N(e/i)raval etc...
an7...@anon.penet.fi
>From: pj...@cs.cmu.edu (P J Narayanan)
>Subject:N(e/i)raval etc...
>Date: 21 Jun 1994 17:43:29 GMT
>Message-ID:<2u78s1$9...@casaba.srv.cs.cmu.edu>
>Good to see a discussion on neravals. By the way, can someone enlighten
>me on the etymology of the word niraval/neraval?
>
>IMHO, niraval is the best part of Carnatic music, where rAgam, tALam,
>sAhityam and bhAvam come together. It is an attempt by the performer
>to understand and express (and expand, if appropriate/capable) the
>composer's motive, philosophical or otherwise, behind the krti.
>I may be opening a whole can of worms, as the above can get VERY
>personal.
>
>In any case, as has been pointed out already, the selection of the
>place in the krti to do niraval is very important. The line selected
>should, IMHO:
>
> 1. Be complete in meaning. (No half words and stuff)
>
> 2. Mean something noble/nice.
>
> 3. Preferrably, express the "central mood" of the composition.
> (At least make an attempt at it!)
Pls don't interpret this as some kind of flaming. But
I really fail to see what you mean by central mood. Most of Dikshitar's
krithis which are nAmAvalis or the "Mam Pahi" type krithis really
donot have any "central mood" or a single idea.
>
> 4. Be placed, musically, at a vantage point to explore the rAgam.
>
> 5. Be at an appropriate (slow enough?) speed to do niraval in different
> apparent speeds.
>
>Unfortunately, niravals are not getting as much attention as they should
>in kacheris today, IMHO. This is a sad trend indeed. To make matters worse,
>many performers do not pay attention to the points above and do "funny" or
>"inappropriate" niravals, considering it merely as a textual point to
>demonstrate their wizardry.
>
>The niraval-point is chosen (thankfully?) more due to history of singing
>the krti than a conscious consideration. Some of my favourite niravals are:
>
> 1. KVN at "vAsavAdi sakaladEva vanditAya, varENyAya" in Dikshitar's
> shrI subrahmaNyAya. (Interestingly, GNB and some of his disciples
> do nirval at "tApatraya hara..." of the charaNam in this krti).
>
> 2. KVN at "nIlanIrada sharIrA, dhIra tara" in Dikshitar's bAlagOpAla.
> (MDR used to sing niraval at the madhyamakala sAhityam "drONa karNa
> duryOdhanAdihara, draupadI mAna samrakShaNakara" for the same, and
> very well!)
>
> 3. Semmangudi at "shyAma krShnuni sOdari..." in Shyama Sastry's kAmAkshi
> swarajati.
>
> 4. KVN at "anupamita kamalAvAsE, dEvI" in Swati Tirunal's Bhairavi
> navaratri krti "janani mAmavAmEye".
>
> 5. DKJ at "sangItavAdya vinOdinIm, girijAptAm indirAm" in Dikshitar's
> Lalita krti "hiraNmayIm lakShmIm".
>
> 6. Most people singing niraval at "mamatA bandhanayuta narastuti sukhamA"
> and at "kaNTiki sundarataramagu rUpamE" in Kalyani and Kharaharapriya
> respectively.
>
> 7. I remember TRS singing a niraval in Tyagaraja's Todi krti, "veTalanu"
> by combining the last phrase of the charanam and the first phrase of
> the pallavi: "vasudhabhAramella dIrppa, veTalanu kOdanTapANI",
> ingeniously meeting all the criteria above.
I would add to these:
1. M.S.Subbalakshmi's "kOri Vacchina vArikellanu kOrkelosakE birudukatha"
in "sAroja daLa nEtri"(sankarabharanam)
2. Radha Jayalaksmi's "rAjita maNi gaNa bhUshani....." in dArinI telusuko
nti(Suddha Saveri).
3. Ariyakudi's "Santamagu brochitivi kArunya MUrti" in Palinchu Kamakshi
PAvani.(Madhyamavati).
>
>Of course, I can go on and on. K. V. "niraval" Narayanaswamy takes the
>cake among contemporary musicians in this department. Then again, I may
>be biased in his favour.... Thinking about his niraval at "manasuna
>dalachi maimarachiyunnAnurA" in Kharaharapriya -- during which he
>quite appropriately seems oblivious of his own body -- gives me goose
>bumps....
>
>Some of the not-so-great niravals (from the point of view of selection,
>and not music) that I can recollect now include:
>
> * "sumati tyAgarAjanutuni kIrttana sukhama" for "nidhichAla" by OST.
> It seems more natural to answer this question in the negative, phrased
> this way.
>
> * "swararAga laya sudhArasamandu" for "intasowkhya" in kApi by (yes!) KVN.
> Not really very bad, but I have too high standards for KVN.
>
> * "jAtarUpa nibhachEla, janmArjita mamAkhila" in "dEva dEva" by Semmangudi.
> The second phrase is cut off. It is "mamAkhila pAtakasanchayamiha vAraya
> karuNayA"!
>
>etc.
>
>PJN
>
>--
>---
>Robotics Institute, CMU p...@cs.cmu.edu
>Pittsburgh, PA 15213
>---
Sudha Vyomanatha
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Thyagarajan Mohan
>
> I would add to these:
>1. M.S.Subbalakshmi's "kOri Vacchina vArikellanu kOrkelosakE birudukatha"
> in "sAroja daLa nEtri"(sankarabharanam)
She perfoms niraval at `sAma gAna vinOdini.'
>2. Radha Jayalaksmi's "rAjita maNi gaNa bhUshani....." in dArinI telusuko
>nti(Suddha Saveri).
This is called Sangati and not niraval.There are differences
between these two.
Among the Musician's of today,MSS excels all in this tradition of
niraval .How can her niraval at `candra bimpamukha mlarAlE ennai..'
(in yArO ivar yArO enna pErO..'in bhairavi))or `kumbha sambhava lOpAmudrArcita
tOShiNi..'(in kShIra sAgara shayana vaKshasthala nivAsini..in mAyA mALava
gAuLa) be forgotten?Ofcourse,she might have got polished by Semmangudi.
The credit for the sangatis is taken solely by BNB school,mainly by
GNB,MLV and Radha Jayalakshmi because of their excellent voice culture.
>
> Pls don't interpret this as some kind of flaming. But
>I really fail to see what you mean by central mood. Most of Dikshitar's
>krithis which are nAmAvalis or the "Mam Pahi" type krithis really
>donot have any "central mood" or a single idea.
You are not the first person.Even learned scholars tend to criticize
the krtis of dIkShitar as `mAmpAhi' type.SRJ state this clearly.The
compositions of St.tyAagarAja provides enormous scope for improvisation.But
the rAga bhAvam of dIkShitar excels anybody else.He analyses all the aspects
of a rAga in the same song.Performng a niraval in his songs are not at all
necessary.Many a times,it will be a redundancy.The songs of both of these
great composers are beautiful in their own way.Trying to compare and criticize
is no better than exposing one's own ignorance.
>
>Sudha Vyomanatha
ps: In my personal opinion,however,we have been overselling the compostions
of St.tyAgarAja at cost of many richer traditions.It is time for us to
change this bad attitude.
--
Thyagarajan Mohan
tmo...@iastate.edu