MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Review the latest concerts you have listened to.
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hnbhagavan
Posts: 1655
Joined: 21 Jun 2008, 22:06

MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by hnbhagavan »

Held on June 17 at Ragasudha hall -By Balaji Ramanathan.
Talk by TVG and Lecture by Sriram Parasuram
Music Concert by Ramakrishnan Murthy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_x8FeOmg_o

MaheshS
Posts: 1186
Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 22:36

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by MaheshS »

Ramakrishnan Murthy - "Celebrating the music of Sri M.D.Ramanathan" - 17th Jun 2018

Ramakrishnan Murthy - Vocal
Mysore Srikanth - Violin
J.Vaidhyanathan - Mridangam
K.V.Gopalakrishnan - Khanjira

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qfb2C2J ... e=youtu.be

Maguva Ninne - Naayana Gowla Ata Varnam - Veenai Kuppaier
Thyagaraja Gurum - Kedaram [S] - MDR
Endaro Mahanubavulu - Sri - T
Elaborate Alapana
Neraval at Ramabhakthudaina ... looping back to Endaro .. Vandanmu.
The whole line intact making sense throughout.
S @ Entharo
Thani
Sagara Sayana - Bagesri - MDR
NiRi NiRi - Thillana - Purvi

MDR Mangalam!!

Ninama Rupamulaku - Saurashtram - T
Muni Kani [Alakalalla lada]
Kalithavara sethu bandam - Bhavayami
Mangalam Koselndraya - Slokam
Srinivasaya Manglam

Sabash, bale bale. Fitting and outstanding tribute to MDR by RKM & Team.

Thanks to Sri MDR Balaji for organising this and making it available for people like me who cannot make it in person.

Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by Sachi_R »

Watched and heard this in many parts.

I congratulate Mr. Balaji on celebrating "Father's Day" well. I hope "Sri MDR Day" will be held more often and we get to savour his music always.

I have heard Sri MDR for two decades from Sixties. He did have some off-days no doubt. But always, he was provided very good accompaniment on the violin and mridangam. His low sruti and the character of his music warranted that due diligence. And I remember every concert of his left me remembering some extraordinary musical moments.

I would describe Sri MDR in my own words thus:

1. A musician who had learnt the art of Carnatic music from a composer's stand point. So he was always centred in the soul and heart of a composition.

2. His elaborate vocal sweeps and rolling over words and grand resonant touches came from a wellspring of authentic musicality that recognised his own "Svadharma" and a life-long love affair with raagas.

3. His music was not like today's. Books and iPads crammed with compositions learnt on the fly and delivered like newspapers deposited by a cyclist in the morning. His repertoire was enshrined in a curated stylistic temple of what he believed in and what he wanted to share as his inner joy poured out.


In God's creation, everything is unique. Is authentic. Is perfect in its imperfections. It always represents the soul of the universe for these reasons. In a highly structured and sophisticated art form like Carnatic music, it is very easy to lose this authenticity and connection. Sri MDR maintained this natural authenticity in spite of being a top class practitioner of Carnatic music. That makes him unique, unforgettable, and a joy forever.

PS: In any Sri MDR day, we should try and get to listen to the best recordings of his music. Electronics does play its mischief always, but we need to make sure the authentic MDR music comes through to the listeners. There are many valuable archives and resources available with private collectors. Especially his AIR concerts were true gems.
Hope future presentations will leverage this.

hnbhagavan
Posts: 1655
Joined: 21 Jun 2008, 22:06

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by hnbhagavan »

Dear Rsachi,

I second your thoughts.I too listened Live concerts in 70's and early 80's.SriRam brought out nicely salient aspects as no Lyrics passage or Sangatis fixed and used to be different with in the bounds .The same song would be rendered differently each time.
He always had the best accompaniments and rarely when the accompaniments did not match,the concert would be below his usual.

ram1999
Posts: 534
Joined: 26 Nov 2015, 17:20

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by ram1999 »

The greatness of Sri MDRs music can be seen in just one kriti - endaro mahanubavulu, specially the group rendition presented by vaadhya Vrinda of AIR Chennai. Music direction by Sri P S Narayanaswamy and the vocal lead by MDR. The kriti sung over 30 minutes unlike the normal renditions which are sung at breakneck speed!
His approach to music indeed was very different!

Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by Sachi_R »

Dear all,
Would be grateful if anyone shares a link to the archived MDR lecdem at IITM. This was referred by Sriram Parasuram a couple of times.

mdr_fan
Posts: 10
Joined: 20 Dec 2017, 01:50

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by mdr_fan »

"The greatness of Sri MDRs music can be seen in just one kriti - endaro mahanubavulu, specially the group rendition presented by vaadhya Vrinda of AIR Chennai. Music direction by Sri P S Narayanaswamy and the vocal lead by MDR. The kriti sung over 30 minutes unlike the normal renditions which are sung at breakneck speed!"

@ram1999, is there a recording of this publicly available? I'm a devotee of MDR and would love to listen to this recording.

hnbhagavan
Posts: 1655
Joined: 21 Jun 2008, 22:06

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by hnbhagavan »

In Sangeethapriya there were sections on LECDEMS.But i do not see now.

nsridhar22
Posts: 39
Joined: 28 Nov 2017, 18:36

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by nsridhar22 »

There is one lecdem by MDR availalbe at the link below. I have not heard this and am not sure if this is the lecdem that is being mentioned.

http://www.sangeethapriya.org/Downloads/mdr/mdrlecdem/

Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by Sachi_R »

Looks like this is the one!
God bless

K Nagarajan
Posts: 138
Joined: 09 Jul 2015, 22:19

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by K Nagarajan »

Refer post 5 by ram1999
"The greatness of Sri MDRs music can be seen in just one kriti - endaro mahanubavulu, specially the group rendition presented by vaadhya Vrinda of AIR Chennai. Music direction by Sri P S Narayanaswamy and the vocal lead by MDR. The kriti sung over 30 minutes unlike the normal renditions which are sung at breakneck speed! His approach to music indeed was very different!"

This recording is available in the sangeethapriya.org
The last item (unnumbered)
http://www.sangeethamshare.org/muralida ... Concert-2/

ram1999
Posts: 534
Joined: 26 Nov 2015, 17:20

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by ram1999 »

mdr_fan wrote: 20 Jun 2018, 04:10 "The greatness of Sri MDRs music can be seen in just one kriti - endaro mahanubavulu, specially the group rendition presented by vaadhya Vrinda of AIR Chennai. Music direction by Sri P S Narayanaswamy and the vocal lead by MDR. The kriti sung over 30 minutes unlike the normal renditions which are sung at breakneck speed!"

@ram1999, is there a recording of this publicly available? I'm a devotee of MDR and would love to listen to this recording.
Please see #11 - Sri Nagarajan has given the link to the recording.

dipukaruthedam
Posts: 37
Joined: 19 Jan 2016, 13:04

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by dipukaruthedam »

ram1999 wrote: 19 Jun 2018, 10:47 The greatness of Sri MDRs music can be seen in just one kriti - endaro mahanubavulu, specially the group rendition presented by vaadhya Vrinda of AIR Chennai. Music direction by Sri P S Narayanaswamy and the vocal lead by MDR. The kriti sung over 30 minutes unlike the normal renditions which are sung at breakneck speed!
His approach to music indeed was very different!
Another example would be the song "04 - jagadAnandakArakA_jayajAnaki - nATa" from http://www.sangeethamshare.org/muralida ... _Concert-8. It is wonderful to realize that there exists a completely different, fresh and beautiful approach for many of the "standardized" kritis :) The raga-alapana is also amazing!

Sivaramakrishnan
Posts: 1582
Joined: 02 Jan 2010, 08:29

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by Sivaramakrishnan »

I am compelled to recollect -even if not directly relevant here- the Trivandrum Navaratri Mandapam concerts of MDR - whenever his name is mentioned.

Listening to concerts particularly of MDR in the divine precincts of the Mandapam during 1960s-'80s has been the greatest musical experience in my life. The oil lamp-lit environ and the pin-drop silence (not to say of 'nil-claps') is unique and that gives a special aura to the entire atmosphere.
MDR- dressed in traditional Panchakaccha, angavastra and with Vibhuti and a rudraksha maalai exuding a Tejas -(he was to me the icon of all composers)- would invariably begin the concert with the Naata varnam (sarasijanabha-Aadi) preceded with a sketch of the raga phrase ''GMPNSR....'. The charana sahitya 'Maanita suguna seela charita' with swraakshara at Ma and the the subsequent passages would have a tremendous impact. (Accompanists had been mostly TNK/Chalakudy-Palght Raghu/Vellore).

Kedaram alapana for Paramaananda Natana was always a spiritual experience. Paripalaya maam(Reetigoula), Mohanam ayi Tava(Yadukula kamboji), Jagadeesa sadaa(Natakurinji) all bore the MDR hallmark. His rendering of the main kriti of the day with alapana &Taanam in his own way and Niraval and swaras at an appropriate passage would leave us feeling rather extremely thankful to him for the experience of a different kind. Smarajanaka (Behag) was his favorite for post Tani segment and mostly would do a quick winding up with 'kalitavara setubandham' to finish at 8.30 pm.

Well, MDR's music is perhaps 'anirvachaneeyam' ; he sang spontaneously and with a 'brahmalayam'.

bombal
Posts: 110
Joined: 21 Sep 2014, 22:54

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by bombal »

Sivaramakrishnan sir thats indeed an amazing recall of the mahAvidwAn MDR sir. Thanks

mdr_fan
Posts: 10
Joined: 20 Dec 2017, 01:50

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by mdr_fan »

K Nagarajan wrote: 20 Jun 2018, 17:37 Refer post 5 by ram1999
"The greatness of Sri MDRs music can be seen in just one kriti - endaro mahanubavulu, specially the group rendition presented by vaadhya Vrinda of AIR Chennai. Music direction by Sri P S Narayanaswamy and the vocal lead by MDR. The kriti sung over 30 minutes unlike the normal renditions which are sung at breakneck speed! His approach to music indeed was very different!"

This recording is available in the sangeethapriya.org
The last item (unnumbered)
http://www.sangeethamshare.org/muralida ... Concert-2/
Thank you Sir!

Sivaramakrishnan
Posts: 1582
Joined: 02 Jan 2010, 08:29

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by Sivaramakrishnan »

bombal,
Thanks for your kind remarks.
However my dream of MDR - Palghat Mani Iyer combination at the Navaratri Mandapam never materialised!
(PMI invariably accompanied Sri Alathur Srinivasa Iyer and Sri KV Narayanaswami there)

ram1999
Posts: 534
Joined: 26 Nov 2015, 17:20

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by ram1999 »

Sivaramakrishnan wrote: 22 Jun 2018, 20:28 I am compelled to recollect -even if not directly relevant here- the Trivandrum Navaratri Mandapam concerts of MDR - whenever his name is mentioned.

Listening to concerts particularly of MDR in the divine precincts of the Mandapam during 1960s-'80s has been the greatest musical experience in my life. The oil lamp-lit environ and the pin-drop silence (not to say of 'nil-claps') is unique and that gives a special aura to the entire atmosphere.
MDR- dressed in traditional Panchakaccha, angavastra and with Vibhuti and a rudraksha maalai exuding a Tejas -(he was to me the icon of all composers)- would invariably begin the concert with the Naata varnam (sarasijanabha-Aadi) preceded with a sketch of the raga phrase ''GMPNSR....'. The charana sahitya 'Maanita suguna seela charita' with swraakshara at Ma and the the subsequent passages would have a tremendous impact. (Accompanists had been mostly TNK/Chalakudy-Palght Raghu/Vellore).

Kedaram alapana for Paramaananda Natana was always a spiritual experience. Paripalaya maam(Reetigoula), Mohanam ayi Tava(Yadukula kamboji), Jagadeesa sadaa(Natakurinji) all bore the MDR hallmark. His rendering of the main kriti of the day with alapana &Taanam in his own way and Niraval and swaras at an appropriate passage would leave us feeling rather extremely thankful to him for the experience of a different kind. Smarajanaka (Behag) was his favorite for post Tani segment and mostly would do a quick winding up with 'kalitavara setubandham' to finish at 8.30 pm.

Well, MDR's music is perhaps 'anirvachaneeyam' ; he sang spontaneously and with a 'brahmalayam'.
If I am not wrong MDR has performed the maximum in the navarathri mandapam concerts and the most regular to be featured in that venue with no break. It perhaps Sanjay now, singing without a break year after year.

rupavathi
Posts: 173
Joined: 13 Dec 2011, 08:44

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by rupavathi »

Wrong! Semmangudi, from inception in 1941, without a break till about 1997 or 98

ram1999
Posts: 534
Joined: 26 Nov 2015, 17:20

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by ram1999 »

rupavathi wrote: 25 Jun 2018, 11:42 Wrong! Semmangudi, from inception in 1941, without a break till about 1997 or 98
Thanks for the info.
Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer probably sang at the Mandapam (and elsewhere) longer than most other singers did, starting his innings as a teenager and continuing well into his 80s. His Deva Deva Kalayami..., Pankaja Lochana... and other renditions remain perennial favourites among music lovers.

http://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/m ... 727014.ece

hnbhagavan
Posts: 1655
Joined: 21 Jun 2008, 22:06

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by hnbhagavan »

An excellent concert when MD Ramanathan was at his peak.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-G0n8_kYfVE&t=2346s

the best Dhanyasi ever heard or can be heard.

mdr_fan
Posts: 10
Joined: 20 Dec 2017, 01:50

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by mdr_fan »

Ramblings from a MDR rasika

A few thoughts on MDR's music. Though I've not learnt music formally, I've been an avid listener for the last 22 years. MDR and MMI are my Gods. I deeply and sincerely thank Sri Arunkumar Sridharan for introducing me to MDR's music about 15 years back and sharing his collection with me. Subsequently, I downloaded a lot more from rasikas.org and Coolkarniji was also kind and gracious enough to share his collection with me. MDR's music got me through some trying times in life.

Varnams

In my opinion, MDR was the master of Ata thala varnams. TMK has a point that musicians do not do justice to varnams but he fails to acknowledge that MDR actually did. MDR has sung pretty much all the popular ata thala varnams for 15 minutes or more, repeating the swaras with subtle variations. There are so many interesting renditions of just Viriboni alone. There's a 20-minute slow rendition with TNK & VR, a rendition with LGJ & VR (from the famous concert, in my mind his best ever) with kalpanaswarams, a rapid-fire version in just 6 minutes which is so unlike him. People rave about Viriboni, rightfully so and the best way to appreciate it is by listening to MDR's versions. His Vanajakshi Kalyani Ata thala varnam renditions are quite famous but less famous is his Kanakangi Thodi varnam with MSG and PR (after rendering pallavi, anupallavi and swarams, there's silence and then he quips "Now, second part"). Rupamujuchi is another less famous but majestic rendition of his. Sarasijanabha, Neranammithi were all 20-minute renditions and are a class apart. Maguva Ninne has been completely owned by him. The only other rendition I like is by SRJ Mama (check out his Narayanagowla video on youtube). I wish he had sung Adi Thala varnams elaborately too but nevertheless the Darbar and Begada varnams are delectable while even a simple Ninnu Kori is shown to be beautiful. Many a day, I just listen to his varnams and try to grasp something new.

Neraval singing

MDR picked unusual lines for neraval singing. Drona karna duryodhanaadhihara in Balagopala whereas most musicians sing it in Nila Nirada, Rama Bhaktudaina Tyaga in Endaro, sadAshrta kalpaka mahIruha in Akshayalinga Vibho, etc. Neravals were never long and left the listener wanting more. Sometimes, he’d pick a line for neraval, realize that it wasn’t appropriate, give up and go straight to swaras. A particularly delightful neraval is on the line dharaNIbhara murAdi danuja kula nidhana in the krithi, Jalajanabha Mamava. This is in a concert with TNK and PMI. The swaras that follow are mind-blowing and one of his best in terms of swaraprastharas. I get goosebumps every time I listen to that rendition.

More to follow

rajeshnat
Posts: 9907
Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 08:04

Re: MD Ramanathan-Vandeham Varadadasam

Post by rajeshnat »

viewtopic.php?f=12&t=92&start=525 is the MDR thread
Let us discuss future posts in that thread
Mods
If you can take post #22 and put in MDR and if possible post #14 also into MDR thread that would be great.

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