She did it to raise money to launch Kalki, her husband Thiagarajan Sadasivam’s nationalist Tamil weekly.

And as far as awards and honors go, she is probably the most recognized Indian performing artist. She won the Bharat Ratna, the Magsaysay award, her admirers ranged from Mahatma Gandhi to Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, who called her Suswaralakshmi Subbulakshmi. Jawaharlal Nehru hailed her as “Queen of songs,” Sarojini Naidu gave her the title “nightingale of India.”

She was perhaps the only Carnatic musician who was enormously popular in north India.

M.S. Subbulakshmi with husband Thiagarajan Sadasivam

Her vast, still-increasing repertoire in many languages and in several musical forms, ran the gamut from Telugu kritis to Marathi abhangs, all of which bear witness to the great care in diction, breath control and thoughtful modulation that makes her vocal performance transcendent.

Even in her seventies, she learnt new songs and recorded them.

“Music is an ocean and I am a student. For a vocalist, voice practice is important. It has been my habit to learn the meaning of songs I have to sing and the correct pronunciation of each word,” she once wrote in a magazine, when she was 73.

Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi was born in Madurai Sept. 16, 1916. Her childhood name was Kunjamma. Intrigued by the gramophone records, Kunjamma would roll a piece of paper and sing into it for hours. She cut her first disc at the age of 10. The songs were “maragatavadivu” and “Oothukuzhiyinile,” performed in an impossibly high pitch. It was through the Columbia Gramophone Company records she was first noticed in the city of Chennai before she was in her teens.

When she was 15 or 16, she was invited to sing at a wedding. She sang for two hours. The audience was mesmerized. By 1932 MS had become a sort of cult figure for a whole generation of young music lovers. Her mother, Shanmukhavadivu, who played the veena, had decided to come to Madras in 1932 and gave her first concert in Soundarya Mahal.

In 1933, film director K. Subramaniam arranged for a concert of MS in Kumbakonam and she took the town by storm. The approval of Kumbakonam gave MS a chance to give a concert at the Music Academy in Madras.

“My first important performance as a singer was at the Music Academy in Madras,” Subbulakshmi had later reminisced. “It was to be a full-fledged, three-hour concert there before an audience of musicians, critics and music lovers. I was 18. I shivered and trembled before the event. Trying not to look at the listeners, I went up to the stage, sat down, checked the tuning of the tambura, and began.

“Suddenly, my fears fell away. I sang with joy. Chemba Vaidyanath Bhagavatar, a well-known singer, had been sitting at the back. He got up and came to the front row, loudly expressing his approval. Others too were quick to say ‘Bhesh! Bhesh!’ and ‘Shabhash!’ I treasure the words of the great veena player Sambasiva Iyer. He said, ‘Subbulakshmi? Why, she carries a veena in her throat!’

“That concert at the Music Academy was a very big step for me — a step towards a lifetime of singing. And of devotion and service through the pursuit of music.”

Magazines like Ananda Vikatan began reviewing her performances regularly and she was constantly referred to by the press as “Nightingale.”

M.S. Subbulakshmi (l) receiving an honorary degree from erstwhile Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

Subbulakshmi’s first movie Sevasadanam was released in 1938 in which she played a poor girl married to a rich old man. This was followed by Shakuntalai in which she played the lead and glamorous role teaming up with G.N. Balasubramanian.

Subbulakshmi continued to give concerts even at age 80.

“She can still hit the gandhara in the upper octave and make you soar with her,” her granddaughter Gowri Ramnarayan wrote of her illustrious grandmother. “Yes, grandaunt Kunjamma is an inspiring role model, not only for the miracle of her culture: humility, compassion, consideration for others and unwavering principles of conduct.

“Her quest for perfection, sincerity of effort and concentration are not reserved for the stage. They are visible in the camphor light that she circles around the gods and gurus in her puja room. That is why she fills you with the same rapture when she sings a prayer at home, as she does on the concert stage with her eyes-closed final, Kurai onrum illai (Lord, I have no regrets).”

In perfect unison

Never allowing an intrusive moment, the voices of M.S. and Radha sounded like one. GOWRI RAMNARAYAN writes on the deep and abiding bond the two shared.

M.S. and Radha ... inseparable in their heyday.

``SHE HAD no disciples," people shake their heads in regret. Others wonder, ``Why didn't she train someone to carry on her bani?" But Carnatic vocalist Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi (1916-2004) did have someone who not only imbibed her style — and knew her entire repertoire — but was also a flawless accompanist on the stage, giving invaluable support in life. From the day MS entered their household, Sadasivam's daughter Radha (then four years old), developed a special bond for the woman who was to become mother and guru to her. Their mutual attachment was deep and abiding.

Right from the start the child sat next to the performer on the stage and joined in the tailpieces. ``No one taught or told me to sing, no one stopped me either," Radha recalls. MS beamed fondly at the little girl, and so did the entire audience. On one occasion, when a song failed to draw the customary ovation, the child mimed, ``Why no applause?" To everyone's delight, the hall thundered loud and long.

They were inseparable. MS had Radha with her in Calcutta during the shooting of ``Savitri" where the child nursed her through fever and fatigue. In the next film Radha played Bharata to her mother's Sakuntalai, and was later to be the winsome child Meera in the film which made MS a national cult figure.

The musically precocious girl rehearsed the orchestra before MS came to record her songs, and picked out Hindi bhajans for the tunes of the original songs in the Tamil version of the movie.

One day Musiri Subramania Iyer caught the child on the swing, singing her mother's ``Anandamen solvene" from ``Sakuntalai." When he asked, ``Can you sing a kriti?" Radha burst into ``Sudhamayi" in Amritavarshini. At Musiri's instigation she began formal training, first with T. R. Balu, then Mayavaram Krishna Iyer and Ramnad Krishnan. ``Mother was my guru really. She did teach me, but I learnt more by listening," remembers Radha. Soon the young girl became indispensable to the seasoned performer. It was her computer memory that absorbed, filed and recalled everything that mother and daughter learnt together from a whole range of gurus through the decades — from Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, K. S. Narayanaswami and T. Brinda to Dilip Kumar Roy and Siddheshwari Devi.

Trained by guru Vazhuvoor Ramaiah Pillai, young Radha had the privilege of MS singing for her Bharatanatyam recitals. Her most memorable performance was in Birla House, New Delhi, before a desolate Mahatma Gandhi when he was fasting against the Partition. As Radha danced to her mother's lilting ``Ghanshyam ayaari," describing Krishna's sportive play, a smile appeared on Bapu's face. The ashramites thanked the child for making Gandhiji forget his cares for a few minutes. ``Bapu then took me on a walk. Gandhiji's hand on my shoulder! I thought it was a dream!"

At another time, when Radha came down to take Pandit Nehru's autograph during the interval of her Bharatanatyam recital, C. Rajagopalachari took the book and drew a dancing figure beside the Prime Minister's signature.

Why did she give up dancing? Radha doesn't say. You suspect that music was the greater love. Certainly she recalls a rare solo recital in Bombay's NCPA with yearning, and the fact that the reclusive artiste Annapurna (Allauddin Khan's daughter and Pandit Ravi Shankar's first wife) surprised everyone by attending it. What did she say? ``Nothing to me. She told Amma `Your daughter is very good.'" Didn't Radha want to give more recitals on her own? ``I did," she admits. ``But father wanted me to be always there for Amma." Fortunately husband Viswanathan proved most understanding, as did sons Chandrasekhar and Srinivasan. Any regrets? Radha's answer is a smile.

Certainly she has performed with MS at prestigious occasions and venues, for national leaders, royals, statesmen, scientists, artistes and international celebrities of every kind. Her autograph book has signatures from Helen Keller and Marshall Tito.

Radha was a crucial contributor to MS's concerts at the United Nations and Carnegie Hall. Her retentive focus was even more essential at home, as when they rendered the imposing ``Koniyadi," or the 72 mela ragamalika at the Madras Music Academy, and in recordings of the Venkatesa Suprabhatam, Vishnu Sahasranamam, Annamacharya lyrics... Never an intrusive moment, the two voices always sounded like one. ``Once D. K. Jayaraman told me, `You are the best vocal accompanist I've heard.' Years later his disciple Vijay Siva said the same thing," she laughs.

What did her mother say? Chuckling even more Radha replies, ``She always insisted innum nannaa paadanum" (must do better). Until illness compelled her to slowly bow out of the stage no one had ever seen MS perform without Radha by her side. Radha's first CD double album brought out this year by Jass, has the navagraha kritis sung by her at a family function with a sruti box, to which violin (R. K. Shriramkumar) and mridangam (K. V. Prasad) have been added. The selection includes Banturiti (Hamsanadam), Sri Rajagopala (Saveri), Taye Tripurasundari (Suddha Saveri). E natinomu (Bhairavi) and a ragamalika viruttam.

``Before she passed away Amma took the tape in her hands and blessed me."

Finally you ask what made MS a special person. Through a rain of tears Radha replies, ``Her patience. It was endless. Amma put up with every inconvenience, problem, demand. She never thought of herself."

EXCELLENCE

Jewel in the crown

M.S. Subbulakshmi becomes the first musician to receive India's highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna.

GOWRI RAMNARAYAN

WHEN the President of India telephoned Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi to convey the decision to confer on her the award of Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour, she was deeply moved. It was a rare recognition,and she is the firstmusician to be so honoured.

Subbulakshmi, however, could not but feel a profound sense of loss at this moment of fulfilment. Had the honour come her way two months ago, her husband Thiagarajan Sadasivam, who was alive then, would have shared the joy with her. For more than 50 years he had devoted all his energies to guiding her in her pursuit of excellence and in using her art to serve God and man. No individual who approached them with requests for help was turned away unassisted. With their simple, even austere, lifestyles, the couple believed that it was their duty to do as much as they could to improve the lot of others.

Starting in 1944 with concerts for the Kasturba Memorial Fund, Subbulakshmi's performances have raised over Rs. 4 crores for endowing religious, educational, medical, scientific and art institutions. At another level, the electrician who came to repair a fan in their residence would not fail to get financial assistance to educate his son, or get his daughter married. Subbulakshmi could be singing later in the day before Indira Gandhi or Marshal Tito, but she would ensure that every caller, from family friend to chauffeur, was given "tiffin" and coffee. This remains as much part of her culture as the magnificent music she makes.

S. THANTHONI

India is acclaimed the world over for its spiritual legacy. Its traditional arts continue to draw inspiration from this collective heritage. The more historical Bhakti poets and music composers were revered as saints through successive centuries. They found music an indispensable aid to propagate the message of self-surrendering devotion, and service to humanity. They braved criticism from the diehard pedants.

A study of Subbulakshmi's development as a classical musician and a torchbearer of the Bhakti tradition will show that she has followed the same path.

Starting with the conservative and limited repertoire of a family tradition with veena artist Shanmukhavadivu, her mother and first guru, Subbulakshmi improved her skills during her brief tutelage under vidwan Srinivasa Iyengar. After his early demise she enriched her skills by listening to the eminent musicians who visited her home to pay their respects to Shanmukhavadivu. They were invariably surprised and delighted by the young girl's extraordinary voice, its range and sweetness.

Her early gramophone "plates" (78 rpm) "Oothukuzhiyinile" or "Marakata vadivu" testify to nothing more than that. But by the time she was 17 inborn discernment had brought her control and greater finesse. Her modesty made her ever eager to learn and improve, and to revere the stalwarts of classical music - qualities which have never left her.

It was after she left her home town of Madurai, settled in Chennai (in the 1940s) and started learning from Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer (one of her husband's closest friends) that Subbulakshmi's music began to acquire grandeur and depth. Semmangudi reserved his originality for the improvisational elements of his music. His style was majestic, virile and overwhelming. Subbulakshmi absorbed the fine-crafted precision, the weighty classicism and steel, but dovetailed them to her feminine bani . She developed a method of highlighting the sahitya as much as the sangita . More, she expressed the feelings of her own soul in response to what she sang. She was to do that throughout her life whether learning a Meera bhajan from Dilip Kumar Roy, chhota Khyal from Siddheswari Devi, or a complex pallavi from Mazhavarayanendal Subbarama Bhagavatar. As M. Balamuralikrishna once said, M.S. was the first Carnatic musician to bring modulation to her art.

M.S. Subbulakshmi with husband T. Sadasivam.

Everyone who has listened to M.S. knows that the radiance that envelops singer and listener when she performs arises from the emotional elements dominant in her presentation. But the effortlessness is neither magical nor mystic. It came from years of training, practice and thoughtful reflection. With Sadasivam to guide her (until the concert she gave in August 1997 it was he who drew up her schedules and finalised the details of her programme), the purpose of that singing was very clear: a self-forgetful immersion in the bhava . This naturally ensured a similar experience for the listener.

Quite early on, listening to his wife's golden voice, Sadasivam became convinced that it should do something more than entertain or arouse wonder with technical virtuosity and musicianship. He directed her to explore the possibilities of moving people towards patriotism, devotion and humane goals, which he had done in his days, as a freedom fighter, through Subramania Bharati's songs.

In this journey M.S. acquired several "firsts" without even being quite aware of them. She was the first Carnatic musician to have a following in North India, the first also to introduce the South Indian classical system to the West. More obviously, she was the first woman to be awarded the title of Sangita Kalanidhi of the Music Academy, Chennai, a title which is the dream of every Carnatic musician.

In 1966 at the peak of her career, when Subbulakshmi sang at the United Nations, she concluded with the verses of her spiritual guru, the Paramacharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham. This prayer for friendship among nations and the end of warfare urges the cultivation of damyata, datta and dayadhvam (control, charity, compassion) mentioned in the Brihadaranyaka upanishad. When sung by an artist who practised these tenets in her life and art, it became a thrilling finale.

The indescribable quality of her music made M.S. a legendary figure in this country. It made Mahatma Gandhi say that he would rather hear his favourite bhajan spoken by M.S. than sung by any other. It is equally well known that Jawaharlal Nehru hailed her as a Queen of Song. Sarojini Naidu surrendered her title "The Nightingale of India" to M.S. after watching her actualise the experience of the saint poet Meerabai. The 1947 film, produced by her husband, made M.S. a household name in the North as well as the South. Premiered in the year of India's Independence, the film has a message that is even more important now. Meera's rebellion is against power and pelf, against divisions of class and gender.

While she continued to widen her traditional repertoire, M.S. added to it songs, old and new, in different languages, always infused with poignant devotion. Narsi Mehta's "Vaishnava Janato" (a favourite with Gandhiji) was given the same loving polish as the verses of Rabindranath Tagore. Poonthanam Namboodiri, Narayana Tirtha, Sadasiva Brahmendra, Jayadeva, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Kabir, Surdas, Tulsidas, Nanak, Mirabai.... all the poets across the land are part of the M.S. treasury. She never failed to sing in the language of the region, often the lyrics of a favourite poet-composer, wherever she performed. This built instant rapport with audiences everywhere, particularly as her diction was always chaste and lucid.

Among her contributions to Carnatic music, her painstaking labours to propagate the lyrics of the 15th century poet Annamacharya rank high. Contemporary vaggeyakaras like Mysore Vasudevachar and Papanasam Sivan were delighted when M.S. sang their songs in her inimitable style. She never ventured to present anything in public until it was perfectly honed and rehearsed. No one saw her using notebooks as she sang on the stage.

 
A 1954 photograph.

Whenever M.S. learns a new piece, she familiarises herself with the text, writes it down in a notebook with the meaning of each word, phrase, sentence and the verse as a whole. When she learns the music it is with attention to the diction, emphasis and pauses which do not distort the sense. Finally the whole is so completely internalised that she has no longer any need to think of the parts. She is free to infuse the piece with a range of feelings straight from the heart.

At the height of rapture, the careful listener can perceive the restraint, the order and the measured skills. Excess in anything is abhorrent to her as an infringement of good taste. Extremely canny about the editing, she believes that it is vital to creativity. Technical display for its own sake has never interested her, even though with her voice and training she could bring off any flourish in any tempo. M.S. is convinced that music must not draw attention to itself with showiness. It must point to something beyond that. In the last two years or so, on those occasions when the voice was not always in form, M.S. continued to mesmerise with a search more delicate, contemplative, ripe....

Subbulakshmi and Sadasivam sought the blessings of the Kanchi Paramacharya in every endeavour. It was he who chose the pieces for Subbulakshmi's five cassettes of the Balaji Pancharatna mala, which, along with her impeccably rendered "suprabhatams" (morning prayers) to several deities, resound from temples from Kedarnath to Kanyakumari. An arduous task was the recording of Mahavaidyanatha Sivan's magnum opus - a long, imposing composition in the 72 parent ragas of the Carnatic system. When the Paramacharya of Kanchi heard it, he raised his right hand, in benison. "This will last as long as the sun and the moon shine in the sky." Even today, recalling that moment becomes tearful joy for Subbulakshmi; she considers it her highest accolade.

Over the years certain ragas like Sankarabharanam and Khambhoji have come to be recognised as bearing the unmistakable stamp of the best of M.S., as also certain compositions, particularly on the Mother Goddess - "Saroja dalanetri" and "Mayamma" of Syama Sastri, or that stately progression of "Kshirasagara-sayana" in Mayam-alavagowla. The excitement is audible in the hall when she starts "Enta matramu", Annamacharya's philosophic exposition of the oneness of Siva and Vishnu. This last was a favourite of her husband. "Sing it in every concert, sing it for me," he would say.

Among the tailpieces that are lighter but nevertheless have profundity of thought and feeling, her Mira bhajans never failed to move. "Kurai onrum illai" (I have no regrets), a verse by the statesman C. Rajagopalachari whom the Sadasivams venerated as their guide and leader, evokes sighs and tears when M.S. renders it as her concluding piece in every concert.

Since it was first rendered in 1944 for the earlier Tamil version of the film Meera , the song "Kaatrinile varum geetam" invariably sets the audiences applauding even as they hear its first note and syllable. Written by "Kalki" Krishnamurti to bring out the deep, wistful yearning of the human soul through music and poetry, the lyric uses the iconic visuals of the Krishna who blows magic through his flute.

The Upanishads talk of "raso vai sah" - the bliss of oneness with the Absolute. The ancient aestheticians have analysed rasanispatti or the evocation of bliss through art. When M.S. Subbulakshmi sings, the fantasy and hyperbole of the Krishna's flute become living experience for listeners of three generations across this country.

A trip to remember

On September 3, 1977, The Hindu announced that “Smt. M.S. Subbulakshmi will leave Delhi on September 7 on a concert tour of the U.S. to raise funds for the two new Hindu temples – dedicated to Ganesha in New York and to Venkateswara in Pittsburg. This will be her second tour of the States. It is sponsored by the Hindu Temple society of North America of which Mr. C.V. Narasimhan, Under Secretary-General of the United Nations, is the president.”

The press announcement noted that she would be accompanied by “Mr. T. Sadasivam and Mr. K.R. Athmanathan (manager). Her accompanists will be Smt. Radha Viswanathan (vocal), Kandadevi Alagiriswami (violin) and Guruvayur Dorai (mridangam).”

The group travelled via Moscow to London and on September 11, M.S. sang at Her Majesty’s Theatre in aid of the U.K. Centre of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. She “received several bouquets and a standing ovation from a packed audience numbering over a thousand.”

B.K. Nehru, India’s High Commissioner to the U.K., praised her for her generous support for a worthy cause, which netted the Bhavan 2,000 Pounds. On September 14, the Bhavan and the YMCA London held a reception in honour of M.S. and T. Sadasivam at the end of which she and Radha sang bhajans. The Bhavan authorities had every reason to be delighted for the money brought their dreams of purchasing a building in West Kensington closer to fruition. They could now plan to move in by the end of the year.

Dedicated to Ganesha

The party left for New York on September 14. Her U.S. tour began on her birthday, September 16, which was also Vinayaka Chaturthi that year. She gave a brief devotional recital at the Ganesha Temple in New York and then embarked on a coast to coast tour that saw her perform at Toronto, Dallas, Houston, Austin, Washington DC, Chicago, Poughkeepsie, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Boston, San Francisco and Los Angeles. This was followed by performances in London, Germany and Geneva before she returned to India in the second week of November.

At Washington DC, where she sang on September 30, M.S. was given a standing ovation both before and after the performance. In the words of Easwar Sagar, The Hindu’s correspondent, this was “a special gift to the artiste, yesterday was Mrs. Subbulakshmi’s 61st birthday”. Presumably it was date of her birth star as per the Hindu calendar. On October 21, M.S. sang at the Carnegie Hall, New York, which according to The Hindu’s correspondent “is a musical landmark and has featured concerts of musical celebrities of the world since 1918.” He went on to write that a “large audience including a cross-section of the diplomatic community at the United Nations was treated to melodious Carnatic music” and that C.V. Narasimhan presented her as “the first lady of Carnatic music.” The concert tour had benefited the two temples immensely and at Carnegie Hall it was announced that that evening’s performance would be “issued as a concert album and its sale proceeds would go to the temples.”

Her home is sold

M.S. and her group returned to Madras on November 15. During her tour she had ensured that plans for two temples could transform into reality thanks to the money that was collected through her performances.

The Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan could have a new home. Yet the star herself was returning to Madras where she was now without a residence to call her own. The sprawling Kalki Gardens where she and her husband had lived for three decades and had entertained every celebrity possible and had hosted lunches and dinners for many friends and well-wishers, had been sold owing to financial compulsions. She and Sadasivam moved into rented and very small premises in the Valluvar Kottam area. A way of life had ended. It would have been a shock for anyone and for today’s generation where a “mood out” can happen for anything trivial, undertaking an international concert tour and making a success out of it while something as traumatic as the sale of a loved home was taking place, would appear inconceivable. Yet M.S. and Sadasivam had done it, thereby proving that their faith and Gandhian way of life were unshakeable.

Every paisa earned during the concert tour had gone for charity. Had M.S. or Sadasivam so wished, they could have asked for and got a share of the proceeds for themselves. But this was anathema to both of them. On learning of their living in rented premises, M.G. Ramachandran as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, offered them a Government bungalow for free. But the couple refused.

Theirs were hands that could extend only to perform acts of charity and never to receive them. And they practised this till the end.

(The author can be contacted at < language="Java" type="text/java">srirambts [at] gmail [dot] com)

Ragas in frames

The engineer-turned-photographer who always wanted to be a musician, finds his thirst for music quenched in some measure by freezing the legendary music masters of India, with their mood and energy intact.

Hariprasad Chaurasia recently released a book on Raghu Rai's photo series, “India's Great Masters: A Photographic Journey into the Heart of Classical Music.” The photographer has showcased 13 music masters — Ravi Shankar, Zakir Hussain, Vilayat Khan, Ali Akbar Khan, Kumar Gandharva, M.S. Subbulakshmi, Mallikarjun Mansur, S. Balchander, Alla Rakha, Bismillah Khan, Kishori Amonkar, Hariprasad Chaurasia and Bhimsen Joshi. Citing the reason behind the selection, Raghu Rai says, “These are only a few who played not for entertainment but to dispense the aishvarya ras amongst the audience. Their music takes you to such spiritual heights, which otherwise is impossible to attain.” Charting the uniqueness of selected musicians for the book, Raghu says, “Those profiled in this book are not just good musicians, they bear exceptional traits. They may belong personally to any particular gharana but that didn't restrain them to part with their individuality. These people have taken music to greater altitudes.” Perturbed by the question of planning any sequel to the catalogue, Rai says, “The next generation may be earning big name, fame and money, but they are just reproducing the already done. There is no progression. The tapasya which these masters have poured in is simply amiss.”

The photographer, who has spent over four decades shooting unknown Indians with his camera besides capturing personalities like Indira Gandhi and Mother Teresa, is all the more excited to talk about his experience with musicians. He says, “They were looking for the divine shower, and I was busy trying to picture their soul through my lens, and the results find place in this book.” Rai made each one of them play, and some continued for hours, diving deep in their own world of ragas. Ask him if he's satisfied with the outcome, and pat comes the reply: “The captures bear the same energy which dispels when the masters play. In perfect sync is Ashok's crisp narration on the hidden aspects of their lives.” The noted writer and music expert Ashok Vajpeyee, chairman of Lalit Kala Akademi, has done the text for the photographer's book. His profiling of these maestros gives an exquisite snapshot of their uniqueness and greatness. “The passion for music was always there within,” tells Rai. “I always wanted to be a musician, but in a middle-class family, which I belonged to, it was a distant dream to follow. Quite contrarily, I grew up to be an engineer by profession. And photography just happened by accident. Music remained only to be missed.” The photographer tells that even his first salary was spent on nothing else but a record player.

Tapasya

'MS Subbulakshmi's music is relevant even today'

New Delhi: Unquestionably one of the greatest exponents of Carnatic music, MS Subbulakshmi, or 'MS' to her fans, is an icon even to a younger generation brought up on fusion and rock music, the organiser of a music festival to mark the singer’s 95th birth anniversary said on Friday.

'Madura Geetham' is being held for the fourth consecutive year to mark the birth anniversary of legendary singer MS, the first musician ever to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour.

MS was also the first Indian musician to receive the Ramon Magsaysay award, Asia's highest civilian award, in 1974. Former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru once said of MS "Who am I, a mere Prime Minister before a queen, a queen of music."

"Classical music has its own spirit and keeps evolving taking its own shape and colour," Arvind Kumar Sankar, Convenor, INTACH of the Madurai chapter told IBNLive in a phone interview.

"Did you know, MS played the piano and had a piano in her house? There is so much we are learning about MS every day," Sankar said.

As part of the 'Madura Geetham', singers and musicians from four southern states are converging in the temple town to pay musical tribute to the legendary Carnatic singer, as part of the fourth edition of the music festival that started in 2008.

Shankar is confident that Indian classical music is constantly evolving and will not lose its relevance in the time of pop and rock fusions.

Children paid a musical homage to MS at her ancestral home on Hanumantharayar Koil Street on Friday, September 16, singing some of her well known songs, Sankr said.

On September 18, a nine-member all-women team of prominent singers from Kochi, Trichur, Bangalore and Hyderabad will sing popular melodies of MS.

Subbulakshmi's first recording was released at the age of 10 and made her first public performance at the age of 16. The singer who trained under her mother was an expert in devotional musical forms in different languages including Tamil, Kannada, Sanskrit and Malayalam.

She held concerts at Carnegie Hall, New York and the UN General Assembly on UN day in 1966 and was a recipient of the Padma Bhushan in 1954, Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1956, Sangeetha Kalanidhi in 1968.

The Madura concert is a tribute to the melody queen through evergreen, all time favourite songs popularised by her in concerts and films. Traditional and trendy, this music show is a first time experiment by Utsav Music to relive the magic of MS SubuLakshmi.

It is a Carnatic unplugged concert, a bouquet of songs of MS with all genres of songs sung by her. This music celebration is a contemporary approach to classical music, conceived and produced by Sri Churchill Pandian of Utsav Music.

Utsav Music, in association with Krishna Gana Sabha, will stage Geetham Madhuram music tribute on September 16 at Krishna Gana Sabha main hall at 6:30 pm.

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