Swathi Sangeethotsavam Jan 6 to 13, 2008.

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 12 Apr 2008, 10:05

Yes Sir

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 12 Apr 2008, 10:27

Dear Varma
If you were born and had been crowned before 1947 you would have been knighted like 'Sir Bala Rama Varma' (our late king) and we would have no option but to address you as 'Sir Varma'. But I know you would strive to become 'SK varma' more than anything else. May you have the blessings of Lord Padmanabha to reach that goal! (enjoying your performance clips!)

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 12 Apr 2008, 15:22

I wish, more than anything else, to be a classy human being like the Good Doctor, CMLover

Thank you for your good wishes Sir. Watch this space for an amazing and outlandish rendition of
"Ramachandra Prabhu" coming soon hopefully !

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 12 Apr 2008, 22:02

vanchi bhUmi pathE chiraM!
nanni!
Awaiting the divine melodies! Take your time!

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 12 Apr 2008, 22:11

Here is Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty singing Ramachandra Prabhu. Enjoy !

Part One
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=WMuwpQOVPgg

Part Two
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=PJfF321Zwtc

Part Three
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=RpTaL6pMsOE

Part Four
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ErfXg1HG354

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 13 Apr 2008, 00:06

Merci beaucoup!
Ajoy has given also a lesson on sindhubhairavi. We can appreciate the HM style vs our CM style in singing this popular swaathi kriti. Also there was the surprise package on 'nAche Raghunath..' of swathi (rarely heard) in scintilating misra pIlu. Maybe you knew through your wizardry we were struggling to understand this raga. OH! What A JoY!!

Thank you from the bottom of our heart for bringing these jewels to us in South through the Swathi Festival. CM will be rejuvinated through these 'milan' as also many of us will rediscover the gems of the beloved maharaja which were kept dormant and hidden for over nearly two centuries.

wordpecker007 · Post by **wordpecker007** » 17 Apr 2008, 00:26

Thank you musique4ever. This is sheer bliss indeed. And thanks again for sharing this with us. While Ajoy's rectial is scintillating, I wonder if the ambience has enhanced the feel of the song for the singer and the listener. What a sublime experience.

samarasa · Post by **samarasa** » 29 Apr 2008, 18:59

The Prince is also a brilliant veena player.

Check the links below for his rendering of Bhavayaami Raghu Ramam in the year 2005:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIcu_TyJjJY

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNK_Y66iBuc

Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InjsNShI-3A

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 30 Apr 2008, 04:01

Thank you very much

wordpecker007 · Post by **wordpecker007** » 30 Apr 2008, 20:32

Hello rasikas,
What follows is a superb rendition of Bhavayami Raghuramam on the veena by Prince Rama Varma
during the 2005 Swathi festival at Kuthiramalika. He makes the veena sing. Three posts to enjoy

Bhavayami Raghuramam

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIcu_TyJjJY

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNK_Y66iBuc

Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InjsNShI-3A

wordpecker007 · Post by **wordpecker007** » 30 Apr 2008, 21:16

Sorry. there was duplication.

samarasa · Post by **samarasa** » 02 May 2008, 19:17

I totally agree with you, wordpecker007- he makes the Veena sing. Do check his fabulous rendition of Mishra Pilu. The composition is ST's Vihara Manasa Rame. The swarams are fascinating:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=9KLfzWjhGXE

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

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-fACMyRYt4

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 02 May 2008, 20:49

You are quite right! The veena is indeed talking melodiously. Especially his excursions into HM simply embellish the CM aspects. Perhaps that is indded the way Maharaja Svati Thirunal visualized CM more than two centuries.

samarasa · Post by **samarasa** » 15 May 2008, 22:56

Sorry for digressing from the subject of this thread, but since there are so many links to Prince Varma's videos, I thought I will post this here:

Prince Rama Varma performs at Chennai:
At Musiri Chamber Concerts, 28/2, Musiri Subramaniam Road, Mylapore on
May 18th 2008 (Sunday) at 6.30pm

vedasaram · Post by **vedasaram** » 07 Jun 2008, 14:20

Sorry about the duplication. Since it is a swati composition,I thought it would be more appropriate to post this one here:

Do enjoy this soulful rendition of Shri Rama Varma's Neelambari. The composition is a very romantic one by Maharaja Swati Tirunal:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clbamieebq8

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 14 Jun 2008, 08:42

With apologies for digressing further....since various well meaning souls seem to have posted random
me - related stuff here, here are two tributes I published recently in the Kerala edition of The Hindu.
A tribute to Shri M.D.Ramanathan for his birth anniversary and a tribute to Shri Madurai Mani Iyer on his
40th death anniversary. And yes. Since 2009 would be the tenth edition of my festival, I am hoping to
line up ten concerts, God willing. So those of you who are planning to bring yourselves down to Trivandrum....and I Very much hope that Many of you will.....please keep the dates from the 6th till the
12th of January blocked out in your little black book....or pocket organizer or whatever

Here are the
two articles. Hope you will enjoy them.

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 14 Jun 2008, 08:45

Tribute to Shri M.D.Ramanathan for his 85th birth anniversary.

Young Narendra used to go around asking so called enlightened people of his time â€œCan you see God ?â€

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 14 Jun 2008, 08:46

Tribute to Shri Madurai Mani Iyer on his 40th death anniversary.

I normally turn to music whenever my mind is agitated, tormented or weakened. The music of Mozart and the songs of Kishore Kumar never fail to help. In Carnatic music, it is normally M.D.Ramanathan that I turn to. But when one is sad and one desperately needs doses of pure unadulterated Joy, whom else can one think of but Madurai Mani Iyer? Cherubic, gentle, lilting, innocent, joyful, buoyant and pure, the very thought of the man brings a smile to oneâ€™s heart. From the tentative and endearing little â€œMadurai Mani soundâ€

sunaada · Post by **sunaada** » 16 Jun 2008, 17:36

Thank you Rama Varmaji for these brilliant, articulate, poignant and touching tributes on the lives of these two phenomenal musicians.

Truly inspirational! May God bless you.

Best Regards

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 16 Jun 2008, 19:56

Thank you very much ji. At the risk of sounding a bit corny, they are truly like the sun and the moon to me

vs_manjunath · Post by **vs_manjunath** » 16 Jun 2008, 20:50

Musique4ever-Nice tribute to Two Great Stalwarts of CM !!!

Adidaivam · Post by **Adidaivam** » 17 Jun 2008, 03:52

Princeji.. My heartiest condolences to you for the Passing awa of Rani Lakshmibai Thamburatti... May GOD Bless

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 17 Jun 2008, 10:00

Thank you very much. It was in a way a merciful release since she had been critically ill and suffering terribly since February. She passed away on June 8th like Madurai Mani Iyer and it was such a relief to write about him and listen to his music when there was so much sorrow at home.

VK RAMAN · Post by **VK RAMAN** » 17 Jun 2008, 19:11

Musicque4ever - Do you know the Verma family in Trichur. Some 55+ years ago we used to do bhajan in their house and they were ardent devotees of "Amma" in Punkunnam? They were Rama Verma family - and they still have a college named Rama Verma college.

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 18 Jun 2008, 09:37

I am afraid I don't know them Sir. Maybe the elders in the family do. By the way we are Varmas with an
A down South.....as opposed to Vermas with an E up North, just so you know

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 18 Jun 2008, 09:59

Music4ever,
May music be there with you for ever! It has been, and as your posts on MMI spoke of it, the opening lines spoke of your grief, as I now realize.
Words of sympathy may not help as much as music. So, let me say it again--may music be there with you forever...

sureshvv · Post by **sureshvv** » 18 Jun 2008, 12:48

A while back I chanced to read the tribute you wrote to M.B.K. Any chance that you will be able to post it here?

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 18 Jun 2008, 14:01

Thank you so much Arasi Ji. And wish you the same.

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 18 Jun 2008, 14:15

Suresh Ji...Here's the article. I wrote it 8 years ago when he turned 70 and updated it 5 years later when he turned 75 by changing his age and adding the fact that he won the Chevalier award from the French
government. But for this, i haven't changed anything at all from the original. Happy reading !

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 18 Jun 2008, 14:49

MURALI AND ME
********************
As the title of the article suggests, this is a very personal account of my own experiences with Padmavibhushan Dr. Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna and not a profile of this very public figure. An unfortunate but inevitable snag with such a kind of story is that I will be forced to use the first person singular rather frequently. But then what has to be done has to be done, I suppose. So here goes.
My first exposure to South Indian Classical Music was when I used to attend the concerts organised at the Navarathri Mandapam, Thiruvananthapuram as a child. Usually more or less the same set
of artists were invited year after year and the list reads like a virtual who is (was) who of Carnatic Music. But there were some exceptionally notable artists who were not called even once, because of sordid internal politics which is beyond the scope of this story. One such exception was
Dr.Balamuralikrishna.....or Murali Gaaru as his Telugu speaking admirers call him......or Guruji as his numerous students (Both actual students and those who have mentally accepted him as their Guru without having taken even a single lesson from him) call him.....or Muralikkutti as I sometimes think of him affectionately. His given name was simply "Muralikrishna" meaning, "Krishna with the Flute", but then "Bala" was added by an affectionate fan as Little Murali started making waves even as a two year old child.

I had the pleasure of seeing him for the first time in my own home where he was brought by an organiser to meet the Late Maharaja Sree Chithira Thirunal Bala Rama Varma....another case of the Bala prefixed to the given name for the same reasons as with Murali Gaaru. At this time some noble souls were trying to mediate between the royal family and Dr.Balamuralikrishna to make him sing at the Navarathri Mandapam, but the damage had already been done and there seemed to be very little hope of a compromise as the Navarathri Mandapam Rules were very rigid and so were the Murali Rules. I was faintly aware of all this but I was more or less a child when all this happened.The thing is that my exposure to music was so utterly restricted to the concerts at the Navarathri Mandapam
that I had never heard of this great man properly till then....and believed that Dr.M.Balamuralikrishna,
G.N.Balasubramaniam and S.P.Balasubramaniam were the same person whose name seemed to metamorphose Kafkaesquely from one to the other in various situations.(Okay, okay ! I was a particularly underintelligent and overimaginative child...So sue me !) Anyway, the conversation eddied around between the mediators and the members of my family with Little Murali himself contributing very little by way of words but drenching all of us in his ever so sweet....and a bit cryptic....Murali Smile which I have come to love and observe in it's various shades since.

That evening I heard his voice for the first time. After all these years I can't forget how totally I was blown away by his Sound ! God ! He started with his own Varnam "Amma Aananda Daayini ! Akaara Ukaara Makaara Roopin i!" with the miraculous Charanam "Sive ! Sive ! Sive !" I couldn't believe that this thunderous voice was originating from the sweet little man who was sitting before me.....and the smile still playing around his lips and in his eyes. Though I didn't know it at the time I was hooked !
But as his music was so utterly unlike anything I had heard at the Navarathri Mandapam I still couldn't accept it as "Classical" as I had been led to believe till then.The composition itself was a miracle which was completely original and utterly unlike anything which had been composed by
anybody ever before. The Swarams have Literature to go with them which makes one's pulse raise.
Ni Sa Ga Ma Ga Ma Ga Ma Ga Ma Ga
Pa Ma Ga Sa Ni Pa MA Ga,
Ma Ga Sa Ni Pa Ma Ga,
Ga Sa Ni Pa Ma Ga,
Sa Ni Pa Ma Ga SA GA!
Sa Ni Pa Ma Ga SA GA! SA GA!
Sa Ni Pa Ma Ga SA GA! SA GA! SA GA! Becomes
Vidhi Hari Ganapathi Sarava-
nabhava Shuka Sanaka
Asura Sura Gana,
Rathi pathi, Sura-Pathi Vinutha SIVE !
Nirathishaya SIVE ! SIVE !
Parama Para SIVE ! SIVE ! SIVE !.....BOOOM ! It is like the scene of the Thunderstorm from Beethoven's Sixth Symphony and an unparallelled opening piece for any concert of Carnatic Music.

My next meeting with Balamurali Sir was several years later at a concert of a common acquaintance. As I mentioned, my family had never been close to him and I also carried the seed of contempt towards him which was inculcated in me by the local Anti Balamurali Mafia of which my family was a part. Around halfway through the concert which I was attending, suddenly there was a hubbub among the audience and I noticed that Murali Gaaru had made his entrance. I was led to believe that he was self opinionated and arrogant....and with arrogant people I normally respond in kind. To my horror I noticed that the only empty seat in the front row was next to me.....and Little Murali was slowly making his way towards me stopping to greet every single person in the front row who had stood up
reverentially. I suddenly made a decision:- "I will NOT get up when he comes !"....And there I remained, with my eyes glued to the stage. Finally he reached the seat and I couldn't help shooting a quick glance 'Muraliwards', as Wodehouse would have put it. And lo and behold ! Before I
knew what was happening I stood ! And there was Murali Gaaru shaking my hands, patting my
shoulders and asking me to sit down.....which I did in a sort of daze only after he was seated himself. The thing which struck me most was the Kindness in his eyes and the graciousness with which he asked me to sit down. I felt that the Arrogant Bastard Theory had to be reconsidered very seriously,
because the man seated next to me was one of the sweetest and kindest I had ever seen.....and I have always been more than partial to people older than me who have a certain quality of peace warmth and tranquillity emanating from them....and in the case of this gentleman it was so obviously
palpable.....rather, so palpably obvious. Still I didn't bother to make his acquaintance as I had a real treasure of a Guru back home in the form of Vechoor Shri N.Harihara Subramania Iyer with whom I was more than happy. And most of my Heroes in music had left for a better world; so I could love them and hero worship them as much as I liked, without any negative side effects.The years passed and I heard snippets of Murali Music (Still not quite able to leave the idea of despising him and equally unable to resist him) most memorable of which was a Televised concert with Pandit Bhimsen Joshi (The very first of their innumerable JugalBandis) where he did South Indian Classical Music more than proud.

One day my beloved Guru Vechoor Sir passed away unexpectedly. I was completely devastated. The field was full of competent musicians who were horrible as human beings, nice enough human beings who were horrible musicians and the worst of the lot.....horrible musicians being horrible as
human beings too in the hope that at least their bad behaviour would make others think "He/she MUST be a fantastic artist to be able to AFFORD to be SO horrible !" ....I am sure you must have come across the kind more than once in life, whatever be your profession. The bond I had with my Late Guru was as sacred as the one shared by the partners in a perfect marriage; assuming such a
situation can exist in reality too of course....and it was next to impossible to think of any other person occupying his place in my heart, mind, music and life. One day, while pondering over certain differences between the West and India like the fact that while dozens of letters written by Beethoven and Mozart were still preserved carefully in the West we had very little memorabilia left from our Great Composers who also lived at the same time as them and so on, a thought took shape in my head :- "What if I could learn a Thyagaraja Krithi from Thyagaraja Himself ?" It was a bit too late for that though.....and I couldn't stand modern compositions from the little I had been exposed to till then. Then I suddenly remembered the cassette of Thillanas by Dr.Balamuralikrishna. What exquisite creations they were ! How wonderful it would be if I could learn them from the composer himself ! Wow ! The very thought made my skin tingle ! But then I was scared how he would react to my
request to teach me because I came from the family with whom he had had nothing to do till then. But I thought "Nothing ventured nothing gained" and proceeded to give him a call. I didn't know any Tamil at the time and spoke to him in English, though I had heard that he had never gone to school nor learnt English in his life. I was taken aback not only by the fact that his telephone voice was as impressive as his onstage version, but also by his command of the language, spoken ever so sweetly in his own utterly quaint and disarming accent. I said simply "I am Varma." And he said equally simply "You can call me some other time." So that is exactly what I did. I called him again.... ....and again......and again......twice a year as I didn't want to become a pest....for more than two and a half years. Finally after five calls, an audience was granted for ten minutes at nine twenty in the
morning.....around the time I normally wake up. I found out his house a little before eight o clock and sat on the low wall of a building nearby till the appointed time reading a book.(I always carry one.... ...One of the few good habits I have) Then I stepped in to the hishouse (Called Mahathi which was the name of his youngest daughter, the only one among his six children who has given concerts professionally and the name of a Raga which Murali Gaaru created which uses just four notes,
Sa Ga Pa and Ni.) which has become a home away from home for me during the course of the next few years.

He was, as usual, very polite but he made it very clear how he had established himself right at the very top of the heap without any help from the Travancore Royal Family, Thank You Very Much. I
said that I couldn't be blamed for things which happened decades before I was born. Then I said I would like to learn a few of his compositions. He was rather shocked at this request because people generally Criticized him for singing his own compositions. And here I was coming all the way from
Kerala Seeking his compositions. He asked me "Which one ?" and I said I would love to learn his Thillanas and a few other songs like Omkaaraakaarini in Lavangi, another Amazing four note Raaga created by him. He said "Hmmmmm" and really was in a quandry, for he had no legitimate reason to turn me away now. Finally I offered to sing a song against his faint protestations ....and as God seemed to be in a good mood that day he liked the sound of the sounds I produced.And thus began my lessons with him.

I had heard that he loved money, so I was terrified of what he would charge for lessons. But then the lesser heard Murali Story proved to be true....that he never accepted money for teaching. Though I joined him with the sole intention of learning a few compositions from him, after the first couple
of minutes of the first class itself I started yearning to be his Disciple in the fullest sense of the word. His generosity was amazing ! If I asked for a composition which I had heard him sing in an old recording which he had forgotten completely, he would hunt up ancient books with yellowing pages and refresh, sing and teach the said composition to me. As a mere fourteen year old child he composed songs in all the 72 Melakartha Raagas which form the very backbone of the South Indian System of Raaga Music. When he finally finished teaching me the seventy second of these he exclaimed in sheer delight and childlike pride,in a booming voice very much resembling Amithabh Bachchan in Kaun Banega Crorepathi "YOU HAVE WON ONE CRORE NOW ! ! !" followed by a cascade of Murali Laughter. Many people think he is arrogant. The fact is that I have been dealing with musicians as a lover of music, as an artist myself and as an organiser for more than half
my life time. And I am yet to meet another person in the music industry who is so universally polite and kind as this man. Whether he is chatting with another world class musician like say Ustad Zakir Hussain, whether he is playing around with his little grandchildren, whether he is joking around
with one of the boys who brings coffee during the breaks during his numerous CD recordings, whether he has just finished giving a very successful concert in a top class venue, he is always the Same Balamuralikrishna. The more people I meet, in various walks of life, the more I witness role playing and not just Duplicity, but Multiplicity at various levels, the more impressed I am by his consistancy.

At age seventy five his voice is more golden than ever. He has released hundreds and hundreds of cassettes and CDs. He was one of the earliest South Indian Classical Musicians to perform
abroad. He has acted in films, sung for films and even scored the music for films. Apart from his own compositions numbering more than two hundred he has breathed life into compositions of other composers whose original tunes were lost in the sands of time like Narayana Theertha, Annammaachaarya, Purandara Daasa, Kaiwara Amara Nareyana, Sadasiva Brahmendra, Bhadraachala Raamadaas and Maharajah Sri Swathi Thirunal. He has recieved awards too
numerous to list including the Padma Vibhushan so many years ago, several Doctorates, The coveted Sangeetha Kalanidhi, the Fellowship from the Central Sangeeth Natak Academy and the latest being the Chevalier des Lettres et des Arts from the French Government. He has top grading in the All India Radio for singing, violin playing, viola, Mridangam, Kanjira, Music Direction, Devotional Music and for the spoken voice. He is probably the only South Indian Vocalist loved feared and respected in equal measure by almost all the artists of the North Indian Classical Tradition.(Not to mention by the film industry and by the man on the street and by the connoiseurs alike) With all this and more under his belt simply because of the fact that he doesn't put on a sickening air of false modesty which others seem to be so good at doing, there are people who have condemned him as "Arrogant" for it is against our "Aarsha Bhaaratha Samskaaram" to be aware of one's own worth...... and this sense of insecurity about one's own identity more than amply reflects in the state of affairs in our country as the newspapers show day by day.

From him I learned the importance of taking the trouble to study the word by word meaning of each song I sing. In fact if I ask him the meaning of a word in a composition of Annammacharya in archaic
Telugu for example which he doesn't know he takes out an old well worn dictionary and finds out the word commenting "I am also learning !" with a little laugh. He allows students to record all their classes...as I said, without charging anyone a single pie. His kindness and magnanimity has to be
experienced to be believed. I for one, have never forgotten my original and much beloved Guru Vechoor Shri Hariharasubramania Iyer...and keep mentioning his name from time to time. Instead of being jealous or angry or disapproving of this Murali Gaaru blesses me for remembering him. He himself thinks the world of his own Guruji Paruppalli Ramakrishna Pantulu Gaaru on whom he has written several incredibly beautiful composiitions. Here is an example :- For those of you who are not
familiar with South Indian Classical Music, a normal composition in this form is divided into three parts called the Pallavi, the Anupallavi and the Charanam. In his composition in Raaga Sushama (One of his own creations incidentally) he says :-
Ayya ! Guru Varya !( Oh Sir ! Precious Guru of mine !)
Nee aanathi tho paadu chuntinayya! (It is only with your blessings/permission that I sing)
Nee Mridu PALLAVA Vachovilaasamu PALLAVIgaa (The soft lotus petals of your conversation is my Pallavi)
Nee ANUBANDHAMU ANUpallaviga (The relationship I have with you is my Anupallavi)
Nee CHARANAMULE CHARANAMUga (Your feet are my Charanam) and finally
Nee AAKRITHIYE MA KRITHIgaa (The whole of your physical aspect is my Krithi or composition.)

His compositions are chock full of literary content and poetry instead of simply being lines of synonyms, descriptions, requests, complaints or praise. He has written beautiful love songs, songs
harshly critisizing the ways of the world, taking a jab at politicians, religious heads and even musicians. He takes total care to sing each language as a native would speak it whether it be Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Hindi, Bengali or Sanskrit. Which is one reason he was given an award by the Rabindra Bharathi University for his impeccable rendition of Tagore Songs and the reason why the Life Insurance Corporation of India has chosen him to sing their advertisement on TV in Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada and Telugu.

I have learnt so much from him not just about music but about life in general. Once I saw a terrible review for one of his Best Ever CDs of Purandara Dasa Compositions. I was really and truly upset.
So I blurted out to him "How COULD the idiot write the way he did ?.....It is such an EXTRAORDINARY CD !"...Then Balamurali Sir smiled and asked me softly "Do you really think it's extraordinary ?" I said "Of COURSE I do" emphatically. And then he smiled and said "That is the problem....It is extraordinary, isn't it ?.... So Ordinary people will find it difficult to understand or appreciate !" followed by a cascade of Murali laughter which seems to be his constant and adorable companion. His critics rant and rave all they can, but the man quietly takes it in his stride, being fully aware of who and what he is.

After more than two years of my association with him he finally relented to break all His Rules and perform at the Navarathri Mandapam following all the rules of the Mandapam like a good little Murali
including the fact that he had to sing without wearing a shirt. The crowd that turned up for the event was nothing like anything witnessed ever before at the Mandapam. When Little Murali made his entrance the whole gathering stood up deferentially without making the slightest sound or appalause and finally the festival of the Goddess reverberated with the magic voice of
Dr.M.Balamuralikrishna for the first time.....and everyone who had the good fortune to be present there on that day agreed that it was well worth the wait.

It seems to be human nature not to accept or appreciate the true greatness of the truly great when we have the good fortune of still having them with us. But Jesus Christ had His Disciples,
Ramakrishna had His Disciples, Van Gogh had his brother, Mozart had Sussmeyer, who all had the blessings from God to realise the exact worth of their Masters while they were still around. And I Thank God for having Blessed me to be one of the Chosen Few vis a vis my beloved Guruji,
Dr.Balamuralikrishna.

Rama Varma
July 2000.

mohan · Post by **mohan** » 18 Jun 2008, 18:23

Sri Rama Varma - thanks for another enthralling article. I have had the honour of hosting Dr BMK at my place and learning a couple of his compositions from him and can concur with you that this living legend is an extremely gentle and loving person

Ramnath Iyer · Post by **Ramnath Iyer** » 19 Jun 2008, 05:48

Varmaji,
cannot describe in words how I felt after reading the three articles in this thread...
my humble request to you to pen your interaction with your beloved Guru Shri K.S.Narayanaswamy, who has inspired many a vainika.

Ramnath

wordpecker007 · Post by **wordpecker007** » 02 Jul 2008, 17:20

Dear Rasikas,
Here is Aswathy Thirunal Rama varma singing the Kamas pada varnam during the 2002 Kuthiramalika Swathi Sangeethotsavam. Accompanying him are Prof.V.V.Subramanyam on the violin, Shri B.Harikumar on the mridangam and Shri Udipi Sridhar on the ghatam. The recital is in two parts.

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCAC2OLpevE
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=ylKYI775uZQ

regards

sureshvv · Post by **sureshvv** » 02 Jul 2008, 23:29

Musique4ever wrote:by the local Anti Balamurali Mafia of which my family was a part

LOL!

vedasaram · Post by **vedasaram** » 03 Jul 2008, 16:01

Kamas pada varnam is incredible. I've never heard it before! He highlights clearly the many incredible swaraaksharams of the Maharaja. Thanks wordpecker for the link.

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 11 Jul 2008, 00:46

I am so glad you enjoyed these articles. Before I post the one on K.S.Narayanaswamy Sir, here is the
tribute I published in The Hindu when my Aadi Guru Shri Vechoor Hariharasubramanya Iyer Sir passed away in 1994. He and Parasala Ponnammal teacher were neighbours, colleagues and the best of friends. Much of my efforts in trying to get more and more music lovers to listen to Ponnammal teacher's
music are somehow a way of paying tribute to Vechoor Sir too. I hope you will enjoy getting a few glimpses of this wonderful man through the following article. This incidentally was the first article I ever wrote.

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 11 Jul 2008, 00:49

The Amma Maharani's bedroom, Kawdiar Palace, February 1982. Standing in clusters all around the room, particularly around the bed are most of the members of the Travancore royal family, including the late Maharaja Chithira Thirunal and Princess Karthika Thirunal. Two visitors are also there, standing in respectful silence. A young boy of fourteen years, half dead with fright, is ushered into the room by one of the palace servants. He was to start music lessons that day. The music group from his school had bagged a prize at the district-level youth festival that year and he, incidentally, happened to be in that group. This was reason enough for the music obsessed Maharani to believe that her little great grandson had it in him to become a top-class musician. She immediately set about finding a proper teacher for her great grandchild. True to her nature, she started right at the very top, with Semmangudi R.Srinivasa Iyer, who was and who continues to be affectionately called â€œChembanâ€

devi · Post by **devi** » 11 Jul 2008, 08:28

Varmaji, After all these years I feel privilaged to read your words about your guru. It is beyond me to comprehend the guru shishya relationship(s) you are blessed with. Please accept my humble namaskaram for those great souls and to you who has has been magnanimous in sharing your experiences with them, in language which we can understand. May God Bless You.

wordpecker007 · Post by **wordpecker007** » 11 Jul 2008, 19:05

What a heartfelt tribute. And without being maudlin, he has managed to convey the sweetness and depth of the guru-shishya relationship. As he has rightly pointed out, gurus like Vechoor Sir are rare but so are shishyas like the prince. One has to be blessed to have a relationhip like that and to appreciate that bond.

sunaada · Post by **sunaada** » 13 Jul 2008, 16:37

What a touching tribute! I'm reminded of my own very first wonderful Guru and her relentless efforts to perfect my singing (quite a task, I can tell you). Balamurali sir and Vechoor Sir seem to have (had) rather contrasting personalities albeit great musicians in their own right.

Prince Varmaji, are any CDs available of this great master or if not, would you have any recordings that you can be posted on youtube or sangeethapriya?

aaren · Post by **aaren** » 17 Jul 2008, 08:15

could you kindly tell me where I can get lyrics for Sri. M.Balamuralikrishna's compositions and Thillanas please??

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 19 Jul 2008, 01:46

I am so glad you enjoyed this article. My Guru was sadly extremely averse to recording and I just have a
few audio clippings of his. I'll try to make upload them online one way or the other for sure. Aaren ji,
Balamurali Sir's compositions are published as a book called "Suryakanthi."

vganesh · Post by **vganesh** » 23 Jul 2008, 11:29

Prince VarmaJi,
I belong to a place called puliyoorkurichy, where in a fort is standing which was built by Maharaja Martanda Varma which was the artillerey / ordinance division of Travancore samasthanam when the capital was Padmanabhapuram. (May be about 300 years back or more ! ) This place is also known as udayagiri and is about 2 kms away from Padmanabhpuram place. When you explained about the scene in your palace (of you getting initiated to music), I was very nostalgic about the way we enjoy the procession of Lord Subramanya and Goddess Saraswathi who leaves for Thiruvanathapuram during navarathri festival to hear the concert at Kawdiar place from Padmanabhapuram place.
Very interesting artcile. Thank you verymuch for publishing in this site once again.

Musique4ever · Post by **Musique4ever** » 01 Aug 2008, 22:17

My pleasure Sir. I am so glad you enjoyed the article. Navarathri starts on September 30th this year by the way. I'll give the programme here sooner than later

wordpecker007 · Post by **wordpecker007** » 02 Aug 2008, 08:47

Here are the video clippings of Aswathy Thirunal Rama Varma singing a lovely composition of Maharaja Swathi Thirunal 'Saadhu Thadaa' in the rare raga Vakulabharanam during the Kuthiramalika Swathi Sangeethotsavam in 2001.

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=lPOqB3rpz7M

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=bJuP4IK8p0o

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=4vUdKku2ev0

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=b3ZLmgaAAE8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=px7CQzOAMjA
He is accompanied by VV Subramaniam on the violin, B. Harikumar(mridangam) and Udipi Sreedhar.

devi · Post by **devi** » 30 Aug 2008, 22:26

Musique4ever wrote:He was one of the very last exponents of that generation of great masters, the likes of whom are becoming fewer and fewer with the passage of time. For me personally, he was more than a parent, a friend, a kindred spirit, a grand parent and a guide, all rolled into one.

For those who would like to see Vechoor Sri Hariharasubramania Iyer and his devoted Shishya together, there is one rare clip uploaded in youtube by the Official Varma Channel: Musiquebox

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekOjvqFnw5Q

wordpecker007 · Post by **wordpecker007** » 01 Sep 2008, 22:18

The video clipping of Vechoor Sri Hariharasubramania Iyer and his disciple Aswathy Thirunal reminded me of this doha by Kabir. It is so true of their relationship and holds good for all good guru-shishya bonds.
Satguru Mila To Sab Mile
Naa To Mila Naa Koye
Maat Pita Sut Bandhava
Ye To Ghar Ghar Hoye

If someone is able to have a privilege of being in the company of a good preceptor then he has the privilege of being in the company of all. Otherwise he does not understand any relation. The relatives like mother, father, son and brother are there in all families.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 01 Sep 2008, 23:33

How true! I was so nice to see the guru garlanding his shishyA and his accompaniments and the disciple falling at his feet. Guru, shishyA, royalty and all other differences melts away at such a moment. Only the bond between them is there to see...
Once in a while, someone gets ticked off because we steer away from 'seriously' discussing music (by which they mean sticking to the technicalities and the business of music alone). I agree with them that on a forum where we have several scholars, exponents and experimenters in music, our main business here is music. However, music cannot exist in isolation. The human element cannot be ignored either. It is like saying to a child that the sole purpose of being in a school is strictly to learn what is taught and nothing else!
Stories of the old masters and a clip like this adds to our sensibilities about CM and its illustrious sons and daughters...

PUNARVASU · Post by **PUNARVASU** » 02 Sep 2008, 08:54

Well said Arasi, (as always); all these titbits are very useful ,in the sense that, the values are brought out; music or any art form is not just aptitude alone; it also includes attitude.

Shree · Post by **Shree** » 21 Sep 2008, 18:25

Varmaji,
You are so grateful to your Guruji who with great patience molded you to your present form.We sincerely hope you also must encourage and teach music loving students, what you have imbibed from your Guruji. but with patience.If you were to take classes would you be patient like him to a beginner like how your guruji used to be?Do you take classes for beginners?You are blessed by god that you were born in Travancore family and to get Vechoor Sir as Guru.
Each person will be destined by god for a purpose.

For nearly a year, teacher and student (not yet 'guru' and 'shishya') hardly ever spoke to each other except maybe when the student wanted to see an Amitabh Bachchan movie and had to cancel a class, faking a cold or a sore throat. Those days, cutting classes never posed me much difficulty because my interest in music classes was, frankly speaking, minimal

People around you (Your great grandmother, parents,Vechoor sir, Balamuralikrishna sir.....above all GOD himself) became instrumental to make you realize what you are here for.Now time has reached that its your turn to find out young artists to guide them in the proper track before they get influenced by Cultural festival prizes, Master in Arts,Ph.D and other reality shows.You being the member of the royal family in this profession with your calibre,can surely be a role model for the upcoming artists.You have a solid platform to voice.Please be a doctriaire person and do what you can do for our society within your limits.

Please consider this as a very humble request as we cannot do anything to this reality show culture and spoiling the real talented children.
Thank you