The clip is vintage stuff in recording. So many great vidwans in attendance - Semamngudi, T. Brinda, MSS, Madurai Somu, Prof. SR, Santhanam, DKJ, Tiruparkadal Veeraraghavan, V. Thyagarajan, T. Rukmani, TVG, UK Sivaraman, Guruvayur Dorai, Sikkil Sisters, N. Ramani ... RK Venkatarama Sastri doing Abhishekam for St. Thyagaraja. If DKJ's concert was the National Program of Music (live broadcast from Tiruvaiyaru in the night), I attended the aradhana in person, but could not get into the pandal in the morning for the Aradhana.
Wish there was a recording when Ariyakudi and Maharajapuram Viswanatha Iyer were leading the Aradhana ...

A moment of nostalgia for me as I recognized my own Guru, Vaigal Gnanaskandan, as I remember him from 30 years ago. I recognized him from his jet black hair and his hand movement as he marked the taalam . He is in a brown shawl a little to the left and behind Kunnakudi. Watched the dugukoogala part where his face appears clearly.

Thank you.

While researching some stuff for something that originated from this thread, I stumbled across Smt. Mukta's grand daughter Uma Vasudevan's web site. In the Lineage tab, she talks about the family. There are a couple of photographs there, including a vintage black and white one: http://www.umavasudevan.com/umavasudeva ... neage.html

A question for the likes of RaviSri, MKR, or Nandagopal: in the web page posted by VK in the previous post, there is a statement that the sisters were constantly learning new compositions from different people....now, isn't this at variance from their lack of support for people who learnt from a whole bunch of different gurus?

As long as students did not violate the idiom of the Dhanammal school – the values, aesthetics, technicalities, and aspects of presentation – and they had developed a taste for discrimination, I doubt that they were discouraged from learning under other gurus. In the professionally competitive world of performance, it is imperative that an artiste enriches his / her repertoire. Learning specific compositions from authentic sources (the composers or their shishya parampara) was one way to achieve this. Exposure to gurus who were not members of the Dhanammal school was actually favored – Brindamma and Muktamma trained under Kanchipuram Nayana Pillai and Veena Krishnamachar; Smt. Vegavauhini Vijayaraghavan learnt music from Ramnad Krishnan; T. Viswanathan from Swaminatha Pillai; Balamma trained under Kandappa Pillai and Mylapore Gowri Amma! (Her mother Jayammal did not perform dance in public; Veena Dhanammal had learnt dance from Tanjore Kamakshiammal, used to sing at sister Rupavatiammal’s performaces and was a connoisseur of abhinaya)

“Will padam singing become extinct in these days of changing audience tastes?”
http://www.hindu.com/ms/2006/01/04/stor ... 040100.htm

yalane vanipai – Viswanath Parasuram & Sriram Parasuram
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPzxnxiN ... re=related

ini enna pechu? Smt. Subhashini Parthasarathy
http://www.raaga.com/greetings/track-se ... ?tid=78069

That makes perfect sense..I do wish that this point is emphasized when people recount stories of how they did not like people to learn from a whole bunch of gurus.

Daughter of Dr. T. Sitapati Iyer and Smt. Kanakammal, Smt. Savithri Rajan was a much acclaimed musician and musicologist trained by Veena Dhanammal. Watch “The Flying Bird” online – a story of her life directed by Vishnu Mathur; Starring Savithri Rajan (1989) http://www.1channel.ch/watch-248956-The-Flying-Bird

Smt. Savithri Rajan’s tribute to Veena Dhanammal http://www.worldcat.org/title/classical ... /056720731 If someone has a recording to share, that would be awesome – many thanks in advance.

She nurtured “Sampradaya” – Bhama Rajagopalan
http://www.hindu.com/2001/04/23/stories/09230702.htm
This article includes some nice photographs http://www.columbuscarnaticmusic.org/pd ... radaya.pdf

No, it is not entertainment. It is not a `nice,' `likeable' style. It demands that you meet it halfway. Then it transforms you – Aniruddha Knight
http://www.thehindu.com/arts/dance/article10660.ece

Smt. Kalanidhi Narayanan learnt music from Kamakshiammal (Brindamma’s mother) and dance from Mylapore Gowri amma, Chinnayya Naidu, and Kanappa Pillai. In this lec-dem, she performs abhinaya for “maaname bhushanamu” – Smt. Geetha Raja, Brindamma’s disciple, provides vocal support http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bbDXNqK ... re=related

A padam / javali exclusive from Smt. R. Vedavalli
http://www.dhingana.com/padams-and-java ... lbum/16803

Albums by T. Viswanathan
http://www.artistdirect.com/nad/window/ ... 10,00.html
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/tviswanathanflute

Nadopasakas - 07 - T Brinda and T Muktha - Ososi - Mukhari - Padam
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-k8ZTEAG0c

knandago2001,
Thanks for the padams. I liked the Kamboji one by Viswanath and Sriram Parasuram. I love padams sung by Brinda and Muktha and am glad to know artists still sing them. Would like to hear more Kshetragna padams if someone can post them. Thanks in advance.

A very fascinating thread, that I only stumbled upon thanks to a long stopover at the airport... My grandfather owned the house in Gandhinagar next to their residence, consequently my mother was well acquainted with them, especially T. Brinda's daughter Vegavahini Vijayaraghavan. While not being much of a Carnatic listener, my mother would always tune in when the sisters or Ms. Vijayaraghavan performed on the radio or TV.
-Karthik

clmweb, 'My grandfather owned the house in Gandhinagar next to their residence'

May I know, just out of curiousity, are you Director L.V.Prasad's grandson or S.S.Vasan/S.S.Balan's grandson?

I was probably still in kindergarten when I last visited the house, so I will have to check on the exact location (next/next-but-one) or who subsequently purchased it in 1980(?). My grandfather was Barrister S.Krishnamurthy.

It must be the next but one. To the left of the Gandhinagar house of Muktha is film director L.V.Prasad's house and to the right is movie moghul S.S.Vasan's son S.S.Balan's house. Just opposite Muktha's house was T.N.Rajaratnam's bungalow.

Satyajit Ray's monumental documentary on the legendary Bala Amma is now fully available on Youtube. A truly immortal classic which must be watched fully...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2cC2Y0mJvw

cienu avl,
Excellent! Thanx for the wonderful link.
Thanjavooran 20 05 2012

thanks, Cienu. What a treasure!
I have always been wondering if that documentary would ever be made available to the public.

Cienu: Thanks for the link. For all the "buzz" heard belatedly in the Music Circles of Chenai including the Music Academy about the Dhanammal-Balasaraswathi's legacy to Dance and Music, it required a Satyajit Ray to recognize the greatness of Bala--Ravi Shankar has paid several tributes--from the heart to Bala's dance. Yet both in Dhanammal's last days as wellas Bala's the Music Fraternity was apathetic.

Cienu You may not remember-- check with your Mom-- Kalki Gardens was a regular haunt for Bala during her lean days-- there is a recording of Bala Singing --I think --Subramania Bhujangam-- in Viruttam done in one of these sessions--all done quietly without any fanfare by Mama and Mami(TS/MSS)--one of many pristine recordings at the Kalki gardens--most of it untraceable after the hasty wind-up of the Gardens in 1977(before the US tour). I wonder if Cienu has been able to resurrect some of them. I am sure Radha's elephantine memory should help!!!
Oh for memories,memories of the gardens--Cienu I have long thought about an idea of a series"Life at the Kalki gardens" try coaxing your Mom to share them with you--perhaps I can help in adding my reminiscences to it. That will reveal what a hospitable place the Kalki Gardens were for Music dance and art --More later.

MKR- thank you for your reminiscences.
The Subrahmanya Bhujangam (sadha bala rupapi) sung by Bala, beginning in Hamsadhwani is an all-time classic and it is with a number of collectors now. I had no idea that it was recorded @ the Kalki gardens.

MKR, the Subramanya Bhujangam tape was available even 20 years ago, but the quality is very poor. If someone has a good quality recording of this wonderful work of Adi Sankara sung hauntingly by Bala, please upload it.

As for apathy of the music fraternity towards Dhanammal family, ordinary rasikas never understood their art since it required a lot of effort. But peers like MS, Ariyakkudi, Chembai, Semmangudi and many others were almost slaves to their music and Bala's dance.

I don't remember whether I have written about this in this thread: MS wanted to listen to Mukthamma and sometime in 2002, after Mukthamma returned from Cleveland, she went to Kotturpuram to her dear friend's house and sang for some 2 hours. Sowmya accompanied her. MS also requested Viswa to give a concert at her house and this happened in January 1999.

RaviSri - can you please give us a list of the items presented in these two concerts? Would love to see how one musician performs for another!

Mukthamma at MS's house: I don't know all the pieces that she rendered because I was not present. But I heard she sang vINA pustakadhAriNi (vEgavAhini of Dikshitar), shankarAchAryam (shankarAbharaNam of Subbarama Dikshitar), amba nIlAmbari (nIlAmbari of Ponniah), pArvati ninnu (kalgaDA of Shyama Sastri), rAma rAma (bhairavi padam, payyadA (nAdanAmakriya padam), sakhi prANa (senchuruTTi).

Viswa at MS's house:

1) srI saraswati hitE (mAnji; Dikshitar)
2) vINA pustakadhAriNi (vEgavAhini; Dikshitar)
3) palukuTachE (phalamanjari; PAtnam)
4) ethanai dAn viddhai (Ananda bhairavi; Anayya)
5) vidhi illArkku (karaharapriya; Anayya)
6) challanA (Kshetrayya's shankarAbharaNam padam)- This was a special request from MS.
7) mAdE avara sheyda (Ghanam Krishnayyar's bhairavi padam on Ramabhadra Moopanar) - At Karuppiah Moopanar's request.
8 ) jANarOyi (khamAs jAvaLi) -The Sikkil Sister's request.
9) maharAjuka ramannavE ( bEhAg jAvaLi)

He played AlApanas in phalamanjari, karaharapriya and shankarAbharaNam. Most of the songs, Viswa Sir sang with brief interludes on the flute. Supporting him were disciples B.Balasubramanian and Usha Shivakumar. Disciple T.R.Murthy provided accompaniment on the flute. On the violin was V.Thagarajan and on the ghanjira was V.Nagarajan. There was no mridangam accompaniment.