Rajamarga

As artists and creators our own work is built on those who came before, be they composers, teachers and other performers. Indian classical music has thrived throughout history with the support of royal patrons. What is less well known is several of these patrons were themselves composers of repute.

Rajamarga explores the rare kritis of extraordinary royal composers from different eras in South India. It’s not just their imaginative abilities that stand out, but also the compositional talent of these selected Maharajas—Swathi Tirunal, Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar, Kumara Ettendra, Shahaji 1, and Kulasekhara Alvar—who have enriched the Carnatic genre in unparalleled ways. Each dimension of their musical knowledge contributes to its vast repertoire.

Rajamarga centers masterpieces from these five royal vaggeyakaras to showcase the distinct features they brought to Carnatic music.

Read India Art Review's take on the show here.