if needed, until (I hope) you eventually get it -- a bhairavi in all its glory, a masterful composition at the hands of the master practitioner of musical detail.

A great bhairavi canvas - part I

rAgams like bhairavi that allow for extensive elaboration are right up MDR's forte. In a series of posts, I will try to showcase MDR's gorgeous bhairavi canvas - from viribONi to amba kAmAkshi to tanayunibrOva to upacAramu. But first, let me start at the very beginning.

More than 15 years ago, a relatively obscure music company called "Geeta Cassettes" released a double-cassette live concert of MDR, lAlguDi jayarAman and pAlakkAD maNi. It was a 1970 concert at Sri Krishna Ganasabha, Chennai (It has since been repackaged as a 2-CD set by Kosmik Music). I got hold of the album almost as soon as it was released and (hold your breath, a cliche's coming your way) life has never been the same ever since. Even today, I regard that concert as one of the greatest karnATik music concerts of all time. The concert begins with pacimiriam AdiyappiAh's brilliant varNam - viribONi - and what a cracker of a start!!

There is great energy and intensity, though somewhat surprisingly, MDR does not innovate here. He hardly deviates from pacimiriam AdiyappiAh's script. pAlakkAD maNi is in great form and you can almost hear the mrudangam play in bhairavi. Notice how MDR, in the sangatis, carefully splits the words konnadirA into konna-adirA and rAjagOpAla into rA-AjagOpAla. If you are new to MDR, this is definitely a great place to start.

Clouds unbound by laws

Like A Rolling Stone, All Along The Watch Tower, Blowin' In The Wind, Gates Of Eden, etc. -- all path-breaking Dylan songs from nearly half a century ago that changed, forever, the face of popular (English) music. These were impact songs, that showcased an angry, protesting Dylan, a Dylan that wrote stinging social commentaries with rare sleight of hand. Dylan became a rage, the unanimous "voice of his generation" and the rest is history. The artist in Dylan, however, is always simple and unassuming. His songs are often rich in imagery and he uses his limited vocal chords to convey emotions in curious, but very effective ways. Lay Down Your Weary Tune is a telling example of Dylan's poetic and musical humility, in which he seeks refuge from life's weariness in the beautiful sounds of nature.

Lay Down Your Weary Tune (by Bob Dylan)

Lay down your weary tune, lay down,

Lay down the song you strum,

And rest yourself 'neath the strength of strings

No voice can hope to hum.

Struck by the sounds before the sun,

I knew the night had gone.

The morning breeze like a bugle blew

Against the drums of dawn.

The ocean wild like an organ played,

The seaweed's wove its strands.

The crashin' waves like cymbals clashed

Against the rocks and sands.

I stood unwound beneath the skies

And clouds unbound by laws.

The cryin' rain like a trumpet sang

And asked for no applause.

The last of leaves fell from the trees

And clung to a new love's breast.

The branches bare like a banjo played

To the winds that listened best.

I gazed down in the river's mirror

And watched its winding strum.

The water smooth ran like a hymn

And like a harp did hum.

Lay down your weary tune, lay down,

Lay down the song you strum,

And rest yourself 'neath the strength of strings

No voice can hope to hum.

And then a tillAnA in sindubhairavi!

sindubhairavi is indeed a very beautiful rAgam. When I was a little boy that cared little for music, I remember being stunned by madurai maNI's brilliantly original swaram in sindubhairavi - sa ga ma pa da pa pa; sa ga ma nI nI da da; sa ga ma pa da pa~ ma ga ri sa ri ga~ ga. Yesterday's manamE post was not about originality. It was just a beautiful composition in a beautiful rAgam rendered in a beautifully relaxed tempo. In that concert, MDR followed the slow manamE with a catchy, superfast, self-composed tillAnA in the same rAgam. MDR's music is often not associated with speed, but that is one of the many misconceptions about MDR. Here, with pAlakkAD maNi's brisk, but measured, rolls to keep him company, MDR chooses a quicker tempo and we have a wonderful tillAnA to savour.

Beautiful sindhubhairavi

I thought it would take longer to get started, but here I am, claiming to opine on MDR and Dylan side-by-side. There are lots of things to say and there is lots of time to say all that needs to be said. Let me start with a simple example of MDR's genius - a beautiful rendition of manamE in sindubhairavi - a song composed by MDR, sung by MDR.