COVER STORY

My father, guru and mentor M. Narmadha

SG’S greatness as well as his virtuosity as a musician and performer are acknowledged worldwide. As his daughter MI had the good fortune to be brought up by him and had the opportunity of observing him at close proximity for a very long period. It is a rare privilege to have your guru at home. When the father becomes the guru, then the give- and-take becomes extraordinary, very special. As a child, being with my father was a unique and wonderful experience. He bought me all I wanted (chocolates, books, violins). He and my mother guided me whenever I had a problem in completing my homework. My mother Meenakshi was a good vocalist who won prizes in competitions. She taught me in vocal music whatever my grandfather and my father taught me on the violin. My grandfather taught me to play the violin when I was four years old. We had to play varnams non-stop 16 times (in two speeds) on a single string, with the madhyama as the shadja. As a child I used to stop like sitar maestro Prof. Debu Chaudhury, and renowned halfway and watch my father perform all the 16 times vocalist Dr. K.G. Ginde. with amazing accuracy and clarity. Thatha and my When we travelled together he narrated his experiences father taught me both Hindustani and Carnatic ragas as an accompanist, relating instances when he rose to meet simultaneously. challenges during concerts. He would ask me to tune the I practised close to seven hours daily with my father. violin, apply rosin for the bow and to iron his clothes. I had to play varnam, varisai, vaara kriti, a Tyagaraja Every concert of his had some unique sangatis some of kriti and then one navavarana kriti daily. As a guru which I could reproduce and some to which I was a mere he was very strict and firm about my raga alapana, spectator on the stage. To try and bridge the gap between the swara endings and the phrasings that I had to me and my genius father was a great challenge that called use in the swara repeats. Sruti suddham was most for years of hard work and absolute concentration. important to him, followed by gamaka oriented The ‘MSG bow’ is unique. Just like the voice, the violin items and the tanam patterns of the bow. MSG bow has its wonderful identity. It is the very breath, and practised ragas in all tempos and played rava extending the bowing length can produce rich defined sangati-s. He believed practice yields perfection; tones on the violin. The circle of continuity induces ideas there was no magic route. without breaks, enhancing the vocalisation of the violin. The My father sometimes made me practise at home with MSG bow has scientific accuracy and thereby captivates mridanga vidwan Kutralam Viswanatha Iyer so that the listener besides creating an impeccable mark on the I could have the feel of a concert at home. He used quality of the presentation. The consummate artistry of to patiently hear me perform and make a concrete the violin is fully expressed by the expertise involved in the evaluation of my output. This created unforgettable handling of the bow. I feel that the MSG phenomenon is imprints in my mind. He took me to visit vidwans the unique combination of the integrity of the bow and like T.M. Thiagarajan, Pattamadai Krishnan the violin just like the eyes and vision. Scintillating fast and Prof. S.R. Janakiraman, and in the north, scholars passages on the violin can be achieved by the virtuosic

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handling of the bow. Just as the voice identifies admired the musical background and pointed out the vocalist, the bow identifies the violinist. The portions where we could hear the music of the violin. different bowing zones traversed in their proper He would point out some musical phrases which measures give a honeyed touch to the tonal output of resembled ragas like Keeravani, Sankarabharanam or the violin. even Sankara of Hindustani music. After returning home, he demonstrated the passages and made me play It has been a splendid musical voyage for me with my some of them on the violin. father over the last four decades in both Hindustani and Carnatic concerts. On stage MSG expected I remember watching the movie Sankarabharanam vinamrata, bhakti, and respect for the guru and the at Satyam theatre. He liked the song Sankara instrument. Every moment the feeling was to excel (especially the portions which had fast passages and myself and earn an appreciative glance from my musical intonations) and its close resemblance to father. He made me understand that there is more to the raga Madhamad Sarang of Hindustani music. music than just playing on the violin – I must put my He wanted me to learn this song by heart, which heart and soul into it and be commited every minute I fervently did. Even today I play this song at some to enhance and beautify the musical passages with marriage concerts and it is usually an instant hit. spontaneity. He made me realise that I must adapt the He was of the view that film music gave things in a self to the violin, become one with it. nutshell four or five minutes, effectively conveyed My father prized time. Not one second would tick the mood, colour and context, and left an evergreen by without him saying: “Please finish on time”. Time impact on the listener. management is something which I learnt from him. My father believed in simplicity. Even when he This was reflected in his life, in his performances and received the Sangita Kalanidhi at the Music Academy, in everything he wanted to do during the day. and recently the Padma Bhushan award, he chose “Time waits for no one,” was his favourite remark even to wear a simple cotton veshti with small zari and a while at the concert. white kurta, though we wanted him to dress in a grand He was a man of few words, but a wonderful listener. manner. White was his favorite colour. Way back in 2000, when we visited South Africa He was a down-to-earth person, and I often and travelled along with Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, wondered why he was so silent. But as I grew up we attended a dinner organised by the ICCR at I understood that he did not wish to fritter away Capetown. Each speaker spoke for not less than his energy and wanted to concentrate only on his 30 minutes but when it was MSG’s turn he spoke for music. He remarked that he derived immense only about three minutes and said, “I talk less but play and express myself through the violin. For me music is happiness when he played the violin the way his father universal.” taught him. Even when Amma and I made his favourite dishes He was very attached to Parur Sundaram Iyer and like avial, mor kuzhambu, chakkai payasam or paal said that he was for him a guru, mother and father payasam, he showed his appreciation with a nod and – all rolled into one. That was the only time he at the end simply remarked, “Romba nanna irukku.” became emotional and his eyes grew moist with tears. His Tamil was an ethnic mixture of Tamil and He felt his father had dedicated his life for the success Malayalam, though my grandfather Sundaram of his sons. Iyer conversed very fluently in Malayalam with MSG led a disciplined life, made no compromises stalwarts like Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar and and steadfastly maintained his daily schedule of M.D. Ramanathan when they visited ‘Sangitha Vilas’, chanting the Gayatri mantra, reading The Hindu in the our home in Mylapore, Chennai. morning, and visiting the Anjaneya temple everyday. I My father would take all of us – mother, we sisters and am blessed to be his daughter and disciple and to have my brother Suresh – to watch James Bond movies. He served him till his last breath. liked Pierce Brosnan’s attractive eyes and his swift (M. Narmadha is a violinist and vocalist adept in Carnatic and movements. Even while watching the movies he Hindustani music, and has a doctorate in music)

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