Untimely demise of Mridanga vidwan Shri Palghat R. Raghu

avichinnu · Post by **avichinnu** » 02 Jun 2009, 18:45

The demise of Palghat Raghu is not just an end of era. Its the end of a great heritage.

erode14 · Post by **erode14** » 02 Jun 2009, 21:07

Sorrow surrounded us when we heard the sad news that shri raghu sir passed away this early morning... lets all pray for the soul to rest in peace and our condolences to his family members, noted disciples like trichur narendran, manoj siva, balaji,abishek, anand and many...

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 02 Jun 2009, 21:20

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 02 Jun 2009, 21:22

what a loss! my condolences to his family and the great disciples he leaves behind.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 02 Jun 2009, 21:23

May his students and the grandsons among them continue his great art by emulating him in every way...

tharikita · Post by **tharikita** » 02 Jun 2009, 21:50

A colossal loss to the music world. His "edge of the seat" misra chapu thani where he played the thanaku thanaku thanaku combinations with so much poise and pulling of a dramatic thisra nadai of the same korvai are ever etched in my mind. I was not sure who was the singer/accompaniment for niri niri gama garisa in a popular video of Sri. KVN and Raghu sir. The regalness of his kappi sound, the way he played the chapu and thom with a microsecond gap in between them, His thisra nadai buildup to the tha thi thanam thathikitathom tha korvai. Above all, taking the simplest of korvai's tha kita thakadimdimtha dim, in thisra nadai, taking off 2 aksharam from the middle finger and landing at the arai edam, often played at frenetic pace, will remain a classic. His support for bhavanutha where he starts with na dim dim na for two avarthanams and then slowly easing into a madhyama kala style has taken my breath away each time I hear that song. He who used silence as a syllable most ably and communicated in scholarly abstractions, will be missed very very much.

tsnnsc · Post by **tsnnsc** » 02 Jun 2009, 21:55

Extremely shocking news! our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family. Greatest loss to the entire music world!!

Shanthi Narayan

inconsequential · Post by **inconsequential** » 02 Jun 2009, 22:03

coolkarni wrote:http://www.mediafire.com/?gyohzty0rjz
Sree Kamakashi Katakshi in Vasantha by Ramnad at Jamshedpur is such a scintillating bit
And
http://www.mediafire.com/?q2mzwwydnjz
and Sada Nee Pada -todi by DKJ

This loss will take some getting over.....

Indeed coolji. what a tODi - in just 15 mins, srI dkj has given me the finest tODi experience - AhA.. amazing, this. the accompaniment is fantastic too - violin i believe is srI MSG and ofcourse, our srI pr on mrdangam. Those opening few strokes are just fantastic - not to mention those subtle little strokes (too bad i donot know the technical terms for such) during the Avartanam (not tani) are so carefully chosen - rich in aesthetics and with impeccable timing.

By any chance, would you have any tracks on a vINAi or chitravINai accompanied by pr? i remember listening to a ravikiran concert with him. the amba kAmAkShi i heard is still fresh in my mind. His mrdangam simply sounded totally different - so much so I was wondering if that was a problem with the tape or if the maestro tweaked his intrument to such a finesse - it started sounding close to a tabla!

inconsequential · Post by **inconsequential** » 02 Jun 2009, 22:06

tharikita wrote:A colossal loss to the music world. His "edge of the seat" misra chapu thani where he played the thanaku thanaku thanaku combinations with so much poise and pulling of a dramatic thisra nadai of the same korvai are ever etched in my mind. I was not sure who was the singer/accompaniment for niri niri gama garisa in a popular video of Sri. KVN and Raghu sir. The regalness of his kappi sound, the way he played the chapu and thom with a microsecond gap in between them, His thisra nadai buildup to the tha thi thanam thathikitathom tha korvai. Above all, taking the simplest of korvai's tha kita thakadimdimtha dim, in thisra nadai, taking off 2 aksharam from the middle finger and landing at the arai edam, often played at frenetic pace, will remain a classic. His support for bhavanutha where he starts with na dim dim na for two avarthanams and then slowly easing into a madhyama kala style has taken my breath away each time I hear that song. He who used silence as a syllable most ably and communicated in scholarly abstractions, will be missed very very much.

sorry tharikita, i was busy composing my blabberings while you posted. you have mentioned the very same things i wanted to say, and more. I did not know how to say these things.

Radhakrishnan · Post by **Radhakrishnan** » 02 Jun 2009, 22:27

arasi wrote:May his students and the grandsons among them continue his great art by emulating him in every way...

see how Narendran emulates his guru

http://rapidshare.com/files/240041341/k ... n.mp3.html

srkris · Post by **srkris** » 02 Jun 2009, 23:05

This is a grievous loss to the world of Carnatic music.

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 03 Jun 2009, 01:45

Hindu obituary:
http://www.thehindu.com/2009/06/03/stor ... 020400.htm

davalangi · Post by **davalangi** » 03 Jun 2009, 05:20

What a great loss to the music world!! There is a different thread on the silences in MDR's music; To me the term "silences" strikes a chord when I listen to Raghu Sir's accompaniment - a gift he inherited from his legendary guru.

Inconsequential - In post #20, are you referring to the Enreco album which has "raghuvara nannu"? Raghu Sir's playing for the rainbow of sangathis in the pallavi is totally mind boggling - the mridangam simply sings along with Sri.KVN! He did tour the US with Ravikiran in 1995, I think. I remember driving down from Detroit to Columbus to listen to them at the temple.

ignoramus · Post by **ignoramus** » 03 Jun 2009, 06:49

PR playing for KVN, amba nannu - http://rapidshare.de/files/47397909/15- ... e.mp3.html

ignoramus · Post by **ignoramus** » 03 Jun 2009, 07:06

PR with KVN for an RTP http://rapidshare.de/files/47398019/17- ... i.mp3.html

mridangam.karthic · Post by **mridangam.karthic** » 03 Jun 2009, 07:29

im heart broken.....loss of a legend and personal idol.....my sicere condolences are with the family

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 03 Jun 2009, 07:47

Kambhoji · Post by **Kambhoji** » 03 Jun 2009, 08:01

We are all deeply saddened by the sudden demise of the legendary mrudanga chakravarthy Sri Palghat R. Raghu (Raghu mama to many of us). Several aspects of his life and his art are par extraordinaire. I respectfully pay my humble homage to his departed soul by highlighting a few aspects of this extraordinary artist. These are from my recollections from contributors to this forum and that of Sangeetham, which I gratefully acknowledge.

His life epitomized several lessons that are worthy of learning and emulation whatever may be oneÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢s profession and occupation. He was a karma yogi and a gnana yogi in the true spirit of the word, which enabled him to achieve such greatness and reverence.

As a top-notch, world-renowned artist, Raghu mama carved a distinct niche in the art of mridangam that was characterized by great intelligence, innovation and a burning desire for constant learning and experimentation. Several rasikas, musicians, peers, and sishyas have spoken about his incredible passion for the art. Here are some excerpts:
Sri Chitravina Ravikiran describes in his salutation to Raghu mama, on the occasion of Sangeetha Kalanidhi award, "that even in the airport before catching a flight, he would be thinking about misra chapu tala"

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 03 Jun 2009, 09:19

narayan · Post by **narayan** » 03 Jun 2009, 09:49

What I noticed was that especially for KVN and Nedunuri and the like, Raghu used to sit at a slight angle, inclined more towards the singer than the audience and used to play with intensity that gripped even the audience. Very active and involved playing, with nothing casual about it. I am no one to even comment on the wizardry of the playing itself.

A decade or so ago, Mumbai was fortunate in having him visit NCPA for 3-4 years every summer for a couple of months and several youngsters in Mumbai were able to take their playing a notch higher. These were mridangists trained in different schools, but Raghu was able to lift a whole bunch of them up.

sadvimarsha · Post by **sadvimarsha** » 03 Jun 2009, 10:12

Great loss indeed to the CM world. He had created his own wonderful style of accompanying great artistes. My heart felt condolences to his disciples and family.

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 03 Jun 2009, 10:31

thathwamasi · Post by **thathwamasi** » 03 Jun 2009, 11:25

May his soul rest in peace. One of the greatest to have ever played the Mridangam. One of my heroes whom I looked up to always. The world isn't lucky enough to listen to him again. Just have been soaked in sadness since I heard the news. Here is a small tribute. A masterful thani of Raghu Mama and Shri Vinayakaram on Ghatam for KVN's Dhyaname varamaina. No words to describe. Class personified. The use of gumukki is unparelleled and ofcourse the elaborate thisram.

Raghu mama - Not just us, layam will miss u for ever.

http://www.sendspace.com/file/ncpso2

Love
Thathwamasi aka Ganesh Athreyaa

srkris · Post by **srkris** » 04 Jun 2009, 12:25

A Lec-Dem by Palghat Raghu http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhNaxWeQtcQ

inconsequential · Post by **inconsequential** » 04 Jun 2009, 14:55

davalangi wrote: Inconsequential - In post #20, are you referring to the Enreco album which has "raghuvara nannu"? Raghu Sir's playing for the rainbow of sangathis in the pallavi is totally mind boggling - the mridangam simply sings along with Sri.KVN! He did tour the US with Ravikiran in 1995, I think. I remember driving down from Detroit to Columbus to listen to them at the temple.

Davalangi: Not sure of the Enreco label. It was one 'nonesuch' records, recorded in USA - titled i think dhyAnam - you can check here (may be listen also). But yes, it does contain a wonderful 'raghuvara nannu'.

http://www.engine-studios.com/vpp/India ... nList.html

knandago2001 · Post by **knandago2001** » 04 Jun 2009, 15:44

My pranams - May his soul rest in peace.

ksrimech · Post by **ksrimech** » 07 Jun 2009, 02:29

I'm just seeing this news item right now. Great loss indeed. May his soul rest in peace.

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 07 Jun 2009, 04:08

Just checking in from a long way away, and shocked to hear this news.

bala747 · Post by **bala747** » 07 Jun 2009, 21:26

This is sad news.. One of the last of the great mridangists of yesteryear. We're running low on the number of mridangists who have accompanied GNB AND Sikkil Gurucharan.

bhargavamrudangam · Post by **bhargavamrudangam** » 17 Jun 2009, 12:56

Surely great loss, but he will continue to live through his contribution to cm and also through his disciples and through his recordings.

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 18 Jun 2009, 10:45

padren68 · Post by **padren68** » 19 Jun 2009, 10:32

Here is a Voleti-MSG-PR track with a thani. A wonderful trio
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?y2zddwkznty

vijay · Post by **vijay** » 23 Jun 2009, 14:51

A little late but let me nevertheless record my deep anguish at this immense loss

krishnamjc · Post by **krishnamjc** » 24 Jun 2009, 17:10

A great loss for carnatic music world.. he was a master who attained brahmajnanam through music.. Defenitely its not just a demise. he attained Moksha..

pgaiyar · Post by **pgaiyar** » 02 Dec 2009, 15:48

Dear All Forum Members:

Can I humbly request the following members to freshen the links as I have entered recently?:

M/s. Prashant-KVN/VVS/PRR-Srisubramanyaya; Radhakrishnan; Ignoramus and Thathwamasi-KVN-PRR-THV-Dhyaname

I am also requesting the members to freshen the DKJ-Raghu lin k of Sada in Todi.

God bless you all.

Regards

Guru

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 02 Dec 2009, 20:08

Guru, looking at the gist of your posts on this forum, may I gently remind you this is not primarily a music-sharing forum?