Palghat Raghu
-
- Site Admin
- Posts: 3497
- Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 03:34
Got some nice pictures of Palghat Sri R.Raghu and a few others, from his disciple and well known mridangist Trivandrum Sri V.Balaji and putting them here with his permission. My thanks to Balaji.
The photos were taken with his mobile phone, so may not be of the best quality. The captions to the photos are Balaji's.
Thalaivar
Commander in Chief
Dangerous
Great team of 60s
Legends
Great
Unpredictable
Deadly
To download bigger versions of all the above photos, just download and unzip the following file:
Click here to download RaghuAndCo.zip
The photos were taken with his mobile phone, so may not be of the best quality. The captions to the photos are Balaji's.
Thalaivar
Commander in Chief
Dangerous
Great team of 60s
Legends
Great
Unpredictable
Deadly
To download bigger versions of all the above photos, just download and unzip the following file:
Click here to download RaghuAndCo.zip
-
- Posts: 287
- Joined: 16 Jan 2006, 10:09
Commander in Chief
84 Kottakkal,Kerala.Lalgudi/GJR, Raghu.The concert started at 7PM and Lalgudi was in such a mood he continued playing even after 11.Raghu got tired and told Lalgudi…Podum! Then only Lalgudi checked the time and concluded the concert.
One concert of Vairamangalam with Raghu mridangam conducted by DKJ trust at Narada Gana Sabha mini hall.Vairamangalam was the first to arrive,he found the spot lights too glary,Vijay Siva was ready to switched it off.But Vairamangalam said…Raghu varattum,avar sollara madiri….Raghu arrived soon and said…dey,mudalle anta light off pannu!
Great
http://rapidshare.de/files/29929571/Raghu.mp3.html
84 Kottakkal,Kerala.Lalgudi/GJR, Raghu.The concert started at 7PM and Lalgudi was in such a mood he continued playing even after 11.Raghu got tired and told Lalgudi…Podum! Then only Lalgudi checked the time and concluded the concert.
One concert of Vairamangalam with Raghu mridangam conducted by DKJ trust at Narada Gana Sabha mini hall.Vairamangalam was the first to arrive,he found the spot lights too glary,Vijay Siva was ready to switched it off.But Vairamangalam said…Raghu varattum,avar sollara madiri….Raghu arrived soon and said…dey,mudalle anta light off pannu!
Great
http://rapidshare.de/files/29929571/Raghu.mp3.html
Srkris.
Most members may not be aware of the funny streak in Balaji.Hope those captions are not misunderstood.
I once travelled with him to Kancheepuram for a concert engagement (he was accompanying my Friend Pavan ,who was to sing there) and i still have loads of belly-ache-memories.
Especially the story he narrates about the Vidwan who was promised a beer before the concert only to be told that it would be served after the concert.
No wonder the maestro sang the majorkrithi with his customary twang Beeyaranalvaralinchi ....!!
That is the way with Balaji.One never knows for sure if it was a real story.
that day he treated us to a majestic tapping(on the van seat) accompaniment to Parveens Hamsadwani tharana -which goes soaring unlike the refrain of vathapi or a lagee lagan.
That was one great trip !!
balaji also would be in line for the prize for fastest makeup change artist today.
One minute he is madrasi personified with veshti , vibhoothi et al on the stage and just as you are walking out after a concert say at mylapore fine arts , a bike will be honking at you and you get the feeling that you have seen the shah rukh khan-like rider with jeans and goggles , somewhere !!
Most members may not be aware of the funny streak in Balaji.Hope those captions are not misunderstood.
I once travelled with him to Kancheepuram for a concert engagement (he was accompanying my Friend Pavan ,who was to sing there) and i still have loads of belly-ache-memories.
Especially the story he narrates about the Vidwan who was promised a beer before the concert only to be told that it would be served after the concert.
No wonder the maestro sang the majorkrithi with his customary twang Beeyaranalvaralinchi ....!!
That is the way with Balaji.One never knows for sure if it was a real story.
that day he treated us to a majestic tapping(on the van seat) accompaniment to Parveens Hamsadwani tharana -which goes soaring unlike the refrain of vathapi or a lagee lagan.
That was one great trip !!
balaji also would be in line for the prize for fastest makeup change artist today.
One minute he is madrasi personified with veshti , vibhoothi et al on the stage and just as you are walking out after a concert say at mylapore fine arts , a bike will be honking at you and you get the feeling that you have seen the shah rukh khan-like rider with jeans and goggles , somewhere !!
-
- Posts: 3
- Joined: 11 Nov 2006, 21:51
hello all..
i am my self tree van drum balaji.. nice work by the admin or moderator....
by the way the captions i put is just my love and passion towards this great vidwans who inspired me all the way..... so hope every one understand the love and passion i have, towards this vidwans especially my god padmasree palghat raghu...
i am proud of my relationship with this great mastreo for past 14 yrs.. and i had an oppurtunity to be with him for about 6 yrs and learn the skills under gurukula system
its very difficult to explain the experience...... hope u all understnad what it is.. kudos to this great mastreo who was laways self less and did lot of contribution in laya aspects and till now he never claimed or even talks about this..
just thought of sharing my views with u all....
by the way nice work done by moderator and kudos to this site..
keep posting positive and nice views which appreciates music
by the way coolkurni sir.. wanna meet u for sure... i never knew that u came with me and u have noticed me this much.. nice meeting u here. will soon meet u in person... lol...=)
i am my self tree van drum balaji.. nice work by the admin or moderator....
by the way the captions i put is just my love and passion towards this great vidwans who inspired me all the way..... so hope every one understand the love and passion i have, towards this vidwans especially my god padmasree palghat raghu...
i am proud of my relationship with this great mastreo for past 14 yrs.. and i had an oppurtunity to be with him for about 6 yrs and learn the skills under gurukula system
its very difficult to explain the experience...... hope u all understnad what it is.. kudos to this great mastreo who was laways self less and did lot of contribution in laya aspects and till now he never claimed or even talks about this..
just thought of sharing my views with u all....
by the way nice work done by moderator and kudos to this site..
keep posting positive and nice views which appreciates music
by the way coolkurni sir.. wanna meet u for sure... i never knew that u came with me and u have noticed me this much.. nice meeting u here. will soon meet u in person... lol...=)
Last edited by treevandrum on 19 Aug 2006, 12:50, edited 1 time in total.
Nice to see you too...
here is a toast to your Guru !!
kvn at academy-73-murughabhoopathy-raghu.mp3*
http://quickdump.com/files/273335586.html
Meena -I am trying to cut down on smileys , but this one reminded me of balaji very much..
here is a toast to your Guru !!
kvn at academy-73-murughabhoopathy-raghu.mp3*
http://quickdump.com/files/273335586.html
Meena -I am trying to cut down on smileys , but this one reminded me of balaji very much..
-
- Posts: 3
- Joined: 11 Nov 2006, 21:51
-
- Posts: 584
- Joined: 06 Feb 2010, 21:32
The violinist is not MSG, I dont think. Thaye TripuraSundari in Suddha Saveri is the krithi rendered, with a thani to follow in characteristic P. Raghu style.
In the amazing Sriranjani krithi of Semmangudi IyervAl I am posting, see if you can guess who the accompanying mridangist is. All the artists are clearly at their peak. This is one of my most favorite reneditions, enjoy.
Edited: Link Removed
In the amazing Sriranjani krithi of Semmangudi IyervAl I am posting, see if you can guess who the accompanying mridangist is. All the artists are clearly at their peak. This is one of my most favorite reneditions, enjoy.
Edited: Link Removed
-
- Posts: 274
- Joined: 12 Aug 2006, 01:15
Its fantastic to see a forum for Raghu mama...or commander in cheif, a how Baluveeru has mentioned. I have been one of his cheif admirers....He probably the mridangist with the highest aesthetic sense. He just plays what needs to be played and when it has to be played. Raghu is the best mix of Palghat and Pazhani school of playing. He had the best valam-idam serkai(balance of left and right) on mridangam.
One more important aspect of Raghu mama was his sruthi sutham. He is always on the note. Thats why KVN-Raghu is an immortal combination as I don't have to elaborate on KVN's sruthi sutham. Its so refreshing to think of endaro mahanubhavulu sung by KVN and accompanied by raghu. I think its 1967 academy. I can't forget Raghu's playing for Evarani and mokshamu galada in that concert, not to mention his vibrant playing for 'tholinenu je'.
One more important aspect of Raghu mama was his sruthi sutham. He is always on the note. Thats why KVN-Raghu is an immortal combination as I don't have to elaborate on KVN's sruthi sutham. Its so refreshing to think of endaro mahanubhavulu sung by KVN and accompanied by raghu. I think its 1967 academy. I can't forget Raghu's playing for Evarani and mokshamu galada in that concert, not to mention his vibrant playing for 'tholinenu je'.
-
- Posts: 32
- Joined: 17 Aug 2006, 22:28
I think he has not got the recognition that he deserves.
The good thing about today's musical system is that we have more kutcheris, more public sponsorship and greater chances to get recognition than in the past.
He shares the distinction of not being a SK, along with other luminaries such as LGJ, RK, MDR....
The good thing about today's musical system is that we have more kutcheris, more public sponsorship and greater chances to get recognition than in the past.
He shares the distinction of not being a SK, along with other luminaries such as LGJ, RK, MDR....
-
- Posts: 32
- Joined: 17 Aug 2006, 22:28
I hope I am not stirring a hornet's nest but I sincerely admire Shri LGJ for declining to join that Club. When the 'powers that be' scan the field for deserving artistes, are they so myopic to miss some very great artistes ? If yes, then such an award gets devalued, not the artiste. By ignoring artistes of Sri PR's stature ( and many such others) for such a long time, the Academy and it's awards, in my personal view, have lost their stature.
-
- Posts: 228
- Joined: 22 Aug 2006, 20:51
-
- Posts: 3326
- Joined: 21 May 2005, 13:57
Sorry due to copyright issues, current artist- Sanjay-Raghu cannot be u/l here.Does anyone have recordings of Lalgudi-Raghu or Sanjay-Raghu concerts? If so, please do upload a few pieces.
http://rasikas.org/misc.php?action=rules
-
- Posts: 228
- Joined: 22 Aug 2006, 20:51
For me the biggest attraction towards Raghu Sir is his Kriti Gnyanam and anticipation during kritis and swara prastara. There are a lot of giants in mridangam playing, but none to match his anticipation.
Hey Prashant, is last October's Nedunuri-Raghu Chembur concert available for purchase through FAS? I heard you can't record Raghu Sir's concerts?
Trivandrum Balaji Sir - Congratulations on being his shishya !!! Could you upload some of your own recordings? I have never heard you so far and would like to indulge in the pleasure of doing so.
Thanks.
Mahesh.
Hey Prashant, is last October's Nedunuri-Raghu Chembur concert available for purchase through FAS? I heard you can't record Raghu Sir's concerts?
Trivandrum Balaji Sir - Congratulations on being his shishya !!! Could you upload some of your own recordings? I have never heard you so far and would like to indulge in the pleasure of doing so.
Thanks.
Mahesh.
-
- Posts: 124
- Joined: 22 Mar 2005, 00:10
Dear all,
Great to see this thread on Raghu sir. Many here may have already read these articles. Just to place them under the same title, here are the links
http://www.hindu.com/ms/2004/12/01/stor ... 340200.htm
http://www.geocities.com/nand12/news.html <-- (choose the link for an article by Janani Srinivasan)
Regards
Great to see this thread on Raghu sir. Many here may have already read these articles. Just to place them under the same title, here are the links
http://www.hindu.com/ms/2004/12/01/stor ... 340200.htm
http://www.geocities.com/nand12/news.html <-- (choose the link for an article by Janani Srinivasan)
Regards
-
- Posts: 47
- Joined: 28 Jan 2006, 21:07
FROM RAW SOUND TO STRUCTURED PATTERNS -On Palghat Raghu
by N.Manu chakravarthy
Eliot's comment that "Expression is altered only by a man of genius", far from being a tribute to the individual, is actually a vital insight into the nature of a serious and profound relationship between an artist and his medium.
A rigorous analysis attempting to highlight the significant aspects of an art form will inevitably have to underline several phases as crucial junctures when the genius of a single individual transformed its entire conception and structure. Such an endeavor does not merely draw attention to the genius of an outstanding artist, but, quite appropriately, offers new perspectives that question outmoded conceptions, and more importantly, generate fresh ideas by which new modes of understanding come into being.
It was Palghat Mani Iyer who brought about such a tremendous transformation in Karnatic music. The amazing genius of Mani Iyer pushed the Mridangam to the foreground, offering laya as a great structural dimension, not just as a time-marking measure, with patterns as significant as those of the main performer. The Mridangam at the hands of Mani Iyer, was not an instrument that would just mark time through the Jatis, but an indispensable ally that enhanced the beauty of the fabric of the main piece and, at the same time, a challenge that, if accepted would carry the main performer to extraordinary heights that he could never have reached on his own.
This only meant that it became impossible to dissociate the main performer and his music from the mridangam and its structures. After Mani Iyer it was not just the position of the mridangam and the aspirations of the main performer that had changed, but also the expectations of the listener-at least the sensitive one- who began to demand a high combination of raga and laya. It would not be wrong to say that Mani Iyer's greatest achievement was in the perfect fusion he brought about between raga and laya on the concert platform that mridangists earlier had not been able to. The change was, essentially, creative and not theoretical, its value greater in imaginative than in intellectual terms.
The second phase of this transformation is equally noteworthy. If Mani Iyer unleashed new structures forcefully, and at times wildly, it was Palghat Raghu's genius that ordered, shaped and beautified them.
It was through Raghu that the imaginative and creative aspects of Mani Iyer's vision became crystallized into highly contemplative, deeply thought out and very finely chiseled images. Mani Iyer's profusion of ideas, uncontrollable and raging at times, had to necessarily evolve further in terms of acquiring balance, restraint and architectural order and beauty.
The mridangam gained all these through Palghat Raghu who furthered -both on intellectual and aesthetic planes-the dimensions opened up by his great teacher. The mridangam in Karnatic music thus further entrenched his position. The great master's vision gained a new dimension, as it needed to, through his greatest disciple.
The manner in which Palghat Raghu achieved this is revealing. Raghu introduced into Mani Iyer's massive and expansive structures, at times rhetorical and merely dazzling, little strokes that etched the sound more deeply and closely, eliminating strokes that were superfluous and even out of place.
A close study of Mani Iyer and Raghu would certainly establish the fact that Raghu's "texts" are more intricately knit, highly sophisticated in texture and weave a pattern where the selection of strokes is strictly determined by principles of structural order and cohesion. Mani Iyer's bani, however, drew more from the power of the sound than from a notion of structural unity.
The advance made by Raghu over Mani Iyer is remarkable and it must be acknowledged unequivocally, has been possible only because of Mani Iyer's astounding supporting base.
An important aspect of Raghu's genius that must be mentioned is that one discovers in it the vision to integrate Mani Iyer's breath taking sweep with the gentler but deeper touches of Palani Subramaniam Pillai which issue out a resonance and subtlety that establish a perfect concord between power and restraint. The most outstanding "texts" of Raghu interthread Mani Iyer and Palani Subramania Pillai to create a combination that a man of lesser genius would never be able to dream of, let alone produce.
It is only an intensive study of Raghu's playing during the neraval , the kalpana swaras and the rendering of the anuloma, viloma and pratiloma of the pallavi that would bring all these to light.
The other great measure of Raghu's genius is the thani avarthanam which is an outstanding representation of all the
shades of feeling and thought of the main piece. Raghu's thani avarthanams are, essentially, perfect objective correlatives of those images produced by the main performer.
All these are possible only because Raghu produces swaras and not lifeless jathis on the instrument that measure upto, and on occasion even go beyond, the patterns of the main artiste.
It is again only a deep study that helps one comprehend the truth that Raghu does not accompany passively, but literally moves with the artiste at the center in great unison, creating patterns of great tonal variety, effecting the subtle shifts between the left hand side and the right, projecting a mosaic that is a perfect whole unifying a variety of combinations of richness and depth, punctuated throughout by wonderful variations, in the nadai.
Serious listeners of Karnatic music, who are conversant with the nuances introduced by the great mridangam players, would not hesitate to state that it achieves its greatness only through performers who blend the fine aspects of laya with their conception of the raga. It is an imperative in Karnatic music to unfold the range and depth of a raga not just through the rendering of alapana but, more importantly, in discovering its infinite possibilities in the combinations created through the neraval, the swaras and of course, in the rendering of the pallavi.
The form of Karnatic music, so different from Hindusthani music in organization and movement, where the role of the percussionist is essentially secondary in nature makes it virtually impossible for one to create a great piece without depending heavily on the laya scheme.
When the Sruti Foundation launched the Ragam Tanam Pallavi series some years age, K.V.Narayanaswamy, in the inaugural concert, was paired with Raghu.KVN took up a piece in Todi with a take-off point that was quite complex. In the course of his delineation, at the momentous part, KVN could not reach the sama correctly even after three or four attempts.
The rendering thereafter gained substance and solidity only when Raghu took over and guided KVN-a fact KVN himself acknowledged later on elsewhere. The magnificent manner in which laya operated throughout the rendering was a great tribute to Raghu and a clear demonstration of the value of laya in Karnatic music.
A couple of months ago, at a chamber concert, T.K.Govinda Rao went through a similar experience while singing a kriti- and it was the mridangam that eventually balanced him out. Govinda Rao acknowledged this debt to Raghu at the end of the concert. These are not isolated incidents that draw attention to themselves, but on the contrary, support the position that as far as the scheme of Karnatic music is concerned, laya is the determining base.
Karnatic music is perhaps at its lowest point now. The greatest indication of this is the fact that even big names prefer mridangam players who churn out convenient inane sarvalaghu patterns that have neither substance nor meaning. The presence of a great artiste like Raghu, however, assures us that all is not hopelessly lost and gone forever. It is only in bringing the soul of laya back to the center that we can restore the vibrant vitality of Karnatic music. It must be recognized by those who still care for Karnatic music that they cannot talk of its greatness if it sacrifices its most vital component-laya.
The future of Karnatic music is in a very big sense, wholly dependent on what the present does with the genius of men like Palghat Mani Iyer,Palani Subramania Pillai and Palghat Raghu.
by N.Manu chakravarthy
Eliot's comment that "Expression is altered only by a man of genius", far from being a tribute to the individual, is actually a vital insight into the nature of a serious and profound relationship between an artist and his medium.
A rigorous analysis attempting to highlight the significant aspects of an art form will inevitably have to underline several phases as crucial junctures when the genius of a single individual transformed its entire conception and structure. Such an endeavor does not merely draw attention to the genius of an outstanding artist, but, quite appropriately, offers new perspectives that question outmoded conceptions, and more importantly, generate fresh ideas by which new modes of understanding come into being.
It was Palghat Mani Iyer who brought about such a tremendous transformation in Karnatic music. The amazing genius of Mani Iyer pushed the Mridangam to the foreground, offering laya as a great structural dimension, not just as a time-marking measure, with patterns as significant as those of the main performer. The Mridangam at the hands of Mani Iyer, was not an instrument that would just mark time through the Jatis, but an indispensable ally that enhanced the beauty of the fabric of the main piece and, at the same time, a challenge that, if accepted would carry the main performer to extraordinary heights that he could never have reached on his own.
This only meant that it became impossible to dissociate the main performer and his music from the mridangam and its structures. After Mani Iyer it was not just the position of the mridangam and the aspirations of the main performer that had changed, but also the expectations of the listener-at least the sensitive one- who began to demand a high combination of raga and laya. It would not be wrong to say that Mani Iyer's greatest achievement was in the perfect fusion he brought about between raga and laya on the concert platform that mridangists earlier had not been able to. The change was, essentially, creative and not theoretical, its value greater in imaginative than in intellectual terms.
The second phase of this transformation is equally noteworthy. If Mani Iyer unleashed new structures forcefully, and at times wildly, it was Palghat Raghu's genius that ordered, shaped and beautified them.
It was through Raghu that the imaginative and creative aspects of Mani Iyer's vision became crystallized into highly contemplative, deeply thought out and very finely chiseled images. Mani Iyer's profusion of ideas, uncontrollable and raging at times, had to necessarily evolve further in terms of acquiring balance, restraint and architectural order and beauty.
The mridangam gained all these through Palghat Raghu who furthered -both on intellectual and aesthetic planes-the dimensions opened up by his great teacher. The mridangam in Karnatic music thus further entrenched his position. The great master's vision gained a new dimension, as it needed to, through his greatest disciple.
The manner in which Palghat Raghu achieved this is revealing. Raghu introduced into Mani Iyer's massive and expansive structures, at times rhetorical and merely dazzling, little strokes that etched the sound more deeply and closely, eliminating strokes that were superfluous and even out of place.
A close study of Mani Iyer and Raghu would certainly establish the fact that Raghu's "texts" are more intricately knit, highly sophisticated in texture and weave a pattern where the selection of strokes is strictly determined by principles of structural order and cohesion. Mani Iyer's bani, however, drew more from the power of the sound than from a notion of structural unity.
The advance made by Raghu over Mani Iyer is remarkable and it must be acknowledged unequivocally, has been possible only because of Mani Iyer's astounding supporting base.
An important aspect of Raghu's genius that must be mentioned is that one discovers in it the vision to integrate Mani Iyer's breath taking sweep with the gentler but deeper touches of Palani Subramaniam Pillai which issue out a resonance and subtlety that establish a perfect concord between power and restraint. The most outstanding "texts" of Raghu interthread Mani Iyer and Palani Subramania Pillai to create a combination that a man of lesser genius would never be able to dream of, let alone produce.
It is only an intensive study of Raghu's playing during the neraval , the kalpana swaras and the rendering of the anuloma, viloma and pratiloma of the pallavi that would bring all these to light.
The other great measure of Raghu's genius is the thani avarthanam which is an outstanding representation of all the
shades of feeling and thought of the main piece. Raghu's thani avarthanams are, essentially, perfect objective correlatives of those images produced by the main performer.
All these are possible only because Raghu produces swaras and not lifeless jathis on the instrument that measure upto, and on occasion even go beyond, the patterns of the main artiste.
It is again only a deep study that helps one comprehend the truth that Raghu does not accompany passively, but literally moves with the artiste at the center in great unison, creating patterns of great tonal variety, effecting the subtle shifts between the left hand side and the right, projecting a mosaic that is a perfect whole unifying a variety of combinations of richness and depth, punctuated throughout by wonderful variations, in the nadai.
Serious listeners of Karnatic music, who are conversant with the nuances introduced by the great mridangam players, would not hesitate to state that it achieves its greatness only through performers who blend the fine aspects of laya with their conception of the raga. It is an imperative in Karnatic music to unfold the range and depth of a raga not just through the rendering of alapana but, more importantly, in discovering its infinite possibilities in the combinations created through the neraval, the swaras and of course, in the rendering of the pallavi.
The form of Karnatic music, so different from Hindusthani music in organization and movement, where the role of the percussionist is essentially secondary in nature makes it virtually impossible for one to create a great piece without depending heavily on the laya scheme.
When the Sruti Foundation launched the Ragam Tanam Pallavi series some years age, K.V.Narayanaswamy, in the inaugural concert, was paired with Raghu.KVN took up a piece in Todi with a take-off point that was quite complex. In the course of his delineation, at the momentous part, KVN could not reach the sama correctly even after three or four attempts.
The rendering thereafter gained substance and solidity only when Raghu took over and guided KVN-a fact KVN himself acknowledged later on elsewhere. The magnificent manner in which laya operated throughout the rendering was a great tribute to Raghu and a clear demonstration of the value of laya in Karnatic music.
A couple of months ago, at a chamber concert, T.K.Govinda Rao went through a similar experience while singing a kriti- and it was the mridangam that eventually balanced him out. Govinda Rao acknowledged this debt to Raghu at the end of the concert. These are not isolated incidents that draw attention to themselves, but on the contrary, support the position that as far as the scheme of Karnatic music is concerned, laya is the determining base.
Karnatic music is perhaps at its lowest point now. The greatest indication of this is the fact that even big names prefer mridangam players who churn out convenient inane sarvalaghu patterns that have neither substance nor meaning. The presence of a great artiste like Raghu, however, assures us that all is not hopelessly lost and gone forever. It is only in bringing the soul of laya back to the center that we can restore the vibrant vitality of Karnatic music. It must be recognized by those who still care for Karnatic music that they cannot talk of its greatness if it sacrifices its most vital component-laya.
The future of Karnatic music is in a very big sense, wholly dependent on what the present does with the genius of men like Palghat Mani Iyer,Palani Subramania Pillai and Palghat Raghu.
-
- Posts: 382
- Joined: 15 Aug 2006, 22:12
This is Guruvayoor Dorai.mahesh3 wrote:The violinist is not MSG, I dont think. Thaye TripuraSundari in Suddha Saveri is the krithi rendered, with a thani to follow in characteristic P. Raghu style.
In the amazing Sriranjani krithi of Semmangudi IyervAl I am posting, see if you can guess who the accompanying mridangist is. All the artists are clearly at their peak. This is one of my most favorite reneditions, enjoy.
Edited: Link Removed
This is probably also a good time to mention that its a commercial recording and that it should be deleted.
-
- Posts: 584
- Joined: 06 Feb 2010, 21:32
-
- Posts: 382
- Joined: 15 Aug 2006, 22:12
i think i made a mistake in who is playing...it is Mani sir...I don't have the tape with me current, but I know I've heard it. I think the violin is a young L. Subramanian or L. Shankar.
I think the tape/CD list is the following:
Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer 61
Vallabha Nayaka - Begada - Thyagaraja
Janani Ninuvina - Reethigowlai - Subbaraya Sastry
Sri Sathyanarayanam - Subapanthuvarali - Dikshithar
Brocheva revare - Sriranjani - Thyagaraja
Dhivakara Thanujam - Yadhukulakambodhi - Dikshithar
Amba Kamakshi - Bairavi - Dikshithar
Amba Kamakshi - Bairavi - Dikshithar
In addition the high sound quality can only mean that this was done in a studio....hence it would be commercial. At that time period, no concerts could be recorded at such high quality sound levels, and it sounds very much like a studio recording
I think the tape/CD list is the following:
Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer 61
Vallabha Nayaka - Begada - Thyagaraja
Janani Ninuvina - Reethigowlai - Subbaraya Sastry
Sri Sathyanarayanam - Subapanthuvarali - Dikshithar
Brocheva revare - Sriranjani - Thyagaraja
Dhivakara Thanujam - Yadhukulakambodhi - Dikshithar
Amba Kamakshi - Bairavi - Dikshithar
Amba Kamakshi - Bairavi - Dikshithar
In addition the high sound quality can only mean that this was done in a studio....hence it would be commercial. At that time period, no concerts could be recorded at such high quality sound levels, and it sounds very much like a studio recording
-
- Posts: 228
- Joined: 22 Aug 2006, 20:51
http://rapidshare.com/files/10888529/10 ... M.MP3.html
raghu-harisankar
here is a nice video clip
http://rapidshare.com/files/10892833/RAGHU.MPG.html
and the full video concert , in mp3 format.
http://rapidshare.com/files/10890392/KV ... u.mp3.html
Pure Bliss !!
raghu-harisankar
here is a nice video clip
http://rapidshare.com/files/10892833/RAGHU.MPG.html
and the full video concert , in mp3 format.
http://rapidshare.com/files/10890392/KV ... u.mp3.html
Pure Bliss !!
-
- Posts: 228
- Joined: 22 Aug 2006, 20:51
Just read on Orkut that Raghu Sir will be awarded the SK this year. Many congratulations to the great vidwan !!!. The SK list would have been so incomplete without him.
Sorry for posting here. Did not see the postings in the General Discussions section.
Sorry for posting here. Did not see the postings in the General Discussions section.
Last edited by mahesh_narayan on 15 May 2007, 23:10, edited 1 time in total.
-
- Posts: 228
- Joined: 22 Aug 2006, 20:51
Here is an interview of Raghu Sir that appeared in the Hindu today:
http://www.hindu.com/fr/2007/09/07/stor ... 170200.htm.
What dignity even in speech !!!
If anyone gets to know his concert schedule for the coming months, please post here.
Thanks.
http://www.hindu.com/fr/2007/09/07/stor ... 170200.htm.
What dignity even in speech !!!
If anyone gets to know his concert schedule for the coming months, please post here.
Thanks.
Last edited by mahesh_narayan on 07 Sep 2007, 22:30, edited 1 time in total.
-
- Posts: 9907
- Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 08:04
http://www.hindu.com/fr/2007/09/07/stor ... 170200.htm
is the url, mahesh_narayan's url has a dot at the end.
is the url, mahesh_narayan's url has a dot at the end.
-
- Posts: 224
- Joined: 10 Jun 2007, 11:56
-
- Posts: 274
- Joined: 12 Aug 2006, 01:15
My blog about Raghu Mama.
To begin with let me congratulate Palghat Shri Raghu for being awarded the Sangeetha Kalanidhi atlast. Something that he should have been given alongside T N Krishnan in the early eighties. But may be his seniority was an issue for Music Academy management. Palghat Raghu, took the music world by storm only during late 50's when he became a regular accompaniment for Shri GNB.
Palghat Raghu is a phenomenon by himself. There are only two kind of rasikas. Ones who love Raghu and ones who don't. And the ones who love him will say he is unparellaled and the others will often have a set of criticisms. Lets take sometime to look back at this great musician. Let me make it clear at this junction that I belong to the first category who feels Raghu Mama is a phenomenon unparellaled. Let it be the Keezhkalam that he plays for rendu kalai chavukka keerthanais or the misra nadai he used to play for some keerthanais anupallavi or the theermanam that he has when he begins a thani avartanam. Raghu Mama's mridangam is something that I have grown up with.
Once a friend of mine commented that Palghat Mani Iyer is Don Bradman (the best right hander) and Palani Subramaniam is David Gower(best left hander). Though I laughed at the comparison, something left me thinking about the whole thing. Raghu mama is the best mix of these two pillars of mridangam. Let it be the weight of the Thoppi or the majesty of his playing. He has made a brilliant blend of the greatness of both the schools which created a niche for himself. He is an artiste who is completely aware of his strengths and weaknesses. He for one understood the fact that he is not someone he is not. He never tried imitating Mani Iyer or Palani blindly (like most others of his generation). And he is also the master strategist in my opinion. When he began his career playing for the likes of GNB he was playing in the resonant Kuchi mridangam. That was the time when Palani died an untimely death and Palghat Mani Iyer was at his best. Palghat Mani iyer of the fifties probably the closest we can find to percussion perfection. So Raghu Mama never tried reminding anyone of his guru. He started playing in the Kuchi Mridangam and started filling the void that palani's demise left. Many accuse raghu mama of not having a great sound. I request all of them to listen to GNB's 1957 Music Academy concert. Raghu mama would have been 29 at that time. He had mastered what is called as the "Idam - valam cherkai" or the balance of the bass and treble of the mridangam. His gumukki was virtually singing Darini thelusu konti along with GNB. For the majority of his career, this had been his forte and he continued playing Kuchi mridangam.When Palghat Mani Iyer slowly started to take the back seat, our man shifted to Kappi Mridangam. And he made the transition unbelievably smooth.
Paatu gyanam was another big strength of Raghu Mama. He knew every varnam and every keerthanai thats sung on a stage. Or atleast he makes it sound like that. Listen to how he plays for the chittai swarams of Seethamma mayamma or thaye thripurasundari. As I am writing this blog, I am listening to him playing for KVN's seethamma mayamma. His skill is at its own class when he plays for keerthanais. And he takes it to another level when he plays for kalpanai swaram. He simply catches the karpanai of the main artist with his brilliant anticipation skills.
KVN and Raghu mama are the Arjuna and Krishna of the modern music era. Such is the aura when KVN sings Endaro Mahanubavulu with Raghu mama playing the keerthanai on the mridangam along. Time and again, this has been repeated for the Srinivasa thava charanams, Samaja Varadas and the ra ra maintis.
As a finishing note, I have a request for the current generation mridangists who admire Raghu mama. Please understand that Raghu mama himself never tried imitating anyone. So try to get the essence of his music in your playing rather than imitating him. Even if you imitate him, please imitate him of the sixties and seventies and not the 90's when he didn't have the luxury of the main artists he had during 60s and 70s.
Hearty Congratulations to Shri Raghu Mama and I am proud to have been associated with this great man musically.
Alternatively my link is
http://klimkaaran.blogspot.com/2007/11/ ... raghu.html
To begin with let me congratulate Palghat Shri Raghu for being awarded the Sangeetha Kalanidhi atlast. Something that he should have been given alongside T N Krishnan in the early eighties. But may be his seniority was an issue for Music Academy management. Palghat Raghu, took the music world by storm only during late 50's when he became a regular accompaniment for Shri GNB.
Palghat Raghu is a phenomenon by himself. There are only two kind of rasikas. Ones who love Raghu and ones who don't. And the ones who love him will say he is unparellaled and the others will often have a set of criticisms. Lets take sometime to look back at this great musician. Let me make it clear at this junction that I belong to the first category who feels Raghu Mama is a phenomenon unparellaled. Let it be the Keezhkalam that he plays for rendu kalai chavukka keerthanais or the misra nadai he used to play for some keerthanais anupallavi or the theermanam that he has when he begins a thani avartanam. Raghu Mama's mridangam is something that I have grown up with.
Once a friend of mine commented that Palghat Mani Iyer is Don Bradman (the best right hander) and Palani Subramaniam is David Gower(best left hander). Though I laughed at the comparison, something left me thinking about the whole thing. Raghu mama is the best mix of these two pillars of mridangam. Let it be the weight of the Thoppi or the majesty of his playing. He has made a brilliant blend of the greatness of both the schools which created a niche for himself. He is an artiste who is completely aware of his strengths and weaknesses. He for one understood the fact that he is not someone he is not. He never tried imitating Mani Iyer or Palani blindly (like most others of his generation). And he is also the master strategist in my opinion. When he began his career playing for the likes of GNB he was playing in the resonant Kuchi mridangam. That was the time when Palani died an untimely death and Palghat Mani Iyer was at his best. Palghat Mani iyer of the fifties probably the closest we can find to percussion perfection. So Raghu Mama never tried reminding anyone of his guru. He started playing in the Kuchi Mridangam and started filling the void that palani's demise left. Many accuse raghu mama of not having a great sound. I request all of them to listen to GNB's 1957 Music Academy concert. Raghu mama would have been 29 at that time. He had mastered what is called as the "Idam - valam cherkai" or the balance of the bass and treble of the mridangam. His gumukki was virtually singing Darini thelusu konti along with GNB. For the majority of his career, this had been his forte and he continued playing Kuchi mridangam.When Palghat Mani Iyer slowly started to take the back seat, our man shifted to Kappi Mridangam. And he made the transition unbelievably smooth.
Paatu gyanam was another big strength of Raghu Mama. He knew every varnam and every keerthanai thats sung on a stage. Or atleast he makes it sound like that. Listen to how he plays for the chittai swarams of Seethamma mayamma or thaye thripurasundari. As I am writing this blog, I am listening to him playing for KVN's seethamma mayamma. His skill is at its own class when he plays for keerthanais. And he takes it to another level when he plays for kalpanai swaram. He simply catches the karpanai of the main artist with his brilliant anticipation skills.
KVN and Raghu mama are the Arjuna and Krishna of the modern music era. Such is the aura when KVN sings Endaro Mahanubavulu with Raghu mama playing the keerthanai on the mridangam along. Time and again, this has been repeated for the Srinivasa thava charanams, Samaja Varadas and the ra ra maintis.
As a finishing note, I have a request for the current generation mridangists who admire Raghu mama. Please understand that Raghu mama himself never tried imitating anyone. So try to get the essence of his music in your playing rather than imitating him. Even if you imitate him, please imitate him of the sixties and seventies and not the 90's when he didn't have the luxury of the main artists he had during 60s and 70s.
Hearty Congratulations to Shri Raghu Mama and I am proud to have been associated with this great man musically.
Alternatively my link is
http://klimkaaran.blogspot.com/2007/11/ ... raghu.html
-
- Posts: 228
- Joined: 22 Aug 2006, 20:51
-
- Posts: 228
- Joined: 22 Aug 2006, 20:51
-
- Posts: 2972
- Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 04:44
-
- Site Admin
- Posts: 3497
- Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 03:34
These two photos are from our friend Pyarilal of carnaticsangeetham.com, with whose permission they are finding a place for our members here
Sri Narayanamurthy with Sri Raghu:
He also wanted me to share this information about PS Sabha
Sri Narayanamurthy with Sri Raghu:
He also wanted me to share this information about PS Sabha
www.parthasarathysabha.com
sabha's inauguration and morning session lec-dem avilable there.....soon we will be update 12 days lec-dem....
Inauguration - video
leg-dem - audio version