Swathi Thirunal

Carnatic composers (other than performing vidwans)
venkatakailasam
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Joined: 07 Feb 2010, 19:16

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by venkatakailasam »

p-SWATHI 077-KVN--krupayA_palaya-cArukEsi-SWATHI...


http://www.mediafire.com/listen/o39au6u ... SWATHI.mp3

keerthi
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Joined: 12 Oct 2008, 14:10

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by keerthi »

Vidushi T.S.Satyavathi speaks about the excellence of Swati Tirunal's songs here.

sweetsong
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Joined: 29 Nov 2009, 16:48

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by sweetsong »

Extremely rare and beautiful bhajan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ak3MkEDogwk

sweetsong
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Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by sweetsong »


RSR
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Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by RSR »

May I know if Swathi Thirunaal composed any song in Malayaalam?

Pratyaksham Bala
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Joined: 21 May 2010, 16:57

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by Pratyaksham Bala »

RSR wrote:May I know if Swathi Thirunaal composed any song in Malayaalam?
Yes, more than 60 in Malayalam.
http://www.swathithirunal.in/compo_language.htm#mal

RSR
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Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by RSR »

Pratyaksham Bala -> thanks for the information.

rajeshnat
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Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 08:04

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by rajeshnat »

Great writeup by PRince Rama Verma on Swati Tirunal , very articulate and building up a strong case for the terrific navarathri festival. Having said I have to respectfully disagree with Rama Vema when he says "So it would make sense to sing all the lines once and repeat the whole stanza rather than sing one line and repeat it again for second sangathi , which would make no sense at all.". Actually better solution is to DO BOTH and Not Either. Writeup in THe Hindu dated Oct 04,2019 in The Hindu. This is duplicate post of rama verma thread , I wanted this to also stay in ST thread.
https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/ ... 584591.ece

Pratyaksham Bala
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Joined: 21 May 2010, 16:57

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by Pratyaksham Bala »

.
Spreading Carnatic Music through movies - once again.

Bhogindra Sayinam by Sikkil Gurucharan in the Tamil movie 'Sarvam Thaalamayam'.
https://youtu.be/SyAqzteUtiM?t=1

kmrasika
Posts: 1258
Joined: 10 Mar 2006, 07:55

Swathi Thirunal

Post by kmrasika »

Just checking: is the authorship of these two compositions accepted as this composers' own?
1. pālaya sadā in naḷinakānti
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cDVpUeIfreo
2.rāmacandra raghunandana in nīlāmbari
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bqh5Tw99_Cw

I understand two attributed to him, nityamaśrayē in rītigauḷa and japata japata in sindhubhairavi are credited to his maternal uncle, Iratyimman Thanpi.

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (songs unheard are sweeter by far ??!)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

Songs unheard are sweeter by far ?? to quote an english poet..

I feel that Carnatic performers over the years have NOT done justice to the majesty of Maharaja’s compositions.

The episode relating to "BhAvayAmi RaghurAmam" in sAveri needing to be heard in all its glory (and then seemingly becoming a rAgamalikA after that is already perhaps three-quarters of a century old)...setting aside all other sensitivities that may arise from my quoting this particular example, I want to make following observation....

The Maharaja and Tyagaraja (and I believe unlike Dikshitar or Syama Sastri) are the best examples of
uninhibited tone-poets unleashing a musical torrent of chaste words and ideas in multiple stanzas /charanams.

I feel that these tone-poets' vision at the point of creation is a direct channel to the source of nAda…the totality of this feeling is captured in the kritis they have brought forth…

In some ways the pancharatna aradhana is a nod to Tyagarajas massive output but ignores his other great and variegated kritis !

See Tyagarajas many-splendored arabhis or todis , just the tip of this iceberg, that have wilted into oblivion...
...ditto for Maharaja ...

Has anyone ever heard the other two charanams in the timeless “sArasAkSa paripAlayamAm”, other than the one that starts with “bhima sevya tava” ??

Has anyone ever heard the charanams beginning with “sakala kalAlaya shAradA himakara sadrsha”
Or “jyOtirmaya navahArAyita sajjyOti shatantra vibhUSitE” in the great Devi Navaratri SankarAbharanam Devi Jagatjanani..i doubt it….it is pretty much either the charanams starting with “VinApustaka dhArinI..” or occasionally “arunatarA dhara..”

Fortunately the GopAlaka PAhimAm revagupti (Maharaja would be immortal if this was his only kriti ! ) was so irresistible in the variety of its stanzas that in 200 plus years most self-respecting vidwans/vidushis have preserved all of them !!
here is MSS caressing this with her sweet voice https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ln0cewhgV70
How wonderfully Maharaja has a sprightly tillana right after waking up, no languid stretching in bed for him and revagupti unlike bhupalam forgets any pathos of the night that has passed !!

Same cannot be said for pAhi gopanandana bhushAvali (Once again, Maharaja would be immortal if this was his only kriti ! ) ..I could go on and on and on with examples…

Maybe the rise of instruments (and instrumentalists) is contributing to this dilution ?

We should properly pay homage to the composers inspiration as true rasikas and even (I believe) as performers. Even apart from the additional ideas captured in the words, the very usage of different words brings additional dimension to the music, in terms of inflections, gamakams, gait etc.

Perhaps the yearly festival to Maharaja should actively insist on performers/invitees exercising their musical training on these unheard charanams..?

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

a follow-up to my previous post

[1] sArAsAksha paripAlayamAm- less heard charanam
quite by chance I found a fine effort which at minute marker 23 does the rarer charanam
"bhOgibhOga kalitAtma nivAsa vibhO .." of Maharajas masterpiece (one of them).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfvJzEzDhTk

ps.. The entire concert itself is very good quality, the humility and youth refreshing, as is the lack of narcissism

[2] along these lines ...ALL 3 stanzas are rendered of evergreen (and extensive) Dorakuna properly done in Bilahari
and not Kalyani
..the singer obviously an expert..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gInzSBR1p0

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal (Nava Vidha Bhakti 9 kritis)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

The Nava vidha (9 ways) bhakti set of the Maharaja done effortlessly by an expert, who was leading female student of Semmangudi )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mt991B1ZjR8

First one in Bhairavi leads to all the others...begada !, sahana ! bilahari etc..

can be compared to Devi Navaratri Bhairavi of Maharaja or his other spectacular (and extensive ) Bhairavis
chapalasampadaniha - pada varnam, chintayAmi te and about 3-4 other big ones !!!

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal (Devi Navaratri Day 1 -2020)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the Maharajas great vision of Devi (Day 1 of Navaratri)

we obviously need special prayers this year..no better way than the Devi Navaratri series of Maharaja

Day 1 Devi Jagatjanani in Shankarabharana
veena
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llGyZ_2gpQY

vocal 1

KNRS https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KW_FR67rIRI

vocal 2
MSS https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFObZkF2RGs

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (Devi Navaratri Day 2 -2020)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the Maharajas great vision of Devi (Day 2 of Navaratri)

Day 2 "pahimAm sri" in Kalyani

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1_USr-OpHs

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (Devi Navaratri Day 3 -2020)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the Maharajas great vision of Devi (Day 3 of Navaratri)

Day 3 "devi pAvanE" in sAverI

MDR-TNK-UKS (who better)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWrtYWKfll8

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (Devi Navaratri Day 4 -2020)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the Maharajas great vision of Devi (Day 4 of Navaratri)

Day 4 "bhArAti mAmava" in Todi

Alathur Bros.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFjRmmBgdiA
Last edited by nAdopAsaka on 21 Oct 2020, 14:52, edited 1 time in total.

Sachi_R
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Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by Sachi_R »

Folks, there are beautiful videos being uploaded by IMPL of Vid. Amrutha Venkatesh singing the Navaratri kritis everyday
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_ ... 4984269895

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (Devi Navaratri Day 5 -2020)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the Maharajas great vision of Devi (Day 5 of Navaratri)

Day 5 "janani mAmava" in Bhairavii

Trichur Bros.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSXW-6toRbA

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (Devi Navaratri Day 6 -2020)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the Maharajas great vision of Devi (Day 6 of Navaratri)

Day 6 "saroruhAsanajAye !" in Kamavardhani

KVN
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZe4qA5MZBA

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (Devi Navaratri Day 7 -2020)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the Maharajas great vision of Devi (Day 7 of Navaratri)

Day 7 "janani pAHi sadA" in suddha sAverI

Radha-Jayalakshmi
https://youtu.be/7EmGFbH42A8

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (Devi Navaratri Day 8 -2020)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the Maharajas great vision of Devi (Day 8 of Navaratri)

Day 8 "pAHi jananai satatam" in nAtakuranjI

a young vainika ! ( WARNING ! diabetes alert....too sweet !! WARNING ! )
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtpfkDMdtcg

Bombay sisters
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aiwSMa2NsY

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (Devi Navaratri Day 9 -2020)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the Maharajas great vision of Devi (Day 9 of Navaratri)

Day 9 "pAHi parvata nandini" in Arabhi

a young vainika !
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1U81vYNV4bg

N Savita
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOuA5l-md-s

Akkarai sisters
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWpfSXT3S4Q

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (the other Devi kritis)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

The few-other Devi kritis of the Maharaja

there are only a handful of other kritis (other than magnum opus Devi Navaratri set)
by Maharaja to the Devi...(mostly deshya ragas seen in the raga choice for the half-a-dozen or so kiritis)

kAnadA - mAmava sadA janani
Huseni - pAhimam brihannAyikE
Hamsanandi - pAhi jagat janani pAhimAm
Vachaspati - pAhi jagat janani santatam
KApi - vihara mAnasA rAmE
NAtakuranji - mAmava sadA varadE

maybe also

sAtura kAmini which I have heard very nicely done in yamunA kalyani
(although it is sometimes sung in Kalyani)

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

some examples of Shiva kritis of Maharaja

There are few (all exceptional) kritis , maybe in all 10-12 only, by Maharaja to the Shiva deity....

the dancing shiva in Nrityati Nrityati in sankarabharana
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7EG0Dzufj4

and in kedAram paramAnanda natana
(which seems to have been influenced by the Dikshitar kedAram !)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94vkyg_Ik7M

the waking shiva in pArvati nAyaka - bauli ! (fine example by SS !!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRd-OL9k5SY

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (some Huseni kritis)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

some Huseni kritis of Maharaja

just like behAg , the mAharaja had a liking for huseni..(fortunate for us)

some examples are known

kanakamaya mAyidum - beautiful gottuvAdyam

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJ-aO8e4b4g

pAhimAm brihannAyike

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm1qlXIF88o

sri rAmachandra parilasa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtYENbBJCao

ayi sakhi- padam

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUjh-RepgAA

there are 1-2 other kritis..will find good versions later..

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal (sArasAksha paripAlaya on veena)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the mAhArAjA's evergreen PantuvarAli !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nqD58Puosg

fine veena rendition by an expert

i feel when veena is done right it can sound like a series of bells..

(note caption is incorrect)

after the crackling paripAlaya sarasiruha , the utsava prabandha nAgaSayanam and the reposeful
saroruhAsana devi kriti, mahArAja has enough in the tank to come up with this gem !

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

rare kriti of mAhArAja on the subrahmanya deity (maybe the only one ?)
in kedaragowla


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7eFu-X-ZRM

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (bhAvaye sRI jAnAkI - sRIranjanI)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

mahArAjA's sweet bhAvaye srI jAnaki exposes the exquisite rAga sRIranjani,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7PLxButafw

does a fine job of illustrating this and the violinist is also a diabetes alert -too sweet !!

this is in the set of RAmachandra focused kritis of mahArAjA along with the
timeless BhAvayAmi RaghurAmam-ragamAlika,
kalayAmi -begada,
dhyAyAmi sRI rAmAmaniSam-madhyamavati

to name a few...

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

Cannot overlook the fine morning kriti to rAma

rAma rAma pAhi rAma
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6q63K2Mywc

allied kritis to the other major deities ensure mAhArAjA well protected for the whole day..

pArvati nAyakA pAhimAm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvfsVovxfvI

gopAlaka pAhimAm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ln0cewhgV70

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

One of the MahArAjA' fine(sanskrit) kritis in Manirang is jaya jaya padmanAbhAnujEsha

good to hear this kriti from leading vidwAn of the 20th century
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5eUmaCIEfk

the annamAcharya kriti in manirang jaya jaya rAma is of interest in this regard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2rnLYC-OKo

The maharAja's kriti displays an interesting repetition of the word "jaya" is applied in pallavi, anupallavi and all three charanams !

an older kriti by PurandaradAsa in BhupAla
"jaya jaya karuNAkara jaya jaya kamala nayana"
also has an interesting repetitive usage of this word

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (kuntalavarAli) - veena and vocal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the evergreen kuntalavarAli "bhoGIndra SAyiNam"of MahArAja carries the “padmanAbha” mudra in
the anupallavi as well as in each of the 4 charanams.

it is a pity we only hear one charanam typically in modern kutcheris etc....

two fine renditions are available

vocal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3l9je-iKNo

veena
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AO7S30x3utU

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

mAhArAjA has blessed us with both

Deva Deva KalayAmI in mAyAmAlavagowlA (MMGowlA)
and
Deva Deva Kal-pa-yAmI in nAdanAmakriyA – which is the “nishAdantya” mutation of MMGowlA.

Both kritis have exceptional language, as expected.

In general the nishAdantya (or similar panchamantya for example navaroj vs. SankarAbharanam)
appear to be fraternal twins with the main melA rAgAs…having the same DNA in terms of swaras
but somewhat diminished dimension, which is reflected in the overall limited number of kritis known
compared to those of the dominant melA rAgAs.

perhaps this is a sign of conditioning to the standard way carnatic music is inculcated/taught, with shadja as basis.

excellent versions of each are available

Deva Deva KalayAmI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kkya8eHesOM

Deva Deva Kal-pa-yAmI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDhH61yHDF0

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

mahArAjA has a fine Huseni swarajati to the brihannAyAkI…
and an excellent modern version is available

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm1qlXIF88o

The reference to the subramanyA as bAhuleya in the start of the anu-pallavi via “bAhuleya janani” can be compared to somewhat more commonplace use by Dikshitar of “guruguha janani” in bhOgachAyA nATakapriyE for example (and also in his other tanjAvur kritis) or syAma SAstri using “kumAra janani” in HimAcala tanaya (Ananda bhairavi) .

Of course syAmA SAstrI, like Dikshitar, has several kritis to the tanjAvUR devI.

Admittedly ksetrAs are somewhat less identifiable for mAhArAja's kritis in contrast to the trinity...
...the mahArAjA’s reference to a Gokarneswara deity seems a bit odd…(if the brihannAyAki of this Huseni is a considered a tanjAvUr deity)

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

In this fine tribute to the much more widely known dikshitar AnandAmrita..
the mahArAja ends each caranam with three-times repetition same as the varshaya varshaya varshaya ending of the dikshitar classic..the similarity doesn't end there ....this is also a so-called samashti-carana kriti with no anu-pallavi just like AnandAmruta..

definite diabetes alert !!! too sweet including violin,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P10YFJQ8Vhc

ahaha naiva jAnE
caraNam 1
kAncana navaratna lasita gOpuramiha kim madiyamahO dayA rAmA rAma rAma
caraNam 2
pracura gandha divya dhUpa surabhi kusuma parimiLitam lasati bhUri dhAma dhAma dhAma
caraNam 3
shrI sarasijanAbha caraNayugaLa vinata lOka nikara kalita sarva kAma kAma kAma

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal (ghana panchaka rAga examples)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

It is useful to see how the mahArAja viewed the so-called ghana panchaka rAgas..


nAta
pAhi Saure (from one of the leading mAhArAja exponents)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMkvNnllng4

gowlA
kAma janaka, which spins off the Dikshitar Ganapati gowla anu-pallavi)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj6B3Vk7Nmg

varAli
(2 exceptional examples)
mAmava padmanAbham
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMf-gZE5j-4

MSS jhampa tAla varnam valayunniha !
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMwLr4NLdVk

Arabhi
I chose the Devi kriti pahi parvatanandini , it is crisp
but there are other equally important ones (Narasimha mAmava, vande mahesvaram, Sri ramana vibho etc. )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOuA5l-md-s

rounded off with Sri rAga
SanjayS bhAvayAmi
(still looking for a good version of the other Sri rAga kriti “rina mada dhrta”)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54F_QkxliCg

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (raga mudrAs ?!)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

Following up my previous post on mahArAjas ghana panchaka kritis

Somewhat curiously rAga mudras can be inferred (with only slight distortion) in each of mahArAja’s 5 ghana panchaka rAgas, after replacing pAhi parvatanandini with Sri ramana vibho, another masterpiece..

I give below the relevant extracts..the varAli actually seems to point also to the kanakana ruci phrase..

nAta
pAhi Saure
moha-nata nu ruci jita kAma

gowlA
kAma janaka
hAra Sobhita- gala-ambuja loCana

varAli
valayunniha !
alamagati yayi varAli ruci veni

Sri
bhAvayAmi nandakumAram
gala vidhrta hAramiha Sri padmanabha

Arabhi
sri ramana vibho
srita pAlana lolupa mAdhava nAga BHI-ti hara nAga bhogi...

this kriti by leading vidushi
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-3_82Ixp_Q

BMK at mahArAja festival is enlightening as well..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dV-PaUvtyQ

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal (mangala-kaishiki)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the masterful KVN introduces mahArAjas version of mangala-kaishiki describing the padmanAbha riding in on a palanquin (Sibika) with a pretty shloka in one of the Utsavaprabandha constructs..

there are no stray or extraneous inflections as he cleanly navigates the words and the tune, his hallmark..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoPcI2dFZHY

Some nice commonalities with sri ganapatini are discernible although it is formally a janya of # 15 Mayamalavagowla…..

...notably palanquins have been known to use elephants, certainly for mahArAjas ..

Considerably more pensive is the parallel Dikshitar kriti to the Srirangam Lakshmi “Shri BhArgavi bhadram “ ..
…where however Dikshitar uses the elephant = sAmaja to “shower” the Devi !! ..sAmaja hema kumbha snApita

fine rendering by a top vidushi of “Shri BhArgavi bhadram “ for comparison is available

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nquU7xDAgf4

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the celestial cowherd..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BKjW3Csvic

Here, in a few short lines, the mahArAjAs powerful grasp of the idiom ,
the rAga Yaman kalyan and the shrngAra rAsa bhAva of the SyAm-mohana
come together with the fireworks of this Pandit and his accompaniments..

Both Jayadeva and Ksetrayya will be thrilled....

The lyric is pasted here (it is a folksy Bhojpuri) for anyone whose head may still be in the sand..

krSnA's flute and the gopis ankle bells celebrate the celestial cowherd ..

Aj AyE shyAm mOhan rAsa-maNDal khElnE

caraNam 1

bAnsuri ki dhunak lAgE tAn tanan natOn tanO
bAjE tAl mrdang ki dhun dhrkuT takiTe tak dhrkuT tathO

caraNam 2

nAc rahE gOri tAn tiyA thait thai tai takaritO
bAjE pAyal chunchun nana jhanan tatana tOm

caraNam 3

tAn gAvEn takadhIm tAdi thirkaT takatOm tathOm dhintakiT
takadhina kiTataka dhintakiTa taka taka tathOm

caraNam 4

padmanAbha tumhAr lIlA kahun mai sAvarO
tAp sankaT sharaNe aO hamAri tum harO

CRama
Posts: 2939
Joined: 18 Nov 2009, 16:58

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by CRama »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRILpHc3s-8

This song was popularised by Dr.Balamuralikrishna in the ragam Mishra Pahadi. Hear the above link.

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

Thank you for pointing this out......Yes I have heard this in pahAdi as well..

However I think this is originally in Yaman = YamunA KalyAni, the scene of krSNa and dancing gopis depicted is VrindAvana on the banks of Yamuna river and this raga Yaman captures the gopis yearning and the charm of the cowherd..

This doesn't mean it is not attractive in pahAdi, (its pretty spectacular) but as you say BMK may have something to do with that..(many of his students/fans carry forward that version)

There is another pada varnam of maHAraja "sAtura kAmini" that is in YamunA kalyAni (though it has also been sung in plain kalyani by some). In sAtura kAmini, the fast charanam phrases are reminiscent of the Kathak dance form , which uses Yaman rAga ..

I am sure Kathak and Kathak-ali were both solidly in mahArAjas imagination

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal (king of bihAg)

Post by nAdopAsaka »

the mahArAjA is also the indisputable king of rAga bihAg compositions

here is another vrindAvana based kriti on the celestial cowherd krSnA and his gopis.. by a spirited vidushi..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LI-Hs02N4Cs

(it has remained unmolested in terms of rAga.... so far)

The more heard bihAg gems of mahArAjA rina madanuta, smarajanaka, sAramaina etc.
can be contrasted to the Hindi/Bhojpuri bhajan above

these are two version in mAli's flute of smarajanaka (all super pakka vAdyas ! )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LeE3thI4v4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pFSVvGwjB4

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

One of the mahArAjas more complex Mohana's is available on the web (lucky for us)
seve Sri padmanAbham is illustrated here by Sri Semmangudi SI’s leading female student
https://www.swathithirunal.in/htmlfile/326.htm

It can be compared to the padam “vadiga gopAluni” in misra Capu
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvZCUum90aI

There appears to a "seve" set of sorts seve syAnandureSvara - Kalyani and the more well known seve SrikAntam - MohanaKalyAni

highyerboy95
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Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by highyerboy95 »

nAdopAsaka wrote: 22 Feb 2021, 04:32 mahArAjA has a fine Huseni swarajati to the brihannAyAkI…
and an excellent modern version is available

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm1qlXIF88o

The reference to the subramanyA as bAhuleya in the start of the anu-pallavi via “bAhuleya janani” can be compared to somewhat more commonplace use by Dikshitar of “guruguha janani” in bhOgachAyA nATakapriyE for example (and also in his other tanjAvur kritis) or syAma SAstri using “kumAra janani” in HimAcala tanaya (Ananda bhairavi) .

Of course syAmA SAstrI, like Dikshitar, has several kritis to the tanjAvUR devI.

Admittedly ksetrAs are somewhat less identifiable for mAhArAja's kritis in contrast to the trinity...
...the mahArAjA’s reference to a Gokarneswara deity seems a bit odd…(if the brihannAyAki of this Huseni is a considered a tanjAvUr deity)
Is 'Pahimam Brihannayaki" in Huseni actually composed by the Maharaja. The authorship of that kriti has been questioned in the past. I remember reading about this a few years back.

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

I give here some of my reasons for accepting this as a mahArAja kriti. Of course these need not work for anyone else.

The mahArAja is the least of the great vAggeyAkAras to live in an echo chamber. Indeed he has allowed and benefited , even flourished from exposure to other influences, some examples seen in the posts made here.

The Huseni is one of several he has.

Of these it can be considered the Sanskrit language counterpart to his KanakamayamAyidum.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQxjlu8DonI

The others such as Devi girikanye are also terrific.

Ayi sakhi in combined language is another fine one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUjh-RepgAA

I believe the brihannAyaki kriti is a tribute to the panCanAdiSa region ambA/Devi and also to the influences of that regions giant composers.

For example there are surprisingly few appearances of the word “ambA” in mahArAjA’s kritis, (the others being the devi navarAtri kriti saroruhAsana jAye and a few uses in the athAna Sri kumAra nagarAlaya).

It is of course the calling card of sYAma SAStri for whom brihannAyaki is also a pet word.

As a word, brihannAyike is also lyrically attractive , so it is natural to find its way into mahArAja’s throat.

The bAhuleya usage is once again (in my opinion) this great poet asserting his choice on the deities name (distinct from both the Dikshitar and sYAma SAStri’s choices for this Devi).

nAdopAsaka
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Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by nAdopAsaka »

similarly in begada

kalayAmi raghurAmam (miSra CApu)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VC6L1RctJVc

can be compared to “idi neeku” another famous composition (also in miSra CApu) of
DharmapuriS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSAjAohlSKI

thanks to these viduSi’s for crisp renderings

nAdopAsaka
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Joined: 20 Jul 2020, 17:05

Re: Swathi Thirunal ( The ksetra syAnandUra )

Post by nAdopAsaka »

The ksetra syAnandUra

mahArAja’s adoration of padmanAbhAswamy concentrated on the ancient ksetra of syAnandura aka padmanAbha-puram has resulted in some magnificent kritis.

A (bucket) list is useful at least for me to identify what I have been missing out on

It can be seen that the rAgas appear only once,
and that there is a Mangalam type kriti set in madhyamAvati

1. bhakta parAyaNa-shankarAbharaNa (which seems inspired by manasu svAdhinamai)
2. padmanAbha pAhi dvipApa- hindOLa
3. pAhi mAm shrI padmanAbha- sAvEri
4. pAhi pankajanAbha-asAvEri
5. pAhi shrIpatE- hamsadhvani
6. pAlaya mAm shrI- nAyaki
7. pAlaya pankajanAbha- ghaNTA
8. parama puruSa jagadIshvara- vasanta
9. sAmOdam cintayAmi- udayaravicandrikA
10. santatam bhajAmIha-bilahari
11. satatam samsmarANIha- nIlAmbari
12. sEvE shrI padmanbham- mOhana
13. sEvE shrIkAntam- mOhanakalyANi
14. sEvE syAnandUrEshvara- kalyANi
15. shrIsha padmanAbha- khamAs
16. syAnandurEshan- kurinji
17. vanajAkSam- madhyamAvati


The nAyaki is well defined here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W77jy3Nzd1M

The bell-veena w/rings out the mohana-kalyAni

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8KDOcPZsak

A fine vocal rendition is also available

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0q2Nq6nGS0

If decent examples of others are available I'll post,

thanks to singers and viduSi's

RSR
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Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by RSR »

@nAdopAsaka
May I request you to direct me to some site/blog where I can get English translations of Sanskrit kruthis of Swathi ThiruNaaL?
Especially the revagupthi kruthi sung by Smt.MS , cited by you?
When you are referring to Sanskrit kruthis for which youtube renditions are available, ( I am thankful for quite a few links that you are giving), if translation also is given, it will be very nice and useful.
Kindly consider my suggestion.
To me, the sahithyam is important for its meaning .

RSR
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Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by RSR »

I am sure that you would have gone through the biographical notes ( mostly brief) of composers in SSP.
Is Swathi ThiruNaaL mentioned there?
I am giving a quote from SSP below. Does it by any chance refer to Swathi ThiruNaaL?
<QUOTE>
43 Kulas´e¯khara Peruma¯l .

He was the crowned king who ruled the samsth¯anam of Tiruvananthapuram. This capable king of K¯eral .a country learnt many languages including sanskrit, ¯andhra h¯un .a, k¯eral .a , and hindusth¯ani. He possessed expert ability in music. He composed, in rakti r¯agas and d¯ e´ s¯ıya r¯agas, innumerable cauka varn .as, and a vast number of k¯ırtanas in sanskrit language which were replete with poetic beauty, and which bear the stampsignatureof“padman¯abha”. He said to have authored many k¯avyassuchascampu. He composed caukavarn .apadamsintelugu. He also composed many k˙rtis in k¯eral .a language. It is almost seventyyears since this devotee of Padman¯abha reached the lotus feet of Padman¯abha
</QUOTE>
Is this historically correct? ( I don't think so)

SrinathK
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Joined: 13 Jan 2013, 16:10

Re: Swathi Thirunal

Post by SrinathK »

Before jumping to any conclusion, please do note that sArasa samamukha, the khamAs composition of ST is notated in SSP.

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