LYRICS IN CARNATIC MUSIC: A FRESH PERSPECTIVE (Hardcover)

The love South Indians have for Carnatic Music is at once unique and paramount. In fact, people travel to Chennai to attend the concerts held under by various associations and institutions. As a musician and a lover of music concerts, I have attended many programmes by renowned musicians. While the expertise is unquestionable and unparalleled, it was quite often painful to see that not knowing the language in which the compositions are written, often, the musicians would miss the emotion that is expressed in the compositions, because they did not understand the lyrics completely. Musically the concert would be more than excellent, but often lacking in emotion. The main reason for this is because most of these lyrics are in Telugu, one of the four South Indian languages. Some musicians who knew the language did well, but many left a lot to desire. This lack of understanding of the lyrics has prompted me to pen this book for the benefit of all good singers and music lovers, so that the concerts and music in general becomes more and more enjoyable for both. The Author: Well known Carnatic Music exponent ‘Surmani’ K.S. Vasantha Lakshmi is a Top Grade Singer of All India Radio/Door Darshan in Carnatic as well as Hindustani Genre of Music and an empanelled artist of ICCR. A recipient of Presidents Award in the All India Radio Competitions and of “SURMANI” title from Sur Singar Samsad of Mumbai. She is a disciple of Late Shri M.S. Balasubrahmanya Sharma, (Sangeet Natak Academy Awardee). She was a part of the fourteen member team of singers who recorded “Ram Charit Manas” as “Manas Gaan” for twelve years from All India Radio Bhopal which was released as seven ACDs by Hon. PM Shri Narendra Modi in 2015 and received a special Citation for her contribution to this magnum opus. Vasantha Lakshmi has the unique distinction of performing at the St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, United Kingdom, on the occasion of the Centenary Celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi in the august presence of dignitaries like Lord Mountbatten, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Indian High Commissioner. She has many international performances. She hails from Andhra Pradesh and is well versed in all South Indian languages and in Sanskrit in which Carnatic music flourished. Telugu is her mother tongue and she, as an avid writer, has a deep insight and appreciation of the lyric in Carnatic music, most of which is written by Thyagaraja, Shyama Shastri and Bhakta Ramadas and Annamacharya in Telugu. Sanskrit had a divine place in Carnatic music which is predominantly religious and many other proponents like Muthuswamy Dikshitar, Swati Tirunal scripted their music in Sanskrit. Vasantha Lakshmi’s mastery over singing, the song and the poetry and her lucid style of expression makes her admirably suited for expositing the lyrical beauty in Carnatic music for the benefit of the present and future generations of musicians and connoisseurs of music.