The English legacy
Garimella Subramaniam
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MUSIC: Colonial influence did not leave even Carnatic music untouched. How?
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A geetham inspired by the music of the British national anthem! A javali in English! And a Mangalam on King George V! Today they are almost unknown and, to many, perhaps unbelievable. Such has been the lack of awareness on the cross-cultural interaction in the evolution of Carnatic music.
The process began with the vaggeyakaras borrowing English tunes. It culminated in their composing songs on their new patrons, according to V. Sriram, the young historian of Chennai's heritage.
The development that spanned over a hundred years coincided with the consolidation of the British Raj. Matters came full circle when the Raj and Carnatic music went their separate ways as India's anti-colonial struggle caught the popular imagination, Sriram noted, addressing the Association of British Scholars.
It all began when Muthuswami Dikshitar, the most illustrious of Ramaswamy's sons, was first exposed to the violin and the English band music, thanks to the great patron Manali Muttukrishna Mudaliyar. His `note swarams,' 48 in all, bear remarkable resemblance to the tunes played at Fort Saint George in the 1790s. The flavour is unmistakable, the Sanskrit lyric invoking Ganapati, Saraswati and Rama notwithstanding. Dikshitar even dared to dabble with the British national anthem.
Language appeal
The fascination of English tunes soon reflected the appeal of the language. Lord Tennyson's Jubilee Oath was translated into Sanskrit and sung to imperial audiences. The devadasis, too, were quick to recognise the changing patronage of the arts and learnt to render `God Save the Queen' in impeccable English. A javali in Karaharapriya, `Oh my lovely lalana elane pommantivi,' sit a while here and let me entice you now' (sung by Chittoor Nagayya in an RPM record), was a favourite among them.
The colonial masters responded, in their inimitable ways, to the growing native influence. The Madras chapter of the Gayana Samaj was established in 1877 to promote Carnatic music among them. It needed some arm-twisting by the king of Vijayanagaram to rechristen the samaj as the Jubilee Gayana Samaj in 1885 as Queen Victoria's golden Jubilee was approaching.
The Coronation Darbar in 1911 saw the natives compete for recognition of their cultural prowess by the sahibs. The towering Ramanadhapuram Poochi Srinivasa Iyangar's composition was adjudged the best to felicitate King George V. Maharajapuram Visvanadha Iyar, foremost among the Carnatic titans, made his maiden appearance in Kumbakonam during the series of commemoration concerts.
Band music, which by now was highly popular, was co-opted into the new narrative on ancient Indian mythology by Harikesanallur Muthiah Bhagavatar and Panchapakesa Sastrigal.
The famous `English Note' is played in the procession during the Sita Kalyanam. Even today, the ceremony at the Kapaleeswarar temple is incomplete without the `He is a jolly good fellow.'
That is the thought Sriram left the audience with, at the end of a thought-provoking presentation.
The colonial legacy is obviously a brief interlude in the annals of Carnatic music. But it is strong evidence that the aloofness and insularity of the classical arts — or their `purity,' if you please — is more imaginary than real. History obliges rasikas to view current day experiments with an open mind.
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