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Music Season
Tamizh, pure and clear
S. SIVAKUMAR
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Years of research have resulted in two CDs of Tamil compositions rendered by Mathini Sriskandaraja.
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Photo: S.R.Raghunathan
On a mission: Mathini Sriskandaraja and Rajkumar Bharati.
When the trend is towards mindless marketing of art, here are two audio CDs that are likely to see a quiet launch during this music festival. What is it about? And what is the mission? Mathini Sriskandarajah, a resident of Essex, England, who is the singer featuring in these CDs has this to say: “I had spent some years delving deep into many old Tamil compositions of Tamizh Moovar, Sekkizhar, Arunagirinathar and the like and t
ried to grasp their original pann. I have also had the fortune of listening to the great Oduvars sing these hymns in their pristine form at the Malaikkottai Pillaiar Koil, Tiruchi. I wanted to preserve the traditional rendering of these compositions in their most dignified form. My humble aim was to achieve sruti sudham, sol sudham, porul sudham and karuthu sidhayamal vazhangudhal — perfect sruti, pure diction and presentation without mutilation of idea.
Emphasis on diction
The audio CDs have been set to tune in such a way as to put the required emphasis on diction - an aspect pushed to the background these days.
The two CDs will be launched in England on December 15. The rendering has been inspired by Thiru Muthu Kandasami Desigar of Malaikottai Pillaiar Koil, Tiruchi. Rajkumar Bharati has played a major role in giving the songs the final form with the classical Carnatic glow.
Mathini has been a disciple of Rajkumar for the past seven years. She catches up with her lessons whenever he visits the U.K.
She runs a music school teaching several members of the local community.
What appeals to you on listening to the album is the clarity, a thoroughly communicative voice with a lucid diction, a healthy balance between ragas and lyrics, avoidance of unwanted sangatis and an ear-friendly pitch. The selection of ragas such as Suddha Saveri, Bhairavi, Dharmavathi and Sama, to cite a few, mesh well with the lyrics. The feeling one gets is that if played as a routine at home daily, children would effortlessly master the hymns.
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Music Season
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