Monday, Nov 4 2002
In this article, we discuss the raga Natakurinji.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/karaikurichi.ram
< -- Karaikuruchi Arunachalam
Natakurinji is a relatively recent raga. There is no reference to this raga
in pre-18th century literature.1 The
name of
the raga suggests that the origins of this raga are in the music of the early
Tamils. But, there is not much evidence in support of this hypothesis. Some
scholars assign
kurinjippan to the contemporary scale Harikambodi. 2 Indeed, Natakurinji does fit in as a janya raga of
the Harikambodi mela.
However, there appears to be no pan equivalent of Natakurinji in vogue.
Musicological works like the Sangita Makarandam (ca. 7th
century CE) and
the Caturdandi Prakasika (ca. 17th century CE) contain no
references to Natakurinji. According to Prof. Janakiraman, Tulaja's Sangita
Saramrta (ca. 1735 CE) refers to this raga. Natakurinji is also described
in Govinda's Sangraha Coodamani (ca. 19th century CE). The
descriptions of Natakurinji in these two treatises coincide approximately with
the raga's current form.
It is interesting to note that quite a few Tamil lyrics associate the name
Natakurinji with natyam (dance), the most popular being kavalaiyai teerpatu
natiya
kalaiye. Composed by Papanasam Sivan, this song appeared in the movie
Sivakavi (music director: G. Ramanathan). The singer was the rage of
the day, M. K.
Tyagaraja Bhagavatar.3
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/mkt_kavalaiyai.ram
M. K. Tyagaraja Bhagavatar -- >
Natakurinji is a rakti raga. It can be sung at all times; the raga can be
elaborated in both slow and medium tempos. It is a popular choice for ragam,
tanam and pallavi,
and is especially well suited for elaboration by tanam. Natakurinji is an
example of a raga whose scope has been defined by kalpana rather than kalpita,
viz., kritis.
The raga uses the following notes - r2 (ri) g3 (gu)
m1 p d2 (di) n2 (ni). Since there is no ambiguity, we shall use lower
case letters for
all swaras in this article. An underscore indicates lower octave and double
quotes indicate higher octave.
Natakurinji illustrates the inadequacies of "defining" a raga by an
arohanam-avarohanam and/or its parent melakartha or scale. For instance,
Govinda's Sangraha
Coodamani lists Natakurinji as a janya of the 28th mela Harikambodi and
offers the following arohana/avarohana: s r g m d n s"
s" n d m g
s. However, in practice, one seldom hears this straight arohana. The
lakshana of this raga can be seen in the famous varnam calamela composed
by
Moolavattam Rangasami Nattuvanar. In the following clip, we hear the veteran
flautist K. S. Gopalakrishnan play this varnam. T. N. Krishnan plays the violin
and T. K.
Murthy, the mridangam. The recording is from a live concert at Shanmukhananda
Hall (Bombay, 1974).
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/ksgv.ram
< -- Shanmukhananda Hall,
Bombay
As can be inferred from the above recording, a description based on
arohana-avarohana does no justice to this raga. It is for this reason that
Muthu Venkatamakhi while
describing Natakurinji says, ". geeyate lakshya vedibhi". Subbarama Dikshitar
translates this line as ".the arohana avarohana murchana of this raga is given
by s r g m p d n s" s" n d m g s... But as mentioned in
the above sloka, the form of this raga is to be understood from the prayogas
that occur in
geeta and kriti and sung accordingly..." 4
Illustrating our comment that Natakurinji is often associated with dance, we
offer a varnam in Natakurinji, sami nan untan adimai. It is a popular
number in
dance recitals and was composed by Papanasam Sivan. 5
The lyric describes the devotee pining for her Lord (Siva, the Lord of Dance).
The singer is Rukmini Ramani, the composer's daughter.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/rukminiv.ram
The same varnam sung by M.L. Vasantakumari, for a dance recital. Charumati
Ramachandran provides vocal support in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/mlvv.ram
Papanasam Sivan and Rukmini
Arundale -- >
All the swaras in this raga except r are
jeeva swaras and can be used suitably as nyasa swaras. Though r is not used as a nyasa swara, it occurs frequently
and almost invariably in conjunction with s.
Some examples
are d_ n_ s (r) s, d_ n_ s r n_ s and g m p g r s. In prayogas such as s r s
and n_ s r s, the rishaba is often
articulated at the gandhara. The swara m divides
the poorva
and uttara angas of the raga. This swara occurs in both forms, unshaken and as
m (g) m. Some typical poorvanga prayogas are
given
below:
m g s
r g m g s
s m (g) m
s (r) g m
d_ n_ s (r) s g (g) m
g m (p) g r s g g m
The dhaivata is a strong note in the uttaranga as can be seen in prayogas
such as g m n d, m g m n d. Consequently, the
nishada is
often oscillated in the arohana krama as (d) n
and (d) n d n s". A glide from a strong d to m is very
appealing.
The panchama has a special place in this raga. As Prof. Janakiraman points
out, ".. it is not within raga dharma to avoid the panchama in the elaboration
of
Natakurinji".6 This note usually appears in the
arohana and avorahana kramas as n d n p d n s"
and
g m p g r s respectively. The phrase m g r s is heard sometimes, but we opine that it is
avoidable. The
recordings adduced in this feature will show that even the phrase g m g r s only appears as g m
(p) g r s.
The phrase s" d p m g m p g r s is seen in
lakshya.
Some common uttaranga prayogas are
m g m n (d) n
m g m n d n p d n
d n s" d n p d n
The tara stayi shadjamam is usually approached by prayogas such as
d n s"
n d n p d n s"
< -- Musiri Subramania Iyer,
teaching at the Music College, Madras.
An unambiguous summary of Natakurinji can be heard in the beginning
movements of Musiri Subramania Iyer's alapana:
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/musirir.ram
In this section, we present a few recordings of Natakurinji extracted from
the kriti suite (the kriti prefaced by an alapana, and embellished by neraval
and/or swaram).
The first of these features Musiri Subramania Iyer singing Srinivasaiyah's
kriti ninnu minchinavarevaramma. Palani Subramania Pillai plays the
mridangam.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/musiri.ram
Pallavi Gopala Iyer's kriti in Natakurinji nidu murthini is often
cited as one of the earliest compositions in Natakurinji. M. D. Ramanathan
sings this kriti (note
the prayoga s" d p m g m p g r s in the chitta
swaram) in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/mdrnidu.ram
Jon Higgins Bhagavatar -- >
Jon Higgins Bhagavatar was an instant hit in Tamil land with his soulful
rendition of Gopalakrishna Bharati's en neramum (Devagandhari).7 Here, he sings a song from Nandan Caritam.
Though Gopalakrishna Bharati seems to have composed this kriti (vazhi
maraittirukute) in desiya Todi, the modern version is in Natakurinji.
First, we hear Higgins Bhagavatar's alapana in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/higginsr.ram
Gopalakrishna Bharati's vazhi maraittirukute follows.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/higgins.ram
Ramaswamy Sivan's ekkalattilum is a favorite of the DKP-DKJ school.
The following clip is an excerpt from a live concert (Shanmukhananda Hall,
Bombay,
May 1989). D. K. Jayaraman, accompanied by Mysore Manjunath, Karaikudi Mani and
T. V. Vasan, sings Ramaswamy Sivan's ekkalattilum. Balaji Shankar
provides vocal support in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/dkj.ram
< -- Subramania Bharati
The Tamil poet Subramania Bharati was also a keen rasika of music and
composed a number of pieces in various Carnatic and Hindustani ragas.8 Unfortunately, many of these compositions have
been mauled by musicians acting as tunesmiths and retuning them to other ragas.
Dr. S.
Ramanathan offers us a refreshing change and sings Bharati's muruga in
the original tune (Natakurinji). The song was first published in 1922 as part
of Bharati's
Sudesa Geetangal. Note Ramanathan's clever usage of s" n d n p in his kalpana swaras. This phrase ties up
with d n s" (muruga) in the first line of the
composition.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/sr.ram
M. D. Ramanathan -- >
Of Tyagaraja's two kritis in the raga, the one that is often heard is
manasu vishaya. M. D. Ramanathan presents it in his characteristic
style. M.
Chandrasekharan plays the violin and Vellore Ramabhadran, the mridangam in this
recording. MDR takes up the phrase sri tyagaraja for elaboration by
neraval in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/mdrmanasu.ram
D. K. Pattammal sings Muthuswamy Dikshitar's sivakami patim in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/dkp.ram
Muthuswamy Dikshitar's (navagraha kriti) budhamashrayami is arguably
the most popular kriti in Natakurinji. Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer presents this
kriti in
the following set of clips. Lalgudi Jayaraman and Tiruchi Sankaran accompany
him in this recording, excerpted from a live concert. First, we hear
Semmangudi's alapana in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/semmr.ram
< -- Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer,
Lalgudi Jayaraman and Tiruchi Sankaran
Illustrating our observation that Natakurinji is especially well suited for
elaboration by tanam, Semmangudi and Lalgudi preface the navagraha kriti
with a tanam.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/semmt.ram
The kriti budhamashrayami follows.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/semm.ram
Palakkadu K. V. Narayanaswamy --
>
K. V. Narayanaswamy was another singer who used to revel in Natakurinji. His
renditions of Swati Tirunal's (navaratri) kriti pahi janani were
particularly
memorable. The following recording is from a concert featured in the
arangisai program in AIR (Madras). V. V. Subramanian plays the violin.
First, an excerpt from
KVN's alapana in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/kvnr.ram
KVN's rendition of pahi janani follows. Note how KVN makes the
transition from vilamba kala neraval to madhyama kala to kalpana swaras devoid
of
theatrics. Palghat Raghu provides brilliant accompaniment on the mridangam in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/kvn.ram
< -- S. Ramanathan
In this final section, we present excerpts from a few recordings of
Natakurinji in ragam, tanam and pallavi (RTP). The first set of clips in this
section features S.
Ramanathan, in a concert at the Music Academy, Madras (1980). The accompanists
are Radha Narayanan and Madurai Srinivasan. S. Ramanathan's initial sketch of
the
raga in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/srr.ram
An excerpt of the tanam follows:
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/srt.ram
The pallavi kuvalaya dala nayana set to adi tala (2 kalai) is adapted
from Tyagaraja's kriti in Natakurinji.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/srp.ram
M. L. Vasantakumari -- >
M. L.Vasantakumari sings at the Music Academy (1960). The accompanists are
Tiruvallur Subramaniam (violin) and Tanjavur Krishnamurthy Rao (mridangam).
First,
an excerpt from MLV's alapana (note the application of
d about 2:09 into the clip) in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/mlvr.ram
The tanam in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/mlvt.ram
is followed by the pallavi tenparangiri valar muruga (khanda triputa - 4 kalai).
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/mlvp.ram
< -- Rudrapatnam Brothers
The next set of excerpts is from an RTP presented by R. N. Thyagarajan and
R. N. Tharanathan (Rudrapatnam Brothers). The recording is from a live concert
at
Rutgers University (1991). Mysore Nagaraj plays the violin and V. Praveen
accompanies on the mridangam.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/rbrosr.ram
Excerpts from the tanam in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/rbrost.ram
The traditional pallavi ciranta engalatu nattai kurinji enbar in adi
(2 kalai) was featured in one of our earlier articles.9 The
Brothers sing this pallavi in
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/rbrosp.ram
G. N. Balasubramaniam
-- >
The final set of clips features G. N. Balasubramaniam, accompanied by M. S.
Gopalakrishnan and Ramanathapuram C. S. Murugabhoopati. This is an excerpt from
a
live concert at Shanmukhananda Sabha, Bombay and is one of the few concerts of
the master where his accompanists include a morsing player. Unfortunately the
name of
the accompanist is not recorded. The complete recording runs well over an hour
and is one of the best pieces of recorded Indian music. We are constrained to
present a
drastically edited version and pick up proceedings in the middle of the
alapana. Note GNB's experimentation with p
(about 2:30 into the
clip).
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/gnbmsgr.ram
Rasikas of a by-gone era are fond of describing GNB's closing movements of
an alapana as poopandal kattarathu (providing the finish touches to a
magnificent
pandal with a garland of flowers).
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/gnbr.ram
An excerpt from the tanam follows.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/gnbt.ram
The pallavi koniyada tarama nee mahima is set to Adi tala (tisra
nadai). Though set in tisra nadai, the syllables of the pallavi are structured
as 4+2+4 (before the
aruti) and 2+4 (after). This preponderance of chatusra (fours) in the tisra
(three) nadai creates a subtle tension. Murugabhoopati's accompaniment is
unobtrusive, yet
enriching.
http://www.sawf.org/audio/natakurinji/gnbp.ram
Acknowledgements:
The photographs in this feature appeared in various issues of the magazine,
Sruti. It is a pleasure to thank
Rajan P.
Parrikar, Jaya and S. Pasupathy, and Sumitra Ranganathan for several
discussions. We thank Rajan P. Parrikar, Jaya Pasupathy and Anita Thakur for
their assistance in
putting this feature together.
Authors' note: We receive several requests
for recordings but are unable to fulfill these. We request that readers not ask
us for copies
of recordings.
References
[1] S. R. Janakiraman, Raga Lakshanangal (Madras:
Sangeeta Vidwat Sabha, 1995).
[2] For a discussion of Harikambodi, see:
http://www.sawf.org/newedit/edit09032001/musicarts.asp#Gallery
[3]
http://raja1630.tripod.com/mktb/id1.html
See also:
http://www.sangeetham.com/papsMay15.htm,
and:
http://www.sangeetham.com/mkthyagaraja_bhagavatar.htm
[4] Subbarama Dikshitar, Sangita Sampradaya
Pradarsini (Madras: The Music Academy, 1977).
[5] A tribute to Papanasam Sivan can be found in:
http://www.sawf.org//newedit/edit10292001/musicarts1.asp.
It is interesting to note that the same theme, viz., dance, underpins
Sivan's kriti in Natakurinji, natana sabhapatiye arivan, uyar natana
kalaiyin perumai (lit. only the Lord of Dance realizes the greatness of
Dance).
[6] S. R. Janakiraman, Raga Lakshanangal.
[7] A profile of Higgins can be found in:
http://www.indiangyan.com/clinton/arts_festivals.htm
This also includes an account of an anecdote that has some traces of the
incident motivating the kriti in Nandan Caritam.
[8] For more on Bharati's musical interests, abilities
and activities, see Cheeni Vishwanathan, Bharatiyum sangeetamum (Madras:
Cheeni
Vishwanathan, 1999). A small incident illustrating Bharati's catholicism
and innovativeness in music is recounted in:
http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/5409/adapt.html
[9] http://www.sawf.org//newedit/edit08192002/musicarts1.asp
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