Friday, February 11, 2005
+ Beyond the Confines of Raga
Carnatic Music is essentially raga music. But I have come across two instances where raga steps aside for a few moments as the sheer flow of sound takes over. One would not be mistaken in thinking that this would be a period of chaos. But the natural progression ensures that the music remains organic. The other point is that both instances are instrumental. The voice would have had much more of a chance of giving the impression of disharmony.
L Shankar – Ananda Nadamadum (Who’s To Know): This kriti is in Raga Savitri, and what I am talking about happens near the end of it. After a few rounds of kalpana swaras, Shankar moves on to a ragamalika swara section, which contains eight ragas. In the repeat phase, the avartanas become shorter till each raga gets the space of only six notes without break. Then it goes down further to three and then the tempo doubles to the third kaala. At this stage, it is nothing more than a blur of notes before they get clarified and end in a flurry in Hamsadhwani. But by then, the music has become so intense and the progression is so well managed that you don't think that you are getting only three rapid notes of a scale, which is as good as nothing in that raga.
U Srinivas – Magudi: It starts off innocent enough as a traditional magudi in Punnagavarali, but soon foreign notes start creeping in, one by one, unobtrusively, till what we have resembles the chromatic scale more than any raga. But the way Srinivas manages the introduction of foreign notes and maintains the mood is admirable. The cascade of notes adds to the awe and mystique of the netherworld atmosphere created by the original Punnagavarali till it becomes almost eerie. Then, in a quick but effective denouement, Srinivas gets back to the finale in Punnagavarali. Quite magical.
I don’t know if there are other instances of such a gentle assault of foreign notes. I have heard a Kapi by T R Mahalingam, where Mali stretches the limits of Kapi by introducing foreign notes and at one point plays the chromatic scale right up and back down again. However, I didn’t get the feeling of the alien notes blending seamlessly into the spirit of the raga. In fact, the buffoonery that Mali indulges in this casual recording of a live concert takes away the edge of seriousness. It’s all good fun with the thrill that the unexpected provides in a live concert (especially with someone as eccentric as Mali), but that is more or less all it is.
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