Ramnad - Seat Of Music.

Ramnad – Seat of Music

                      Dhanushkodi

Ramanathapuram, also called Ramnad, is a town in Ramanathapuram district of Tamilnadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Ramanathapuram district and the second largest town (by population) in Ramanathapuram district. In 1910, Ramanathapuram was formed from portions of Madurai and Tirunelveli districts, with J.F. Bryant as the first collector. During the British period this district was called "Ramnad"; the name continued after independence. Later the district was renamed as Ramanathapuram to be in conformity with the Tamil name for this region."Ramnad" is also known as "Mugavai"(face) since it acts as the entry point for River "Vaigai". The region is well known since Puranic ages. The estate of Ramnad included the Hindu holy island city of Rameswaram, from where; legend has it that the Hindu god Rama launched his invasion of Ravana's Lanka. On the conclusion of the war and Rama's success in it, he appointed a Sethupathi or "lord of the bridge" to guard the way to the island. The "bridge" referred to here is the legendary Rama's Bridge which was believed to have been constructed by Rama. The chieftains of Ramnad were entrusted with the responsibility of protecting the bridge, hence the appellation. The Present Ramanathapuram (Ramnad) includes Rameshwaram, Dhanushkodi, Devaipattanam, Siva Ganga, Thiruppalani and Uthirakosamangai etc important piligrimage centers. Many composers have described the significance of Dhanushkodi and Sethu, of Ramanathapuram.

“ Koti Nadulu Dhanushkoti lo nundaga Yetiki Tirigedave Manasaa ..” – Thyagaraja

“Vaaradhi kattina vara bhadrachala varada nee divya charanamule nammithi..”

_ Bhadrachala’Ramadasu

Chetulara Sringaaramu…. Sethu Bandhana surapathy…. _Thyagaraja

Kalitha Vara Sethu Bandham… _Bhavayami _Swati Tirunal.

Here are some of the famous Carnatic musicians who have vitally contributed to bring the glory of Carnatic Music in Ramnad and made it an eminent Seat for Carnatic Music.

1. Ramnad Krishnan: Ramnad Krishnan, a great legend of Carnatic music was born on 14th September 1918 at Alleppey in Kerala in a family of musicians, all the six brothers being accomplished artistes. Ramnad Krishnan had his school education at Ramnad in Tamilnadu where he learnt music from late vidwan Shri. Ramnad Sankara Sivam (elder brother of late Mridanga Vidwan, Ramnad C S Murugaboopathy). Later he migrated to madras and took up music as profession. He was a faithful listener of all kinds of music. This with his natural bent of analytical mind, later made him create his own style of musical expression - Baani. It so happened that he was introduced to the family members of Veena Dhannammal which changed his very approach to music. He came to the firm conclusion that in our music it is sankya or relaxed music, that only matters and he stuck to his principle till the last. It is not an exaggeration that Ramnad Krishnan was an all rounder musician. He had a very extensive repertoire of compositions especially of Patnam Subramanya Iyer, which he had acquired from Smt. T. Brinda and Smt. T. Mukhta, granddaughters of Veena Dhannammal. Shri. N S Krishnaswamy Iyengar, disciple of Kanchipuram Naina Pillai and many other reputed musicians. His raga singing gave a revelation of the emotional and the intellectual content of the raga . His unique pallavi rendetions in rare and uncommon structures still haunt the minds of not only the rasikas but even his colleagues. His neraval rendering simulated the great Mazhavarayandal Subbarama Iyer. He could also render any padam or javali with grace and charm. He excelled in delianeating exquisite rakti raga like varali, suruti, sahana, devagandhari, begada, kapi, hamsanadham, bahudhari, saranga etc with bhava in the ragamalika rendering. In total he was a great integrater of the best aspects of Carnatic music.He had high regards for contemporary performers as Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar, Madurai Mani Iyer and G. N. Balasubramaniam. He had many disciples like Ritha Rajan, Nagamani Srinath, Vegavahini Vijayaraghavan, Neyyathankara vasudevan, Nirmala Sundararajan, Janaki Sunderarajan, Usha Sagar, Natarajan, Vaidyanathan and Raghava Rao. As a teacher he was conscientious and sincere in his approach. Shri. Krishnan also served at the faculty of the Govt. College of Carnatic Music at madras for a few years. He was also a visiting Professor at the Weslyn University, USA for some time where he was reverentially called "the musicians’ musician".

He used to observe Papanasam Sivan as living Thyagaraja and held him at high esteem as a composer and a musician. Shri Sivan reciprocated this sentiment and love for Krishan by calling off his concert abruptly on hearing the sad demise of Krishnan.

 The music world lost the voice of Shri Ramnad Krishnan on 29.1.1973. In the memory of Sri Ramnad Krishnan, centenary Celebrations are held in this place every year and musicians from all around come to perform at the occasion.

2. Ramnad “Poochi” Srinivasa Aiyangar: “Poochi” Srinivasa Iyengar (1860 - 1919), also known as Ramanathapuram Srinivasa Iyengar, was a singer and composer of Carnatic music. Srinivasa Iyangar was a better known performer and a reouted composer for his Varnas,adams,Kritjis, and javalis, immidietely after the era of trinities. He was born in Ramanathapuram in Tamil Nadu on August 16, 1860. He studied music under Patnam Subramania Iyer (1845 - 1902), a singer of Carnatic music and came in the sishya parampara of Saint Thyagaraja. He composed over 100 songs and used the mudra Srinivasa in his compositions. He died on July 20, 1919. "The appellation 'Poochi' meaning 'insect' is rather strange. There are surmises that his raga elaboration resembled the humming of a beetle, or that he used to apply sandal paste on his body and the Tamil word 'Poochu' had become 'Poochi' or that he was known for his tireless activity like the bee; but the real reason is not known. He had many disciples. Prominent among them were Salem Duraisamy Iyengar, Kandanur Srinivasa Iyengar, Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar, Araikudi Rajamani Iyengar, Kuttalam Srinivasa Iyengar, Koteshwara Iyer , Ettayapuram Rajagopala Bhagavatar and Mayavaram Sivarama Iyer etc. Chitta swarams woven into the krithi was Poochi Speciality. His keerthanas tend to be in chowka kalam such as Saraguna Palimpa, Sri Raghukula nidhim, Satatamu Brovumayya etc. Also fonf of thillanas he set, the one in kaapi in lakshana tala with 108 beats in cycle, another in kaamavardhini 72 beats prove his versatility as composer.

He wrote many famous compositions and music forms like,

1. Ninnu Kori – Mohana Varnam – Adi Talam

2. Vanajakshi ro – Kalyani Varnam – Adi Talam

3. Nera Nammithi –Kaanada Varnam

4. Anudinamu gaavumayya –Krithi in Begada

5. Parama Pavana Rama – Poorvi Kalyani krithi.

6. Sadbhaktiyu – A krithi in Ananda Bhairavi. etc.

3. Ramnad “V. Raghavan: Ramnad V. Raghavan (19 June 1927 – 21 November 2009) was a player of the mridangam. He was born in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India, to P. Vaidyanatha Ayyar of Kooniyur, Tirunelveli district, and Brhannayaki. His elder brother Ramnad Krishnan was a famous Carnatic vocalist.Beginning in 1970, he taught for many years at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, United States. He was also a key initiator for the Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana. He retired around 2000 and moved to Chennai, India. He died on 21 November 2009 at the age of 82 in Chennai. Some of his students included Glen Velez, Jamey Haddad, David Nelson, Patricia Shehan Campbell, Frank Bennett, and Joseph M. Getter.

4. Ramnad V Eashwaran : Easwaran, born in Kerala's Alapuzha district, had his 'arangetram' before the Raja of Ramnad and has played with every musician of note of the Carnatic school, the great Chembai and the singer Varadachari who was known as the 'Tiger', with the basso baritone M.D. Ramanathan introducing into their concerts the curious witchcraft of odd and even fractions of rhythmic variations that raised each of these sumptuous occasions to the level of an experience.Ramnad Easwaran's significant contribution to music in Delhi was in his association of over 30 years with All India Radio's (AIR) Vadya Vrinda after Dr Narayana Menon brought him to Delhi, and his part in the evolution of the Tala Vadya Kuchery which has now become a staple for presentation before visiting heads of states.

5. Manish Subramania Mahadevan - Keeping in touch with our roots, values, culture, and traditions has always been of utmost importance for us. Having the opportunity to revive his family’s musical legacy, 15-year-old Manish Subramanian Mahadevan, the great-grandson of Mridangam Vidwan Ramnad V Easwaran, had taken it upon himself to pursue Carnatic music and to master its versatility. A disciple of ‘Guru Laya Kala Ratna’ Ramesh Srinivasan, Manish had his Mridangam Arangetram, a debut solo concert at Dakshinamurthy Auditorium, on Saturday.

Apart from Musical Significance, Ramanathapuram also has a Tourism Importance. birth place for former President APJ Abdul Kalam , a vainika himself supported and patroned for arts and Carnatic Music. Tourists Visit Ramnad to see the Raja Palace, Still Occupied by the former Sethupathi Raja and his family. The Royal Family sends the elephant for Santhanakoodu procession in Erwadi during the annual Santhanakoodu Festival. All local musical instruments are played on the main day of occasion as one of the Seva. There are Kshetra Krithis on Rameshwara Temple. Rameshwara temple holds rich in musical heritage. Unique Trumpets and thin drums will be heared in Rameshwaram Temple which shows the folk culture of Rameshwaram. It is one of the 275 paadal petra sthalas (jyotirlinga kshetra) where the three of the most relevant Nayanars , Appar, Sundarar, Tirugnana Sambandar have revered their compositions and glorified the temple with their songs.

To Conclude, With the exception of Madras, the Maharajas, Rajahs, Zamindars, Establishment of Music Colleges, Support from State and Central Governments and emerging Young and Traditional Music talents from the place, Ramnad is been evolving as the Core Seat of Music and emerging as a vibrant source of music by giving Modern approaches to Traditional Patronages.

_Srinidhi

References :-

Google,

Sruthi Magazines,

Relevant articles from various Internet sources.