New album on Swathi Thirunal krithis
Compiled by KutcheriBuzz Staff / Chennai
 Malayala Manorama (one of the leading newspapers in India which is published in Malayalam in the south Indian state of Kerala) is bringing out a CD and cassette of Swathi Thirunal krithis rendered by Aswathi Thirunal Verma, a well known vocalist. The event is scheduled for November 25 evening at the Tagore Theatre in Thiruvananthapuram. The CD will be released by maestro Dr.M.Balamuralikrishna and the first copy will be received by Valayappatti A.R.Subramaniam. This will be followed by a concert of Verma.
About Maharajah Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma
Maharajah Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma (16 April 1813 - 25 December 1846) of Travancore was a multi faceted personality who made his mark in various capacities - as an able ruler, administrator, reformer, visionary, poet, musician, philosopher and linguist.
But he is mostly remembered now for his phenomenal musical accomplishments. He remains the single individual to date who had mastered both the styles of Indian classical music - Hindusthani and Carnatic to such an extent that he went on to compose the most exquisite music pieces. More than three hundred have been documented with "new" ones still being discovered here and there periodically, in both these styles that his admirers say 'remain unparalleled in their poetic, lyrical and musical content and for their sheer lilt and sweetness.'
Compositions on many deities
Though he was a devotee of Vishnu himself (and used various synonyms for Padmanabha like Sarasija Nabha, Kamala Nabha, Neeraja Nabha as his signature in his compositions) he composed exquisite songs on a whole range of deities like Ganesha, Shiva, Saraswathi, Lakshmi, Durga, Rama, Krishna, Narasimha, Hanuman and Subramaniam.... And unlike many other composers he never wavered from his own dignity and individuality as a human being by describing himself as a wretch or a sinner or some other form of low life and begging the Lord to show some mercy. He wrote compositions depicting God as Supreme Lord and Master of the Universe as well as a personal friend and even as a lover, romantic love being one of the most intense and acute forms of love that a man can experience.
Resurrected songs
Though he made his mark in Varnams, Keerthanams, Padams, Javalis, Thillanas and Hindusthani compositions like Dhrupads, Khayals, Thumris, Tappas, Taranas and Bhajans in languages like Sanskrit, Malayalam, Telugu, Kannada, Manipravalam (a mixture of Malayalam and Sanskrit) Hindi and Braj Bhasha, the typically charming "Swathi touch" shines through equally from each of these compositions making him a musical genius, his admirers say. Being a king, as he did not have a continuous line of disciples, the tunes for many of his songs were lost.
These were tuned by various people with varying levels of success, competance and aesthetic sense. But with the passage of time, there seems to be a greater understanding of the man and his music these days and the compositions are being slowly resurrected and presented in the way they must have been intended to be sung.
>> Do you want to share info on your collection of albums/songs on Swathi Thirunal's songs? E-mail us your info so that other rasikas can appreciate the music. E-mail to editor@kutcheribuzz.com>>
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