Radha Bhaskar. , Photo Credit: The Hindu Archives
Much has been said and written about Carnatic music, in a broad or in a nutshell. However, the quest to delve deeper into a subject or reinforce the basics rarely stops a student or musician.
They use many articles from libraries or digital archives for this purpose. In this digital age, there is always a temptation to visit online portals for a quick reference material that can be read or viewed on the go. One such resource platform is stage musician Radha Bhaskar’s online music series ‘CM365’, launched during the pandemic – it consists of explanatory videos, each lasting a maximum of five minutes.
“The series throws light on various aspects of music that a connoisseur or a student would like to know about. They can be accessed anytime,” says Radha, who recently completed this year-long series.
It can be a bit overwhelming to watch the entire series (365 in total), yet the themes and nuanced interpretations help keep the momentum going. The first two videos feature Radha explaining the basics of Carnatic music, and the various patterns such as Sarali Varisai, Janata Varisai and Alankaram, which are an integral part of the genre. Radha demonstrates how the placement of swaras (notes), aarohanam and avarohanam structures, and different swara patterns add beauty and variety to the productions.
The third chord is related to classification. Based on several principles, a raga can be a Sampurna, Audava or Shadava raga. A raga can have all seven swaras (the entire raga) such as Shankarabharanam, which has seven swaras in both ascending and descending order, or Karharpriya. Radha explains these facts and demonstrates the difference by rendering the swaras of some ragas and how the placement of swaras adds to their beauty.
She goes on to explain about Samashti Charanam and how Dixit has introduced this section in some of his works. Radha renders ‘Shri Guruguha Tarayashum’ to highlight this. Over the next few online sessions, Radha explains how Tyagaraja approached the new ragas, how to handle the Janaka and Janya ragas, the key role played by the swaraksharas, the different talas and their take off points. The subsequent videos pack substantial details, including those relating to the works of various musicians, the importance of a composition, and the role of instruments such as the violin and the yaz in Carnatic music.
Radha also shares her thoughts on how parents can motivate their children to pursue music as an art form or as a profession. The last few sections are set in a quiz format, where subjects can range from finding rare ragas and composers to figuring out the correct song and how to identify asymmetric ragas by looking at the placement of swaras.
It is a commendable effort by Radha who has conceptualized this series and managed to condense a vast subject into easily understandable nuggets without compromising on the essential features. To access CM 365 playlist log on to Mudrabhaskar YouTube channel and select the playlist.
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