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Why the tambura and nagaswaram are crucial to Indian classical music?

Nagaswaram

Young nagaswaram and thavil artistes have turned the spotlight on these instruments

Unlike many great nagaswaram and thavil players of the Isai Vellalar community of the composite Thanjavur district, who dissuaded their children from learning the art, nagaswaram artiste T.C. Children from the families of nagaswaram and thavil players seem to be enjoying the best of both worlds —academics and art.” S. Sethuraman, the younger of the Desur Brothers, is also an …

Nagaswaram Artistes

How Sheik Chinna Moulana made the sound of his nagaswaram echo across the globe

It is a special time of the year for the family of nagaswaram exponent Sheik Chinna Moulana, as his Srirangam-based grandsons S. Kasim and S. Babu prepare for a dual celebration of their maternal grandfather’s birth centenary and the 25th edition of the annual ‘shraddhanjali’ programme in Tiruchi later this week. Kasim and Babu meet visitors at ‘Alapana’, the 1950s-era …

The folk form of Naiyandi Melam in nagaswaram and thavil, with pampai, murasu, and urumi thrown in

Nothing captures the tension between the classical and folk art forms more powerfully than Tharai Thappattai, directed by Bala. A classical nagaswaram and thavil troupe performs only Carnatic ragas and keerthanas, whereas naiyandi melam follows a set of folk tunes and a lot of cinema songs. A set of tunes “Naiyandi melam follows a set of tunes, beginning with ‘thooku’, …

Nagaswaram player Ponnusamy no more

Ponnusamy, who shot to fame after playing for Thillana Mohanambal, starring Sivaji Ganesan in the lead role, died in Madurai on Monday, aged 90. “That was enough for us to lead a happy and contented life,” recalled Ponnusamy, who was born into a family of nagaswaram players. Ponnusamy Pillai was not only a renowned nagaswaram player, but also a musicologist …

Book Review: ‘T.N. Rajarattinam Pillai: Charisma, Caste Rivalry and the Contested Past in South Indian Music’ by Terada Yoshitaka narrates the story of the nagaswaram through the life of T.N. Rajaratt

Published : Aug 10, 2023 11:00 IST - 10 MINS READ The nagaswaram, often called mangala vadyam, is steeped in south India’s cultural ethos. Rajarattinam Pillai: Charisma, Caste Rivalry and the Contested Past in South Indian Music Terada Yoshitaka Speaking Tiger Pages: 464 Price: Rs.599 Colloquially called nadaswaram, this double reed aerophone is the centre piece of a traditional performance …

Terada Yoshitaka (1954-2023): The man from Japan who played the nagaswaram

To celebrate the birth centenary of the well-known nagaswaram vidwan Karukurichi P. Arunachalam, the Music Academy hosted a lec-dem on his life and music. The dynamic style Lalitharam interspersed his talk with excerpts chosen from many recordings to bring forth Arunachalam’s aesthetics and virtuosity in playing the nagaswaram. While raga elucidation formed the major part of Arunachalam’s repertoire, Lalitharam highlighted …

The sounds of nagaswaram and an international orchestra rub shoulders in the musical score of the recent Tamil film Karnan. The soundtrack employs both these worlds to a considerable extent to accentuate the mood of the sequences; if musical pauses and the orchestra’s sustained notes are used to describe everyday life in ‘Podiyankulam’ and ‘Podiyankulam makkal’, there’s a boisterous joie …

The song may be nearly four decades old, but its nuanced use in recent films has given it a new resonance among the oppressed classes. As the heroine enters in Karnan, the latest Dhanush starrer, playing in the background is ‘Poradada, Valenthada,’ played on the nagaswaram, accompanied by ‘naiyaandi melam’. Mari Selvaraj’s film has actually captured the song’s popularity among …