KOnerirAjapuram VaidhyanAtha Iyer- Article
mu...@cip.physik.uni-dortmund.de
KOnErirAjapuram Shri Vaidyanatha Iyer is said to be one of the best
Carnatic vocalists. While I have never heard him or his recordings (none
exist), I have heard several people of an older generation speak very
highly of his music. In particular, I have at one time or the other
heard about him from some of PApanAsam Sivan's senior disciples in the
context of Sivan's admiration for KOnErirAjapuram and the influence of
his music on Sivan's kritis such as KArthikeya, KunRam kudi koNda, DEvi
PAdam (all Todi), KathirkAma Kandan (KAmbodhi) etc. If I am not
mistaken, Shri RangarAmanuja Iyengar also talks highly of
KOnErirAjapuram in his "Musings of a musician". KOnerirAjapuram had
several disciples, prominent among whom was Sangitha KalAnidhi
MudikondAn VenkatarAma Iyer.
This summer, I came across an article written by MudikondAn Venkatarama
Iyer on KOnerirAjapuram. The original article appeared in the DeepavaLi
Malar of Ananda Vikatan (a Tamil weekly), 1953 and is in Tamil. A
condensed version is given below.
muthu
----------
KOnErirAjapuram VaidhyanAtha Iyer
--------------------------------
by Sangitha Kalanidhi MudikondAn Venkatarama Iyer, Ananda
Vikatan, Deepavali Malar 1953.
When one considers the fact that ThanjAvur district produced so many
distinguished Vaidhy's (a common abbreviation of VaidhyanAthan---m) such
as Chinna Vaidhy, Peria Vaidhy, Maha Vaidhy (the reason for these titles
can be found in an interesting article by U. VE. SAminatha Iyer, the
Tamil scholar---m), MAyUram Veenai Vaidhy, MAyUram Vikatam Vaidhy,
NemmEli Vaidhy BhAgavathar, SUlamangalam Vaidhy BhAgavathar, one wonders
if the name Vaidhy is intrinsically linked to music. All the Vaidhy's
mentioned above were great Vidwans and among these was my teacher
KOnerirAjapuram Shri VaidhyanAtha Iyer.
Childhood
---------
KOnerirajapuram VaidhyanAtha Iyer (who will, unless specified otherwise,
be referred to as KVI---m) was born in MaratthuRai, a small village
in ThanjavUr Dt near KuRRAlam. He was born on the 21st day of the Tamil
month MAsi in the year PramAthi (2.3.1880). His father NArayanaswami
Iyer was a small time farmer. Since KRI's mother passed away when he was
only 3, his maternal uncle and his grandmother took him away to
KOnerirAjapuram where they lived and he was brought up there. Right from
his childhood, KRI showed an inclination for music and he learnt music
first from the NAgaswara Vidwan Shri KuzhandaivEl Pillai in KOnerirAjapuram.
At that time, Shri Kuzhandaivel was also teaching his son Vaidhyalingam
(another Vaidhy!----m) and NallUr ViswanAtha Iyer. All three of them
became distinguished musicians of their times. It is said that he also
learnt occasionally from the famous Bharatha Vidwan PandanallUr Shri
MeenAkshisundaram Pillai.
Tutelage under MAnpooNdiya Pillai
---------------------------------
When KVI was 20, he went to KumbakONam to listen to the music of Saraba
Sastry and Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar who were scheduled to sing in a
wedding. Accompanying them on the Kanjira was the great Vidwan
PudukkOttai Shri MAnpooNdiya Pillai. MAnpooNdiya Pillai was well known
for his grasp of Laya and he was eager to impart the secrets of Laya
Vidya to a qualified vocalist. Therefore when he saw KVI, he asked him
if he (KVI) would come along with him at once. KVI who was overjoyed did
not even inform his relatives in KOnErirAjapuram and came away with
MAnpooNdiyA Pillai. KVI's father and grandmother (the uncle had passed
away by then) did not know what happened to him. After a few years, his
father came to know through a printed invitation that someone called
MaratthuRai Vaidhy was singing in a wedding in TirunelvEli. When he went
to TirunelvEli he found that it was indeed his son and asked him to come
back home with him. KVI refused as he was eager to stay on with
MAnpooNdiyA Pillai and continue his training. However, PudukkOttai Shri
DakshiNamurthi Pillai who was there at that time convinced KVI to return
home. From then, KVI started living permanently in KOnErirAjapuram.
Fame
----
During this time, Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar came to
KOnErirAjapuram to sing in a wedding. After his concert, the local
patrons decided to give KVI a chance to sing too and accordingly he sang
the next day. Srinivasa Iyengar who was also there appreciated his music
very much. After this, KVI became a regular fixture in weddings and other
concerts in and around ThanjAvur Dt.
Further refinement in his Music
------------------------------
In a concert in Madras at ThondaimaNdalam High School,
TirukkOdikkAval Shri Krishna Iyer was scheduled to accompany KVI on the
Violin. KVI wanted to demonstrate his Laya expertise to the former
and prove a point. The other accompaniments were PudukkOttai Shri
Dakshinamurthi Pillai (Mridangam), Pudukkottai Shri MAnpooNdia
Pillai (Kanjira) and Palani Shri Krishna Iyer (Ghatam). In this concert,
KVI sang an extremely complicated Pallavi in an Athi Sowka KAlam (very
slow paced). TirukkOdikkAval Krishna Iyer could not understand the
Pallavi at all and he said openly, "Vaidhy, as it is your Avartanams are
as long as a Furlong. Now it has become a Mile!". KVI sang the Pallavi
again but Krishna Iyer could not understand it still. Krishna Iyer got
angry and said, "What is the use of singing complicated Music at the
cost of aesthetics?". From that time onwards, KVI changed his style
accordingly and sang simple yet highly refined Music. However,
he could always assert his stature on the stage. Once a violinist who
thought he was a great artist sat on the stage with KVI facing the
audience. KVI did not say anything but started with "Nee VAdanEgAna.."
(Saranga) in Madhyama KAla, sang swaram and started singing twice the
speed also. The violinist could not cope with this and bowed his head in
shame.
Influence of Hindustani Music
-----------------------------
KVI was deeply influenced by Hindustani Music. His
favourite Hindustani Musicians were Hafiz Khan and Bakshi Khan and he used
to listen to them frequently. Once Ustad Rahmat Khan came to TiruvArur
to sing in a concert and KVI was to sing the next day. After listening to
Rahmat Khan, KVI was so inspired that he left for KOnerirAjapuram the
same night without singing the next day. When he was asked why, KVI said
"that (Rahmat Khan's music) is genuine music. What is the use of singing
without Sowkhyam in the voice?". This experience like the one
with TirukkOdikkAval Krishna Iyer left a lasting impression on KVI's
mind and he began practising accordingly.
Personal traits
---------------
KVI was a very unassuming person. He was liked by
all who came in contact with him and he was always respectful to others.
Sometimes he used to speak dialect-free and grammatically chaste Tamil.
He loved good food and never used to bother about his voice when it came to
eating. He liked to drink both hot and cold water, Buttermilk with Lime,
Rice Kanji etc and even used to start singing after drinking these.
Disciples
---------
He had several disciples some of whom were Coimbatore
Vishwanatha Iyer, BoothalUr Krishamurthy Iyer (Gottu VAdhyam), ThethiyUr
Krishnamurthy, Dharmapuri Duraiswamy and myself. He was a loving teacher
and encouraged his disciples a lot. His Music was difficult to imbibe
just through instruction and one had to listen to him a lot. Sometimes,
he used to sit outside his house on the "ThiNNai" and start teaching
around 11 p.m. and this would go on till 2 a.m. or 3 a.m. PApanAsam Shri
Sivan was a great Bhakta of KVI's music. One could see Sivan in almost
each and every concert of KVI's in Tamil Nadu.
Music
-----
KVI's style was unique. People say it was originated by
Coimbatore Raghava Iyer. His pitch was betwen F-sharp and G (4.5-5).
Even when he was not singing, he used to hum the MandarA Pa and his
AdhAra Sa as "HUmkAra". Sometimes he used to sing "HUmkAra" till MandarA
ma in concerts also. His voice had majesty, force, strength as well as
sweetness. Sometimes, he used to sing till TAra StAyi Dha or Ni. His
mastery over LayA needs no mention.
At times, his concerts lasted for about 5 hours. While
most artistes are masters of one or two of different aspects such as
Alapana, Kriti singing, Neraval, Swaram etc., KVI was equally adept at
all these. His Alapanas were always leisurely and elaborate. His
Madhyama KAla Neraval needs to be mentioned specifically. His Swara
singing was known for its structured development in terms of Raga SwarUpa. As
mentioned before, he was a Master of Pallavi singing. When he was young,
NAmakkAl Narasimha Iyengar, a Pallavi expert heard him and appreciated
his Pallavi very much.
Once in a concert in TaNNeerkkunnam in ThanjAvur Dt., he
was accompanied on the violin by the famous Vidwan Shri Govindaswamy
Pillai and on the Mridangam by ThanjAvur Shri Pakkiri. KVI sang the
Ritigowla Kriti "JananI NinnuvinA" and started doing Neraval, Swaram
using the phrase, "DhikkeverammA..". His exposition was so full of Raga
BhAva that Govindaswamy Pillai put his violin down and said, "Please
continue to sing. I just want to listen to you. "
KVI liked the music of Madurai Shri Pushpavanam Iyer a
lot and in fact sang himself at Pushpavanam Iyer's wedding. Once, KVI
sang in a wedding at Azhwar Thirunagari where the NAgaswaram Maestro
Mannargudi Shri Chinna Pakkiri was also present. During the concert, KVI
sang a very elaborate RTP in Shanmukhapriya. Chinna Pakkiri who was
moved by the music gave KVI a Golden snuff box of his as a mark of his
appreciation. Such was his Music that other Vidwans had the greatest
regard for it.
Demise
------
KVI fell ill in 1921 and was hospitalized in KumbakONam.
I went and saw him a few times there. On one of these occasions, he told
me, "All these days, I sang for my livelihood. Now if I live further, I
want to sing for myself." Unfortunately, that was not to be and he
passed away on the 23rd day of Panguni in the year Dhurmathi (5.4.1921)
at the age of 40.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Srini Pichumani
<mu...@cip.physik.uni-dortmund.de> wrote:
<excerpts from MudikondAn Venkatarama Iyer's article on
<KOnErirAjapuram Vaidyanatha Iyer (KVI)... deleted>
Thanks for posting that, Muthu... here are some more snippets
on KVI and connected personalities...
>If I am not mistaken, Shri RangarAmanuja Iyengar also talks
>highly of KOnErirAjapuram in his "Musings of a musician".
Yes, RRI talks very very highly of KVI in virtually everyone
of his books - Carnatic Music (1958), History of Carnatic Music
(72?), his autobiography Musings of a Musician (1977), and
in his Kritimanimalai volumes... of course Veena Dhanammal
was a Siddha VidyAdhari to him... another person he mentions
very highly in all his writings is Simizhi Sundaram Iyer -
MudikondAn V.I was his disciple too, as is mentioned in his
Sangeetha Kalanidhi citation (reprinted in a 1989 diary put
out by the Music Academy and The Hindu).
As regards KVI and his contemps, here are a few anecdotes...
---------------------------------------------
>Tutelage under MAnpooNdiyA Pillai
>
>When KVI was 20, he went to KumbakONam to listen to the music of Saraba
>Sastry and Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar who were scheduled to sing in a
>wedding. Accompanying them on the Kanjira was the great Vidwan
>PudukkOttai Shri MAnpooNdiyA Pillai. MAnpooNdiyA Pillai was well known
>for his grasp of Laya and he was eager to impart the secrets of Laya
>Vidya to a qualified vocalist.
Palani Subramania Pillai has very clearly outlined the
appearance and development of kanjirA as a percussion/
concert instrument in an article in the Music Academy
Journal (~ 1958) ... some prototype of such an instrument
may have existed earlier, but its modern form and existence
is entirely due to Pudukkottai MAnpooNDiyA Pillai.
Apparently, MAnpooNDiyA Pillai learnt tavil for a while
from MAriyappa tavilkArar (?) in PudukOTTai. Noticing his
laya vidvat, and the felicity of his strokes and the sollus
he could produce with just one hand, his guru encouraged him
to make a new instrument on which he could demonstrate his
laya vidvat with just one hand...
MAnpooNDiyA Pillai then took a cylindrical piece of wood,
and stretched uDumbuththOl (raccoon/opossum ? skin ) over
it, and put a kAsu (a single cymbal) in the wood, to make
the modern kanjirA... he quickly became an adept at it and
raised it to the status of an indispensable pakkavAdyam
or accompaniment...
--------------------------------------
>Once Ustad Rahmat Khan came to TiruvArur to sing in a concert
>and KVI was to sing the next day. After listening to Rahmat Khan,
>KVI was so inspired that he left for KOnerirAjapuram the
>same night without singing the next day. When he was asked why, KVI said
>"that (Rahmat Khan's music) is genuine music. What is the use of singing
>without Sowkhyam in the voice?".
I do not know if this was the occasion or not...but
KonerirAjapuram Vaidyanatha Iyer is supposed to have
remarked after listening to a Hindustani vocalist,
"avan tONDaila tamburAva kaTTiNDu vandirukkAn..."
i.e. his voice itself is as resonant and tuned as a
tamburA....T.K.Govinda Rao mentioned this in a lec-dem...
-----------------------------------------
>KVI fell ill in 1921 and was hospitalized in KumbakONam.
>I went and saw him a few times there. On one of these
>occasions, he told me, "All these days, I sang for my
>livelihood. Now if I live further, I want to sing for myself."
Another instance of his self-effacing attitude is told
as follows: when, at the height of KVI's popularity,
someone praised him as a great vidvAn and all that,
KVI remarked that he was a mere gAyakan or singer...
and that only Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar deserved such a
title...
-------------------------
TiruppAmburam Swaminatha Pillai (TSP), the great flutist,
guru of Prof.T.Viswanathan, mentions very touchingly in his
SangIta KalAnidhi address - once again from the Music Academy
Journal ~ 1954 - that it was due to the benevolence of KVI
and KaraikkuDi Subbarama Iyer, that he got off to a strong
start... apparently, KVI's accompanists, MalaikoTTAi
Govindaswami Pillai (violin) and Kumbakonam Azhaganambi Pillai
(mrdangam), who had also been scheduled to play for Swaminatha
Pillai at a wedding in Chettinad, refused to play for him since
he was very junior to them... PudukOTTai Dakshinamurti Pillai
however gladly agreed to provide kanjirA accompaniment... no
amount of pleading by either the hosts or TSP himself would
change the formers' decision ... KVI intervened at that point
and told them forcefully that it was their bounden duty to
bring up the young artiste musically by playing for him...
and then they relented...
----------------
-Srini.