percussionist/drummers - Page 4

Father Kannusamy Pillai had multi-dimensional talent.

Brother Ganesa Pillai was an ashtavadani.

Gurus: Pasupathi Ayya Pillai, Meenakshisundaram Pillai and Raghava Pillai

What I miss most today is the absence of 'rakthi' playing which used to be an integral part of the nagaswaram-thavil combine.

"My father, Ammachatram Kannuswami Pillai (1876-1933) was renowned as a sakalakala vidwan. A great thavil vidwan, he was also a fine vocalist and sahitya-sangita kartha who composed several tillanas and kritis. He mastered the mridangam, dholak, nagaswaram and jalatarangam. His keen swara gnanam and knowledge of laya and melodic intricacies made him a much sought after guru for a galaxy of disciples such as Tiruvazhaputhur Pasupathi Pillai (thavil), Mudicondan Venkatrama Iyer (vocal) and of course, the incomparable T.N.Rajaratnam Pillai (nagaswaram)," says 87-year-old thavil vidwan Mayavaram A.K.Venugopal Pillai.

Brother Tiruvazhundur Ganesa Pillai was a vainika and an ashtavadhani whose feats included pallavi singing with both hands and feet marking different nadais while keeping count of flowers thrown at random intervals.

The famous nagaswara vidwan Vedaranyam Vedamurthi was his nephew. Small wonder then, that music was Venugopal Pillai's destiny.

"Though I later settled in Mayavaram, I hail from Tiruvazhundur. Like most thavil artistes, I began learning at the 'Gurupeetam' of thavil under Pasupathi Ayya Pillai. Wonderfully kind and encouraging, he treated his disciples as his own children. His teaching was so thorough that a student would be groomed for performance in 6-12 months," says Pillai. The training continued under the legendary Needamangalam Meenakshisundaram Pillai.

"What amazing sollu suddham! Such beautiful vallinam-mellinam (thick and thin modulation) in his playing," exclaims Pillai. "My guru was especially famed for his expertise in producing the sollu 'nam' elicited by hitting near the rim of the valanthalai (right face) with the index finger.

While a thick viral koodu (finger guard) is usually worn at the end of four fingers, my guru wore an especially narrow one on the index finger, to ensure clarity of 'nam.'

He was fittingly conferred the title 'Abhinava Nandikeswarar.' It was the recognition accorded to his vidwat that created the status of 'special thavil' i.e. an exceptionally skilled thavil vidwan accompanying the nagaswara vidwans independent of their usual 'set.'" Venugopal Pillai emphatically asserts that the thavil is a sruti vadyam. "It must be in sync with the toppi oli and pitch defined by the othu. In fact, his guru usually took along an extra thavil for kutcheris, to counter any atmospherically induced variations in the instrument's sruti. For instance, during concerts at Tuticorin, a seaside town, he would play a thavil of higher pitch, as the salty air would soon have the effect of lowering the pitch to the required level."

From age 12-13, Venugopal Pillai was taken under the wing of another all-time great, Nachiarkoil Raghava Pillai, son-in-law of Needamangalam. "He personified simple living and high thinking. His style was marked by majestic powerful sollus that carried loud and clear across great distances. His great sense of humour came to the fore on the occasion when the well-known patron, Krishnamurthy 'Kitta' Iyer was in the vicinity during a purappadal and my guru played the sollu 'kitta kitathari' ending with 'kitta kitta' until Kitta Iyer hastened to the spot, wryly remarking, 'You have actually summoned me without uttering a single word!'"

Pillai throws light on near-forgotten fascinating details. "Earlier, goat skin was used for valanthalai, which yielded nuances. Nowadays, calf skin, which produces greater volume but fewer nuances, is used. Then, the kottu thattu and vettu thattu were fastened by hand. Now, a machine handles kottu thattu (top layer of right face). Perhaps what I miss most today is the absence of 'rakti' playing which used to be an integral part of the nagaswaram-thavil combine."

Anecdotes, reminiscences, moments etched in memory. Goosebumps as you learn about the blazing intensity of sadhana and lofty peaks scaled in a world peopled by musical giants who lived solely for and through their art.

"To accompany Rajaratnam Pillai was to be transported to a different plane. He would play all night stringing a garland of ragas that mesmerised. Every facet sparkled, each idea was a revelation. I have also been greatly moved by Tiruveezhimizhalai Nataraja Sundara Pillai's nagaswaram and Madurai Mani Iyer's singing."

Pillai has travelled extensively. "There were many programmes in Singapore and Sri Lanka. We travelled by ship. Once, however, I took a flight from Tiruchi to Yazhpanam. The fare? Just 35 rupees!"

Awards and titles include Kalaimamani, Kala Seva Ratna and Thavil Isai Vendan. Among his disciples are prominent thavil vidwans such as Needamangalam Shanmugavadivel, Tiruvazhaputhur Kaliamurthy and many others during his teaching tenure at the Adyar Music College.

Of four daughters and their children, none has taken to music as a profession. Pillai marvels that a grandson is training to become a pilot. "Everyone has a different talent."

Reliving the amazing gamut of experiences that life has offered, what are his thoughts? "My gurus were legends in their own life time and I enjoyed their affection and regard. I have played in over 3,000 performances with some of the greatest vidwans. My disciples are established performers. By God's grace, my family is well settled. I have lived a full life with music as my constant companion. What more can an artist ask for?" muses this karma yogi who radiates the serenity and contentment of a man utterly at peace with himself and the world.

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Nearly 25 years ago, filmmaker Prakash Jha made a documentary on Kathakali. While shooting a segment on functional music, he requested legendary chenda artiste Kalamandalam Krishnankutty Poduwal to explain the role of the chenda in Kathakali. The aphoristic reply of Poduwal was: "Kathakali sans the chenda is like a sea without waves."

In the post-Poduwal period, many percussionists emerged to entertain rasikas with their technical virtuosity on the chenda. But there was one instrumentalist who proved through his performance that one needs to have multifaceted faculties to accompany Kathakali actors. Kalamandalam Unnikrishnan is, perhaps, the only player of his generation who could follow in the footsteps of Poduwal.

Kulathoor village in Malappuram district, where Unnikrishnan hails from, has a temple-music tradition. His father was a locally renowned percussionist. Little surprise then that Unnikrishnan was drawn towards drumming even at a tender age. Incidentally, his brother Kottakal Revi is an ace maddalam artiste.

Pallassana Chandramannadiyar and Kalamandalam Achunni Poduwal were in charge of the faculty of chenda at Kalamandalam during the 1970's. Unnikrishnan was fortunate to be under the wings of these two titans for years. He could assimilate the technical brilliance of Mannadiyar and the melliflous strokes of Achunni Poduwal.

The initial years of training in Kathakali chenda is restricted to the learning of the 'patakkai,' followed by short segments of pieces in Thayambaka such as pathikaalam and kooru along with mnemonics. These exercises help the students fine tune his 'nerkol' (vertical fall of the stick at the centre of the chenda's surface) and 'urulukai' (the sounds produced on the chenda by the sticks by twisting the arms inward and outward) The gifts of an accompanist bear fruit only when he learns the semantics and the inner rhythms of the performing art concerned.

As for Kathakali, the 'cholliyattakkalari' is the acid test for budding chenda and maddalam artistes. Here again, Unnikrishnan was lucky as he got plenty of opportunities to practise in the kalari of Kalamandalam Gopi. Through an incessant process of trial and error, Unnikrishnan learnt the nuances of acting and dancing in sync with varying rhythms and tempos.

Gopi was all appreciation for the attentiveness and patience of Unnikrishnan. He introduced the artiste to many patrons of Kathakali in Kerala and outside. "But for the timely encouragement and support, I would not have made a mark on the Kathakali stage," says a beaming Unnikrishnan. Unnikrishnan soon became the favourite accompanist of Ramanakutty Nair, Kumaran Nair and Gopi.

Tracing on the chenda the spectrum of expressions of the heroic and villainous characters in Kathakali is no mean challenge. But Unnikrishnan has had no difficulty in navigating the emotional intricacies of characters such as Nala, Arjuna, Bhima, Ravana and Hanuman.

When Gopi as Nala in 'Nalacharitam Part II' emotes the padam 'Nava yauvanam vannu naal thorum valarunni,' the burgeoning of Damayanthi's youthfulness becomes an aural exuberance on Unnikrishnan's chenda.

Unnikrishnan's fine sense of music sees him playing strains of melody especially in the sringara and soka scenes.

Unnkrishnan is conversant with other forms of indigenous music such as melam and thayambaka. He also plays the edakka for Mohiniyattom recitals. His recitals in all the different genres of temple music show singular devotion and commitment.

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