The Hindu : Karnataka / Mysore News : 77-year musical tradition

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 18, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Mysore

77-year musical tradition

Sharath S. Srivatsa

Opening concert by Hyderabad Brothers, many recitals to follow

MYSORE: Doyens of Carnatic music have deemed it a privilege and budding artistes have used the occasion to announce their arrival. For the Ramanavami music festival at Sri Bidaram Krishnappa's Sri Prasanna Sitarama Mandira in Mysore has nurtured a musical tradition for over seven decades.

The Sitarama Mandira has become synonymous with the Ramanavami music festival, and melodious tunes of stalwarts in Carnatic music have reverberated in the historic auditorium for 77 years. It is a matter of prestige for artistes to perform in the temple hall where devotion and music pay obeisance to the presiding deity.

The likes of Aryakudi Ramanuja Iyengar, Patnam Subramanya Iyer, Mahavaidyanathan Bhagavatar, Semmangudi Sreenivasa Iyer, G.N. Balasubramniam, M.S. Subbulakshmi, S. Ramanathan, Namagiri Krishnan, M.D. Ramanathan, T. Chowdaiah, Mysore Vasudevacharya, Doreswamy Iyengar, Veene Seshanna, Veene Venkatagiriyappa and Veene Subbanna have all regaled music lovers with their enchanting voice at the auditorium.

According to K.V. Arkanath, treasurer of the temple, eminent musicians always agree to perform at the temple as the acoustics of the auditorium is excellent.

The music festival dates back to 1918 when Mysore Vasudevacharya and Bidaram Krishnappa took the initiative to organise the festival, which has been followed without a break till date.

While the festival commenced in 1918, it was only in 1928 that the temple construction was completed.

A protégé of the erstwhile Maharaja of Mysore, who learnt music in the Mysore Palace, Bidaram Krishnappa was a noted musician of the time.

His dreams of constructing a temple dedicated to the service of music and music lovers took many years. After having exhausted all his lifetime earnings, Krishnappa raised money for the temple through public donations. He even sold his wife's jewellery to complete the work on the temple that has now come to symbolise the Sri Ramanavami music festival in Mysore.

The paintings depicting the "Dashavatara" from the Hindu mythology adorn the high walls of the temple along with the paintings of the stalwarts of Carnatic music.

Prof. Arkanath says that over a period of time, the duration of the music festival has been increased from 10 days to 15 days, which also provides more opportunities to young artistes.

With connoisseurs of music eagerly awaiting it, the music festival at Bidaram Krishnappa's Sri Prasanna Sitarama Mandira, which commences on Monday, promises to provide the best of classical music.

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