S Sowmya - Vocal

Sowmya (saumya) is an excellent singer of the younger generation.
She is not just a singer, but a music activist, if there could be any!

Here is what she says about herself!

Mine has been a life soaked in melody since childhood. Born into a family of traditional values, I was initiated into music by my father who has a passion for Carnatic music. Then I came under the wing of Dr (S.) Ramanathan, an exemplary musician, esteemed musicologist and an extraordinary human being. The music journey continued with the legendary T. Mukta, and I dedicate my success in this field to both of them.


For me, theory and vidwat (erudition) might appeal to the intellect, but when you transmit your experience, the feel of a kriti, to the audience, the performer is able to make a connection with the rasikas. As a performer, I come with the frame of mind to give the best and to please the listeners.


Singing in a sabha and singing on occasions like a marriage offer a different experience. Sabha audiences come with the frame of mind to listen to only music, whereas on the other occasion, the agenda is different. The selection of songs should please the floating crowd. I utilise these occasions to try new kritis, rare ragas, kritis that are not sung in recent times and derive some benefit for myself.

About music!
 
Carnatica (the organisation she co-founded with fellow musician Shashikiran) was established to propagate Carnatic music. We needed a platform to promote the basic lessons we brought in CD form. The success of the talent hunt programme in Carnatic music on television has been tremendous. The younger generation, in spite of its hectic schedules and academic pressure, is showing greater interest in learning Carnatic music.


Here, I appreciate the parents who are very supportive in caring for the art. Through Carnatica we give special training to talented children and present them at prestigious forums, stages. Through this, along with financial support, we motivate the youngsters to excel in their art.

Technological advances have connected rasikas all over the world. Healthy interaction on the subject across the globe is possible through the click of a mouse.

The invaluable treasures are available to all, and we are flooded with questions and compliments immediately after each concert. I can say our audience is not limited to the concert hall itself. With technological advancement, each concert is on the global auditorium.

Here is a collection of songs by Sowmya. These are meant for dance performances mainly!!
 
List:
 
01 Balavinave(Padam) - Kambodhi.mp3
02 Thelisenura(Padam) - Saveri.mp3
03 Thiruvatriyur - Atana.mp3
04 Samayamide(Javali) - Behag.mp3
05 Paiyyada - Nadanamakriya.mp3
06 Yaruku kelum - Begada.mp3
07 Nithiriyil - Panthuvarali.mp3
08 Smarasundaranguni(Javali) - Paras.mp3
09 Maryada teliyagane - Suruti.mp3

Link:
 
http://www.mediafire.com/?sharekey=10f3f26dc390f408ab1eab3e9fa335ca683a229dfa7fcac2
 
Let us enjoy good music!!
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Evolution?

Is this what has happened?
ఇదేనా జరిగింది?

Sarvagna and Vemana

Sarvagna

I am very seriously looking for an English translation of Sarvagna.
My efforts till now are fruitless.
I did not find any translation.
I have asked a senior friend proficient in Kannada to take it up for my sake.
He is knowledgeable no doubt.
I am only apprehensive about his priorities.

Meanwhile a scholar friend whom I ran into at a literary meeting gave me a book about Vemana.
Here I may say that there are a whole lot of translations of Vemana.
Pity is, you do not know which padyam it is.
English versions are available without the Telugu original!

Here, I bring two vachanas of Sarvagna.

Interestingly these are the padyams which have similar ones in Vemana collection also.

1) కల్లుప్పు కర్పురపు సెల్లెరడు ధాతొందు
ఖుల్ల నొల్లిదన రూపొందు, గుణదొళిగె
ఎల్ల అంతరవు సర్వజ్ఞ


ಕಲ್ಲುಪ್ಪು ಕರ್ಪುರಪು ಸೆಲ್ಲೆರಡು ಧಾತೊಂದು
ಖುಲ್ಲ ನೊಲ್ಲಿದನ ರೂಪೊಂದು, ಗುಣದೊಳಿಗೆ
ಎಲ್ಲ ತರವು ಸರ್ವಜ್ಞ

ఆ. ఉప్పు కప్పురంబు నొక్క పోలికనుండు
చూడచూడ రుచుల జాడ వేరు
పురుషులందు పుణ్య పురుషులు వేరయా
విశ్వదాభిరామ వినుర వేమ


Uppu kappurambu nokka pOliknundu
cUDa cUDa rucula jaDa vEru
purushulandu puNya purushulu vErayA

Meaning
Rock salt and camphor are similar to look at. Their taste however is very different. Similarly, even if all people look alike, great people are very different by their character.

I am sure we don’t need any explaining on this! Interestingly, both poets thinkers telling the same thing and with the same example is not just a coincidence. Like the poems say, great people are different from the others. They think like great people.

2) కొట్టు బహకాలదలి కొట్టుణలి కరియదే
హుట్టియ ఒళగె జేనిక్కి
పరిరింగె కొట్టుహోదంతె సర్వజ్ఞ


ಕೊಟ್ಟು ಬಹುಕಾಲದಲಿ ಕೊಟ್ಟುಣಲಿ ಕರಿಯದೇ
ಹುಟ್ಟಿಯ ಒಳಗೆ ಜೇನಿಕ್ಕಿ
ಪರಿರಿಂಗೆ ಕೊಟ್ಟುಹೇದಂತೇ ಸರ್ವಜ್ಞ


ఆ. ధనము గూడబెట్టి ధర్మంబు సేయక
తాను లెస్సదినక దాచు లోభి
తేనెనీగగూర్చి తెరువరికియ్యదా
విశ్వదాభిరామ వినుర వేమ


dhanamugUDabeTTi dharmambu sEyaka
tAnu lessa dinaka dAcu lobhi
tEnenIgagUrci teruvarikiyyadA

A miser amasses a lot wealth. He neither gives it to the others nor enjoys it himself. It is like a honeybee collecting honey and ultimately some passerby taking it away. Vemana says that the honeybee gives the honey to the passerby. Sarvagna says he takes it. I do not want to go into the expression because it is after all poetry.

Here is a write up on Sarvagna collected from the web.

You may notice that the name is spelt also as Sarvajna in the article. I remember the discussions we had about the spelling of the word Vignan by people of various regions. Vigyan, Vijnan, Vidnyan, and Vignan are the variants. Each according to their own understanding. None of them is right and none of them is wrong!!

Sarvagna

Sarvagna (Kannada: ಸರ್ವಜ್ಞ, also transliterated as "Sarvajna"), was a poet in the Kannada language. He is famous for his pithy three-lined poems which we call them tripadis, a form of Vachanas. (Three-lined poems are called as tripadis).

The period of Sarvagna's life has not been determined accurately, and very little is known about him. Based on studies of his literary style and the references of later writers, historians estimate that he might have lived during the first half of the 17th century. Some references in his works indicate that his real name was Pushpadatta - Sarvagna appears to have been his penname.

The meening of Sarvagna is " Who knows everything! " Being a monk, he says how he became Sarvagna in one of his tripadi. He had written around 70707070 (?)tripadi's. We can get this number from one of his tripadi. See below...
Since writing tripadi is very easy many people have written their own Vachanas in the name of Sarvagna! We can verify/identify since they are not following kannada grammer rules/formulas used for writing tripadis... though some time its hard to find some of them as they follow the rules.

In all, about 1000 three-liners are attributed to Sarvagna. It is possible that some of these were written by later authors. Popular because of their alliterative structure and simplicity, they deal mainly with social, ethical and religious issues. A number of riddles are also attributed to Sarvagna.

Some examples

" Sarvagna-nembuvanu garvadind-adanvane
Sarvarolagondu nudi-galitu vidyeya-
parvatave aad noda Sarvagna "

Translation: Sarvagna has not become "SARVAGNA (who knows everything)" because of Pride, he is because he learned one thing from every one.

Seela Subhadra Devi - Poem

It is rare that husband and wife are good poets and short story writers.
Seela couple have that distinction.
After entering sixtieth year Subhadra Devi published a compilation of her poems.
It contains nearly 200 of her works.
Couple of them are long poems.
Prof N Gopi released the book at a meeting attended by serious lovers of poetry.
Candid discussion on the situation of poetry and the qualoty of the poetry being released ensued.
There was almost no time left for the poet to read her own poems.

Interestingly I read the translations of one of her poems.
Later she read out the original!!
I consider it an honour!!

Here is the poem in my humble English version.

A poem Alive

Locking the latch on the door

binding teh dreams underneath the eyebrows

I shift the tired being onto the bed

A little while rest or not

matters from yonder in the past rising like cobras

knocking on the hearts doors

Hiss, spewing embers!

Even if I want to get up with a shudder

Sleep ties the body down.

In a short while

Slowly raising and holding the eyelids

Dreams drool out a little by little

They start prancing around

words hewn with dreamy threads

Keep moving all through the night

I keep muttering in sleep

That it would ahve been good if I awoke once

To spread teh haert as paper

And make a packet of garlands of poems

When I want to move my hand still ahlf asleep,

Little baby asleep, closely clutching may hand, would shudder.

Me again into deep sleep.

When eyes open after daybreak,

Dreams hidden in them are lost!

Stanzas that I composed and concealed in the heart are lost!

Me remaining with no reaction!

When I look back,

With my poems strung in her ankle bells,

Coaxing me to catch her,

There is teh little one

Running

Full of smiles!!

(Original poem "Sajeeva Kavita" by Seela Subhadra Devi)
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Lalgudi Jayaraman - Violin

There are a few people I admire a lot!!
One among such few is Lalgudi.
He is a gentleman to the core.
I remeber back in 70s there was his concert in Ravindra Bharati.
Hall was bursting at seams.
There were people, including me, witing to enter the hall.
We were curtly told to leave.
Usually people do not leave immediatley at such places.
We were told that Lalgudi has generously accepted to have us around him on the stage.
I can not forget the day I heard him from real close quarters.
Time has made his music greater and greater.

At a later point of time I came to know him personally.
He was asked to play a Ragam Tanam Pallavi.
He was already having one in his mind.
Since the performance was in Hyderabad, he wanted tha Pallavi lines to be in Sanskrit or Telugu!
That is what a gentleman is all about.
Oh God! Did I suggest the lines in Telugu?
It was not necessary!
His knowledge of Sanskrit is great!

Here is the famous Bomaby Shankara Mutt Concert Disc album of Lalgudi Jayaraman for nostalgia sake!!

List:

01 Sri Shankara Guruvaram – Nagaswaraavali
02 Paraathparaa – Vaachaspathi
03 Akhilaandeswari – Dwijaavanthi
04 Shankaraachaaryam – Sankaraabharanam
05 Eppo Varuvaaro – Jonpuri


Link:

http://www.mediafire.com/?sharekey=10f3f26dc390f408ab1eab3e9fa335ca5d3cc16f57776230

Enjoy the vintage music!!
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Secret - Is there any?

There is a beautifully produced red book named Secret!

It hardly contains any secret!
But, the fact would not come out until you buy and read the book.
So, you buy it!
To learn that the so called secret is after all, what you practise and were practising for ever!

I was thinking about any secret that I could tell the world and stun it.
It dawned upon me that there are none!

Apart from the follies committed galore, there looks like no secrets in my life.
The follies, I have committed, like the proverbial cat that closed his eyes when thieving, are known to many, I presume.
So, where is any secret?
There are many things that you know, but are not prepared to tell the world that you know.
You may think that only you know that information.
You may also think that all the others in the world are pining to learn it from you.
Who cares?

Many people died without telling their well kept secrets, they say.
What happened?
Nothing in particular, I am sure.
Nothing remains a secret only because you do not want anyone to know it.
Some facts are conveyed even without the efforts of communication.
Some facts are so trivial that when communicated, the owner may die of failed heart on seeing the poor reaction.

Even the little bird is sick of telling anything to anyone these days.
Maybe, the reaction would be ‘who cares?’

There are certain things classified as open secrets.
Everyone and his neighbour know them. All pretend, as if they have not even heard of any such thing. Murders take place. Scandals break out.
Day in and day out, there are things appearing in the papers.
Ask a little boy what is it all about, he would perhaps tell you things that even the highest police officers feign ignorance of.

All murderers get caught.
All the stolen money is recovered.
All the criminals get to be identified.
What happens after that is of no interest to many.
No paper prints anything about them.
Sometimes, no, most of the times, they live happily ever after.
Maybe, there is no secret about that also.
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Sudha Raghunathan - Annamayya Songs

Here is one more of album of Sudha Raghunathan.
This time it is compositions of Annamacharya.

List:

01 Ksheerabdi Kanyakaku
02 Nanati Bratuku
03 Bhavayami
04 Paramapurusham
05 Alarulu
06 Managambudhi
07 Chakkani Talliki
08 Vinaro bhagyamu
09 Dolayam
10 Srimannarayana

Link:

http://www.mediafire.com/?sharekey=10f3f26dc390f408ab1eab3e9fa335ca28b846a3f7f65904

Enjoy!!
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