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Reproducing Carnatic Vocal Nuances
Contrary to popular belief that Carnatic flute could emulate the vocal aspects of Carnatic music very well in theory as described in the flute playing skills of the legendary Lord Krishna in ancient India, practical development on the vocal techniques of Carnatic flute music only saw the light of the day towards the 2nd half of the 20th century with the effort of revolutionary flautists like Tirupamburam Swaminatha Pillai and T R Mahalingam with the later hailed as the most exceptional in developing most of the vocal techniques in the Carnatic flute. T R Mahalingam himself was influenced by various forms of Carnatic music at an early age, i.e. the violin and harmonium music of Gopala Iyer, his first teacher and a kinsman of his father Ramaswamy Iyer. It was Gopala Iyer who discovered Mali's innate aptitude in playing the Carnatic flute with an unparalleled vocal finesse unheard of yet in those times.
Flute Mali's discovery of the vocal techniques in playing Carnatic flute was more of an inner calling than a need for he played the instrument that suited to his satisfaction rather than a determined pursuit to progress the flute playing techniques of the day to the next level. While Mali's discovery was more a result of his inner musical spiritual adventure, very much parallel to the spiritual experiences of Srinivasa Ramanujam's brilliant mathematical outpourings, his students and particularly Dr. N. Ramani refined Mali's techniques scientifically and deliberately so that the vocal aspects of Carnatic flute music remains as a staple audience expectation in future Carnatic flute recitals.
Dr. N. Ramani's own scientific development of the vocal techniques of Carnatic flute playing was also chiefly a result of his own exposure to the music of yesteryear vocal stalwarts like Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar, Maharajapuram Viswanatha Iyer, Musiri Subramaniyar Iyer, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, Alathoor Brothers, G. N. Balasubramaniam, M. S. Subbulakshmi, Thanjavur S. Kalyanaraman and the like. The amalgamation of all these experiences of vocal music led to the development of intricate finger work in the Carnatic flute playing that became distinctively known as the Ramani-style or the Ramani-bani. While these techniques are mostly the same, subtle differences do exist depending on the position and style of playing the flute and these differences need to exist so that the desired vocal nuances could be heard without blemish
Attempts were made by the famous flautist T. Viswanathan to write these techniques in a unique notation but that failed to gain momentum as subtle differences in the finger work exist depending on the player's playing style. The only way to master these techniques is to have a sharp ear to understanding the vocal nuances of Carnatic vocal music and developing the ability to reproduce the nuances on the Carnatic flute. Such a Carnatic flute player regardless of his or her status as an amateur or a professional is certainly classified as being competent in the art.
Some Strings from the Carnatic Violin
Though the Carnatic violin is a recent addition to the Carnatic ensemble of instruments, it made its mark in reproducing the vocal nuances of Carnatic music extremely well within a relatively short span of time since its inception in the early 19th century of British India. Both Flute Mali and later on Dr N. Ramani performed alongside the Carnatic violin and made their distinctive mark in reproducing many of the violin instrumental techniques on the Carnatic flute remarkably well further pushing the possibilities of Carnatic flute playing. Flute Mali himself a violin player was an ardent admirer of the violin maestro Papa Venkataramaiah and would sit for hours observing Papa Venkataramaiah's violin renditions and Dr. N. Ramani held in high regard the finesse and the compositions of the legendary violin maestro Lalgudi G. Jayaraman as well as his contemporaries like M. S. Gopalakrishnan and T. N. Krishnan.
In particular, many of the thillanas of Lalgudi Jayaraman were popularised by Dr. N. Ramani and he also taught these challenging pieces to his legions of students the world over. Such was the musical craftsmanship of the violin maestro often composing in unconventional melodic structures that he won outstanding appraisal from his contemporaries including a famous appraisal from Lord Yehudi Menuhin who is often called the greatest violinist of modern times. Lord Yehudi Menuhin was so enthralled by Lalgudi Jayaraman's performance that he presented his own violin as a gift to the former in the 70s.
The Sonorous Melodies of the Nageswaram
Unbeknownst to many, the Nageswaram is arguably the most influential instrument in traditional temple music during the performing era of Carnatic music which took form in the late 1800s. Many of the greatest vocal stalwarts like M. S. Subbulakshmi and Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer soaked themselves in the melodic outpourings of Carnatic music in morning temple recitals becoming a strong creative conduit for developing improvised music. Among the greatest and most influential Nageswaram maestros include but not limited to are T N Rajarathinam Pillai, Karukuruchi Arunachalam and Naamagiripettai Krishnan.
T. N. Rajarathinam Pillai was such a force to be reckoned with that even the superstars of the day G. N. Balasubramaniam and the flute wizard Flute Mali listened to rapt attention the genius of his music and imbibed many of the Nageswaram techniques in their performances often enthralling their audiences to flights of unending musical ecstasy. Flute Mali and T. N. Rajarathinam Pillai remained as close friends for many years and shared and exchanged many a musical experiences and practice sessions further enriching each others' already exceptional musical wisdom.
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