Menace of the magic box

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 01 Aug 2010, 00:12

Very pertinent article: Menace of the magic box
"There used to be a time when the tambura-player was a minor musician in his own right, because he or she had to have a perfectly steady hand to pluck the strings properly and let the sound of the sruti flow evenly, a perfect ear to stay sensitively tuned to any slackening of the tone and adequate skill to re-tune the instrument accurately from time to time."

This menace doesn't seem to have spread to Hindustani artistes as yet...or has it?

While on this topic, who are the famous tambura players who have donned the CM stage over time?

uday_shankar · Post by **uday_shankar** » 01 Aug 2010, 04:12

Thanks for the link. This is a subject very dear to me and not a day passes when I don't lament the disappearance of the real tambura.

My Carnatic fix comes mostly from the old recordings of ARI, Alathoor, MMI, SSI,etc and slighly newer MDR,KVN, etc.. now widely available and one thing that stands out is that though most are "poor" quality (who cares!) recordings, the rich tambura sound pervades those recordings. There was always a committed Tambura artist or a disciple (like KVN for ARI) who worried and fussed about the tambura as somebody should. Oh, the pity of it.

One wonderful and excellent tambura artist I knew personally was the late Shri Arumugam who played the tambura often till the early 90's for flute maestros N Ramani and T S Sankaran. Earlier he often played teh tambura for T R Mahalingam. Shri Arumugam is playing the tambura in this popular youtube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajr07JUa ... re=related

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 01 Aug 2010, 04:21

I have read that KVN was a master at tuning and strumming the tambura.

cacm · Post by **cacm** » 01 Aug 2010, 06:14

bilahari wrote:I have read that KVN was a master at tuning and strumming the tambura.

HE REALLY WAS. I can attest to it because I had to both be M.C. & TAMBURA PLAYER for K.V.N. at Syracuse U in mid 60 & had lots of other opportunities to observe him do it. No Wonder after MMI he is the ONE musician whose PRECISION in Sruti Suddham& Swarasthan Suddham was IMPECCABLE. VKV

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 01 Aug 2010, 08:51

Uday,
The tambura playing came with Mali's music too! Thanks. When did this concert take place? Is the young man in the audience on stage John Higgins? May be not.

narayan · Post by **narayan** » 01 Aug 2010, 09:07

After just re-stringing my tambura, reading this was timely. This is definitely an endangered activity, especially in Carnatic music. A comment by Ulhas Kashalkar a few years ago in Sruti had caught my eye and it is referred to in Lakshmi Sreeram's blog (at http://lakshmisreeram.com/blog/). Those who teach Carnatic Music regularly can perhaps comment on how many students would be able to play or tune the tambura. I have a feeling the statistics may be depressing.

I can attest to the satisfaction of tuning it up properly. Then, even singing for a little while gives a wholesome feel to the activity. There are times when I just tune it up, and then strum it for a while and just put it back. Even that does not seem like time ill-spent!

kssr · Post by **kssr** » 01 Aug 2010, 12:06

There can be no second opinion among artists or rasikas that the naadam of the tambura is far superior to the box, especially when adjusted properly for the right resonance and handled by a good tambura artist. However it is inevitable that the electronic box which is a lot more easier to manage, will take over in most situations. It is similar to all technology related matters. Western countries charge a huge premium for "hand made" items. Only in developing countries "hand made" is cheaper as there are too many hands available

The concern of lack of training of children learning CM in playing tambura is more serious. Teachers should definitely insist and teach students this fine art of tuning and playing the tambura.

When it comes to artists, we have a veteran Sri.Sreepada Rao in Bangalore, the most sought after tambura artist in Bangalore- ex postal employee. The peculiarity with him is that he really likes music himself and hence sings along (!) with the main artist during the final tukkadas, especially dasara kritis!! Musicians resort to different steps depending on their temperament to stop him. Some stop singing for a moment for Rayar to stop, others glare behind meaning "Shut up" and most others unconsciously burst out laughing amidst the song when he joins in. Sri.Rao underred by years of reprimand, continues to render his "music" with a broad smile

It is important to mention here that Sreepada Rao always arrives at the venue much before time, although he has to travel very long distances in a bus with his tambura- as organisers seldom give him the luxury of a taxi ride for his commute.

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 01 Aug 2010, 12:24

Is the difference in the drone of the shruti box and tambura merely aesthetic? Or is one more effective than the other in helping musicians align to shruti, etc?

cienu · Post by **cienu** » 01 Aug 2010, 13:08

bilahari wrote:I have read that KVN was a master at tuning and strumming the tambura.

Absolutely right. Infact IIRC KVN used to say that any practitioner of CM must first know how to fine tune the Tambura to perfection.

mankuthimma · Post by **mankuthimma** » 01 Aug 2010, 13:09

http://www.esnips.com/doc/9a56a174-6a8b ... 93/Trichur

sample of an old fashioned concert from a concert deep inside in Karnataka.
Maybe the fact that this singer practises Hindusthani too , and was singing in HM land helped matters ..
Trichur V R , MSG , UKS ...... all at their best .Amazing combination

cienu · Post by **cienu** » 01 Aug 2010, 13:30

kssr wrote: When it comes to artists, we have a veteran Sri.Sreepada Rao in Bangalore, the most sought after tambura artist in Bangalore- ex postal employee. The peculiarity with him is that he really likes music himself and hence sings along (!) with the main artist during the final tukkadas, especially dasara kritis!!

kssr,
Those who have listened to MS's Carnegie Hall live concert in New York will note that for the last song "Maithreem Bhajatha" she is accompanied (apart from her daughter Radha) by a male voice. |(
This voice belongs to none other than the late C.V.Narasimhan (former Under Secretary General - UN) who was on the tambura.

Not surprising that Sri Sreepada Rao too gets overwhelmed by the occasion at times

Incidentally, if I am not mistaken, the person who accompanied MS on the second Tambura for the Carnegie Hall concert was MKR's wife , Smt Nirmala.

kssr · Post by **kssr** » 01 Aug 2010, 13:42

Cienu has now reminded us of MS when we are on the topic of Sruti and the importance of tambura. Just if we listen to any one of her concerts or recordings, we will know the importance of the tambura. The Annamacharya tapes are one example. The dominant tambura drone "fills" the space and MS just aligns perfectly on it. Not a hair breadth of a gap. There can only be one MS.

Sundara Rajan · Post by **Sundara Rajan** » 01 Aug 2010, 19:56

Arasi: the light skinned person on the stage you are referring to is most likely kanjira player sri Hari shankar.

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 01 Aug 2010, 20:33

Two interesting videos -
1. Tambura fingering & rhythm: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2a8ymNSQzc
2. Tuning the tambura: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGp307o6crs

In today's concert platform, I see Bombay Jayashree using a real tambura to maintain the sruti.
Hope more artistes start using the tambura in their concerts. And it would help if rasikas also asked for the tambura to come back on the concert stage.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 01 Aug 2010, 20:37

Sundara Rajan,
I did see Harishankar 'on' stage. I mean the other young man sitting by the dais among the on stage audience.

Sam Swaminathan · Post by **Sam Swaminathan** » 02 Aug 2010, 02:01

Yes, both Bombay Jayshree and TM Krishna use tambura and needless to say , the effect is excellent.

Of the tambura masters, how can one forget Sri Venkatraman, who was a permanent accompaniment to thousands of artists in the years 1960-90 ( to my knowledge )? He was a physical education teacher in P S High School when I was studying there till 1964.

Ramasubramanian M.K · Post by **Ramasubramanian M.K** » 02 Aug 2010, 07:07

Cienu: You are right--it is Nirmala mami on the Tambura--not only for the Carnegie Hall concert but also for the concerts in Poughkeepsie and Queens College,NYs.

Also Cienu,if you have pics of the three concerts you would notice that your Mom,Patti and Nirmala are wearing the same pattern of sarees--the choice was made by Nirmala at your Patti's behest.Your Patti had unstinted praise for Nirmala's Tambura stringing!!! Check it out with your Mom!!

Incidentally forumites--when it came to tuning a Tambura in my opinion MS Mami was second to none.her skill on the Veena also has helped her in this exercise.Mami was always fond of relating a story from her early childhood--how her mother used to wake her up early in the morning and start the sadakam with the sruthi box perfectly tuned . After a few bellow strokes,she would go into the kitchen to take care of the cooking needs with Mami continuing to practice her Ahara Sadhakam and intermittently her mother would pop out of the kitchen and play the sruthi box(hitherto silent!!) and Mami's singing would be in perfect alignment despite the fact that she did not have the benefit of the sruthi box "humming"!! It used to hurt Mami so badly when people would pay her left-handed compliments implyng that the gift of the Golden voice made such sruthi precision possible--she would lament "if only they knew how much harder I have worked at it they would not make such condescending comments" .

Yes--Tambura strumming is an art--plucking is not!!!

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 02 Aug 2010, 08:51

I do not know who those people were who made such silly comments. Hope someone told Smt. MSS that it is not really condescending but rather it throws light on the idiocy of those making those comments.

More often than not, behind such things that look effortless to us, a lot of hard effort had gone into cultivating them.

Sam Swaminathan · Post by **Sam Swaminathan** » 02 Aug 2010, 09:44

"The peculiarity with him is that he really likes music himself and hence sings along (!) with the main artist"

That would be really discomforting to the main singer. It is like me while umpiring in cricket matches joining the bowler in his claim for a wicket " howzthat"!!!

bhavarasa · Post by **bhavarasa** » 02 Aug 2010, 22:29

The marginal aesthetic superiority of a tambura over the electronic shruti box is just that - marginal. I don't see it being reason enough for musicians to lug around a tambura, given how sensitive and delicate the instrument is, especially when they are traveling abroad or even to other cities via rail/air.

kssr · Post by **kssr** » 02 Aug 2010, 23:23

Sam Swaminathan wrote:"The peculiarity with him is that he really likes music himself and hence sings along (!) with the main artist"

That would be really discomforting to the main singer. It is like me while umpiring in cricket matches joining the bowler in his claim for a wicket " howzthat"!!!

A more apt comparison would be the curator of the "pitch" (pun intended!), to jump in and start bowling from the other end. Or a spectator to come with his own bat and start "scoring" runs

kssr · Post by **kssr** » 02 Aug 2010, 23:31

bhavarasa wrote:The marginal aesthetic superiority of a tambura over the electronic shruti box is just that - marginal. I don't see it being reason enough for musicians to lug around a tambura, given how sensitive and delicate the instrument is, especially when they are traveling abroad or even to other cities via rail/air.

Yes. Its convenience aspect and ease of use without any manual work of "meeting" (tamil word) deserves appreciation. Also the simplicity of changing the sruti from one to another by a turn of the knob should be acknowledged. It is unfair to call it a "menace". It is actually a boon for young learners to get on to the sruti right from the beginning. Only wish could be not to completely abandon the tambura, the tonal quality of which is undoubtedly superior. It may also be possible in future that Radel and others can come up with a more advanced model where the perfect reverberation and resonance as a real tambura can be simulated- for a price, of course.

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 03 Aug 2010, 00:22

Then how come HM artistes continue to use the tambura?
I am sure they travel quite a bit too.

uday_shankar · Post by **uday_shankar** » 03 Aug 2010, 00:51

kssr wrote:Yes. Its convenience aspect and ease of use without any manual work of "meeting" (tamil word) deserves appreciation. Also the simplicity of changing the sruti from one to another by a turn of the knob should be acknowledged. It is unfair to call it a "menace". It is actually a boon for young learners to get on to the sruti right from the beginning.

These are exactly the reasons why it is good for vocal students never to use the electronic tambura ! Instrumentalists often have less choice but even there one can adopt the Flute mali method of foot operated bellows shruti box (also a nice natural sound superior to the electronic tambura). I watched the Carnatic Idol program last year (or was it earlier...whatever) and it was unfortunate that not one, NOT ONE, could tune up the tambura to perfection. The act of tuning the tambura in and of itself induces a taste and perception of shruti. This is the basic building block of that much bandied about word "nadopasana". Otherwise, it is just a nonsensical bromide used in Carnatic circles.

kssr wrote:It may also be possible in future that Radel and others can come up with a more advanced model where the perfect reverberation and resonance as a real tambura can be simulated- for a price, of course.

It may also be possible in future that Radel and others can come up with a more advanced model [of a robot] where the perfect reverberation and resonance as a real person can be simulated - for a price, of course.

As for convenience of travel, commitment to a cause always has its price. Vainikas travel around with a vina. If the same logic is used maybe they can all turn into vocalists to avoid traveling with a big instrument.

S.NAGESWARAN · Post by **S.NAGESWARAN** » 03 Aug 2010, 01:37

Dear Rasika,

In those days, the Performing Artists from Chennai to New Delhi are to travel by the G.T.express and almost all Artists get the Thampura From the local known people at New Delhi since carrying the Thampura of their own by train used to be unwieldy and cumbersome.

Sikkil Sisters were having 2 concerts at New Delhi around 1975. In the last minute, the Thampura they were about to take from the local friend to the concert had some problem.

They were compelled to hire a local professional Thampura artist in spite of their high cost for hiring.
90 % of the performances in New Delhi used to be Hindustani music and Hindustani musicicians invariably use 2 Thampuras in the concerts.

So the two Thampura artists have arrived with their Meeraj Thampura. The 2 Thampuras were
Meticulously tuned to the the Sruthi of sikkal Sisters and started playing both the Thampuras.

Once the Sikkil sisters heard the Thampura Sruthi, they were completely immersed in the homogeneous sruthis simultaneously from the 2 Thampuras, they were unable to start the concert for a few minutes.

Such was the tonal purity from the Meeraj Thampuras.

This incidence was narrated to me by the Sikkil Sisters.

The present day Electronic Thampuras are a boon to all the Carnatic musicians.

Hindustani musicians are also using Electronic Thampuras in addition to the traditional Thampuras.

S.NAGESWARAN.
02.08.2010.

S.NAGESWARAN · Post by **S.NAGESWARAN** » 03 Aug 2010, 01:37

Dear Rasika,

In those days, the Performing Artists from Chennai to New Delhi are to travel by the G.T.express and almost all Artists get the Thampura From the local known people at New Delhi since carrying the Thampura of their own by train used to be unwieldy and cumbersome.

Sikkil Sisters were having 2 concerts at New Delhi around 1975. In the last minute, the Thampura they were about to take from the local friend to the concert had some problem.

They were compelled to hire a local professional Thampura artist in spite of their high cost for hiring.
90 % of the performances in New Delhi used to be Hindustani music and Hindustani musicicians invariably use 2 Thampuras in the concerts.

So the two Thampura artists have arrived with their Meeraj Thampura. The 2 Thampuras were
Meticulously tuned to the the Sruthi of sikkal Sisters and started playing both the Thampuras.

Once the Sikkil sisters heard the Thampura Sruthi, they were completely immersed in the homogeneous sruthis simultaneously from the 2 Thampuras, they were unable to start the concert for a few minutes.

Such was the tonal purity from the Meeraj Thampuras.

This incidence was narrated to me by the Sikkil Sisters.

The present day Electronic Thampuras are a boon to all the Carnatic musicians.

Hindustani musicians are also using Electronic Thampuras in addition to the traditional Thampuras.

S.NAGESWARAN.
02.08.2010.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 03 Aug 2010, 02:00

Uday,
The old Sruti box as I remember it, though inferior to the soulful tambUra, sounded acceptable and was a good guide to Sruti. The electronic tambUra sound is sort of vague to an old timer.
Many households had a sruti box--you found them in musician's houses too which they occasionally used at home, if the tamburA needed tuning, for example.

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 06 Aug 2010, 19:50

arasi, are you referring to the good old 'sruti poTTi'? (these had bellows, somewhat like the harmonium, right?)

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 06 Aug 2010, 20:05

That is still regularly used by Nagaswaram players, I think? I may be out of date: I think the last nagaswaram program I attended was my own wedding <Blush>.

That must produce a constant drone, ie sounding all notes together. There are electronic boxes that emulate this, instead of trying to emulate the plucked-string pattern of the tambura.

I'm no fan of the electronic box, especially set too loud as it often is (even on studio recordings, let alone in the concert hall) but I do think it is fair to say that that the sound quality has improved enormously over the decade or so that I have been hanging around carnatic music. It has scope for much greater improvement, but that can only come at the inevitably higher cost of high quality speakers. Even this cost, though is set to reduce. What can be achieved today with tiny cube speakers was unbelievable not too many years ago.

VK RAMAN · Post by **VK RAMAN** » 06 Aug 2010, 20:16

Manual sruti box drone is much better than electronic sruti box. I have one. Electronic sruti box avoids use of a person to play it.

kssr · Post by **kssr** » 06 Aug 2010, 20:30

VK RAMAN wrote:Manual sruti box drone is much better than electronic sruti box. I have one. Electronic sruti box avoids use of a person to play it.

If you are referring to the bellow type, I disagree. The speed of manual bellowing is not as precise as the automatic electronic version. Also, today's electronic version has several controls to fine tune the sound, the periodicity of plucking, etc., Also changing of sruti from one person's to another is done by a simple turn of a knob, yet precisely.

arunk · Post by **arunk** » 06 Aug 2010, 20:34

To me, the manual sruthi box has about one of the most irritating and disconcerting sounds among musical appliances. It could be because the few I have encountered were old, definitely did not maintain a steady tone, and the sound itself was a poor derivative of the harmonium sound (whose sound I don't find charming either). They seemed to emulate what is referred in some would call as "eena swaram". The electronic tampuras, while certainly cannot match the real deal are way way better than the old sruthi poTTis (again, to me). BTW the real tampuras can be quite finicky - in HM concerts initial tuning takes quite a while (20-30 or even 45 mins) - a great chance to practice patience for the audience - but the end result is indeed "magical" if you wait.

I too find listening to just the tampura sruthi (even an elecronically generated one) on the headphones quite soothing and meditative.

Arun

kssr · Post by **kssr** » 06 Aug 2010, 20:55

Also, I think the potti makes one single sound whereas the box (!)- meaning electronic version- simulates the 4 sounds of the strings sequentially.

ragam-talam · Post by **ragam-talam** » 06 Aug 2010, 21:00

Here is Ariyakudi's views on the use of tambura
(from his 1938 presidential address at Music Academy)
"Of the instruments of sruti, there is none to excel the Tambura and yet there are a number of musicians who do not use that instrument for sruti. There are others who use it but fail to tune it up, if in the middle of the performance, the strings relaxed. The harmonium as a drone has many defects, for instance variation in the volume of sound between the blowing-in and blowing-out of the bellows of the harmonium is a source of inconvenience to the musician. Other defects too can be noticed by comparing the sound of the harmonium with that of the tambura."

Wonder what he would have said about the modern-day sruti box!

cienu · Post by **cienu** » 06 Aug 2010, 21:55

In this context it would not be out of place to recall the discussions we had in the forum a few years back.
http://www.rasikas.org/forums/viewtopic. ... lit=martin

prashanth12 · Post by **prashanth12** » 06 Aug 2010, 22:04

I didn't realize sruti boxes were being used in concerts.

Here in Toronto, I have always seen real players in actual concerts, but boxes are popular of course for practice and study.

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 06 Aug 2010, 22:24

cienu wrote:In this context it would not be out of place to recall the discussions we had in the forum a few years back.
http://www.rasikas.org/forums/viewtopic. ... lit=martin

Almost exactly two years separate the threads: maybe they should be joined?

In that thread we had the benefit of msakella's thoughts, and the contribution of a foreign tambura player with an enormous passion for the instrument

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 07 Aug 2010, 00:38

I just looked at it. The other thread has a different vibe, though related. I guess we will leave it here with this reference to the other thread.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 07 Aug 2010, 08:26

r-t,
Though a bit late, I'll answer your question about the Sruti box. Yes, I meant the Srutip peTTi. Not that I remember being taken in by its sound. The tambUrA drone was always soothing to hear. For some reason, the electronic tambUrA still does not speak to me. It does not say 'rAm, sI-tA rAm!' as my uncle said we should hear the drone of the tambUrA as! I suppose it's a bit of nostalgia too. I remember professional and amateur women singing at home with conversations like: unga Sruti enna?--fiddling with the discs, my hearing various pitches of s p s-s in the process! Even for not so fine an instrument, you were supposed to ply it evenly it in a fluttering way where the Sruti didn't sound jarring. I'm not a fan at all of the harmonium and yet have heard a few accompanists in HM concerts who transcend the instrument and create a pleasant sound and support the singer!

Radhika-Rajnarayan · Post by **Radhika-Rajnarayan** » 07 Aug 2010, 12:52

I'm a little confused here. By the electronic sruti box do you mean the electronic version of the sruti petti that gives a drone sound or the electronic tambura?

Very often people loosely refer to an electronic tambura as a 'sruti box' (as in, I suppose, 'a box that provides sruti'). However, my 2 paisa on this, and not because I am associated with Radel (the originators of the 'menace of the magic box?

There are those who actually like the 'beats' provided by pumping the bellows of the sruti box. You can simulate these 'beats' on a manually tunable electronic sruti box of the sruti petti type(you get this variety too, where you can manually tune the notes). This plays by itself and is not however, manually PLAYABLE, unlike the playable electronic tambura described below--

My suggestion to Arasi--try the electronic tambura that can be manually plucked. You do get such a variety. I think that part of this 'problem' of not feeling associated with the generation of sruti is because the user of the instrument is not physically involved in the process of sruti generation by plucking strings or pumping bellows. Manually plucking the electronic tambura also creates a slight irregularity in the plucking sequence due to the human factor which can be pleasing.

So for those who do not have another person to provide the sruti / do not have an excellent, well-tuned acoustic tambura/cannot tune it themselves, the automatically playing version of the electronic sruti-petti/ tambura would be a boon. For those like to 'feel' the pleasure of playing a tambura, the manually plucking variety of electronic tambura may be the answer, while for those who have a high quality acoustic tambura with high quality strings, tuned to perfection, and can play it perfectly without the instrument going out of tune --that would be the answer, wouldn't it?

cienu · Post by **cienu** » 08 Aug 2010, 02:19

Ramasubramanian M.K wrote: Incidentally forumites--when it came to tuning a Tambura in my opinion MS Mami was second to none.her skill on the Veena also has helped her in this exercise.

Yes indeed.
Seeing the Tamburas being tuned before an MS concert was a wonderful experience by itself. Before leaving for the concert, both MS and Smt Radha would start the tuning of the Tamburas â€œLakshmiâ€ and â€œSaraswathiâ€ with the pitch pipe providing the reference for tonic

On reaching the venue the tamburas would once again be fine tuned in the green room. Finally after the tuning was over MS would keep her ear close to the tamburas and check for one last time. Once satisfied there would be a 10 minute Akaram in Jantai Varisai (mostly in Sankarabharanam) in lightning speed.

The accompanists too would set their instruments to tune in the green room and all artists would move on to the concert stage to be seated. The curtains would go up 2 minutes before the scheduled time with MS standing on stage to take a bow - hands folded in a â€œNamaskaramâ€ and the concert would begin dot on time.

Please find below pictures of MS tuning the tambura before a concert

More pictures of MSS with the Tambura can be seen in the MSS Tribute website at the link below.
http://www.msstribute.org/gallery/gallery9.php

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 08 Aug 2010, 03:01

Cienu,
Wht a darling picture of her, her ear and heart close to the rambUrA!

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 08 Aug 2010, 03:06

Radhika,
You are right. It's my ignorance about the various kinds of electronic tambUrAs which makes me say that, I guess. I should spend some time trying different ones when I'm in India..

mankuthimma · Post by **mankuthimma** » 08 Aug 2010, 07:29

Cienu
God Bless You !!!

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 08 Aug 2010, 07:46

Thank your for those beautiful pictures and the account of the elaborate tuning process, cienu. Whatever the instrument, I'm sure we can all agree that it takes extra special dedication and labour to achieve the kind of alignment to shruti that MMI, KVN, MSS, MDR all had!

mankuthimma · Post by **mankuthimma** » 08 Aug 2010, 08:07

Cienu
Here is a nice piece of History for you.
When Meera was being filmed , the only two Miraj Tanpuras in Chennai were in YG Duraiswamis household. One was taken as a loan by your family . During a majority of the long shots , taken from a distance , a dummy was being used . But MS would insist on the original for the authentic close shots.
As luck would have it , in the scene in which she smashes and breaks the tanpura , MS accidently picked the real Tanpura and smashed it .
Sadasivam was terribly apologetic while returning the broken tanpura , but history had already been made.YG's family took it sportively and even considered it to be fair , in the context of the Movie and all the fame it received.
As told to me by YG Sundar , one of the brothers - A longtime friend of mine.

smala · Post by **smala** » 08 Aug 2010, 11:03

Lovely pictures, speak a thousand words, the beauty and grace of MSS is so movingly apparent.

Note her slim hands with long slender fingers, a sign of her deep artistic nature.

Radhika-Rajnarayan · Post by **Radhika-Rajnarayan** » 08 Aug 2010, 12:10

Thank you cienu, mankuthimma and everyone who has contributed those divine pictures. I maintain, she was an angel loaned to us humans for the duration of her lifetime.

mankuthimma · Post by **mankuthimma** » 08 Aug 2010, 15:09

http://www.mediafire.com/?ct5dnbc8wuvh0y8

a Beautiful moment in a chamber music concert video of DKJ.
The file is big - 89 mb - , but do try to download it .I took over three hours to prepare this.
It is a nice tribute to that Magic Mace called a Tanpura.. DKJ is adorable here
Also provides a peek into the Spirit behind a concert

uday_shankar · Post by **uday_shankar** » 08 Aug 2010, 16:46

Ramasubramanian M.K wrote:her skill on the Veena also has helped her in this exercise.

mkr sir, I'm certainly not privy to MS mami legends but as a general assertion this is false. Skill in playing or even tuning the vina is no help in tuning the tambura accurately. These are two different hierarchies of tuning and listening. Perhaps there could be some minimal initial advantage in handling "beradais" and so on.

Tambura tuning is an independent art which requires most of all a superior love for shruti that causes the musician to pause everything until they get that right. Contrast that with most Carnatic musicians' urge to quickly get past the tuning issue and get on with the business of music making. For those who care - like so many unknown tambura artists like the great Arumugam as well as great musicians like MS, MMI and KVN - tambura tuning is an end in itself, not an necessary "evil" that's coming in the way of belting out song after song. If a person does not fuss and take his/her time about the tuning, you can bet that he/she is uncomfortable in that area and is keen to "move on" to the business of melody making. Many musicians think that it is enough to somehow get past the tuning business once at the beginning of a concert and everything will remain magically constant throughout. This is sad and reflects a poor love for and training in shruti awareness.

There is no greater bliss than strumming a properly balanced tambura. Many circumstances must conspire to create that balance - the inherent resonace, shape of the bridge, thickness and texture of the jiva, its placement, etc...and of course the tuning! The intrusion of a melody, even one as great as a Tyagaraja kriti (or a Dikshitar or SS kriti, in case a partisan makes worng conclusions!), can seem like a corruption of that bliss of just sound and a reflection of our human infatuation with forms and structure.

Cultivating a love for shruti and tuning the tambura is something missing from Carnatic music pedagogy. Teachers and musicians often don't have that love. Having a good "voice" is considered important and all imperfections arising out of an inadequate love for shruti are attributed to "voice problems".

cienu,
Thanks for the wonderful pictures. That closes this discussion for me and should adorn every musical aspirant's room.