rara venu gopa bala

[sung]

Does anyone on the list know of any Tamil song written by setting it to exactly the same swaras as for the swarajathi "rara venu gopa bala"? If it happens to be the Tamil translation of the original, it is fine. But, it doesn't have to be. Any Tamil song set to exactly the same swaras as for "rara venu gopa bala" is all I am looking for. If you know of any, can you please point me to the link or share the lyrics? Thanks a lot in advance.

[vasanthakokilam]

I had an idea for searching for this, I was so confident about my hunch I was persistent and it paid off. Not sure if this is what you were looking for, but it fits the bill.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPNidiwZYmo

I like this version.

[sung]

I had an idea for searching for this, I was so confident about my hunch I was persistent and it paid off. Not sure if this is what you were looking for, but it fits the bill.

Wow! VK, you are amazing. Thank you. So, what strategy did you follow to achieve the result? Curious to know, if possible.

My daughter loves the tune and has been practicing. I love it too very much. Thought it would be nice to sing a song in this tune in the mother tongue. Not a christian. But, it doesn't matter, of course.

[vasanthakokilam]

I vaguely remembered a Christian telling me a long time back that there are teachers who teach carnatic music using the same tune as the early lessons but with Christian lyrics. When I saw your post, that is what I remembered. That was the clue. Searched for it using different terms and finally hit up on this. The search string that brought this up right at the top was "christian carnatic music learn swarajathi". "Elementary, my dear, Watson, elementary" but it took a few tries. karthar to krishna, you are done

All the early lesson songs are re-sahita'd like this. I posted that link in the Music School section: http://www.rasikas.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=16679 . The pAttu mAmi sings very well.

My first thought when I saw your post is to suggest to the tamil poets of the forum ( Arasi, PB, Punarvasu, CML, Ganeshkant and others ) to come up with lyrics for this tune. Hello poets, please consider that. That will be fun.

[PUNARVASU]

VK/SUNG,
I have finished composing more than half the song. Will try to finish it and post it.Suddenly I seem to have forgotten some lines of the original. Trying to get it.

[sung]

I vaguely remembered a Christian telling me a long time back ...

Thank you, VK, for sharing. Interesting!

[sung]

My first thought when I saw your post is to suggest to the tamil poets of the forum ( Arasi, PB, Punarvasu, CML, Ganeshkant and others ) to come up with lyrics for this tune. Hello poets, please consider that. That will be fun.

Actually, what I was thinking was to wait for sometime and if no one posted anything, then to request Arasi to compose one - the only person whose well-written poem I recently happened to see in a thread started by me. I didn't know there are this many composers on this list. Wonderful!

[sung]

VK/SUNG,
I have finished composing more than half the song. Will try to finish it and post it.Suddenly I seem to have forgotten some lines of the original. Trying to get it.

Great! Can't wait to see it (and sing it, of course).

[PUNARVASU]

Here is my attempt:
vandu emmaik kAttaruLvAi nandakumArA gOpAlA

tandemakku varangaLai vindai puri gOpAlA(vandu ennai)

nandagOpAlA nI engu senDrAlum nAm
unnai maravOm,viraivinil varuvAi kuRaigaLait tIrppAi kArmugil vaNNanE (vandu emmai)

vA varangaLait tA aruLmazhai tA murahara gOpAlA
nI emakkaruL nI kArttaruL nI vandaruL gOpAlA
unnaiyE nambinOm unnaiyE saraNDaindOm
kaiviDlAgAdu viraivinil vA varangaLait tA
arumaRai pagarnda arjunasArati emmaiyum kAkka ingu nI varuvAi (vandu emmai)

Hope it is useful.

[mohan]

That's great Punarvasu ... well done. There is also one more charanam in between the two you have given with the swaram starting as PPP, RRR, GPMG G,,,|

I've been hearing rAra vEnu a lot lately since my daughter has been learning/singing it!

[PUNARVASU]

mohan, that was the elusive charanam, for which I was waiting till yesterday.This ,I had composed as soon as I saw the request. Sometimes one's memory plays truant.Will work at it .Thanks.

[sung]

Here is my attempt:

What a great and prompt attempt! Thank you very much, Punarvasu. I am getting more and more convinced that this list contains amazing people.

Hope it is useful.

Very, very, ... Thank you again.

Just a few minor observations and clarifications:

tandemakku varangaLai vindai puri gOpAlA

To me it appears that the last word should be something like gOpAbAlA. Then it seems to match PA,M GARI. I could be wrong. If so, please point out.
(What I have is: tandemakku SA,R GAPA varangaLai MA,G PADA vindaipuri RI,S NIDA gOpAbAlA PA,M GARI)

As Mohan has pointed out, one stanza is missing. If you can do that too, it would be real nice.

nI emakkaruL nI kArttaruL nI vandaruL gOpAlA

I assume it is kAttaruL with no r between A and t.

unnaiyE nambinOm unnaiyE saraNDaindOm

I think a is missing between N and D as in saraNaDaindOm. Right?

kaiviDlAgAdu viraivinil vA varangaLait tA

Is it supposed to be kaiviDilAgAdu with an i between D and l?

arumaRai pagarnda arjunasArati emmaiyum kAkka ingu nI varuvAi

It seems to me that varangaLait tA of the previous line goes with RSRG SA;. If that is correct, then what is left is GRSN DPMG RSRG and, the above last line appears to be too long to fit these swaras. Have I made a mistake somewhere else in this stanza?

[mohan]

tandemakku varangaLai vindai puri gOpAlA

To me it appears that the last word should be something like gOpAbAlA. Then it seems to match PA,M GARI. I could be wrong. If so, please point out.
(What I have is: tandemakku SA,R GAPA varangaLai MA,G PADA vindaipuri RI,S NIDA gOpAbAlA PA,M GARI)

P,, MG,R, can fit with gO,,,pA lA but the 'gO' will have to be elongated to take in the P,,M.

It seems to me that varangaLait tA of the previous line goes with RSRG SA;. If that is correct, then what is left is GRSN DPMG RSRG and, the above last line appears to be too long to fit these swaras.

I got a bit lost towards the end too.

[ganeshkant]

This has already been done in a Tamil film " ellAm inba mayam" - a kamalahAsan starrer,muisc by IR.

I think vAli has written the lyrics for Raravenu gopabAla.

I remember a little which is as follows.

maadi veedu machchu veedu
parisam pOttadhu kuchchu veedu

[PUNARVASU]

The missing stanza;
malaiyaikkuDaiyAi piDittavan nI maruNDiTTa makkaLaik kAttavan nI
kALiyanai vadaittavan nI, kamsanaiyum muDittavan nI (vandu ennai)
(Though I was tempted to write as 'kamsanaiyum udaittavan (or) kavizhttavan nI)

[PUNARVASU]

1)sung wrote:
To me it appears that the last word should be something like gOpAbAlA. Then it seems to match PA,M GARI. I could be wrong. If so, please point out.
(What I have is: tandemakku SA,R GAPA varangaLai MA,G PADA vindaipuri RI,S NIDA gOpAbAlA PA,M GARI)

I have learnt the song as 'rAra vENu gOpAlA(not gOpabAla)
so I felt the 'gOpAlA ' is ok here- gO -pA-lA---(elongated)

2)sung wrote:
I assume it is kAttaruL with no r between A and t.
Ifeel the correct tamizh word is 'kArttaruL'.

3)sung wrote:
It seems to me that varangaLait tA of the previous line goes with RSRG SA;. If that is correct, then what is left is GRSN DPMG RSRG and, the above last line appears to be too long to fit these swaras. Have I made a mistake somewhere else in this stanza?
Yes. you are right-
Pl make it as 'arumaRai pagarnda ayyanE' AND omit 'emmaiyum kAkka ingu nI varuvAi'.

4)sung wrote:

I think a is missing between N and D as in saraNaDaindOm. Right?
Yes, you are right.

5)sung wrote:
Is it supposed to be kaiviDilAgAdu with an i between D and l?
It is 'kaiviDalAgAdu'. ('a' between D and l)

[mahavishnu]

Ganeshkant: I was refraining from posting that when I first saw this thread, since the song is a bit on the crass side (mAman vudu machi vudu). Compared to the poetic rArA vEnu gopA bAla. But now that the cat is out of the bag, here is a link to the song. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wMfV7gDJ4E It begins around 7:20 in the video.

[sung]

Ifeel the correct tamizh word is 'kArttaruL'.

In that case, is this word different from the one in the first line, vandu emmaik kAttaruLvAi, where there is no r? I thought they both were the same. If they both are the same, I think there should be no r. I could be wrong.

And, thanks for the rest of the clarifications also.

[sung]

maruNDiTTa makkaLaik kAttavan nI

What is maruNDiTTa? Sorry, I don't understand. It is not marundiTTa (as in he protected the people who gave him drug)? Not sure whether such an incident occurred.

kALiyanai vadaittavan nI

Was there a character called kALiyan? Don't know the story.

(Though I was tempted to write as 'kamsanaiyum udaittavan (or) kavizhttavan nI)

I seem to prefer udaittavan. It appears to flow well and rhymes with vadaittavan in the previous line. I hope it is fine meaning wise too.

Wow! The whole song sounds extremely nice and fantastic. I sang it to my daughter and she loves it too. Thank you so much, Punarvasu.

The only place where I feel a little bit of inhibition is in the first line of the last stanza: vA varangaLait tA aruLmazhai tA. While singing, the psych seems to expect a different one-letter word in place of the second tA. Any suggestion? Thanks.

[sung]

Ganeshkant: I was refraining from posting that when I first saw this thread, since the song is a bit on the crass side (mAman vudu machi vudu). Compared to the poetic rArA vEnu gopA bAla. But now that the cat is out of the bag, here is a link to the song. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wMfV7gDJ4E It begins around 7:20 in the video.

Thank you mahavishnu and Ganeshkant. It seems to show another interesting dimension to the tune. Glad to have got to know this song also.

[PUNARVASU]

sung, 'maruNDitta' means people who were scared.
kALiyan is kALingan, the serpent.
May be the 'r' in kArttaruL can be removed, but I feel the word is kArttaruL. In both the places.
Can not think of a replacement for the second 'tA'.

[sung]

'maruNDitta' means people who were scared.

I see.

I don't mean to be picky. Just want to be able to completely enjoy it as I sing. I know maruNDa. Is maruNDitta (or maruNDiTTa) a poetic form of maruNDa? Not familiar with it. (Actually, after I typed this, I tried maruNDa and it seems to fit also.)

A minor observation, again not to be picky. The other three, namely to do with malai, kALiyan and kamsan, happen to refer to some specific incidents in the past. This one, namely to do with maruNDa makkaL, seems to be generic in nature and not pertaining to any specific incident. Or, is there a reference to something specific (such as maruNDa devas)? Maybe I am missing something.

Thank you for all your prompt responses. Great!

[PUNARVASU]

It is maruNdiTTa.
Krishna's lifting the mountain was to protect the people of his place from the wrath of Indra who caused torrential rains.

[sung]

Thank you, Punarvasu, for everything. Thank you, VK, for getting the ball rolling.

[vasanthakokilam]

Punarvasu: Great job. Thanks.

Now, we need someone to sing it and share it with us.