Concept korvai

[msakella]

Dear brother-member, vasanthakokilam, Chandas is nothing but rhythm in which shorter and longer units are dealt with. In poetry as it has to deal with letters and, in general, no letter is pronounced too long like our music notes srgmpdn only two varieties, short and long units which are called laghu and guru are used. But, as these syllables srgmpdn could conveniently be elongated and pronounced with a music sense, in our music, anudruta the shortest, druta longer than anudruta, laghu still longer than druta, guru still longer than laghu, pluta still longer than guru and lastly kakapada still longer than even pluta thus extending up to 16-units are used. To tell the truth Rhythm is a discipline to put the things in an order. Things without an order or discipline look awkward. In the same way even the words, even without music, spelt in a particular rhythm attract people and make them attentive. That is why this rhythm is induced into our music. Even in the attractive film music if the rhythmical element is removed there will not be any audience.

Even in this rhythm Chaturashra-gati has very high level evenness unlike other odd-gatis and even among the metered varieties of Talas Adi-tala has very highly balanced evenness unlike Trisra-jati-mathya or Khanda-jati-Jhampa or Mishra-sankeerna-jati-eka or Divya-sankeerna-jati-rupaka or Pakshini-jati-dhruva or Pakshini-jati-ata. Even to disturb this evenness in Adi, it is more than enough to make it bad, though not worse, if the Laghu is kept between the two Drutas. Even in the evenness a particular evenness only gives you the maximum soothing effect. In a properly scented room, even if the things are not in order, a person enjoys the pleasant smell and forgets the disorder of the things. That is why always discipline is given the highest place in the world. amsharma

[srkris]

Chandas is a fascinating topic. If we take a famous mantra (from the Rigveda 3.62.10), the laghu syllables and the guru syllables are ordered as follows (the chandas is the classical tripada gAyatri, if we ignore the fact that the seventh and eighth syllables fused together in later times to make the count defective i.e nicRt gAyatri):

Underlined = Guru
Non-underlined = Laghu

Pada 1 - tát sa vi túr vá re Ni am
Pada 2 - bhár go de vás ya dhI ma hi
Pada 3 - dhí yo yó naH pra co dá yAt

GL LG LG LL
GG GG LG LL
LG GG LG LG

So talas take their birth from chandas which is 'poetic metre'.

[msakella]

Dear brother-member, srkris, All the rhythmical forms of the universe took birth only from the Chandah Shastra i.e., the science of metrics which is also called ‘Shatpratyaya’. Even among these rhythmical forms the forms which fit in the norms of our Talas has only be taken and being rendered as Talas and other forms like Sharabhanandanam come under the rhythmical forms which do not fit in the norms of our Talas and cannot be rendered. All these details are available in the topic, Talaprastara which is the origin of all the rhythmical forms of the universe. amsharma

[cmlover]

Sarmaji
Was there a taaLam in Sama veda chanting?
What was that?

srkris
I had always wondered about the truncation of gayatri to nicRt.
Some vaishnavas still do not truncate and chant it without the fusion.
The Sama chanting of gayatri (keeping the Gayatri chandas) is as
'tatsaviturvarENiyOM'
which is the fusion of praNava and would mean
"That Sun God's adorble praNava (OM)... on which may we meditate..."
Thus the incorporation of the praNava (Om ityEkAkSharam brahma) is logical in this supreme mantra..

I appreciate if you/others have any references towards this..
(sorry for the digression)

[msakella]

Dear Brother-member, cmlover, While the Laya is universal some ‘Chando-rupas or rhythmical forms’ of Laya have been metred to suit the needs of our music and in that process they have also been named after Talas having their own limbs according to Taladashapranas. Thus, any Tala must fit in the rules and regulations of Taladashapranas and in such case only they must be called as Talas. In respect of our music only we must call them Talas. For another purposes they should not be called as Talas like in respect of the Chando-rupas of Great Arunagirinathar which, in fact, should not be rendered at all as Talas. amsharma

[srini_pichumani]

Dear CMLover,

talk of taalam wrt sAman chanting can be misleading. But the concept of time is indeed significant, as is the accompanying mudras or chironomy -- great attention is paid to the mAtras covering a section of the chant or the whole.

Even here, the Nambudiri Jaiminiya chants are more characterized by and noted for their great attention to mAtras rather than the tonal compass. They take particular care in delimiting their understanding of the term "svara" as a tonal movement rather than a scale degree. Wayne Howard has captured this very well in his 1977 classic "Samavedic Chant".

If you hear the various ways in which the first chant corresponding to the rc "agna aayaahi vitaye..." is chanted -- first by Kauthuma reciters, Jaiminiya reciters of TN, and then Nambudiri Jaiminiya reciters, you will see this contrast very well.

-Srini.

[cmlover]

Thanks Srini
I know timing is important in Sama chants though there are variations in different regions. The namboodiri chants differ from those of our TN priests. Even there, there is difference between Tinnevely and Tanjore or even Andhras. There are no angas in the Sama chant except for the nodding of the heads among the Namboodris. By the by is there any prescribed timing in the regular Rudram/Camakam chants or is it just practised synchrony?

[sureshvv]

Also, here is my attempt at the Kalyani korvai above (repeated 3 times): http://snd.sc/ySuoHV.

Can't find this anymore?

[vanajan]

Don't know why it doesn't work. Shared again. Pl try this link:https://soundcloud.com/musicinmath/kaly ... ai/s-n7TmM

Vanaja