M.D. Ramanathan (MDR)

devi · Post by **devi** » 03 Dec 2008, 21:22

Check out this dedicated youtube channel for Sri. M. D. Ramanathan.

http://uk.youtube.com/user/mdramanathan

Devi

vpp · Post by **vpp** » 04 Jan 2009, 20:47

I want to now whether mdr composed Purvi kalyani thllana? if yes can anybody give the lyrics please?

Lakshman · Post by **Lakshman** » 04 Jan 2009, 22:40

The tillAnA that MDR sings here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cR6sKD_y ... re=related
is listed as pUrvikalyANi but it is actually in pUrvi. Here are the lyrics:

ni ri ni ri ga ma ga ri sa. rAgA: pUrvi. rUpaka tALA. Composer: T.Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar.

P: ni ri ni ri ga ma ga ri sA ni ri ga ma dha ma ga ri ma ga ri sa
ni ri ga ma dha ma dha ni ni ma dha dha ga ma dha ma ga ri sa ni
A: ni ri ga ma dha ma dha dha sA ma dha sA ni ri ni dha ma dha sA
ni ga ri ni ri ni dha ni dha ma dha dha ri ri ri ni dha ma dha ma ga ri sa
nAdhru tAnitOm tomdhru tAnitOm udara nadara tAni tAni udarana dani tOm (3 times)
dhitlAm kiTatakatOm dhitlAm kiTatakatOm dhilAm kiTatakatOm (3 times)
C: niSAda riSabha gAndhAra madhyama shaDja pancamOddhAtAnutAta svarita prajaya praNavAkAra nitya
nirAmaya nirmala nigamAnta pratibhAva nirupama niravadhi sukhada girIsha nirAdha niranjani nirguNa brahmAtrI
nAdhru tanitOm tomdhru tanitOm ...................... etc.

unni · Post by **unni** » 05 Jan 2009, 00:45

One more beautiful MDR video in youtube for those who might not have seen it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUmpFTEz ... annel_page

mdrbalaji · Post by **mdrbalaji** » 06 Jan 2009, 19:16

Dear rasikas,

A new short film on my father, titled 'Saamam' (Duration 45 minutes) will be screened at Eros Preview Theater, Churchgate, Mumbai on January 9,2009 at 6.30 PM. All music rasikas are warmly invited for this show.

Regards,
Balaji

rajeshnat · Post by **rajeshnat** » 06 Jan 2009, 22:04

balaji,
welcome back after a long time .Is the film named samam or saamam , by any chance when will this be screened in chennai?

mdrbalaji · Post by **mdrbalaji** » 06 Jan 2009, 22:43

rajeshnat,

Thanks for pointing out. It is 'Saamam' & not Samam (which is also not a bad title, imo!!)

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 07 Jan 2009, 07:26

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 19 Jan 2009, 08:16

How did the film screening go? Any chance of wider release?

kmrasika · Post by **kmrasika** » 19 Jan 2009, 09:53

If you don't mind some correction(s) in the lyrics of the tillAnA

Lakshman wrote:The tillAnA that MDR sings here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cR6sKD_y ... re=related
is listed as pUrvikalyANi but it is actually in pUrvi. Here are the lyrics:

ni ri ni ri ga ma ga ri sa. rAgA: pUrvi. rUpaka tALA. Composer: T.Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar.

P: ni ri ni ri ga ma ga ri sA ni ri ga ma dha ma ga ri ma ga ri sa
ni ri ga ma dha ma dha ni ni ma dha dha ga ma dha ma ga ri sa ni
ni ri ga ma dha ma dha ni ni ma dha dha ga ma dha ma ga ri ri ma ga ri sa *ni
A: ni ri ga ma dha ma dha dha sA ma dha sA ni ri ni dha ma dha sA
ni ga ri ni ri ni dha ni dha ma dha dha ri ri ri ni dha ma dha ma ga ri sa
ni ga ri ni ri ni dha ni dha ma dha dha rI* ri* rI ri ni dha ma dha ma ga ri sa
nAdhru tAnitOm tomdhru tAnitOm udara nadara tAni tAni udarana dani tOm (3 times)
dhitlAm kiTatakatOm dhitlAm kiTatakatOm dhilAm kiTatakatOm (3 times)
C: niSAda riSabha gAndhAra madhyama shaDja pancamOddhAtAnutAta svarita prajaya praNavAkAra nitya
nirAmaya nirmala nigamAnta pratibhAva nirupama niravadhi sukhada girIsha nirAdha niranjani nirguNa brahmAtrI
nAdhru tanitOm tomdhru tanitOm ...................... etc.

ksrimech · Post by **ksrimech** » 19 Jan 2009, 10:03

Lakshman wrote:nirguNa brahmAtrI.

Isn't the last word brahmAsmI, from the upaniSad mahAvAkyA?

muntz · Post by **muntz** » 19 Feb 2009, 12:40

Pl.can anybody let me know the author of the slokam'Ratnakarosti Sadanam' renedred by MDR in detail with meaning etc in a concert with MCS/PR??

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 10 Apr 2009, 21:41

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 11 Apr 2009, 08:38

rshankar · Post by **rshankar** » 01 May 2009, 23:11

A tribute:

http://www.hindu.com/fr/2009/05/01/stor ... 590300.htm

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 02 May 2009, 02:01

coolkarni wrote:Lovely lecture by MDR from AIR
Courtesy Ignoramus

Amazing stuff, truly a gem.
Is there a way to download this?

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 02 May 2009, 07:54

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 05 May 2009, 08:15

alphakrishnan · Post by **alphakrishnan** » 08 May 2009, 14:16

Kerala Govt has made a documentary on MDR entitled "Varadadasa". It is mostly in Malayalam. I would be happy to provide download link (MP4 version) for interested Rasikas. Pls email me at alphakrishnan-at-yahoo.com

Regards

Krishnan

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 15 May 2009, 03:23

Anyone has more details of this?
http://www.clickindia.com/eventdetail.php?id=20329

ignoramus · Post by **ignoramus** » 15 May 2009, 05:56

Ragam-talam

No idea, i am interested too. I did try contacting an address which had been provided sometime back. Nothing came out of it. If you have anything, pl let me know.

divakar · Post by **divakar** » 20 May 2009, 04:58

coolkarniji,
i was very busy last couple of weeks. sorry, i did not check the forum and see your message.

thanks for sharing the links of MDR. treasure indeed.
divakar

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 23 May 2009, 10:59

MDR's birthday (May 21st) passed by without much notice here.
Memorial event in Kerala:
http://www.kutcheribuzz.com/news/200905 ... nathan.asp

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 23 May 2009, 11:08

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 24 May 2009, 03:40

Cool - yes, I did. Thanks!

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 24 May 2009, 03:43

ragam-talam wrote:Memorial event in Kerala:
http://www.kutcheribuzz.com/news/200905 ... nathan.asp

Btw, this article mentions the following:
"Vani"

divakar · Post by **divakar** » 26 May 2009, 07:33

coolkarniji,
yes! i downloaded both the clips.
thank you.

ignoramus · Post by **ignoramus** » 26 May 2009, 09:32

ragam talam - i have not seen the movie. i know that a clip of this movie is available on youtube as part of the documentary on Palghat Raghu.

rajeshnat · Post by **rajeshnat** » 31 May 2009, 13:04

Writeup about this movie saamam,should be a nice one
http://www.thehindu.com/mag/2009/05/31/ ... 200500.htm

divakar · Post by **divakar** » 31 May 2009, 22:31

thanks rajeshnat for pointing out the article..
nice picture too in the article. lovely ambiance to listen to the master. well, any amount of info about him or his music is insatiating..

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 31 May 2009, 22:42

Thanks Rajesh, it would indeed be nice to watch the film.

skutty · Post by **skutty** » 21 Aug 2009, 20:28

Hi,
I would like all of you to enjoy this almost one-hour documentary on MDRamanathan, made by a dedicated fan of MDR (Venkatasubramnian Viraraghavan) and passed onto Rama Varmaji a couple of weeks back. I believe that it is a labour of love and certainly deserves to be seen by as many people as possible. Please do watch the videos, even though it is an audio-video:) as the comments are extremely enlightening.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 2824&hl=en

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 6604&hl=en

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 5459&hl=en

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 2777&hl=en

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 2400&hl=en

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 7917&hl=en

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 1833&hl=en

Enjoy!

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 23 Aug 2009, 07:45

Excellent. Great MDR appreciation material. Thanks very much Sri. Venkatasubramaniam Viraraghavan, Sri. Varma and skutty.
I listen to pantuvarali only in a limited fashion but I simply froze upon hearing his alapana in the second link. It is in a different plane altogether.

rajeshnat · Post by **rajeshnat** » 23 Aug 2009, 12:45

In the 6th part of the Venkatasubramnian Viraraghavan clipping, The thillana is mentioned as poorvikalyAni with the composer as ???.

The NiRi NiRi GaMa (Tillana) rAgam is Poorvi and the composer is Thanjavur Vaidhyanatha Iyer (popularized by MDR).

Little detour about MDR and their fans:
------------------------------------------------
This is excellent ppt and video and audio clipping. Though personally I am able to get the spell bound feeling of MDR in few ragas like kedaram and mAyAmAlavagowlai not with all other rAgas that a typical MDR fan describes.

I recollect my maternal thAthA who cried so much during 1984 and made me even take a bath when Shri MDR died . He always used to tell me I started with lot of ariyAkudi then went to semmangudi , and the day he started listening to MDR he felt he did not want to listen to any one else .

For about 8 years till my maternal thAthA expired in 1992 , I always used to ask him how come you moved from semmangudi to MDR(I was just interested in semmangudi then), he explained with all these anecdotes like what Venkatasubramnian Viraraghavan has put up like the way he splits up sangathis, the yadhukula kAmbOdhi and kedaragowlai difference etc, I did not get it then, I am not even getting it that much even now , but certainly there is so much of truthfulness in appreciation of MDR which only MDR rasikas can share.

In short for few rasikas like my maternal thatha and Venkatasubramnian Viraraghavan,this musician was nearly a god .

Another reference of MDR fan:
------------------------------------
About 6 years back when I was travelling by lalbagh express from bangalore to chennai , I was reading rAgas at a glance by SRJ. An elderly gentleman (iyengar nAmam easily 70+) was just observing me all the way from bangalore cant to kAtpAdi, I did not talk to any one even a single word. Then he asked me who is your most favourite carnatic musician without an iota of doubt out popped up madurai mani iyer.

Then I asked him the same question, he was smiling and thinking a lot . I immediately connected with the same contemplation of my maternal thAthA and I said Sir you dont have to say who is your favourite , I already know it from your expressions in your face . Then he was bit surprised and asked me who it was , I just said sAgara sayana vibhO where i split the sAhityam like MDR sAgara sayana and then did a little bit of MDR mimickry in that impossible male bass voice vibhO . He was zapped and he kept on telling all the way about MDR till central .When he was taking his turn of silence , I kept on bombarding about madurai mani iyer . For every diwakara tanujam serve, there was a sarasa sAma dhAna return. At the end he told me for a long time madurai mani was his favourite till he listened to MDR , just like how my maternal thAthA says SSI and then MDR.

I would like to firmly conclude that a whole generation of rasikas got just fed up with the speed of gnb,mmi and ssi and many like them, and many of them (not all) jumped on the contemplative bandwagon and this most perfect male voice vidwan MDR.

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 23 Aug 2009, 13:32

Rajesh: Nice anecdotes. Let me try this imagery on you in return. You have been circling around MDR and the radius of the circle keeps on reducing over the years. Before long, you will be near that minimal radius, an event horizon. If you go past it, you are permanently trapped.

One such radius reducing song by MDR is Balagopala ( bhairavi ). The way he sculpts the word 'bA......la' may just do it

( http://sangeethamshare.org/hariharan/57-Bhairavi, look for MDR-03-bAlagopAla--bhairavi--Adi.mp3 )

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 25 Aug 2009, 15:20

I finally managed to view the MDR audiovisual presentation--it is really excellent. Is there any way to contact Mr. Viraraghavan to express my gratitude and request for more such presentations? The clips he presented were all rare gems--I especially enjoyed the pantuvarALi alapanai, filled with such tranquility and grace. MDR's neraval in vAtApi was also brilliant. The whole presentation was very well conceived. I enjoyed the MDR "bloopers" as well!

CarnaticMuse · Post by **CarnaticMuse** » 27 Aug 2009, 06:56

Amazing videos (viewing the second one right now)...

I was struck by the observation that MDR uses silence effectively and lets the listener fill in the music. This principle is used very effectively by the gerat masters in drawing and painting as well. First time I am seeing it in use in music. Impressive!

sbala · Post by **sbala** » 27 Aug 2009, 13:19

When it comes to the other greats like MMI, Semmangudi and GNB, we have several contemporary artistes who have taken the bani forward. However, I have not heard anyone who is even remotely close to MDR. Based on Rajesh's logic, there should be a good demand for MDR's kind of singing even now. But, there is no one who sings like that. Ive always wondered what MDR was like as a student. Surely, he couldn't have sung in front of his guru the way he sang in concerts. MDR was not just ahead of his time, he seems to be ahead of our times as well.

sivachinta1965 · Post by **sivachinta1965** » 24 Sep 2009, 11:25

dear Rasikas

Is there any recording available of Smt. Shobhana Rengachari, an MDR Banini?

Sivaprasad

Ramesh Abhiraman · Post by **Ramesh Abhiraman** » 02 Oct 2009, 05:38

Venkatasubramanian Viraraghavan's clips and observations about MDR's music in his series http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 1374542824 have just transported me to another plane. Rasikas, and Mr.VV thank you for the magnificent compilation, and interesting observations.

skandyhere · Post by **skandyhere** » 20 Dec 2009, 17:15

I had to share a midnight music experience. It happened last night, and I feel a strong urge to talk about it. And who better than other MDR fans to share it with! I hope to convey the wonder of his music and its effect it has had on me.

I had slept off with my headphones over my ears. Sometime in the middle of the night, I was woken. For quite some time, MDR's lilting music had been reaching my senses through my sleep. With no more than the slightest consciousness, I slowly tried to make sense of what I was hearing and what was happening. It was Sri M D Ramanathan's sublime voice reciting a very slow Bilahari (Paridanamichithe). It was an extraordinary feeling, an extraordinary moment. The way I describe it is bound to seem unreal and exaggerated; but it was an experience such as never experienced, perhaps due to my state of half-wakefulness. I am aware it might sound overly dramatic to some people, yet I am compelled to share my feelings.

It has to be heard on another level. It is not a song. It is not a performance. This is no intellectual effort, no groping for an occasional creative wave to ride on. This is sublime communication, unlike anything you have experienced in your state of conscious wakefulness. He is talking to you in a recitation, but not quite. It is like sage advice being fed intravenously; it is like truth being shown to you, but how; I have never experienced that either. It is as though the sound is a carrier of nobility, sublimity and peace all coded into it, but the analogy does not make sense. It is indescribable. It is an outpour, the source of which is incomprehensible, and hence, indescribable. You are moved. You experience communication at a level you cannot relate to anything else. You are shown a glimpse of what you know lies beyond grasp, mystic or divine, whatever you choose to refer it by. It simply is out of this world. And finally, you know this voice and this ethereal emanation cannot come from a mere mortal - it is a slice of god itself.

Entirely fantasy-like though my description must be, I wonder"¦ how is it that sometimes, he sings like God!

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 28 Dec 2009, 21:32

I urge MDR fans to listen to an extraordinary ninnE namminAnu in tODi here: http://www.sangeethamshare.org/rao_shar ... R-Live-02/

The neraval at SyAma kriSNa and subsequent kalpana swaras are all carefully handled in the mandra sthayi and completely brilliant. TNK with his bhAva-laden responses and Trichy Sankaran with sensitive accompaniment and a thani with a lot of sowkhyam embellish the piece wonderfully.

Sivaramakrishnan · Post by **Sivaramakrishnan** » 02 Jan 2010, 11:08

I have been fortunate to attend all (annual)concerts of MDR at the haloed Trivandrum Navaratri Mandapam for more than 15 years from 1967. I would be interested to share my experience if members are keen. I see no recent postings in the page!

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 02 Jan 2010, 11:21

Sri Sivaramakrishnan, please do share! I am all ears (eyes).

sakthi.balan · Post by **sakthi.balan** » 02 Jan 2010, 13:35

Sri Sivaramakrishnan....Please share them. Me too keen to hear from you...!

pattamaa · Post by **pattamaa** » 02 Jan 2010, 16:46

Sri Sivaramakrishnan - please do let us know whatever you know about legendary MDR. I am reading a book recently released, and will write my comments in separate thread. Tears roll in my eyes when i read the chapter written by Smt MDR.

http://rasikas.org/forums/viewtopic.php? ... n-mdr.html

Sivaramakrishnan · Post by **Sivaramakrishnan** » 02 Jan 2010, 21:43

Friends, thanks for the response. I may not be able to provide any audio / video clippings ; but can share some great moments - in instalments!

My first experience of MDR's music:
1964: Trichur, Kerala , me 7 years old. (before moving to Trivandrum in 1965).
MDR was giving a kutcheri at the Samooha Matham in the Swaraj round near the famous Vadakkunnathan Siva temple. My father had always been a promoter of good music and who saw to it that all family members join a singing session in our house everyday evening with my mother on the Veena and brother on Mridangam(thanks to the 'TV less' good olden days). He had advised all of us to listen to the great music of MDR with full attention. But at the venue, I was 'whisked away' by my friends for playing outside the hall. Somehow, the music was flowing out and I felt it was unique. At one point, MDR started a song and it stunned me - a different experience. Somehow I managed to escape from my friends and sneaked towards that unique source of music. (I later learnt that it was the Pallavi of the Ananabhairavi kriti -O Jagadamba that 'shook' me even as a small boy.) T N Krishnan and Palghat Mani Iyer were the accompanists that day, I believe. I sat through the rest of the concert quietly with my parents and that was the beginning of my total surrender to the Utthama sangitam of Shri M D Ramanathan.

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 02 Jan 2010, 22:43

Sri Sivaramakrishnan, it is very impressive that you managed to be drawn into MDR's music at the age of 7! Most MDR rasikas I have spoken to (and including myself) only gained an interest in his music at a later age, and mostly after listening to him initially, rejecting him, and then returning to him eventually. Please do continue your reminiscences.

Sivaramakrishnan · Post by **Sivaramakrishnan** » 03 Jan 2010, 08:26

Navaratri Mandapam, Trivandrum 1967
The divine atmosphere at the Navaratri Mandapam(NM) and the formalities to be followed (including dress code) need no detailing. Most notable is that Clapping (applause) is banned at the mandapam -one has to absorb the appreciation within!!

We were at the venue at 5.30pm itself for the invocatory Toadayamangalam performed by the Mullamoodu Bhagavatars. The 'concert Vidwans' arrived around 5.50pm. Shri MDR dressed in panchakachham presented a towering personality.My father and I had taken 'closest positions' to the Vidwans. MDR took 2-3 mints to fine-tune the Tambura. (The present day electronic Tambura-s which can be steady even at 'half kattai' sruti could have been a boon to MDR - I use to think often)

MDR began the concert with Kedaram. I don't have words to explain the impact of his sanchaara-s in the mandra staayi (the Raga was made for MDR?). MDR touched the Mandra Shadjam quite a few times durng the brief Raga aalaapana and that was sort of a revelation. 'Paramaananda Natana Maam Paahi' was the song. (As we used to sing it in our home, MDR's rendition was an eye opener !). Next kriti was 'paripaalaya maam' in Reethigoulai. I'm sure you can imagine my anubhavam.

The foundation for my addiction to MDR's music has been laid.

skandyhere · Post by **skandyhere** » 05 Jan 2010, 20:50

@Sri Sivaramakrishnan - For me, reading or hearing anecdotes, memories and tales of MDR is perhaps the next best thing to actually listening to His music. Perhaps I wouldn't be wrong to assume I'm speaking a lot of other people's minds. Please keep writing.

@Sri Pattamma - Thank you very much for providing the link to a page I never stumbled across all these days. Before my copy of the book reaches me, I'd really like to read your review. Eagerly waiting for your remarks and comments.

I'd also like to share an absolutely wonderful Amba Kamakshi masterpiece from MDR. The link leads you to the blog of a person called Srivatsan Laxman. My many thanks to Srivatsan for sharing this.

http://cid-561516137961ed9a.skydrive.li ... sAstri.mp3