New Audio CD by Prince Rama Varma with Sri S.R.Vinu and Sri B.Harikumar.
The Language of Music - 15 songs in 7 languages.
For more information, please contact
k7studiops@gmail.com Phone - +91 98463 85752
Song details
01 Vara leela gana lola (Sanskrit) -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INKyS3DkeZM
Western Nottuswaram
Tyagaraja
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyagaraja
Many of the great masters of Indian Classical music, like Sri Tyagaraja, Sri Muthuswami Dikshitar and Maharaja Swathi Thirunal lived at the same period of history, when India was ruled by the British.
Some of these composers indulged in putting lyrics in Sanskrit, for some of the charming and attractive Western melodies that they heard.
These were usually based on the Western Major Scale and do not follow any Indian classical Ragam strictly. Some notes are close to the King of Ragams Shankarabharanam, but do not employ the oscillations or ornamentation that characterizes Shankarabharanam.
These compositions are usually called Western Nottuswarams.
Though Sri Muthuswami Dikshitar has composed the maximum number of Western Nottuswarams, the few that Sri Tyagaraja composed, have a charm of their own.
Vara Leela Gaana Lola witnesses the brilliant mind of Sri Tyagaraja at its best, where one syllable gets repeated throughout each of the stanzas, right from LA in the opening stanza to an unexpected syllable like KSHA later on.
Adults and children alike are attracted to Prince Rama Varma's rendition of this song, where the beauty of the lyrics get highlighted by the stunning clarity of Varma Ji's enunciation.
One can witness Varma Ji's voice go from soft to hard in an instant when he sings a phrase like "Mridu Bhaashana"
(soft spoken) to "Ripu Bheeshana" (menacing to His enemies).
This also understandably, happens to be one of the most often requested compositions in Varma Ji's concerts.
02 Garuda gamana (Telugu)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxXCNC8WQc4
Ragam Suryakantham
Bhadrachala Ramadasa
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhadrachala_Ramadasu
In this beautiful and plaintive Telugu composition, the composer pleads with Lord Sri Rama to take him away kindly
(Karunaneluko Ra.) and to put an end to His suffering (Chintalanachi.)
While the compositions of Sri Tyagaraja are sung by South Indian classical musicians from all over the world, Bhadrachala Ramadasa songs are generally sung more by native Telugu speakers than by others.
Thanks to his eighteen year long association with the legendary master from Andhra Pradesh, Dr.Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna, Prnce Rama Varma had the rare good fortune of learning a lot of beautiful compositions by Telugu composers like Bhadrachala Ramadasa, Annamacharya and others, which Varma ji regularly features in his classes and concerts.
03 Chandamamanu (Telugu)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DK8XPnRp_G4
Ragam Kharaharapriya
Kaiwara Amara Nareyana
http://athma-spiritualbliss.blogspot.co ... a.html?m=1
When Prince Rama Varma set out to make this recording, he had intended to sing one song per composer. But eventually he ended up singing not one, but Three songs by Yogi Nareyana, with whose compositions Varma ji has a special relationship.
Chandamamanu is one of the songs where the superb co ordination between Varma ji and his amazing accompanists
Sri S.R.Vinu and Sri B.Harikumar comes to the forefront, though it is always there, from start to finish, in each of their performances.
In this song, the composer asks "Shall we go see the full moon and come?"
Varma ji has sung all the stanzas of this beautiful song, in this recording.
04 Kamakshi Pahimam (Sanskrit)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3CNOq_KLsw
Western Nottuswaram.
Prince Rama Varma
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aswathi ... Rama_Varma
Embodying a universal spirit, Prince Rama Varma views people like Mozart, Beethoven and Bach with the same level of respect as the Indian masters like Sri Tyagaraja, Dikshitar and others.
Following their footsteps, Varma ji has composed this charming little Western Nottuswaram, based on the melody from
Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller's poem "Ode To Joy" which has been immortalized in the celebrated 9th symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven.
Much like his guru Dr.M.Balamuralikrishna and his ancestor Maharaja Swathi Thirunal, Varma ji comes up with brilliant Swaraksharams throughout the composition.
A Swaraksharam is a kind of musical pun when the note in the melody (Sa, Ri, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha and Ni) match the corresponding syllable in the lyrics. For example the first two syllables of the word Kamakshi; KA and MA, are set to the notes GA and MA!
This is something that can be done, only by someone with a thorough grasp of both music as well as languages.
05 Dangurava Saarirayya (Kannada)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kemhybUmcZM
Ragam Mayamalavagowla
Purandara Dasa
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purandara_Dasa
This is a rare and upbeat composition by the great grandfather of Indian Classical music, Sangita Pitamaha Sri Purandara Dasa, where the composer calls on everybody to beat drums, smile, clap, dance and jump, while singing the praises of the Lord joyfully.
While the lyrical content of many Carnatic compositions are plaintive in nature, Purandara Dasa has composed many joyful and celebratory compositions like this.
Varma ji, in his mission to use language to bring people together, rather than to divide, sings this song in impeccable Kannada, bringing out the right emotion behind each word of the song.
06 Sri Krishnayanu (Telugu) -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcXE3w0vY5k
Mishra Shankarabharanam
Kaiwara Amara Nareyana
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaivara
This is the second of the three songs by Yogi Nareyana of Kaiwara that Prince Rama Varma has featured in this album.
With a haunting melody composed by Dr.M.Balamuralikrishna based on the Raga Shankarabharanam, this song melts the hearts of the listeners like few other songs do.
A much requested song during Varma Ji's concerts and teaching sessions, he brings out the beauty of all the stanzas, soaked in melody, emotion and devotion.
07 Nandavanathil Oraandi. (Thamizh.) -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sf741cbmrUo
Siddhar Paadal.
During ancient times there were realized souls called Siddhar who wandered from place to place, sharing their wisdom with people.
The songs that they made, which generally contain a lot of wisdom, are called Siddhar Paadal.
The legendary flute Maestro Sri T.R.Mahalingam or Mali as he was called affectionately by his fans, usually concluded his concerts with a medley of a Siddhar Paadal and a snake charmer's song called a Magudi.
Though many instrumentalists play this charming and extremely catchy combo during their concerts, few vocalists, if any, have attempted this during their classical music concerts.
Prince Rama Varma being an ace Veena player, brought out the vocal version of this song and has been using it as an Instrument for linguistic unity by teaching and performing this ancient Thamizh song in Karnataka, Kerala Andhra Pradesh and in several locations outside India too.
08 Aaguner Poroshmoni (Bengali) -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo3UQqUGuPU
Rabindranath Tagore
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabindranath_Tagore
One of the most beautiful songs written by India's National Poet, Gurudeb Ravindranath Tagore, the melody and lyrics and Prince Rama Varma 's voice and rendition melt the heart.
Being interested in Hindustani music, Carnatic music, Western music and Bengali Baul music, Tagore created a unique blend of these varied systems of music and came up with his own separate genre of music, called Rabindra Sangeeth.
Being endowed with a similarly open mind that imbibes the best of different cultures and genres of music, Varma ji became a Big fan of Tagore songs when he was in his teens. Listening to his heros like Pankaj Mullick, Kishore Kumar, Hemant Kumar, Manna Dey and Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty sing them, Varma ji taught himself a bunch of Tagore songs purely for his own pleasure and now this song finds a special place in this recording.
Here, the poet offers his own body in place of a lamp, to light up the abode of God and prays that the divine spark touch his soul and render his life blessed and sacred.
09 Aada Pogona Baro (Kannada) -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOWTxGTbSIA
Ragam - Brindavani
Sripadaraja
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sripadaraja
In a swift throwback from the 20th century Bengali song by Tagore, Prince Rama Varma comes up with a charming little song from the 15th century by the pioneer of the Haridasa movement, Sri Sripadaraja or Sripadarayaru.
Varma Ji's teaching sessions and concerts take him all over the world, from big cities like Singapore and Dubai, to tiny villages in South India.
During one such trip, he heard this song sung by a small child in this tune and immediately learned it from the child, though many people render the same lyrics in Raag Durga, which sounds completely different.
The three stanzas of this cute song touch upon Seetha Devi's wedding to Lord Sri Rama, Rukmini's refusal to marry Shishupala and her subsequent love letter to Lord Sri Krishna and the defeat of the Pandavas at the hands of the Kauravas in a game where they were cheated with loaded dice.