In my previous blog “A R Rehman’s “Omana Penne” – setting new bench marks in film music”, I had made a mention about the Nadaswaram music bit that captivates you at the end of the song Omanap Penne and also about Karukurichchi Arunachalam’s Nadaswaram at the end of the Konjum Salangai song “Orumayudan ninathu…”
The first time I heard “Omanap penne”, I could not appreciate the full impact of the song, but the Nadaswaram bit played by Natarajan at the end in melodious Bilahari raga definitely caught my attention. “Hey! This is extremely familiar!” was my first reaction. I needed no time to associate it with the “Orumaiyudan Ninathu” song of Konjum Salangai movie of the early sixties. That song was one of my childhood favorites and I have heard it so many times.
“Orumaiyudan Ninathu” song is a devotional “Thiruvartpa” song of the great saint poet Vallalar, soulfully praying for a few non-mundane things from Lord Muruga. Unless the music and singing matches very well in rendering the song, the impact of the verse has every chance to get lost. That’s where the great music director S. M. Subbiah Naidu’s genius finds display. The very choice of Bilahari Raga for this song fits aptly to the mood of the song; A wonderful singing by the classically trained Soolamangalam Rajalakshmi adds to the emotional depth. And after the song ends, the masterly flow of Bilahari from Karukuruchchi follows.
Now coming back to the comparison.
Raga Bilahari is such that its nuances come out mostly in some typical sancharas and naturally anybody doing alapana of Bilahari cannot miss those sancharas. Taking into account that fact too, it was still obvious that what Rehman etched in the Nadaswaram part of the song was in a large way following the pattern of what Karukuruchchi played at the end of the “Orumaiyudan Ninathu” song!
Are we then to accuse A R Rehman of copying music from S M Subbiah Naidu? No. That sounds rather too much! A R Rehman, as a musical buff right from childhood would have definitely heard and got inspired by the Konjum Salangai song. Perhaps he was waiting for an apt opportunity to recreate the beautiful combination of a song culminating in Nadaswaram, and in Omanap Penne he gave outlet to it in his own unique style.
If we delve deeper in to both the rendering, we can definitely observe lots of subtle differences in the play of Nadaswaram.
In Orumayudan Ninathu song, Karukuruchchi’s nadaswaram was brilliant, bright, masterly, technically sound and authoritative. His awesome mastery over the instrument cannot be missed. The raga with all its possible nuances simply flows like a torrent, albeit played for a brief duration. But if you observe keenly, you can notice that it lacked the soul stirring devotion that the song carried. Bhakthi bhava was definitely missing.
On the other hand, in Natarajan’s nadaswaram rendering in Omanap penne, though played on a sound classical footing with all the characteristic sancharas of the raga intact, the technical mastery and brilliance seen in Karukuruchchi’s rendition are definitely missing. However, when it comes to reflecting the mood of the song, A R Rehman definitely has paved the notes pretty well and Natarajan has brought the mood in an exemplary manner in his rendition.
It’s time for you to hear both the songs and make your own judgment. Very fortunately, the old Konjum Salangai song is very much available to us through Youtube:
The fans of Indian Music Legend A R Rahman and themusic enthusiast may be aware; about a world tour on ‘Jai Ho Concert’ by AR Rahman. ARR’s world tour started in June and he’s already covered NY, NJ, Chicago, Toronto, LA and San Fransisco, Texas, Netherlands, Scotland, England.
Unfortunately A R Rahman’s current music expedition has been rescheduled. The concerts that were due to take place in Zurich on July 16th, Paris July 17th and Mannheim on July 18th have had to be delayed due to situations away from control.
The classy production and set creative involves custom state of the skilled ensemble gears and staging. After four consecutive highly victorious concerts, the musical tour was disrupted by a serious mishap in Detroit (US), where part of the stage infrastructure collapsed, destroying most of the staging, lighting and musical instruments. The shows in North America have been rescheduled for September.
New Show Dates Will Be Announced Soon
Yavi Media is still working with AR Rahman’s management team to get a new show date. NEW SHOW DATES WILL BE ANNOUNCED soon. Although we are still working on getting a new show date. We apologies for the inconvenience caused.
A R Rahman Speaks On ‘Jai Ho Concert’
Mr. Rahman regrets any inconvenience caused and is apologetic to his fans and all those who have contributed to the tour. The shows will be rescheduled as soon as possible. “In my 15 years of music concerts I have always put my fans first. The accident in Detroit has had a profound effect on all of us. The band, dancers and crew and I are all highly disappointed, but it is the fans to whom I send the most heart felt apology.” A.R. Rahman
Memories Of ‘Jai Ho Concert’ At MARG Swarnabhoomi
MARG profoundly draws the memories of ‘Jai Ho Concert’ presented by A R Rahman that was organized in MARG Swarnabhoomi last year. Below space ‘Jai Ho Concert’ pictures for instant viewing
Music Legend A R Rahman and other celebrities look At Mr. GRK Reddy Addressing The Music Audience
A R Rahman On The Piano For A Song By Hariharan In ‘Jai Ho Concert’
Percussionist Sivamani Performing In ‘Jai Ho Concert’
Memories Of Live In Concert – ‘Jai Ho‘ By A.R.Rahman At MARG Swarnabhoomi, ECR
MARG group launched ‘MARG SWARNABHOOMI’ with a soul stirring concert by music maestro A R Rahman. The “Live Life concert by Rahman” was the perfect launch pad for the future city, being cited as a jewel in the crown for the state of Tamil Nadu.
Addressing Chennai at the concert, Mr. G R K Reddy, CMD, MARG Ltd. said, “A youthful city, MARG Swarnabhoomi will herald a new way to live life to its fullest”. He added, “MARG Swarnabhoomi marks a milestone for the nation as it signals infrastructure democracy and a new mindset, as people start moving to satellite planned cities. It is only befitting that this new city conceived with a passion is inaugurated with the reverberations of Rahman’s music
Live ‘Jai Ho‘ Concert – Mozart Of Madras To Fascinate US Audiences With A True Fusion Of Music
A.R. Rahman acclaimed as a music maestro and composer, is now much adored from his Oscar and Grammy-winning titles. A.R. Rahman is all set to embark the 45-day world tour titled ‘A.R. Rahman Jai Ho Concert: The Journey Home World Tour’ on a highly anticipated US tour to wow audiences in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Washington DC, Chicago, Los Angeles, Detroit, Raleigh, San Francisco and Houston. The Music maestro as he enthralls audiences in the US, as part of a world tour would take him across America, Canada, France, Switzerland, Holland and Britain.
A.R. Rahman will be accompanied by a band of attired dancers, artiste from Cirque de Soleil and a Mongolian contortionist. State-of-the-art with ultra-modern light-mapping technology will juggle virtual motion picture, exhibiting a delusion stimulated by the music’s cinematic sources.
Articulation Of The Music Legend
Conventionally, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Punjabi and Gujarati music aspirants from India and South Asian audience from Pakistanis, Sri Lankans and Bangladeshis,’ said Rahman. From the time of triumph from ‘Slumdog Millionaire,’ a likely fraction of the audience will be new and inimitable.
Rahman, who would like Americans to know more about the diversity of Indian cinema, said he had a new global listener in mind when he assembled the material. ‘We tried to pick out songs that would be universally appealing, to mix together elements in ways that have never been done before. It’s very exciting.’
Hallucination Of ‘Jai Ho‘ Concert At US
‘It will be a blend of the East and West, from Bharatnatyam to pop and tap dance,’ said Amy Tinkham creative director of the concert.
The concert will span throughout Rahman’s career, right from its inception with ‘Roja’ to the latest hit ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ which brought him the Oscar. Besides these, there will be songs from ‘Laagan’, ‘Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na’, ‘Dil Se’, ‘Rang De Basanti’ and his other creations.
‘In the 150-minute musical spectacle, the very soul of India can be experienced. From the myths of rural India to the colours of the festivities, the rhythm and beats of the urban culture, this musical concert will have it all,’ said producer Deepak Gattani of Rapport Productions.
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MARG group launched ‘MARG SWARNABHOOMI’ with a soul stirring concert by music maestro A R Rahman. The “Live Life concert by Rahman” was the perfect launch pad for the future city, being cited as a jewel in the crown for the state of Tamil Nadu.
Addressing Chennai at the concert, Mr. G R K Reddy, CMD, MARG Ltd. said, “A youthful city, MARG Swarnabhoomi will herald a new way to live life to its fullest”. He added, “MARG Swarnabhoomi marks a milestone for the nation as it signals infrastructure democracy and a new mindset, as people start moving to satellite planned cities. It is only befitting that this new city conceived with a passion is inaugurated with the reverberations of Rahman’s music
