I wanted to post this article in March itself (to keep up my personal target of at least one post a month).. Because actually this article was written in March and hence technically I still met my target.. Posting it on April 1st is not to play a poor fools day joke! But, because it is part My latest article in Solvanam. So I decided to mention it here only after that.
The article is in Tamil. (It always feels nice to write in Tamil..) But non-Tamil readers please excuse me.. I will try to update this post with an English translation as soon as I can..
Basically I attempted playing the song in question to highlight the beauty of silence in this song. Though I did elaborate about it in the article, the best way to connect to my thoughts is through the video I guess.. Where ever there is silence in the original song, I tried to play it a bit spontaneous and not necessarily always sticking to the timing .. I thought the inherent feel of the song is best felt that way. Else I just played the melody with a mix of regular arpeggios and original bass track occasionally.
As always, your opinion matter to me the most. So Good/Bad or Ugly I am curious to know what you think of it. I also notated the sheet music for the song, in case you are interested. And of course corrections are welcome !
Pongal of '94. After duly monitoring the direction in which the milk boiled over, I knew what I should tell my mom and started counting my chickens. Of course whichever direction it flew out, she will have a theory that its still a good 'sign'. But only 'East' would make her content to the brim that all else would appear irrelevant. Even the thought of letting her sons commit the heinous crime of going to the theater on the morning of a festival...
Mahanadhi is the only movie till date that I have watched First day! First show !!
Watching the movie that day, the background motif for the romance between Heroine and behind-the-bars hero was something inexplicable. Though a usually emotional Kamal Hassan became a super emotional Kamal Hassan on that particular movie and was grabbing the best part of my attention, I could still notice how 'complex' that background score was .. Years later in Coimbatore - thanks to the vast collection of Jaffer brothers who ran a successful audio recording business in Gandhipuram - I came to know, that background score was actually a full blown song which never found its way into the movie. Back in my college music club, Our drummer Rajesh and me have spent quite a few nights trying to understand the song.
Its after all a 8 beats per measure song.. But its neither a 'normal' 8 beat cycle that we are used to in pop/ movie songs nor our Carnatic Aadhi Talam. In fact to discern that its not any monster but just an 8 beats a cycle song, requires some observation. Its because though the song has 8 beats, the strong beats are on 1,3 and 6th beat.
In other words, the key here is the absence of any emphasize on the usual 5th beat where an unmistakable divider is felt in most forms of 8 beat cycles of world music. Its signified by concepts such as Aridhi in our Carnatic music or an odd crash or a base pedal which signifies the symmetry that you have completed the first 4 and entering the next 4.. Much like Berlin's Checkpoint Charlie that proclaims "You are now entering the American Territory"..
But that is not to be in this song!
Therefore, the meter is more of a: 1 2| 1 2 3| 1 2 3|
I really couldn't fit what I heard in this song into any of the known conventions. For a long time it remained as my Reimann's Hypothesis making me wonder how to trap this prime.. But the answer to this puzzle was no where in sight..
Almost a decade and half later, when this query was still haunting me I finally found help. Rasikas.org is a high quality carnatic musical forum where lot of professionals discuss and guide beginners like me. I posted the same query there and got quite a few remarkable and enlightening responses. Following is the summary of that discussion. - You could consider this meter as a Tisra Mattiya Tala (Which is a cycle of 3 + 2 + 3) with an eduppu at 4th beat. But the problem with this view is that, no 'shift' is perceived in the song whatsoever. Samam is unmistakable and woudln't fit. - Through an advanced concept called 'Talaprasthara' in Carnatic Music, it could be established that there are 128 permutations in which beat cycles of 8 could be arrived. Our case of 2 + 3 + 3 is actually the 19th combination in this set. - If I am insisting of having a structure of Dhuratam + Tisra Lagu + Tisra Lagu, then it lacks necessary Talangas required for a regular 'Tala'. So this can not be even considered as a 'Tala', but a more of a Rhythmic form which can be named after you or me. - It is a song with actually 3 beats, and not 8 beats per cycle, where by the first beat is divided as two sub-beats, 2nd and 3rd beats is divided as 3 sub-beats each. More like an interpretation of: 2/8 + 3/8 + 3/8; It makes this beat cycle one of mixed gathi since each beat is not divided by same number of sub-beats. This is the way how Chappu talams in Carnatic music are interpreted. i.e., They have Tala cycles with no lagu in it but only beats that are not necessarily of same Gathi. Other popular examples are Kanda Chappu (2/8 + 3/8) and Misra Chappu (3/8 + 2/8 + 2/8).
(For academic interest, you can follow the whole thread here.)
To me the last explanation is more satisfactory. Not just because it compliments the other points above, but also the lyrics of this song seem to be beautifully written emphasizing the syllables of the aforesaid duration per each beat. i.e., Solladha = 2/8, Raagangal = 3/8, Ennenna = 3/8 and so on. (Who is the lyricist of this song, any idea..? He has done a fabulous job writing poetic words for such a tough meter..He deserves as much acclaim as Raaja.. I would love to think its Vaali..)
The way in which the experiment is carried on through out the song to bring about variations even in such a tough beat pattern is beyond my imagination; For instance, take the finishing of Pallavi Inaindha Sandharpam = 12 123 Izhandha Pon sorgam = 12 123 Thirumbumo = 123 Pudhu Yugam= 123 Arumbumo = 123 + 5 beats offset by chords i.e., a total of = 5 + 5 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 5 = 24 or 3 cycles of the original meter.
First 4 bars of 1st interlude is a maze agin... Especially the 10 count synth vibraphone that runs from the 6.5th beat of 1st bar and offsets all the way to the end of the second bar.. what an half beat timing man.. Keyboardist's nightmare..
And think of layers of attentive craftsmanship to the main beat.. A Triangle at 2nd and 5th count somewhere in the back. (can be more clearly heard in the pallavi)
So is the variety in ending of interludes with divisions of 5 + 5 + 6 to makeup two cycles. The second interlude where the song switches to Roopakam is one of the enchanting shifts in the song (although from a theoretical view point the song fails to return to the original meter at Samam).
The point I am trying to make is, even though it appears that the beat is running in the loop, its still full of mutations that wanders away in an almost unnoticeable fashion. That is the aesthetics of Raaja's compositions.
As is his ability to simplify a complex thing, he ably demonstrates a dummy's version of this tune in regular 8/8 in the background score that I spoke about. Listen to this string ensemble adoption of the same theme. Who can dare to erase all the rhythmic complexity and make it appear more appreciable to mortal ears. And later the Guitar strummed version of the complex meter returns.. and caps with chromatically embellished finish.
If you are tempted to think, this is an one off indigenous idea that struck him one fine morning by fluke, you are terribly wrong.. A decade prior to Mahanadhi, Raja already demoed a very similar complex meter... It was in fact the title track of Nothing but wind, one of his most significant non-film albums that sealed his status of genius.
This is a movement with beat cycles of 3 + 3 + 2. Surely not your Adhi Talam next door. Yet we missed it because the lead melody here is set as if its played on top of a normal 8/8; This is highly camouflaging. Once you notice it, you will kick yourself. Because the stress points of the drum beat is highly accentuated by the base pedal very prominently at 1st, 4th and 7th count, while the melody is oblivious to these stress points and takes a more conventional reference. In one sense, this cycle is an alternate view of the meter of the Mahanadhi song. i.e., if you consider the "Solladha" song's meter with an 'Eduppu' at 3rd count you will arrive at this movement's meter.
Instances such as this are proof enough that, time and again Raaja keeps himself savvy with such real experiments. I mean, music experiments in film music often needs to be deliberate. You tell me how often true and meaningful experiments are attempted by composers in Film music whose limits are driven - Not by the technology you possess nor by some stupid script that demands Hero plays an instrument until blood is dripping from his fingers. Music composed with such ulterior aids are already prejudiced in the mind of the listener, that it ought to be good.. Its creator ought to be a genius. This is the reason everyone is a genius now a days.
But its music that's innovated for art's sake that needs to be celebrated.
Its been quite a while since I blogged on a Carnatic classical theme. The last posts were perhaps Desadi and before that the Rajakesi. Since then actually I have been longing to come back to this domain. But somehow the topics of my posts of late have been centered on Western Classical. Those have been inspired by some spontaneous moments and hence I couldn't help but blog about them. Its merely co-incidental. So perhaps it has taken another spontaneous spark to thrust me back into what I always consider to be my home turf.
Recently I stumbled upon a song of Illaiyaraaja from the movie Aalapana. The movie itself is a milestone in Maestro's Telugu works. Directed by one of his favorites, Its a classical Dance oriented movie. Going by the high standards that he set for himself in similar classical dance based Sagara Sangamam, one need not even dare think about the quality of songs in this movie. All of them are as classically and critically acclaimed as reaching to the masses. Apparently there are more surprises left in this movie. The song on which this post is based - "Madhana Lathika Hare" is supposedly from the movie Aalapana and it has left me flabbergasted from the moment I listened to it.
Once my first listening completed, I was left thinking "This sounds like "Dhenuka" but do I miss the panchamam here?". Having listened to that song for 'n' times since, I am feeling a little dazed on the magnitude of this find.
The song is indeed the Pa varja janya of Dhenuka and It has the following grammer: Arohanam : Sa Ri1 Ga2 Ma1 Dha1 Ni3 Sa Avarohanam: Sa Ni3 Dha1 Ma1 Ga2 Ri1 Sa
A Perfect Shadava Shadava Ragam, this one is also one of many such Anonymous Shadava beauties privy to Raaja (Planning a series on Raaja's Shadava stable of ragas is on my cards for a long time. Hopefully it will materialize soon)
I feel this song is special not just because of its rare raaga, but in the way the melody and the interludes are constructed as well. It starts at Dhaivatham, a relatively unusual swara to anchor your melody upon. The way how both the Pallavi and the Charanam ends are in a real unorthodox descent of the Raaga going as: "Ga Sa Ni Dha Ma Ga Ri" is teasing big time as it descends all the way signaling a landing on the foundation Sadjamam (which is the norm) but instead jumping back to the unique Dha start.
The real hero of this song though is SP Balasubramaniam. I think this song should be a watershed moment in his illustrious career. You would agree with me that, this is a rather uncharted scale to sing. But I am sure he relished the challenge as it shows how effortlessly he pulls it off. The accomplishment is even significant given that the composer has gone to some extraordinary length to bring out the essence of this scale. This is clear as both the interludes are a SPB show with elaborate aalapanas. This arrangement is unusual of Raaja too. Because generally in classical based songs he might pack the interludes with kalpana swaras (Indraikki Enindha etc.,) but leaving the interludes open for singer's aalapana is unprecedented.
The Charanam has some interesting variations in each line as they are repeated at least twice fully scaling the length of this Raaga (I didn't dare use the word "breadth" or "depth" here although for a song that lasts less than the time of a "Thukkada" in a classical concert, the engineering of Raaga is quite phenomenal here);
1. Charanam's first line "Nadha Seema Lone" is sung with some beautiful craftmanship of swaras effortlessly jumping an octave for each swara sung (like sa Sa, ri Ri, ga Ga); And this line anchors on Sadjamam
2. The second line "Palakarinche Andhe" anchors at Rishabam in the end, after displaying some fine nuances such as "Nilichi Choose Sandhe" = daaTu gamakams of sa ri, ni sa, dha ni, ma dha - ga ma dha ni sa)
3. The third line "Korukkunna Aagamyam" stresses the Ghandharam The song is ondra kattai shruti..i.e., C#; Since there is no panchamam you cannot say its either minor or major although because of chinna Ri,Ga and Dha this song gives a quintessential minor feel. So the prime chords available for Raaja are F#minor (more or less the root chord) and A Major. Of all the lines in the song, This line emphasizes the A major so beautifully.
4. And the final push of "Aaa Aaa" in the charanam = sa ri ga Ma and anchors on Madhyamam before talking the mystic descent as explained above already.
Where else can you see such a gradual built up of melody .. eh ?
And don't forget to take notice how SPB efforlessly scales the Mel Sthaayi Dhaivatham in this song. (This happens in the Kaarvai following the first line "Theega meeta kunte" in the 2nd charanam) Its not usual in cine songs that the upper limit of vocals goes beyond melsthaayi Panchamam (At least in the last 40 years). So I think this is a rarity and again SPB at his effortless best.. No false voice.. just plain bold committed singing. Out and out the complete song is a testimony to SPB's Technical prowess, Shruthi precision and Voice control.
As a kid "Tirunelveli Vanoli Nilayam" (Tirunelveli Radio station) was my only source of carnatic music and I never missed their 1 hour program of pure classical concerts between 10 to 11 PM every day (I even remember the station violinist's name who used to play regularly in those programs - Thiruvallur.V.Parthasaarathy); Once a blue moon, they will air some quality instrumental music. One of the popular combination of instrumental music that I always look forward to is the "Veena-Venu-Violin" trio performance. For a change not listening to heavy vocals and just listening to this heavenly combination of 3 instruments in a dark room with open windows thats funneling the cool breeze from western ghats together with the sound of rumblings leaves that resonate with the music waves emerging out an antique mono Philips radio.. Wow.. what a sublime experience...
The prelude of this song is indeed the combination of Veena-Venu-Violin. As illustrated, Its a real joy when Raaja chooses a classical base and retains the same ragam and arrangement through out. (Eg: Poo malai vaangi vanthal, Vedam Nee etc.,); Because when he does that he is at his traditional best. This song is no exception. After CR Subburaman when was the last time anyone cared for such traditional arrangements in cine songs?
Many of Raaja's Songs are a double jeopardy. For one many of his songs never comes out because either they are recorded but not used in the movie or picturized but censored. And secondly, on some of these songs he would have opted for some mind boggling experiment. And sadly we would never come to know it. I personally know 3 or 4 more songs that fall in this category (like the Hieroglyphics post). Needless to say, they will be blogged in future. But what about ALL of those songs that are still lurking around in the oblivion :-(
Finally, if you are wondering about the title of the post: Dhenuka as such seems not that frequented a ragam in Carnatic classical although Raaja has used quite a few of them. The fact that you feel the song "Udhaya Geetham Paaduven" when you hear the above song is because "Udhaya geetham" is loosely based on Dhenuka (Although I would say its an insult to call it a Dhenuka. Because Udhaya Geetham has some out of the box usage of Ri2 and Ni2 which accentuates the complex nature of the song. But nevertheless..); When I look up in the internet, I found a a janya of Dhenuka called "VasanthaThodi" which has the same arohanam of the one we are discussing here but a depleted avarohanam of just "sa ni dha ma ri sa" (i.e., without Ga in the avarohanam as compared to this Raaga.)
So the only way I am currently able to define this Raaga is through some fun maths. As you know of the ubiquitous y = f(x) equation, 'x' is the input and independent. Based on the function 'f' that you apply on 'x', you get the output of 'y' which is the dependent variable. Here In my case, I know the input and the function.. i.e., x = Dhenuka f = remove Pa But I don't know what to call the 'y' :-(
So what's the name of my 'y' ..? Anyone ..? please help..
I will close this post by sharing my excitement of discovering something new...
Recently, my other idol Stephen Hawking made a candid statement when he stepped down from the prestigious academic title of Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University (the text version is here). He has followed the space and the universe all his life and keeps discovering things. Therefore he is able to crystallize his abstract feeling albeit through a somewhat controversial comparison ;-)
I would just restrict myself by saying, following Illaiyaraaja is similar to following something as gargantuan .. Just like how you look up the space and gaze all those stars all night and discover new galaxies and constellations, exploring Raaja's creations yield similar rewarding experiences..
With Love Vicky
Update: 2nd Nov
Thanks to Nagaraj and to Sathya_Vrathan from Rasika.org forum (where I had raised the same question) we have finally cracked 'y'. The Ragam is called as "Vatsa" and indeed a janya of Dhenuka. Thank you to both of them. And as far as I know, there are no carnatic classical Keerthanais or Varnams or Swarajathis or other type of compositions. That leaves me to think, Maestro is the first person to use this Ragam (although with my limited knowledge I could well be wrong). Yet another silent revolution.
In carnatic classical music, there is a very unique application of Aadhi Talam. When the "Eduppu" (i.e., the starting point of the song) doesn't start at the starting point of the Tala cycle but starts after 2 mathras (or 1/2 aksharam into the cycle) its called Madhyadhi Talam. When the song starts after 6 mathras (or 1.5 aksharamas into the cycle) its called Desadi Talam... The Madhyadhi talam is pretty easy to grasp.. but the desadi talams are relatively complex.. Famous Kritis in Desadi Talams are Raguvamsa suda, Bantureethi, Oraju Pusu etc.. From my childhood violin classes I love these krithis (Well, who doesn't...?)
While Madhyadhi Talams are quite common in Film music , Desadi Talams are quite rare... Even more rare is the occurance of both the styles in the same song..
Here I introduce you to the next hero'sglyphic "Majnu Alidha" from the movie "Usire".. A song that I am sure didn't warrant your second look, if at all you managed to listen to it the first time .. But this song is one of its kind experiment from Raaja.. Besides being a very good Shanmugapriya, it captures the sandy storms in the dessert very well.. Wonder if the picturization did justice to it.. Anyways, here you can listen to it so that you may follow what I am going to blabber next..
When the song starts as "Majnu Alidha", it starts as a Madhyadhi Tala song. But unlike normal Madyadi talas (such as Sundari Neeyum, Pothi vecha malligai mottu etc..)which are very easy to follow, this one feels quite odd.. I think this is because any ordinary composer would have set a rhythm for this tune in such a way that the syllable "maj" from Majnu would be the last 2 matras of the previous Aadhi cycle and the syllable "nu" of Majnu starting at the samam. i.e., an application of "Athitha Eduppu" (i.e., pallavi starting before the tala cycle commence) would have sounded perfect here and easy to follow.. But Raaja is not a ordinary composer..
He goes for 'Anagatha eduppu' instead :-) [i.e., pallavi starting after the tala cycle commence].. Here, the whole of "Majnu" starts well after 2 matras.. very very unorthodox.. Rules....?? what ..?
But the real surprise is saved after the first 2 lines.. The 3rd line of Pallavi "Aledheledu huligidharu" starts after 1.5 aksharams, making it an occurance of Desadi Talam.. It continues like this for next 3 lines.. and then when the pallavi chorus reaches "Oleva..Oleva.." the song is back to Madyadi talam.. Only to go back to Desadi Talam, when the stanza starts .. and it stays so until it ends.. The application of Desadi is best illustrated in the stanza and thats why its my favorite part of the song.... The way it coverging back to Madhyadi talam at "Oh.. Oleve" is super..
And I am thinking for a long time now... other than this song, I can't think of the usage of Desadi Talam in another film song.. May be if I double the speed of the Taalam (to a 1/2 kalai Aadhi Tala or something if ever there is such a thing), then I end up with a few such as "Nilave Vaa" (Mouna raagam), Stanza of Kurukku Siruthavale (Rehman's Mudhalvan) etc., But none in the normal oru kalai Aadi Talam's tempo. I would be certainly very interested to know if there are more..
The best part of this song is that, The rest of the song seem to be operating in a different frame of reference to that of Mano's. If you see the Rhythm as well as the remaining arrangements, they go about their business as if its a regular Aadi Tala song. This is unlike the regular carnatic Desadi songs, where the stage is normally well set by the percussionist by emphasizing the start of the cycle well enough so that the vocalist gets a grip to start 1.5th aksharams there after. But here this song is a regular 16 Beat shuffle that we are very used to in Ace of base, Unai Kaana villaiye Netrodu etc.. This pattern is meant for a normal Aadi Talam song and there is no element in this rhythm to suggest it could be used as a Desadi Pattern . That for me is really out of the box.. I am sure Mano might have relished this experiment as remembering to sing with little complicated reference on a rhythm pattern that's his daily cup of tea is a bit tricky. And hope you liked it too... :-)
I leaped out of my seat listening to the Jaladharangam in the prelude of the song - "Kothamalli Poove" - a not so famous song from the movie 'Kallukkul Eeram'. Ever since I heard the Jaladharangam in the song "Dheena Karunakaranae", I have had a fascination towards this wonderful instrument. But blame it on the 'too-many-choices-available' world, I never really had a moment so far to reflect on this instrument... And this song was a trigger to revive my (listening) interest on Jaladharangam..
Contine reading on Jaladharangam, Ilaiyaraaja and "Kotha Malli Poove" below.. Contine reading on Jaladharanagam (only) here.
'Kotha Malli' or Coriander or Dhaniya as you may have known, is a herbal LEAF adding aroma to quintessential Indian cuisine.. So how bizarre a song can be - that glorifies Kotha malli's Poo (flower) while paying no attention to its leaves...? As bizarre as an authentic Jog raag getting no attention in a beautiful rustic south Indian folk song.. This song, Kothamalli Poove from Kallukkul Eeram (Listen to it here) is a high quality melody in Jog Ragam set to a very rural arrangement for a typical Bharathiraja backdrop. This is certainly another hidden Hero'sglyphic :-)
Now Coming to the topic of the blog post, I am fully convinced that the prelude of this song predominantly employs a original Jaladharangam, although its often paired with another instrument in the backdrop. Bbut towards the end of the prelude, you can listen the unique timber of Jaladharangam quiet prominently.. that too in a fast tempo typical of this instrument. The tone can be further confirmed as original (and not electronic) when it appears for brief passages in the interludes again.. Also the application of the instrument alongside Mirudangam and sometimes as an answer to it is quite interesting. The overall setup of the song truly amazes me.. You can visualize a bunch of villagers doing their daily jobs and the village life is well captured in the melody, making the facts of Jog and Jaladharangam insignificant..
Now thats Ilaiyaraaja for you...
The only another Jaladharangam in Tamil film music in recent memory, that immediately pops out in my mind is the song "En Veetil Thottathil" (Gentleman).. But AR Rehman, went for an artificial Keyboard based Jaladharangam tone that clearly lacked the rustic punch of waves moving back and forth across water.. It leaves a mouth 'watering' proposition to imagine what if a perfectionist in sound like him took pains to use the original instrument instead..
Though not popular now, this instrument was very widely used in the Tamil Film music by the likes of G Ramanadhan and KVM. So in that context, its unique that Raaja has used the 'real' instrument, although I must admit sporadically. I am quite curious to know if there are other songs where this unique instrument is used...
Recently our friend CSR, gave us some food for thought with a lateral suggestion on Raaja's application of Madhyamavathi and how in a very unique way he keeps the melody around the later half of the Raaga..That apparently happen to be just the tip of the iceberg as I seem to realize many more such unique selection of notes in Raaja's songs.
The way the song "Mayanginane solla Thayanginane" starts as "Ri Ga Ma Pa" has intrigued me long since I listened to that song. While any self-proclaimed note identifier (like me..!!) can identify this song as a Charukesi, the very first time I tried playing this in my keyboard (Probably I was 12 then and I still clearly remember the oddity of this song), I was really confronted by the unorthodox Ri ga ma pa (and why not "sa ri ga ma"!!??).. But probably my eagerness to play the tune was dominating the curiosity then..
After all these years, when I was jamming around with this song yesterday, I noticed that, that oddity is all over the song.. There is no transition called "Sa Ri Ga Ma" in this song... whatsoever... No "Sa Ri Ga Ma.." but a lot of "Ri Ga Ma Pa..." progressions. How can one explain that...? Sitting in front of the keyboard, I had these 3 feelings..
Puzzled on the reality at hand (pun intended..!!) A bit of unease on this unorthodox pattern.... And above all thrilled ....
And after many attempts, I am able to re-affirm with feeble confidence (!!) that, there is still no "Sa Ri Ga" but only "sa ga" or "Ri Ga" progressions in this song... In other words, If there is a note after Sa in ascending order in this song, then its always Ga while on the other hand around Ri there are no restrictions and the song appears like a normal sampoorna raagam.
As I started reverse engineering with these leads, a very beautiful Vakra Raaga was unfolding in front of me... After some careful dissection, I am thinking may be I have the answer now...
This is a new Janya Raaga based out of Charukesi and I would like to define it as following :
Aarohanam : Sa Ga3 Ri2 Ga2 Ma1 Pa Dha1 Ni2 Sa Avarohanam: Sa Ni3 Dha1 Pa Ma1 Ga3 Ri2 Sa
This structure, seems to be explaining all the oddity. Talking about the song itself, by and large it roves around the second half of the Charukesi scale, same like his Madhyamavathi applications that I mentioned earlier.. And this pattern is not just with the melody but even the interludes.. So its a complete package and it sticks to the rule from beginning to end. There are various places which clearly announces this unique prayogams of "Sa Ga Ri" and "Sa Ga Ma" (note again: there is no "sa ri ga")..
1.) Towards the ending of prelude, Suseela announces through her haunting humming the first occurrence of many such special ones to come with the notes "Sa ga ri sa, ni.. ri.. ma.. ni.. sa..." 2.) Song starting bang on "Ri Ga Ma Pa" 3.) 1st interlude: The bell + guitar theme which comes midway (after the flute) as well as repeated to finish the interlude is: "Sa ga ga.. Ga ma ma.. Ma pa pa pa" (no "Sa Ri") 4.) the stanza melody is a beauty.. Sliding down and climbing again.. just like a bouncing ball loosing its height every time.. but where ever it climbs there is no sign of "sa ri ga" as far as one could see.. 5.) The Saarangi piece in the 2nd BGM is very artistically done around "Pa" and when it abruptly falls to Sa and climbs on a ascent, it goes up with some terrific gamakas, as "Sa ga ri ma ga dha pa sa ni...."
As such, the instances of ascent around the first half of the scale is limited when compared with the descending beautiful folds that dominate the song.. but where there was a strong case for ascent, Sa Ri Ga is clearly avoided and it can only be explained with an astounding Vakra raaga as specified. On a second look, actually it looks pretty impressive scale on the lines of NalinaKandhi or Anandhabhairavi, what with a very aesthetic "Sa Ga Ri Ga Ma" fold... And now in hindsight I could see many such Raaja's Charukesis with such prayogams (such as "kaadhalin Deepam Ondru", "Uyire uyrin oliye", "sakkarakkatti" etc.. ) but none with the precision pattern as in Mayanginane..
There is an unparalleled originality and ingenuity in the way of interesting patterns when it comes to Raaja's application of Swaras .. The most common mistake that people do (including me) is that, there is an overwhelming tendency to label his songs immediately after the first hearing with the (limited) Raagas that people know.. But more often that not, its something else as was this case with Rishivani. Its a pity when you try to fit something in with what you know instead of looking at what it is... The truth is that these songs are diamonds hidden in coal. As how no two diamond is the same, his songs do not want to be associated with the existing similar "popular" diamond.. Rather they needs to be assessed with a open head for what its worth.
May be this raaga is already defined in the carnatic grammar.. But as the golden rule is that one who has the gold makes the rule :-))) - with due apologies for the lack of modesty - I would like to christen this Raaga as: "Raajakesi".
I am not claiming here that Raaja might have deliberated on this tune and invented a new Raaga.. If anything by his own definition music is spontaneous.. So this composition is just like water gushing out of the spring, along with it eroding the note Ri in between Sa and ga with or without his conscience. That's all..
Or may be its absurd (especially if you are a purist) to claim this is a new raaga with such limited application of notes that runs in a song all of 4 and half minutes... but who cares.. as far as I am concerned, I feel like a distant cousin of Columbus...
While somehow I am a bit satisfied on solving a riddle that have haunted me for longtime now, I have to remind myself that, There is still probably one feeling that always supersedes the joy of (petty) Discoverers..
The one that of the Inventor.. Wonder what he feels after every such composition.. Raaja The Raaja!
Whats common among the following words other than being common Tamil Names...? Jeyaraman, Subramanian, Seenivasan, Ramanujam, Santhanam, Arunachalam, Mani and Shanmugasundaram ...
No Bell is ringing yet..? Come on.. you've got to do better if you are appearing for GRE or CAT.. Ok.. how about now..?
Lalgudi Jeyaraman, Valayapatti Subramanian, Semmangudi Seenivasan, Ariyakudi Ramanujam, Maharajapuram Santhanam, Karaikurichi Arunachalam, Madurai Mani and of course the legendary Sikkal Shanmugasundaram who existed only in celluloid !!
You see, the place of Artist's origin is at the heart of Carnatic Music..
If I am to coin a name for Ilaiyaraaja in the same breadth, it would be "Pannaiya Bagavadhar".
Simply because, It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say, Raaja's contribution to Carnatic Classical Music in the modern era is enormous ... Simply because, he has ventured into main stream as well as sub-genres of this classical art form never getting constrained by the cinematic boundary but rather using it as an opportunity in the limited avenue of classical theme based movies... Simply because he is the last standing warrior in composing melodies that stick to a particular scale from end to end and yet packaging it in his own style alluring to a layman.... People who enjoyed "Chinna Kannan Azhaikkiraan" and "Naan Thedum Sevvandhi Poovidhu" and "Endhan Nenjil Neengadha" doesn't necessarily knew its Reethigowlai, Hindholam and Nalinagandhi.
My first Virtual Play list starts with songs that are more classical than filmy. These are the songs that broke the barrier of Cinema within which they are supposed to operate and dared to identify themselves with the much purer Genre.. Read, Song - Movie/ Album - Raagam
Please note by no means, this list sums up Raaja's classical CV. There are lots of songs still left, which would follow in subsequent playlists. I hand picked this ones for a start because of their pre-dominant classical arrangement - That of Mrudangam as the main Rhythm instrument and the three Vs, Veena/ Venu/ Violin for the melody section. Raaja's usage of Veena in Film music deserves a special mention here.. (such as the ones in Indraikku ane indha, Unnai vaaztha vandhane..);
Though I listed strictly classical numbers here, the versatility shown by Raaja even within this genre is astounding. Nadhaswaram and Thavil are very much part of the classical family although not considered mainstream. "Manam Pola" comes close to matching a "Singara Velane Deva" in that sub-genre. So is the sub-genre of "Katha Kalakshebam" which is also considered classical but not mainstream. And to compose a proper one in that form ("Rama Kanavemira") within the boundary that the film music posed (such as a song should last only around 5 minutes), shows the level of grasp required by the composer.
And finally a quick look at the above list and it reveals some risky Raagas to handle such as Ragavardhini (the song came last year.. How many of you seriously cared for such a high quality carnatic number ..?) While the popular raagas such as Kaanada and Charukesi are abundant, one cannot miss the rare ones such as Ramapriya, Saranga Tharangini etc.. Also its clear KJ Yesudos is the man of choice when it comes to strong classical numbers from Raaja. What a devine association it has been...
Some of Raaja's songs are real hieroglyphics. They look attractive and fascinating; But the fact is you don't understand it.. not at least at the first sight. Co-incidentally just a couple of days ago, a fellow Raaja rasigar got in touch exposing me to this maze. Its providential that I was working on launching this blog and he opened up a perfect opportunity and motivation to add some content (Thanks Dileep and CSR !) So here is my lame attempt in cracking open this Ilaiyaraaja code (well, Actually the substitution to Da Vinci doesn't look out of place there I suppose...)
I will try to repeat the basics even if its redundant and boring to some of you. Firstly the Declaration.. This song is simple Adhi Talam ..8 count per beat cycle or as in western terms 2 beat cycles of 4/4; (or actually 8/4 then, if you want to make this beat cycle same as that of Aadhi taalam)
Thankfully the prelude chorus starts in proper Aadhi and enables us to keep track of the song.. So if you simply start putting the plain Aadhi Talam during the prelude, you can complete one Aadhi cycle during the line: "Kottun ga Ko ttun ga Ko ttun ga Kummi Kummi"
This would be our base metronome for the song analysis.
And you will notice the claps during the first lines fall on the count 3 and 7.. The overall beat pattern of the song is a bit electronic and is little complex to follow... But for easier visualiztion, you can switch off the Rhythm track of this song in mind, take the rhythm from lets say, "Aalappol Velappol" and super impose it in this song.. Now you see, it perfectly fits and the basic meter of this song is nothing but "Tha ka dhi mi Tha ka ju nu"..
Ok now that we are in same page (is it..?) let me proceed...
The biggest hide and seek that Raaja plays with us in this song is, 1.) Not every line falls within one cycle of Aadhi Taalam. This is a universal rule composers usually don't tend to break, including Raaja. Else the common man cannot follow the song fully and enjoy.. But in this song, a Few portions of the song comfortably stretches along two (or a little more) cycles of Aadhi Taalam. (If you want to be technically correct you can call it 16/4 , but honestly it doesn't matter as long as you follow the song and know where you are... ); 2.) And to make it super complex, These lines doesn't start on the samam (i.e., not on count 1 but a bit earlier or later);
So If we identify which are those problematic lines, its rather easy to follow this song. The first 2 lines of the song fall in the above mentioned super duper complext pattern.
The first line (Kummi - Kottunga Kottunga) measures 18 counts but the first count of this line is actually the 8th count of its previous measure (i.e., the first word Kummi already starts on the 8th count of previous cycle).. or in other words if you assume the song starts from the lines Kottunga Kottunga, it runs for 17 more counts..i.e., totally this line is 1 count of Aadhi from previous cycle + 2 full cycles of Aadhi + first samam of Next Cycle of Aadhi... all this still in first line... The second line (Kaigal Thattunga Thattunga) runs for 19 counts!! The beauty (or the beast :-P !!) of this line is that,it starts at the 2nd count of its Aadhi cycle or oru idam in carnatic music..(Just like "Endharo Mahanubhavulu...").. This line runs through 19 counts .. i.e., 7 counts from its starting Aadhi.. 8 counts from Next Aadhi.. and 4 counts from the Aadhi thereafter.. Due to this odd number of assymetry, you might be tempted to count Roopakam (Especailly the last 8 + 4..) in between... But those are just the woeful game Raaja is playing by making the sandham deviate a bit and sound like Roopakam.. don't loose focus and keep counting Aadhi..
So when Arunmozhi starts (Iru siru Idhayangal) the song appears to be back in the grasp of common man and right fully so.. as it follows 4 full cycles of 8 beats (Mind you I didn't call this phrase Aadhi as its running with first Thrudham of Aadhi as reference note of start of its cycle !!) The lines Kadhai kadhaiyam Kaaranamam.. Kaaranathil kaadhalaraam" is the ultimate beauty as its 4 cycles of pure roopakam.. 4 * 3 = 12 counts which can also be seen as 4 + 8 or 1.5 cycles of Aadhi.. So "Vaazhga" starts at the proper Samam of Aadhi.. but it lasts only for 7 counts.. because as per the theory when we started, the word "Kummi" starts at the 8th count..
This teasing game doesn't stop here and continues well in to the stanza too... The first 2 lines are ok.. But the 3rd line (Kannal Kaniyum) goes back to stretching itself into 2 cycles of Aadhi..with the split of the Sandham in this lines switching to the "Thaka Thimi Thaka" pattern ("Kannal Kani yum" , "Ella Suvai yum", "Than dhanam ena") and confusing you..
Subsequent phrase returns to normalcy (Thandhane Endru thandhai neeyum) with proper Aadhi... But only briefly.. the maze resumes soon enough at the lines "Thottal Thudikkum Pattam pooochi" and "Vittal Thavikkum Kannam moochi".. as this is pure Roopakam for 8 measures or 24 counts.. (i.e., 8(*3) cycles of Roopakam or simple, 3 (* 8) cycles of Aadhi...) And the "Ooho" ending is pure Aadhi only to remind yourself the Kummi again starts at the last count (8th count) of this Aadhi cycle..
Truly this is one of Raaja's "Thiru Vizhaiyaadal..".. i.e., when he is getting bored, he thinks, ok let me play some games with some lesser mortals out there... But what truly amazes me in this composition is the method to the madness applied.. He conceives an idea and he sticks to it from the beginning to the end even if he completely wanders around in between..
Following is summary of adjustments that he makes so that the song retains its Aadhi structure from end to end and the points that underscore his musical genius... 1.) Always starting the first line at the 8th count of previous cycle, come what may; Superb offsets to bring back the original rhythm flavour of the song such as the finishing of Pallavi (Vaazhga...) and Charanam (Oooh..)suitable for the pallavi to start back at the 8th count..This is a mind which exactly knew what it was doing... 2.) Timely adjustments then and there to switch the song to roopakam so that the reference of the Aadhi smoothly transitions from Thrudham to Samam.. 3.) Beautiful and yet sudden beginning of 2nd Bgm bang on the samam of aadhi by cutting the second line of Pallavi.. (NOte this is the first song that I have noticed from Raaja where Seccond BGM starts after the firstline itself.. normally its after first 2 lines to maintain symmetry... But this is like starting the 2nd BGM after the lines "Raasathi Unna Kaanadha Nenju" itself without singing "Kaathadi pol aadhu" for instance... ); He broke this symmetry because the first 2 lines are anyways assymmetrical (one 18 and other 19 counts..); So assymetry * assymetry = Symmetry !! :-))) You notice the hurry with which that flute and Tabla starts at the 2nd BGM.. just like an acrobat jumping from one swing in time to catch his other partner.. For me this is a defining moment in the song...Absolute precision like a Swiss Watch... 4.) So is the finishing of the song... no theermanams..not even a brief one.. the song abruptly ends at the phrase "Podungadi" as thats where Samam ends but not where that line finishes (which is still 4 more counts away as per the song's construct...) This is the Tradionalist within the experimentalist who wants to give a proper ending with no loose ends...
This blog offers my perspective on Maestro Ilaiyaraaja, The soul who has undoubtedly been a great influence in my life. Its a sequel to
my older Website that I used to maintain for Ilaiyaraaja in '02. Apart from
giving my objective thoughts and subjective emotions on his songs, I hope to bring out some anonymous ultimates. Also a regular feature of this blog
would be 'Vicky's Virtual Playlists' .
I hope
to make this blog, home of my (and of course your) Ilaiyaraaja Experience
One of those run-of-the-mill Indian techie who thinks "I am different!”.
Apart from occasionally junking (I mean Writing), I also do a bit of Violin, Keyboards, sequencing in my PSR 730 and assorting albums.
I listen to a lot of Ilaiyaraaja (a South Indian Film Music Legend), Carntaic, Western classical, Country, Soft-Rock and Jazz.
Personal Finance, Traveling, History and Tamil Literature are my likes too. View My Complete Profile
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