Tag: raaga
Moods & Melodies – Calming Yourself With Carnatic Music
Today was the first time I did a musical presentation on Zoom to a wonderful group of music lovers in Florida and beyond. Moods & Melodies: Calming Yourself with Carnatic Music was an online presentation where the audience went through a variety of moods with songs from across India (classical and more) and understand how melodies indeed can shape our moods, even in these trying … Continue reading Moods & Melodies – Calming Yourself With Carnatic Music
Pantuvarali – Raga Ruminations
Pantuvarali is a very popular raga in Carnatic music. This raga is also known as Kamavardhini and Kashi Ramakriya in the Dikshithar school. Tyagaraja has composed many songs in this raga. Some of my favourites are Siva Siva Ena Radha, Aparama Bhakthi, Ninne Nera and Shambho Mahadeva. Muthuswamy Dikshithar’s Ramanathan Bhajeham is a slow-paced song while Bhadrachala Ramdas’s Enna Ganu Rama Bhajana is an eternal favourite with listeners. Here is … Continue reading Pantuvarali – Raga Ruminations
#8 – Raga Kalyani – Podcast
The Raga Kalyani podcast features musical snippets of L.Subramaniam rendering raga alapana, Ustad Vilayat Khan on the sitar playing raag Yaman, Mohammad Rafi singing Abhi Na Jao Chodkar for the Hindi movie Hum Dono and Ustad Rashid Khan singing a tarana. You can read my earlier blog post on raga Kalyani here. Continue reading #8 – Raga Kalyani – Podcast
#7 – Raga Begada – Podcast
The Raga Begada podcast features musical snippets of Voleti Venkateshwarulu rendering raga alapana, KVN singing Kadaikkan Vaithannai, Sanjay Subrahmanyam’s rendition of Nadhopasana, Ustad Amir Khan singing raag Hem Kalyan and a Malayalam movie song by Jesudas. You can read my earlier blog post on raga Begada here. Continue reading #7 – Raga Begada – Podcast
Varali – Raga Ruminations
Varali – a melody that reminds one of ‘a bee humming’. It was referred to as Varati in old musical texts such as Sharangdev’s Sangeetha Ratnakara. A widely held belief was that teaching Varali would give rise to discord between a teacher and their student. Hence, in the past, it was rarely taught and students had to learn by just listening to their teacher and … Continue reading Varali – Raga Ruminations
Bowli – Raga Ruminations
When I hear M.S. Subbalakshmi singing the song, Shriman Narayana in the wee hours of the morning, the day starts on a bright note. It could be a combination of the singer’s voice, the melody and the lyrics but the effect is always the same. The song is a benediction to Lord Venkateshwara and the melody has a meditative nature. Raga Bowli is a morning raga where the notes are sung … Continue reading Bowli – Raga Ruminations
Harikambodhi – Raga Ruminations
Harikambodhi is a melody that occupies prime real estate in the pantheon of Carnatic ragas. For some reason, it is often overlooked as the centrepiece in a concert in favour of a similar-sounding raga. Given the popularity of raga Shankarabharanam or raga Karaharapriya, carnatic music lovers couldn’t be faulted for thinking that Harikambhodhi (which is only a note different than the former) would share the … Continue reading Harikambodhi – Raga Ruminations
Pushpalatika – Raga Ruminations
Can a song, one by an obscure composer become popular solely based on a singer’s rendition? There are a surprising number of such songs that have shot to prominence. Here is one such story which became well known after M.S.Subbalakshmi’s concert. The song Ikainaina, the composer, Tirupati Narayanaswamy and the raga Pushpalatika were not well-known in the concert circuit. It went down in the annals of Carnatic … Continue reading Pushpalatika – Raga Ruminations
Shubhapantuvarali – Raga Ruminations
Pathos. This is the word that comes to my mind when I hear the strains of raga Shubhapantuvarali. Whether it’s Tyagaraja’s “Ennaloorage” or Dikshithar’s “Shri Satyanarayanam” the mood is melancholic and the lyrics are deeply moving. While Tyagaraja in his song taunts Lord Rama for thinking that no one would question the Lord for not caring enough, Dikshithar extolls the greatness of Lord Narayana. Both … Continue reading Shubhapantuvarali – Raga Ruminations
Chitra Srikrishna 