As a kid, I have always revered Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan a lot. I used call him thata, connoting my admiration. There was a period of time when I disliked him, because I felt that he was blemishing the whole essence of music with the games he used to play with his miraculous violin. Recently, when was watching a pre-recorded concert of his, a very old one, I found that I was wrong. The songs that his violin sang with melody and also with the astounding command over the instrument, which a I always craved to learn. Idi kada anandamu, tattvamu teliyaka and so on the songs went on. Enthralled by that, I sat down, with the songs still ringing in my ears. Magic it was, really mesmerizing!!
I suppose I was still in school, when I first had the chance of listening to the saxophone maestro, Kadri Gopalnath, in his album ‘Dream journey’. Tears of joy roll down my eyes, when I listen to the Vatapi Ganapathim in that. The exact gamakas and the masterly blend of the western music into it have rocked me. The didactic uses of the drums and the key-board have always engrossed me.
One other violin wizard I would like to mention before I get into the main phase is Kanyakumari. With the perfect rhythm and the clockwork of musical sense and the beautiful perfectly sounding violin, she is always a show winner, if I can put it that way. I had the privilege of listening to her music along with 27 other violinists. The beautiful rendering of Nagumomu, must have made Tyagaraja exultant.
On the eve of the telugu basha brahmotsavalu, I had the great opportunity to listen to both of them playing. It started off with the beautiful krithi on Vinayaka in Hamsadhwani. The next song was an enthralling masterpiece composed by Tyagaraja, Endaro mahanubhavulu, in which Tyagaraja quotes “Chandra vadanuni anda chandamunu hrudayaravindamuna juchi brahmanandamanubhavinchu varendaro mahanubhavulu” in the context of exhilaration people get on catching a glimpse of Lord Rama. Nanati baduku natakamu by Annamacharya was no way less enthralling than the previous one, in which he says the whole world is a theatre and we are all puppets. After I listened to this, I find that Shakespeare saying the same thing in his one of his best plays “as you like it”. The main song, of course was “Nagumomu” also by Tyagaraja, in which he is desperate to see Lord Rama and says ‘vagachupaku, taalanu, nannelukora’. The stage, on it had three persons felicitated by the Tamil Nadu government by the famous Kalaimamani. It was the first time, as far as my knowledge goes that a carnatic music concert had a tabla accompaniment, which even blended the Hindustani and carnatic music making it much more beautiful. The engrossing concert ended with one more Annamacharya’s masterpiece “tandanana hi”, leaving us spell bound. I hope I get to listen many such masterpieces rendered by wizards like these.
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