And another legend passes on. It is utterly impossible to capture in words what Lalgudi G. Jayaraman meant to music, and how much of a personal loss his passing is to us.
His music was beyond the swaras and structure. It was pure divine. Any raagam he played transcended the usual music experience…
What Happens Every Time You Turn the Light Off at the Bottom of the Stairs
The Boogeyman would make a great training coach.
Unfortunately Placed Taillights on Grandma Advertisement
3-D advertising is the way of the future!
Here’s a Stretch You Can Do if You’ve Been on the Computer Too Long
What? No I’m just having a LOT of trouble stretching my neck
When one breezes through the innumerable channels on television today, we invariably stop at one and a sense of immense loss and sadness befalls. Cartoon Network is now alien to us, who watched it come what may, for at least seven to eight years!
For us, cartoons were not just a…
There’s no happier sight than a smiling baby
Many a time, you get hooked on to a specific raaga. It might last for days, weeks or months. Kannada gowla is one such raaga which has been haunting me for years. There is something special about this raaga which brings about a feeling of sheer elation, every single time I listen to it.
I will try to give a brief introduction of the raaga here. Not too technical but just enough to get a clear picture of the structure. It’s a Janya raaga in the 22nd Kharaharapriya and the Aaraohanam-Avaraohanam go like this:
S R2 G2 M1 P N2 S
S N2 D2 P M1 G2 S
For some reason, I believe the beauty of this raaga lies in the “PNS” and “MGS” transition. Even though many other raagas may have the same swara-sancharam they don’t produce the same effect.
Being a huge fan, my pick for the best rendition of this raaga is by master of mandolin with magical fingers, U Srinivas. Here is a link to U Srinivas’ rendition of St Tyagaraja’s Kannada gowla kruthi “Orajupu chuchedi nyaayama”. This is the kruthi that got me hooked onto this majestic raaga.
Another soulful composition of St Tyagaraja in this raaga is “Sogasu juda tarama”. You can listen and download it here. Would you believe me if I said U Srinivas played this during his late teens along with Vid A Kanyakumari and Vid Palghat Raghu?
It would be unfair if I don’t link this mellifluous rendition of Madhurai Mani Iyer when I talk about Kannada gowla. Here it is.
That’s all for now. I shall be back with a new post when another raaga haunts me.
PS: The last two links are obtained from Sribkain’s music archives with much grattitude.
Bane
Charlie Mitchell
Anamorphic Helvetica, 2009
