Kerala - Kochi   

Tribute to a heavenly voice

Staff Reporter

KOCHI: They return to the master and his songs, religiously every year. The admirers of M.D. Ramanathan or MDR, as he is popularly known, will get together for the fourth year without fail to celebrate his birth anniversary.

MDR is not just music for his fans; it is an obsession that blends with their lives. When his aficionados come together at Rugmini Kalyanamandapam, Thripunithura, on May 20, it will be another occasion to relive that passion.

The influence of this musician, who treaded the unconventional paths in classical music, on his fans is best demonstrated in the novel to be released on the day. Kedaram by Krishnamoorthy is an admirer's travel through a concert by MDR.

Though he has authored many short stories, this is the first novel by Krishnamoorthy. "The work progresses as I listen to the concert by MDR at Sree Krishna Gana Sabha. It will give the reader an idea about the life of MDR and how he had to suffer discrimination in his career. But this is definitely not a biographical work," says Krishnamoorthy.

An avid collector of audio recordings by MDR, Krishnamoorthy has over 200 items, as cassettes and audio tape spools. "The best thing about music rendering by MDR is his spontaneity, the way he explored nuances of a raga."

Krishnamoorthy tries to capture that spontaneity in his work, the characters of which include the author himself, his family and friends. The 11 segments in the books is named after keertanas immortalised by MDR - viriboni, vatapi ganapathim bhajeham, ninnuvina gamari, bhajan seyave o manasa, entaro mahanubhavulu, mokshamugalabha, sankarabharanam ragam thanam pallavi thaniyavarthanam, slokam, kanakasabhai thirunadanam, thillana and mangalam.

Carnatic vocalist Sanjay Subramaniam will release the book by handing over the first copy to P. Ravikumar. Thanjavur Ramadas and Nagai Muralidharan will inaugurate the function. Rama Varma, Prince of the Travancore Royal family, will deliver the MDR commemorative lecture on the occasion. Rameshan Thampuran and musician Sreevalsan J. Menon will speak.

The day will end with a concert by Sanjay Subramaniam with Thanjavur Ramadas on mrudangam, Nagai Muralidharan on violin and Thripunithura Radhakrishnan at ghatam. Tributes to masters rarely become so meaningful, when they are executed. But then, MDR appeals to his fans in varied manifestations.

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