Topic started by Rohan Krishnamurthy (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on Sat May 25 19:04:35 .
All times in EST +10:30 for IST.

As a great disciple of the mridanga vidwan Late. Pazhani Subramanium Pillai, I would like to gather some information on the maestro. Share your comments/anecdotes/etc:

Responses:

• From: Rohan (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on: Sat May 25 19:06:15
  
  To start it off, Pazhani was a left-handed mridangist hailing from the Pudukottai school (which was later perfected by him). He was a disciple of the legendary Late. Pudukottai Dakshinamurthy Pillai and his father mridangist Late. Pazhani Muthiah Pillai.
  
  
• From: meena (@ user-105ndf7.dialup.mindspring.com) on: Sun May 26 01:21:21
  
  http://www.geocities.com/rohan_krishnamurthy/biographies_os_carnatic_musicians/Mridangam/Pazhani_Pillai.htm
  
  
• From: Rohan (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on: Sun May 26 12:13:11
  
  Thank you Meena for the link, but as you might have observed, I made that page! I was hoping to get some personal information on the master, more than biographical information.
  
  
• From: meena (@ user-1121eft.dsl.mindspring.com) on: Sun May 26 15:05:15
  
  ha! did not notice! hope this will help.
  ://planetmridangam.tripod.com/Mridangam/grtplayers.htm
  
  
• From: meena (@ user-1121eft.dsl.mindspring.com) on: Sun May 26 15:07:45
  
  http://planetmridangam.tripod.com/Mridangam/halloffame.html
  
  
• From: Rohan (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on: Sun May 26 15:19:35
  
  I've seen that site. Thanks anyway.
  
  
• From: Nick (@ host.sumitomomarine.co.uk) on: Mon May 27 09:41:00
  
  Rohan, as a student of a a man who was himself a student of PSP, I think you have a better chance of getting such stuff than any of us! The only other source I can think of would be Trichy Sankaranan.
  
  If you succeed please let us know!!!
  
  
• From: Rohan (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on: Mon May 27 10:45:55
  
  Good idea. Guruvayur Dorai will be staying with me for the next few days, so lets see what he has to say!
  
  
• From: Mani (@ spider-wd073.proxy.aol.com) on: Mon May 27 23:47:19
  
  Rohan,
  
  Have you ever considered learning to play any other drums?
  
  
• From: nick (@ host.sumitomomarine.co.uk) on: Tue May 28 07:30:20
  
  Mani,
  
  Why, don't you like his mridangam playing ;-) ?!?!?!?
  
  
• From: Man (@ spider-wc012.proxy.aol.com) on: Tue May 28 13:46:23
  
  nick,
  
  I never said I didn't like it! I think it is absolutely wonderful!;-)
  I was just wondering if he has any desire to learn to play other types of percussion.
  
  
• From: Mani (@ spider-wc012.proxy.aol.com) on: Tue May 28 13:46:29
  
  nick,
  
  I never said I didn't like it! I think it is absolutely wonderful!;-)
  I was just wondering if he has any desire to learn to play other types of percussion.
  
  
• From: Rohan (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on: Tue May 28 15:56:30
  
  Mani,
  
  Just wondering, have you heard my play before?
  
  Anyhow, it is not that I do not have an interest in learning other instruments but that there is SO much to learn in mridangam itself that I feel I will be doing an injustice to both instruments, learning each half-baked! But I do listen to other drums and other music, which in turn can enhance my playing. For instance, most of the legendary mridangist adapted styles from other instruments, namely Palghat Mani and the chendai, and Pazhani and the Thavil.
  
  This is something I believe is the key to enhancing any music system; learning from other music systems.
  
  
  
  
• From: Mani (@ spider-tn082.proxy.aol.com) on: Tue May 28 23:09:05
  
  Rohan,
  
  Sorry, I haven't heard you play yet, but it would be nice hearing you play.
  I'm sure it takes a lot of endurance to play the mridangam since you are using your fingers. Playing drums like chendai really doesn't need skill, but a good pair of arms! Thavil needs skill if you are playing the big side with fingers, but with sticks is more easier (but that type of playing is more for folk dances, and processions).
  I'm considering to play the urumi and thavil.
  
  
• From: Nick (@ host.sumitomomarine.co.uk) on: Wed May 29 06:38:19
  
  Mani, please do not underestimate drum players who use sticks instead of fingers! Especially within the Southern Indian traditions. Playing any instrument takes stamina and more or less strength, but Chenda really does take more than strong arms: there is a lot of delicate wrist work. Left-hand side of Thavil is harder to play with stick than with hand (especially Gumaka). But, above all, it is the knowledge and rhythm sense that is, I would suggest, by far the hardest part of learning any of our (please accept my adoption!) South Indian percussion.
  It is true that personaly I find the sound of mridangam more pleasant than eg chenda. But listen to the accuracy of chenda players, the precice nadai changes that quickly leave me wondering where the beat is.
  I don't know: maybe procession and ritual music lacks some of the complexity of concert music. But it is still amazing.
  Good luck with the Thavil! You will need patient neighbours, it is so loud! By the way, what is urumi?
  
  
• From: Nick (@ host.sumitomomarine.co.uk) on: Wed May 29 06:40:50
  
  By the way, I was lucky enough to be able to stand close to A. Sivamani when he performed in London recently. I don't know anything about drum-kit playing, but I was amazed to realise that, at one point, he was playing so fast that I could not see the sticks moving.
  
  
• From: Mani (@ spider-wd023.proxy.aol.com) on: Wed May 29 12:15:25
  
  Nick,
  
  Chendai and mridangam go under two different genre of music. Chendai is just more for processions and temples, as well as the thavil.
  Yeah I know thavil is loud, even though I'm considering to play with sticks only!
  Urumi is a drum played in Kerala and TN. It also takes skill, because one side is rubbed with a curved stick, while the other is struck, it gives a distinct sound. Mainly used in temple/folk processions with thavil and pambai.
  
  
• From: Rohan (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on: Wed May 29 15:48:04
  
  I will have to agree with Nick on this one! South Indian classical music has a much more complicated system of rhythm than anyother music system in the world. Instruments like the chandai are, to my knowledge, less complicated than mridangam and thavil, but by no means easy. Chendai is actually similar to many African and Carribbean drums, in which it simply provides a constan rhythm.
  
  I will have to disagree with Mani on the fact that thavil is easier and for procession use. It is true it is used for processions and not so much in concerts (possibly even due to caste reasons!), but the intricacies that go along with it are paralell to that of mridangam. The calculations they perform are mind boggling (that is the permuatation and combinations). This is one of the many reasons mridangist adapted so many cholus from the thavil.
  
  The art of thavil is highly complex.
  
  
  
• From: Mani (@ spider-tf031.proxy.aol.com) on: Wed May 29 23:35:10
  
  Rohan,
  
  No no no! I meant chendai is for processions, I heard thavil in Carnatic music also, especially with nadaswaram, it sounds different (also for weddings, and engagement parties). Playing it in a procession for folk like karakattam, or kavadiyattam, it sounds TOTALLY different because you are using two sticks.
  
  
• From: Nick (@ host.sumitomomarine.co.uk) on: Thu May 30 10:16:15
  
  Mani,
  I have only been able to find a small mention of Umri on the www. This is a new one to me! is it anything like eduka?
  
  
• From: Mani (@ spider-wd073.proxy.aol.com) on: Thu May 30 11:50:52
  
  Nick,
  
  Actually, it sounds somewhat similar to udukku, you know? It has a more deeper sound, like a growling of some sort of animal. Anyway, best heard with thavil and pambai. I will post a song that has urumi in it (you will also hear ekkalam, which is another beautiful wind instrument).
  
  
• From: Vani Iyer (@ cpe0080c6f8642d.cpe.net.cable.rogers.com) on: Thu May 30 13:20:00
  
  While I cannot recall the details, I do know that my father, the late P.S. Ramachandran of Central Railways,(Carnatic vocalist, AIR artiste,) and music critic for the Times of India, Bombay and Administrative Vice Principal of Shanmukhananda, Bombay during his retirement (86-92), started out as a kanjira player learning with Pazhani Subramania Pillai. Pillai presented him with a fine kanjira bearing his initials.Apparently he was a soft spoken, sincere person who gave my father a lot of guidance (1949-50)and also encouraged my father to get into vocal mainstream complimenting him on his strong voice. My father attributed his strong sense of layam, rhythym to his association with Pazhani Subramania Pillai. He perfected some of his Pallavis in practice sessions with him in an informal setting.
  
  
• From: Mani (@ spider-wd071.proxy.aol.com) on: Thu May 30 13:28:00
  
  Nick,
  
  http://raaga.com/channels/tamil/moviedetail.asp?mid=T0000382
  
  As soon as Manicka sings "yelae imayamalai..", you will hear the urumi being played, and throughout the song it is present.
  
  
• From: Rohan (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on: Thu May 30 15:43:52
  
  Thank you Vani Iyer for your comments.
  
  Correction observed Mani.
  
  I have one misconception about Pazhani I want to clear up. Many people say Pazhani plays just like the song, this in fact is not true. His playing is very melodius and flows seamlessly, but he frankly does not "play the song." He incorporates lots of cholus while playing for the song, which really doesnt follow this term of playing the song. (I was informed of this by my guru Guruvayur Dorai yesterday.)
  
  
• From: Rohan (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on: Fri May 31 15:17:44
  
  After discussing several matters with my guru, I found out some interesting information on Pazhani.
  
  It seems that he was a very hesitant performer. To quote my guru, "he (Pazhani) developed literally hundreds of unique tisra nadai cholus at home but was never confident to play them on the stage. Many a time, he would say that what he created would be too difficult for the other performers to put thalam to, so he would discard it!"
  
  My guru also added that Pazhani was most confident with artists who were strong in layam, namely Alathur Brothers and GNB. The best "Pazhani thanis" were for these artists, generally.
  
  
  
• From: Rohan (@ 24.247.121.197.kzo.mi.chartermi.net) on: Sat Jun 1 07:38:53
  
  One correction, I think best (...Pazhani thani) in the previous reply should also be in quotes!
  
  His thanis were similar to the singing pattern of the artist.
  
  
• From: G.Mohan (@ ppp-219.65.37.56.mum2.vsnl.net.in) on: Fri Nov 12 01:33:01
  
  he was great with musiri and also MMI. I think he was the greatest ever accompanist, even better than Mani Iyer
  
  

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