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There is no dispute anywhere about the fact that Indian music

is the most ancient among all the systems of the world known to

man kind. The vedas are acknowledged as the most ancient

manifestation of the literature. A section of vedas called sama veda

was recited in a particular music that caught the imaginations of

Indians of the vedic age. In that period of primordial stage the

evolution of music and singing were not much different from prose

and speech. The vedas are said to have been recited with just three

notes – ‘Udhata’, ‘Anudhata’ and ‘Swarita’ with which a sort of

primitiveness can be said to have strived to evolve with the

inevitable growth of civilization. Three notes of music gave way to

seven notes. The mysterious evoulution of seven notes has been a

Universal phenomenon and as it by a divine coordination. Western

music too was built up on a scale of seven notes (do re mi fa so la

si). The seven notes called saptaswaras continues to be the basis

for oceanic articulations for various millennia so far. A human being

of the 21st century is used to such a huge sophistication that he will

find the vedic music of three notes, too primitive and unartistic. Not

much is known about chronological progress of music century after

century. But the growth of the art in the comparatively recent

centuries since 12th is many hundreds times more than what had

developed in the earlier millennia.

The composers of eminence like Jayadeva of 12th

century,whose immortal compositions with the structure pallavi,

and multiple charanas (which were usually eight) known as

‘Ashtapadi’, having common music, i.e, the dhatu portion was

same. And after every charana, pallavi was the repeating section.

Also the sequential meaning was related to pallavi.

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Example :

Anila tarala.

Ragam : Punnagavarali Talam : Adi.

Pallavi

Anila tarala kuvalaya nayanena tapati na saa kisalaya

shayanena

Charanam

yaa ramitaa vanamaalinaa sakhi

1. Vikasita sarasija lalita mukhena sphutati na saa

manasija vishikhena

2. Amruta madhura mridutara vachanena jvalati na saa

malayaja pavanena

3. Sthala jalaruha ruchikara charanena luthati na saa

hima kiranikavalena

4. Sajala jalada samudaya ruchirena dalati na saa hrudi

viraha bharena

5. Kanaka nikasa ruchi shuchi vasanena shvasiti na saa

parijana hasanena

6. Sakala bhuvana jana vara tarunena vahati na saa

rujamati karunena

7. Shri jayadeva bhanita vachannna pravishatu harirapi

Hrudayamanena

That was the first ever musical composition in which some

grammar was identifiable. Ashtapadi continues to enjoy a pride

place in our repertoire even today.

During the period from 1424 - 1503, the ancient shrine of

Venkateshwara, the Lord of seven hills became the focal point of

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devotion and fervour among hindus all over the country.

Annamacharya, a native of Talapakkam, a village in Andhra

Pradesh has composed more than 30,000 songs, most of which

were engraved on copper plates and are still preserved and 14,000

of them have been traced and many printed. His outstanding

pioneer contribution to the Karnatic music is the modern kriti.

Annamacharya first introduced the pattern of songs with a Pallavi,

Anupallavi and a Charana. The ‘Udgraha’, ‘Melapaka’, ‘Dhruva’

and ‘Abhoga’ have been transmuted into ‘Pallavi’, ‘Anupallavi’

and ‘Charana’ of a modern kriti. The parts of prabandha assigned

to different rhythmic measures provided the basis for the suladi

compositions of the 16th century. Repetition specified for certain

parts of the prabandha are similar to the anupallavi and charana of

a kriti going back to the pallavi.

Material for the research of ancient millenia is not available

and Bharatha’s Natya Shastra and Silapadikaram in Tamil, both of

them attributed to the period just before the advent of the 2nd

century A.D seem to have been earliest attempts by human beings

to record that particular state of development of the great art of

music. Music has been made familiar to the common man from the

days of Sri Purandara dasa and his premissors. Purandara dasa is

celebrated as the “Pitamaha” (grand sire) of Karnatic music

because he was responsible in making Karnatic music intelligible to

the common man. He is further said to have evolved the

methodology for initiating children into music.

Studies from the view point of development of music since

vedic period, Purandara dasa can be said to belong to the recent

past. He lived in 15th and 16th century A.D. The kirtana gained the

popularity through the labour of the veteran Purandara dasa (1484

– 1564). He was the greatest figure in the momentuous interlude.

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Purandara dasa was the first composer to introduce the

‘Swaravali’, ‘Alankaram’, ‘Geetham’, ‘Suladi’ and other steps

that have formed the bed rock of all musical learning in the whole of

South India for four centuries now. Thus, was born the marvelous

system of “Karnataka Sangita Parampara” and he came to be

known as “Karnataka Sangita Pitamaha”.

The growth of Karnatic music to today’s height of

sophistication is again many hundreds of times more than what

happened to music in all the earlier centuries. Purandara dasa did

the magic of capturing and enshrining musical sounds into his

compositions, which were outpourings of his bhakti to the Lord.

Because of his God given gift of music, the outpouring of his bhakti

flowed out in the form of organized sounds of music, which came to

be called songs and compositions later. He must have had first hand

experience of the bliss of music and he must have helped their need

of making the nectar available to more and more fellow human

beings. This urge should have prompted him to create a

methodology for fundamental lessons in music. If Karnatic music is

a subject studied and enjoyed by the trillions of human beings it is

because of the seed sown by visionary decisively celebrated as

“Sangitha Pitamaha”.

We are now 500 years apart from Purandara dasa, and

human civilization has undergone revolutionary changes in this span

of 5 centuries. There have been growth and deterioration in the

various walks of life. But music has luckily been one subject that

has only progressed and more human beings are aware of the

divinity of our music. About the growth of music in these 500 years,

we are able to speak with confidence because of the wealth of the

research material available. Man has since learnt the necessity for

documentation of the happenings not only for his times but the

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previous and later times too. It is because of such a human urge

that we have today amongst us the outpourings of Purandara dasa

and other minstrel. Without much of the modern sophistication

these compositions do have their magically musical effect upon us

and these compositions have served another great purpose of

inspiring more composers to come out with compositions of

contemporary grandeur. The great hallmark in this the growth of

Karnatic music has been Tyagaraja’s whose lifestyle has been very

much like that of Purandara Dasa.

The later part of the 18th century has been considered as the

most important period in the history of Indian music. The period

was the golden period for Karnatic music. It was during this period

that the three great composers “Musical Trinity” – Shyama

Shastri (1762-1827), Tyagaraja (1767-1847) and Muthuswamy

Dikshitar (1776-1835) illuminated the musical horizon by their

Kritis. South India witnesses a wealth of musical genius at that

time. Every branch of musical repertoire got enriched. Beautiful

compositions belonging to the sphere of art music, sacred music

and dance music were composed. Musical compositon with greater

weightage on the dhatu came to be composed in profusion.

It was during this period that the compositional form called

kriti got consolidated. Kriti has many advantages over the other

types of compositions. It is one composition in which the proportion

between the sangita and sahithya is balanced. The Kriti started

occupying the central place in a music concert. The history of

musicconcerts can also be said to have originated at this time.

Tyagaraja’s Rama bhakti found an outlet in music. His inspired

outpourings began to flow unbidden, emerging as full bloom,

perfectly structured compositions in the classical idiom. He chose

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his mother tongue Telugu as his medium, though there are few

songs in Sanskrit as well. Tyagaraja used moreover, the colloquial

Telugu, which everyone could follow, just as the bhakti saints had

used the spoken Tamil to reach out to the people; and through this

deceptively simple language he managed to articulate many an

abstract philosophical thoughts.

In the music of Tyagaraja, tradition and invention found a

unique balance. He studied with loving reverence, the work of the

great masters – composers who had laid the foundations of Karnatic

music like Purandara Dasa, Kshetragna, Margadarsi Sesha Iyengar

and Narayana Thirtha. The three part kriti, which had appeared in a

rudimentary form in the works of Annamacharya and Bhadrachala

Ramadass, at the hands of Tyagaraja it got crystallized into a well

knit highly, sophisticated melodic structure.

Tyagaraja did not compose any Varnams, Swarajathis, Javalis,

Ragamalikas and the like, but made the Kriti the sole vehicle for all

other forms in his time. He was the first composer in Karnatic music

to have employed a set of ‘sangatis’ or ‘variations’ in each kriti to

unfold, in their logical sequence, the possibilities of the raga

employed. He would take up old melodies, including folk tunes, and

turn them into modes of classical purity. To those of Tyagaraja’s

contemporaries who might have regarded his talent as mainly lyrical

and devotional, the majestic sweep of the epic style displayed in the

“Pancharatna kirtanas” must have come as blinding revelation.

Tyagaraja is stated to have composed thousands of kritis and

three music plays (operas) but only about seven hundred kritis and

two plays are available now. These may be broadly classified under

the following heads :

1. Kritis in praise of Narasimha, Rama, Lakshmana, Sita,

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2. Hanuman, Siva, Devi, Ganapathy, Subrahmanya, Tulasi etc.

3. The Pancharathna group in five Ghana ragas – Naata, Gaula,

Arabhi, Varali and Sriragam.

4. Divyanama kirtanas.

5. Utsava Sampradaya kirtanas.

6. Prahalada Bhakti Vijayam in five acts with 45 kritis set in 28

ragas and 132 verses in Telugu.

7. Nauka charithram in one act with 21 kritis set in 13 ragas and

45 verses in Telugu.

He has employed over two hundred ragas in all and of these,

more than hundred seem to be his own creations. He appears to

have adopted the raga nomenclature found in “Sangraha

Choodamani” of Govinda Dikshitar. For many of the ragas we have

only the kritis of Tyagaraja as “lakshyas” as no composer before or

after his name has attemped songs in them. Even in ragas like

Saveri, Sourashtram and Kalyani there are twenty songs and in

Bhairavi and Madhyamavathi upto fifteen songs he has composed.

This shows the ragas that were popular in his time. He has

exhausted the possibilities of ragas like ‘Narayani’ and

‘Gaulipanthu’ in a few kritis leaving hardly anything for his

successors to innovate.

Another noteworthy feature about the music of Tyagaraja is

that it is full of bhava. The raga chosen for the song aptly conveys

the emotion expressed by the sahityam. Moreover his words are

simple, many a time casual but appealing and full of emotion. It can

be seen that the great saint has handled a vast variety of rasas.

There is ‘Veera rasa’ in “Jagadanandakaaraka” (Nattai), ‘Joy’ in

“Kanukontini” (Bilahari), ‘Anger’ in “Chalakalla” (Arabhi) and

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‘Despair’ as in “Eti janmamu” (Varali). Tyagaraja’s awareness of

the navarasas is seen in the phrase “Navarasa yuta kritiche” in

the kriti “Sogasuga mrindanga talamu” in Sriranjani raga.

Apart from bhava, Tyagaraja was a great master in

portraying ragas. He worshipped swaras as things of beauty in

‘Sobillu Saptaswara’ in the raga Jaganmohini. He has handled

several ragas for which we have no lakshanas in the science of

Karnatic music. The raga bhava was much emphasized by him in his

compositions. Many unfamiliar ragas came to light through his

kirtanas.

Although a deep Rama bhakta, Tyagaraja has sung on several

deities with equal devotion and fervor. But his songs addressed to

Rama, however stand in a class of their own. A musical rapture

appears to seize him at the very thought of Rama and we find him

with his Ishta devata on an equal plane, not pleading him as a

devotee, reproaching him for his slighting him and now assuming

the role of nayaki and communicating his love for Him. As poet

Subrahmanya Bharathi says : “Tyagayyar was blessed by God.

He is an ocean of rasas (sentiments). He is the soul for

Karnatic music which is alive today”. Tyagaraja has fully

implimented the grammar spelt out by himself for a kriti that it

should contain all the nine rasas.

Behind this magnificient achievement in the field of music,

wasTyagaraja, the ‘Nadopasaka’, who did not consider music as a

fineart but as the easiest path to salvation. Infact he is the only

composer in Karnatic music, who has written more than fifteen

kritis on the origin of Nāda, the birth of seven notes, the nature of

ragas and how only a combination of music and bhakti can lead to

moksha. To him music was ‘Nadopasana’ or ‘Sangithopasana’

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and singing bhajana.

Karnatic music has grown three centuries riper between the

days of Purandara Dasa and Tyagaraja and the later can be said to

have flourished in more congenial and musical circumstances. The

result is that Tyagaraja was able to compose songs in a fashion

much more sophisticated than the songs of Purandara Dasa. And

Tyagaraja infact consolidated a song of classical music of a

classicism not known in earlier centuries and of a sophistication that

will last many further centuries. This leads us to the topic of this

chapter about which musicologists are never tired of repeatedly

read and write. Time measures human being as a period before

Christ and after Christ (BC & AD) because Jesus Christ was such a

beacon light to humanity. In the history of music, musicologists

freely refer to Pre - Tyagaraja and Post – Tyagaraja periods,

because Tyagaraja was such an undisputed patriarch among

luminaries. Composers too are studied under the heads Post –

Tyagaraja and Pre – Tyagaraja.

Prominent composers of the Post Trinity period

The kriti which attained the perfection at the hands of the

musical Trinity, attracted the attention of many composers of the

post Tyagaraja period. Kriti became to be composed in profusion.

Kritis with brilliant Chittaswara, Swara Sahithya, Sollukattu Swaras

and Madhyamakala Sahityas have been composed. Subbaraya

Sastry and Mysore Sadasiva Rao have to their credit brilliant

examples of swara sahityas in their kritis. The swarakshara beauty

continued to exercise the intelligent attention of many composers.

Of the new ragas in which kritis came to be composed in the post-

Tyagaraja period, mention may be made of ‘Kuthoohalam’,

‘Kadanakutoohalam’, ‘Panchamam’, ‘Mallika Vasantham’,

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‘Vijayanagari’, ‘Hamsagiri’, ‘Seshananda’, ‘Lokaranjani’ and

‘Hamsanarayani’. In the first four ragas we have kritis composed

by Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbaiah, Patnam Subramaniya Iyer,

Tachchur Singaracharyulu and Pallavi Seshayyar. In the remaining

five ragas Tiruvottiyur Tyagayyar has composed kritis.

Many Tana varnams, Pada varnams, Ragamalika varnam

(Nava Ragamalika, Dina Ragamalika, Ghana Ragamalika),

Ragamalikas and Tillanas were composed during the Post Tyagaraja

period. The monumental composition 72 Melaragamalika of Maha

Vaidhyanatha Iyer was composed in the year 1883. This

composition stands as one of the world’s longest musical

composition. The musical form Javali also had its birth during this

period. Dharmapuri Subbarayar, Pattabhiramayya, Patnam

Subramanya Iyer, Tachchur Singaracharyulu, Ramanathapuram

Srinivasa Iyengar and Tirupathi Narayanaswamy have left behind

them beautiful Javalis in Telugu.

The Post -Tyagaraja period also witnessed a number of Tamil

composers. Gopalakrishna Bharathi (Junior contemporary of

Tyagaraja), Koteeswara Iyer, Kavi Kunjara Bharathi, Anantha

Bharathi, Ramaswami Sivan, Nilakanta Sivan, Mazhavai Chidambara

Bharathi, Vaideeswaran Koil Subbarama Iyer, Achuta Dasar,

Vedanayakam Pillai and Ramalinga Swamy, Papanasam Sivan are

some of the prominent Tamil composers.

The Sishyas and Prasishyas of Saint Tyagaraja not only carried

on the tradition of high standards of musicianship, but also as

excellent composers. Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbaiar,

Walajapet Venkataramana Bhagavatar was composers of great

merit. In turn their disciples like Maha Vaidhyanatha Iyer, Anai-

Ayya, Patnam Subrahmaniya Iyer, Mysore Sadasiva Rao and

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others produced some marvellous compositions. Each of them, to

some extent, tried to enhance the musical value by their

compositions. This they achieved either by creating new ragas or by

dwelling deep into the existing ragas with new insights. Patnam

Subrahmanya Iyer’s ‘Kadanakutoohalam’, Poochi Srinivasa

Iyengar’s ‘Swararanjani’ and Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbaier’s

kriti in ‘Kutoohalam’ and ‘Pravala Jyothi’ ragas are examples of

creativity of the later composers in composing in new ragas.

Among the musicians who occupied an honoured place in the

later part of the 19th century, ‘Maha Vaidhyanatha Iyer’ and

‘Patnam Subramanya Iyer’, ‘Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar’,

‘Koteeswara Iyer’, ‘Harikesanallur Muthaiah Bhagavatar’ and

‘Papanasam Sivan’ are noteworthy.

Maha Vaidhyanatha Iyer

Maha Vaidhyanatha Iyer was born in 1844 in the village

Vaiyacheri near Tanjore. He had his early training in music under

Anayya, a composer of kriti in Telugu and Tamil and later under

Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbaiar, a direct disciple of Tyagaraja.

Even as a boy of ten, Vaidhyanatha Iyer could sing in all the

three sthayi-s (octaves) with remarkable skill and accuracy. He

used to sing in the Gandhara sruti (third kattai of the Harmonium),

and move between six kala-s (tempos) with great speed. At the age

of 12, he gave his first public performance in Kallidaikurichi, in the

distinguished presence of Subramanya Desikar and Ambalavana

Desikar, the two chiefs (adhipati-s) of Tiruvaduturai Mutt. Among

the audience were two reputed musicians of that time, Periya

Vaidhyanatha Iyer and Chinna Vaidhyanatha Iyer. Impressed with

his performance and the depth of his musical knowledge,

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Subramanya Desikar as well as the sadas (assembly of men),

conferred upon him the title 'Maha'.

Maha Vaidhyanatha Iyer was one of those stalwarts who

popularised the compositions of the Trinity by his polished and

classical renderings. He was a versatile genius, a composer and a

Harikatha performer, and more than all, an inspiring singer with an

impressive voice.

He was especially proficient in singing rare ragas like

‘Kanakangi’, ‘Narayana gaula’ in extense. He expounded on one

occasion a Pallavi in ‘Simhanandana tala’, which is the longest of

the 108 tala. This is the only Tillana in this tala. The entire

composition consists of only two Avartanas. He composed the 108

Ragamalika in seven days, an achievement without parallel in the

sphere of musical composition.

Maha Vaidhyanatha Iyer was a great exponent of

manodharma, or extemporaneous singing. He also composed the

famous 72-melakartha ragamalika (Pranataarthihara) and a Tillana

with the pallavi beginning ‘Gowri naayaka

kanakasabhaanaayaka’. He used the Mudra ‘Guhadaasa’ for his

compositions.

Patnam Subramanya Iyer

A contemporary of Maha Vaidhyanatha Iyer and a resident of

Thiruvaiyaru, Patnam Subramanya Iyer was one of the top-

ranking performer in the post Trinity period. He was both an

eminent composer and an excellent performer.

Patnam Subramanya Iyer initially learnt music from his uncle

Melattur Ganapathy Sastrigal and later came under the tutelage of

19

Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbaiar, a relative and a disciple of

Tyagaraja, from whom he learnt number of Tyagaraja’s

compositions.

One of the finest exponents of Madhyamakala, Patnam

Subramanya Iyer was noted for his chaste rendering of the kritis of

Tyagaraja. He excelled in rendering apurva ragas like ‘Narayani’,

‘Simhavahini’, ‘Kannada’ and ‘Mandari’ in which he has

composed kritis.

Patnam Subramanya Iyer had remarkably original way of

handling ragas. His rendering of ‘Begada’ was unique, which earnt

for him the title “Begada Subramanya Iyer”. His renderings of

Tyagaraja’s composition were true to the original versions.

In the tradition of Tyagaraja, Patnam Subramanya Iyer has

composed many kritis. They are in Telugu and Sanskrit. As a

composer, Patnam Subramanya Iyer has enriched the Karnatic

music repertoire to a considerable extent. It is believed that he has

composed about hundreds of pieces including Kritis, Tana Varnams,

Pada Varnams, Tillana and Javalis etc., and they are in ‘Adi’,

‘Rupakam’, ‘Chapu’ and ‘Jhampa’ talas. Besides compositions in

familiar ragas, he has kritis in ‘Sindumandari’, ‘Chakravakkam’,

‘Phalamanjari’ ‘Purnachandrika’, ‘Bhairavam’, ‘Kannada’ and

‘Udayaravichandrika’. Patnam Subramanya Iyer invented a new

Vakra raga ‘Kadanakutoohalam’ and composed a song

‘Raghuvamsasudha’ in this raga with captivating Chittaswara. On

account of solid musical mould of his kritis with fine sangatis, he

earned the name ‘Chinna (Small) Tyagaraja’. His famous piece in

Kannada ‘Inthakante’ was composed as a prayer to Lord Rama, to

free him from debts he had contracted and to his immense

satisfaction it was answered. He composed mainly in Telugu and

20

few songs in Sanskrit with the mudra ‘Venkatesa’ and also

‘Varada Venkatesa’.

Subramanya Iyer spent a long time in Chennapatnam

(Chennai). This gave Subrahmaniya Iyer the prefix to his name

“Patnam”. Many of his students like Mysore Vasudevachar, Poochi

Srinivasa Iyengar and Tiger Varadachariar became famous

composers and vocalists.

Ramanathapuram Srinivasa Iyengar

In the great Sishya Parampara of Saint Tyagaraja, some

musicians shone as composers and enriched the content of Karnatic

music by their kritis. Of these, Ramanathapuram Srinivasa

Iyengar (alias Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar) 1860 - 1919 occupies a

unique place. He was one of the senior most disciples of Patnam

Subramanya Iyer.

Srinivasa Iyengar underwent Gurukulavasam under Patnam

Subramanya Iyer and after a few years he gave his first

performance at the Padmasini Taayaar Sannidhi at Thirupullani

(Darbhasayanam, where Muthuswamy Dikshitar composed the kriti

‘Sri Ramam’ in the raga ‘Narayanagaulai’).

In few years, Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar made astonishing

progress by his assiduous practice and was singing with his guru in

his concerts. He was also fortunate to receive special training in

raga alapana and pallavi singing from Maha Vaidhyanatha Iyer.

There are many versions, relating to the appellation of the word

“Poochi” to his name. The one given by the great Tamil scholar

,U.V Swaminatha Iyer is “Poochi meaning an insect, came to be

21

associated with his name, because the sweet ring of his

voice compared favourably with the hum of the honey rich

Bee”.

Srinivasa Iyengar was an erudite scholar, well versed in

Sangita Sastra, a great composer and an accomplished platform

Musician. Endowed with the rich and mellifluous voice, he soon

made a mark as a front rank musician and was held in esteem by

his contemporaries.

He had an extensive repertoire, which included the songs of

Musical Trinity, Patnam Subramanya Iyer, Bhadrachala Ramadas,

Tamil composers like – Gopalakrishna Bharathi, Ramaswamy Sivan;

Tevaram and devotional hymns of Naayanmars, Padams, Javalis

and Tillana.

Srinivasa Iyengar learnt from his guru, the secret of

composing songs and has given to the music world about hundreds

of compositions. Simplicity of style, sweetness of melody and rich

imaginations were the chief characteristics of Poochi Srinivasa

Iyengar’s compositions. He was proficient in English, Tamil, Telugu

and Sanskrit. He has composed 7 Tana Varnams, 1 Pada Varnam,

25 Kritis, 7 Javalis, 3 Tillanas, 4 Tillanas in 108 Talas including one

rare in “Lakshmisa Tala”, 5 Tillanas in 72 Talas, 1 Kavadichindu in

Tamil and 1 Navaratna Ragamalika in 9 Ragas. The total number of

composition by this composer is 54. Following the tradition in his

time and following the footsteps of his guru Patnam Subramanya

Iyer, Srinivasa Iyengar also composed most of his compositions in

Telugu and some in Sanskrit though his mother tongue was Tamil.

The only Tamil composition attributed to Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar is

a Kavadichindu in the Raga Anandabhairavi starting with the verse

‘Valliyin Kalyanam’. The style closely follows the Kavadichindu of

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the famous Annamalai Reddiyar of Ettayyapuram.

Koteeswara Iyer

Koteeswara Iyer (1869 - 1938) was one of the outstanding

Composers in the Post-Trinity era in Karnatic Music. He was the

Grandson of the noted Tamil Scholar and Composer Kavi Kunjara

Bharathi from whom he learnt both Music and Literature. He wrote

Poems and performed Harikathas even in his student days. He was

well educated, taught English in Sanskrit College, he was a Reporter

in Madras High Court and held career positions. According to late

T.S.Parthasarathy the eminent Musicologist, Music was the ruling

passion in his life.

Kavi Kunjara Bharati's forefathers were in Tirunelveli, but

after some time they were invited by the Raja of Ramnad,

“Hiranyagarbha Tirumalai Setupati”, to come and settle in

Perunkarai, a village in Ramnad district. They were all well-versed

in the Vedas, Sastras, Mantras, Sanskrit and Tamil. The king

honoured the young Koteeswaran with the title Kavi Kunjara

Bharati.

Since Koteeswara Iyer lost his father while he was young, his

grandfather, Kavi Kunjara Bharati, brought him under his tutelage.

He taught him Music, Sanskrit and Tamil. Later on, he learnt the

finer aspects of music from Patnam Subramanya Iyer and

Ramanathapuram Srinivasa Iyengar.

Poetry and music came to him naturally and effortlessly. Even

while he was a student, he composed ‘Siddhivinayakar Padikam’,

‘Shanmukha Malai’, ‘Sundareswara Padikam’, ‘Kayarkkanni

Paditrupattu’, ‘Meenakshi Andadi’ etc. in Tamil, which excel in

23

language and poetic beauty. He also performed Harikatha

Kalakshepams on Skanda Puranam. After some time he served as a

translator in the Madras High Court. With his earnings he published

his grandfather's works such as ‘Kanda Purana Keertanam’,

‘Alagar Kuravanji’, ‘Perinba Keertanam’ etc.

Those were days when forty of the Melakarta ragas were

deemed as Vikriti ragas (Vivadi ragas) and hence ‘Dosha Ragas’,

that could not be sung in concerts. Before Koteeswara Iyer’s period,

Maha Vaidyanatha Sivan had composed a lengthy Ragamalika in the

72-mela ragas. But Koteeswara Iyer was the first one to compose

separate songs in Tamil in all the Melakarta ragas with his

‘Vaggeyakara Mudra - Kavi Kunjara Dasan’ and also the ‘Raga

Mudra’, which blended smoothly with the lyrics. All the songs are

dedicated to his ‘Kuladeva’ (family deity), ‘Muruga’ and hence

titled ‘Kanda Ganamudam’. The songs are highly poetic and are

adorned with Swarakshara Sandhis, beautiful Sangatis (Musical

Phrases), Raga Bhava and Depth. Even Vidwans considered Vivadi

ragas as difficult to handle. But Koteeswara Iyer, at the age of 47,

not only composed his Melaraga kritis but also demonstrated and

popularised them. His Sishya (disciple) N.Ramakrishnan, who was

P.A to Kamarajar, former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, published

these kritis in book form with notations. The first part with 36 songs

in the Suddha Madhyama ragas in 1932, and the remaining 36songs

in Prati Madhyama ragas in 1936. Apart from these, he composed

31 kritis, 4 Varnams and a few poems (Venba).

In those days Tamil kritis were not very popular and until his

time, did not receive elaborate treatment. Music concerts mainly

consisted of Tyagaraja, Dikshitar and Shyama Sastri kritis.

Thoughthere were kritis in Tamil by Muthutandavar, Gopalakrishna

Bharati and Arunachala Kavi, they were sung as tailpieces.

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Tevaram, Tiruvachakam, Tiruppugazh and Prabandham were sung

mostly in temples. So, great personalities like S.Satyamoorti, Rajaji,

Kalki, TKC and others took pains to propagate Tamil songs in

concerts.

After he did his first group of 36 songs, Koteeswara Iyer

invited prominent artistes and musicologists and sang all the songs

himself. They appreciated his work and also encouraged him to

continue his Herculean task. His songs were a mixture of Sanskrit

and Tamil, and were highly poetical with a natural flow and

excellent raga bhava: example, ‘Eimponn ammaye’ (

) (Sriragam). He himself has written the meanings, ‘Pada

Urai’ ( ), of the songs. He has used many varieties of Talas

and various ‘eduppu’ ( ). He had the highest regard for

Dikshitar and Tyagaraja and has composed songs on both of them.

He followed the Sampoorna Mela Paddhati of Ramamatya, which

Tyagaraja followed. Like Tyagaraja kritis, his songs also had many

sangatis. But like Dikshitar his songs also had Chittaswaras, Raga

and Vaggeyakara Mudras. Thus he was influenced by both of them.

Even though Dikshitar had composed songs in most of these ragas,

his was the Asampoorna mela paddhati of Venkatamakhin and were

not called Melaraga kritis. Koteeswara Iyer, however, did not

compose even a single song with Samashti Charanam, although

Dikshitar has to his credit many such songs. Nevertheless, the

musical approach and pattern of Koteeswara Iyer’s songs is the

same as that of Dikshitar. Koteeswara Iyer was adept at in handling

various Talas also. He has used Adi, Rupakam, Triputa, Misrachapu,

Khandachapu, and Kandajati Triputa Talas. His Compositions

featured ‘Chittaswarams’, were in Madyamakalam, the names of

ragas occurring appropriately in the compositions - all in the style of

Muthuswamy Dikshitar.

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Harikesanallur Muthaiah Bhagavatar

Muthaiah Bhagavatar was born on November 15, 1877, at a

village called Punalveli near Srivilliputhur. When he was six his

father died and he came under the tutelage of his maternal uncle,

Mahamahopadhyaya M.Lakshmana Suri and settled with him at

Harikesanallur. In 1886, he was put under Muthu Ganapathigal of

Thiruvaiyaru for learning the Vedas.

At that time, Thiruvaiyaru was the home of many eminent

composers of classical music such as Maha Vaidhyanatha Iyer and

Patnam Subrahmaniya Iyer. Young Muthaiah was attracted by their

music and giving up his adhyayana, switched over to the study of

classical Karnatic music. He became a disciple of Vidwan Sambasiva

Iyer, Violinist who was a descendant of Pallavi Doraiswamy Iyer and

belonged to the Sishya Parampara of Tyagaraja.

After completing his studies, Muthaiyah Bhagavatar returned

to Harikesanallur in 1893, and devoted himself completely to the

practice of music for three years. He paid particular attention to

voice culture and specialized in Akara Sadhakam. His voice was

remarkable for its range and richness and “Tanam” was his forte.

Muthaiah Bhagavatar then began to give concerts of

classicalmusic and soon became one of the recognized concert

Vidwans in Tirunelveli. In 1904 Muthaiah bhagavathar entered on a

new phase in his career. The death of Thanjavur Krishna

Bhagavatar had left a great void in the field of Harikatha, and many

were the eminent concert Vidwans like Anantharama Bhagavatar

and Vedantha Bhagavatar who also took to Harikatha performance.

Muthaiah Bhagavatar became one of them. Besides being learned in

Tamil and in Sanskrit, he had a fine personality and a wonderful

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power of exposition scintillating with wit and humour. It is,

therefore, not surprising that his reputation as a Harikatha

performer should have outstripped his fame as music Vidwan.

Among the Kalakshepams which he popularized may be mentioned

‘Valli Parinayam’, ‘Sati Sulochana’, and ‘Tyagaraja Charitram’.

During the year 1905, Muthaiah Bhagavatar went to Tanjavur

and lived there for about three years with his uncle, Lakshmana

Suri, who was a professor of Sanskrit in St.Peter’s college. It was

during this period that he established his reputation in Tanjavur, as

an eminent concert Vidwan and Harikatha performer. Among his

intimate friends and associates at this time may be mentioned

Konerirajapuram Vaidhyanatha Iyer, Mayavaram Subbiyer (Violinist)

and Kumbakonam Alaganambi Pillai (Mridangist).

An important result which followed from the stay of Muthaiah

Bhagavatar at Tanjavur was his specialization in theory of Indian

music. It must be mentioned that the foundations for this had been

laid by his Guru, Samba Siva Iyer, who taught him not only

geetams, varnams and kritis, but also Lakshana geetas of

Venkitamakhi.

It was during his career as Harikatha performer that Muthaiah

Bhagavatar began to compose kirtanas. He wrote his own

‘Nirupanams’ for his Harikathas, and the next step was to

compose kirtanas suitable to Kalakshepams. He also composed

kirtanas independently of Harikathas, with an eye on their aesthetic

excellence. In the course of a decade, Muthaiah Bhagavatar came to

occupy a unique place among musicians as a concert Vidwan, as a

Harikatha performer and as a composer of kirtanas. Apart from the

great popularity which he enjoyed with the public, he was also

patronized by Maharajas and Zamindars like the Raja of

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Ettaiyapuram, the Raja of Ramanad and the Zamindar of Andipatti.

In the year 1927, Maharaja Krishna Rajendra Wodeyar

appreciated his music so much that he conferred on him the title of

‘Gayaka Sikahamani’ and appointed him one of the chief

Samasthana Vidwans. At the suggestion of Maharaja, the

Bhagavatar composed Ashtothara Satha kirtanas in praise of

Goddess Chamundeshwari. And this was followed by another

Ashtothara on Lord Siva. Besides these, the Bhagavatar composed

several Varnams, Ragamalikas, Darus and Tillanas.

Muthaiah Bhagavatar’s compositions are remarkable for their

quality as for their number and variety. There are 10 Tana

Varnams, five in Adi tala and five in Ata tala. There is also a

Padavarnam, ‘Pankaja Lochani’ in Anandabhairavi raga. There are

four Darus, ten Tillanas and five Ragamalikas.

As for his kirtanas some 400 of them have come down to us

and they are in praise of all the deities of the Hindu Pantheon. Many

of them are in popular ragas but a good number of them are in rare

ragas of which we get a picture in the Kritis of Tyagaraja such as

‘Suddha Simanthini’, ‘Navarasa Kannada’, ‘Hamsanadam’,

‘Saraswati’, and the like or in the kritis of Muthuswamy Dikashitar

such as ‘Amruthavarshini’, ‘Madhava Manohari’, ‘Padi’ and

‘Dwijavanthi’ the like.

‘Mohana Kalyani’ is another raga which has become similarly

famous through the Kritis like ‘Bhuvaneshwariya’ and ‘Siddhi

Vinayakam’. ‘Gauda Mallar’ , yet another raga which has become

popular through the piece ‘Sarasa Mukhi’.

But, the most notable contribution of Muthaiah Bhagavatar to

Karnatic music lay in the number of new ragas which he had

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created. Many are brilliant kirtanas which he had composed in new

ragas invented by him such as “Vijayambika” in the raga

‘Vijayanagari’, “Saravana Bhava” in the raga ‘Pasupati Priya’,

“Samayamide” in the raga ‘Budha Manohari’. He invented more

than 20 new ragas.

In point of style, Muthaiah Bhagavar was an ardent

worshipper of Tyagaraja, and he held him as his model. He followed

him in elaborating his kritis with a number of ‘Sangatis’, so as to

present a full picture of the raga. Such, for example, are the

kirtanas “Nipadame Gati” in ‘Bhairavi’, “Bihala Devi” in ‘Todi’,

“Sahaja Guna” in ‘Sankarabharanam’, “Niveitu” in

‘Kharaharapriya’.

Turning finally to the Sahitya of the pieces, they are of the

pattern to be found in the kritis of the modern composers such as

Patnam Subramanya Iyer and Ramanathapuram Srinivasa Iyengar.

The emphasis is more on the musical qualities of his kritis that they

are cast in four languages – Tamil, Sanskrit, Telugu and Kannada.

Among the Post - Tyagaraja composers of classical Karnatic

music, Muthaiah Bhagavatar occupies a very distinguished place

and his Compositions are outstanding for there quality and their

originality.

Among the Post - Tyagaraja composers, Papanasam Sivan

does occupy a very important place to an extent by which his

admirers calls him “Tamil Tyagaraja”. Ranking up any person or

principle in the field of arts, is debatable and scholarly criticism.

This thesis is a humble effort of analyzing the merits of the title

“Tamil Tyagaraja to Papanasam Sivan”. The researcher here

wants to assure at the outset that she does not at all mean any

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disregards to any personality discussed in the thesis and it is more

out of a fact finding urge of a researcher than any tendency to

propagate any opinion that this humble study is undertaken.

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