Abhangs and classical music

[Ponbhairavi]

Abhangs and classical music.
Listed below my doubts about this popular item.I would be happy if some light is thrown on this.
1-from Ariakudi to semmangudi abhangs do not seem to have found a place in carnatic concerts.Who was the musician who first included this form in carnatic concerts?
2-has MSS sung any abhang in a concert platform?
3-are there no specific ragas for them.
4-Do hindustani musicians sing abhang or kavadi chindhu in their concerts?
5-Do rabindra sangeeth have ragas ,and do hindusthani musicians include them in their concerts ?
6-any reason why thevara "panns" are not included in CM concerts.
7- Are abhangs (varkari ) comparable to Iyappa songs sung by devotees during the course of the sabarimala yatra of the devotees?
8- Why CM or hindusthani musicians do not sing Iyappa songs in sabha concert platforms ?

[Sundara Rajan]

A simpleton's answers:
1. a.yes. not ARI to SSI
1. b. see answer to the next
2. YES. She was the one who started this phenomenon ( Mod note: edited a loosely used word )
3. Yes. Like any other bhajan, these could be sung in ragas of the artist's choice
4. Abhangs, yes. Kavadi chindhu. No, nor any carnatic composition
5. Rabindra sangeeth, like devotional compositions in Sanskrit, Tamil etc. are not
written to be sung at concerts, but can be by capable artists
6. ThEvAram,thirupugazh, pAsurams,etc. again were not composed to be sung in
any raga/paNN; but are presented in current carnatic concerts in ragas
equivalent to the paNN.
7. Abhangs and Iyappa songs are devotional. Unlike Iyappa songs, Abhangs may be
addressed to any deity.
8. Jesudas does sing Iyappa songs in his concerts as do a few others. Iyappa songs
are mostly in MalayALam and I won't expect Hindustani musicians to venture it!

[kvchellappa]

Why culprit? It rankles.

[varsha]

kvc
cool down
https://archive.org/details/16AbhangBhimplas
A dainty element in MLV's repertoire

[arasi]

KVC,
Sundara Rajan's 'culprit' is the answer to Ponbhairavi's stance, if I'm not mistaken.

PB,
Glad to see your post after a while. The same applies to the other PB

[Rsachi]

Rabindra sangeet is a name applied to compositions of Rabindranath Tagore. He was a poet laureate as well as an accomplished musician. They sound mmostly weepy to me, but Bengalis are fanatical about the standards to which the singers must adhere.
That music is different from HM/CM/Folk music/Film music. But you can see some influences of HM, folk and western music in that.
Tagore heard Meenakshi Memudam Dehi from MSS and composed his Rabindra version. I will look around for a track.

[varsha]

Do hindustani musicians sing abhang

https://archive.org/details/NARENDRADATAR

From a typical home concert (transition fro main Malkauns to abhang)
track courtesy Lji

[Lakshman]

This abhang brought tears in my eyes when I heard Narendra sing it.

[MaheshS]

Abhangs and classical music.
Listed below my doubts about this popular item.I would be happy if some light is thrown on this.
1-from Ariakudi to semmangudi abhangs do not seem to have found a place in carnatic concerts.Who was the musician who first included this form in carnatic concerts?
2-has MSS sung any abhang in a concert platform?
3-are there no specific ragas for them.
4-Do hindustani musicians sing abhang or kavadi chindhu in their concerts?
5-Do rabindra sangeeth have ragas ,and do hindusthani musicians include them in their concerts ?
6-any reason why thevara "panns" are not included in CM concerts.
7- Are abhangs (varkari ) comparable to Iyappa songs sung by devotees during the course of the sabarimala yatra of the devotees?
8- Why CM or hindusthani musicians do not sing Iyappa songs in sabha concert platforms ?

The title being, Abhangs and classical music.. I expected a robust discussion on Abhangs and their qualities, their bhakti and their musical value in classical concerts.

However, the questions go from,

Abhang => Kavadi Chindhu => Rabindra Sangeeth => Panns => Aiyyapa [Saranam Aiyappa!].

So seems like you do have a pet peeve with Abhangs. Ol' Harimau would be proud I suggest you change the name of the thread to reflect this rather than generically asking people about Abhangs in Classical music and then asking if Carnatic / Hinsutani Indian musicians sing Aiyyappa songs. What is actually the correlation between Aiyyapa songs and Abhangs? Have I missed something?

[kvchellappa]

I would have taken the MLV song as any other song instead of abhang; though Bhimplasi is Hindustani rags, it is quite commonly sung in CM concerts and I would not know the difference between languages once it is something I do not know! How does it matter if a marathi song is sung in a familiar raga? I also do not understand the objection to abhang.

[Lakshman]

The objection is probably because CM musicians sing HM pieces like hindi bhajans and abhangs whereas HM musicians don't try any CM pieces.

[MaheshS]

The objection is probably because CM musicians sing HM pieces like hindi bhajans and abhangs whereas HM musicians don't try any CM pieces.

That's like objecting to the next door neighbour not cooking sambar / vetha kozhambu in their house while making chapathi in ours

Frivoulous, don't you think Lakshman ji?

[arasi]

Bhajans? Even some male singers sang a bhajan occasionally in those days (rAmachandra prabhu in S Bhairavi, for example). I say male singers because many eschewed them thinking--let the females sing them, suits their not-so-serious music
Yes, I find some younger musicians even today who think bhajans take away the seriousness of CM in their concerts!

Abhangs were not as familiar in the south then (heard in a rare kathA kAlakshEpa alone?). Also, hindi was closer to sanskrit which they sang in anyway, easier to sing in, than in marATi? Just wondering...

[VK RAMAN]

Ravindra sangeeth Nazrul Geeth are very popular in West Bengal and East Bengal (Bangladesh) whose population is 250 million people - pretty close to 25% Of Indian population. One person's dislike does not represent those people. I love Rabindra Sangeeth and Nazrul geeth..

[CRama]

When MS and MLV and sang abhangs, there was a peace and calmness in the abhangs added to the divinity. The present day abhangists create a frenzy in the halls when they sing abhangs.

[vasanthakokilam]

CRama, that is indeed true but it looks like that is what a lot of people seem to want, even people I know to be great rasikas of the other full on CM songs.

We are the ones in a little corner of the world who seem to take a dim view of that.

To be fair, R&G do both, first the viruththam that flows into a song that is on the calmer side and then the abhang which starts off in the same calming vibe and moves to that frenzy state by singing at a faster speed.

[rshankar]

The present day abhangists create a frenzy in the halls when they sing abhangs.

Oh Lord...I guess you agree with Harimau - 'dueling' abhangists!
Correct me if I am wrong, but aren't the abhangs typically supposed to end in a frenzy?? There is a divinity in the frenzied calls of the bhakta as well...the lord is bhakta kOlAhalA, after all....right?

[arasi]

kOlAhala and kutUhala?!!

[varsha]

The present day abhangists create a frenzy in the halls when they sing abhangs.

Frenzy is indeed an element of Abhang .In the sense of a cathartic finale to pleadings.Even the conical bells for keeping
tala used to be massive for my little hands as a kid .
Quite a far distance from suave CM approaches to the same Lords
https://archive.org/details/MisraPahadi ... reKabirDas
Here is a kabir song that normally wafts like a breeze ,donning the abhang hat.
beautiful....

[varsha]

I would have taken the MLV song as any other song instead of abhang;

https://archive.org/details/HindOLamKPA
It took me years to decipher that Karaikurchi was doing a Bismillah bit here
A glorious cauldron, this Indian Music.

[Ponbhairavi]

Thanks sundara rajan and others for your valuable inputs which have enriched my knowledge
Apart from MLVś abhang rendered in bimplas ,concert reviews simply mention abhang without mentioning any raga.Probably in such cases thee singer follows the tune adopted by marathi pilgrims
¨ so seems like you have a pet peeve with abhangs¨
NO, I have nothing against abhangs. In fact I have attended scores of exclusive abhang programs by Vittaldas maharaj, Ganapathy thukkaram,,Cuddalore Gopi bhagavathar,. I only wanted to understand where and how they fit in a CM concert.

¨ abhang--kavadichindhu--rabindra sangeeth--panns--Ayyappa songs ¨
¨what is the correlation between ayyappa songs and abhangs ? ¨

well, they are are all religious music having a special tune and a syntax of their own outside the frame of carnatic and hindusthani music and they are (except Rabibdra sangeeth ) sung essentially by the devotees in the course of the pilgrimage to Pandarpur(abhang ), palani or Tiruttani,(kavadi chindhu or tiruppugazh) siva temples (thevaram and paNNs) and Sabarimala (Iyappa songs ). Personally I do think that it is a blasphemy to write abhang and iyappa songs side by side.

Jayadevar,s Gita govindam(orissa 14thcentury) is being sung throughout tamil nadu in clear carnatic ragas whereas in Puri Jagannath temple in the Jayadev mandap they are sung in their own Orissa tune.- just to say that Cm has the genius to adopt and assimilate. As noted by Varsha ¨ This Glorious cauldron this indian music ¨ Às the abhangs have entered the cm platforms only 50 or 60 years back, time will take its own course.
As noted by Vk and Arasi,they inspire joy and kudhoohalam and let us hope that the audience response to abhangs in a music concert continues to remain the same as on today that is distinct from the audience response to the same abhang in the same tune in the same hall during a different programme

[varsha]

Why culprit? It rankles.

The churning was around baiju bawras times too !!!!!
http://www.mediafire.com/download/rm4cw ... _Music.mp3