A Tribute to MaduraiTNSeshagopalan

Madurai T N Seshagopalan

There is none to excel

TNS in manodharma which is explicit in his delineation of raga and svaraprasthara

nThe music which reflects the divinity within and transmits the same in the listener is a great blessing, where there is a communion with the inner self which is purely divine. To achieve that one should listen with open heart, a heart free from ego, prejudice and preconceived notions. To such a heart the divinity manifests in the form of music.

A VADHAANYAA

Blessed is the artist who is adept in receiving and communicating Naadhabrahman of which he had direct experience and equally blessed is the rasika who is able to receive it fully. Such a musician is a vadhaanya, a generous man ,who gives everything he has. Sa eva vadhaanyah yaha aseshavisraananadakshah sva kosajaatharatnaani mahaarhaani sangeethaarnava uddhrthaani. This is the impression one gathers on hearing the music of TNS.

S a R i G a M a P a D h a N i A Wizard of Svaras

nWhen TNS sings the svaras he fondles them as though he is patting them with a peacock feather and deposits them like deepas let down on a river of music. His svaras are mellifluous yet forceful.

E M P E R O R OF R A G A S

nTNS is the emperor of ragas with Thodi as his capital. The cities in the empire consisting of ragas are laid with precious stones of svaras and sahithyas. His citadel is surrounded by the mote of gurukripa and he is empowered with the chathuranga sainya , ratha gaja thuraga padhaathi, chariots, elephant army, cavalry and soldiers in the form of vocal, veena , keyboard and harikatha , the four forces possessed by him.

Audio-visual concert

The concerts of TNS are always audio-visual. When he sings about any deity you can visualize the deity. When he sings about the rasakreeda it is performed right in front of you. The audience are presented with the scene where the peacock dances and cuckoo sings by mere music without any physical gestures

Bhava without words

TNS infuses bhava even in his delineation of raga. Not only the sahithyabhava but even the ragabhava is enough to move the heart of a rasika. The divinity that is manifest in music is visible through the raga sung by TNS. He is able to portray the raga in one svara alone like the strokes of a master artist who later fills it up with deft strokes of paint (raga). He is a master artiste indeed!

TNS- a Nadhopasaka

nTNS is a genius and nadhopasaka par excellence. He breathes music and lives on music. Even when he is tired, as when he has just arrived after his tour out of town, the moment he goes on stage he is full of vigour and produces enchanting music with no sign, whatsoever of his exhaustion due to travel. This makes his rasikas wonder as to what is his secret of energy, only to conclude that his music is his secret energy!

Harikatha Siromani

The smooth flow of words rich in humour and beautiful expression provides exquisite joy to the listeners. His knowledge and eloquent expression of it in his harikatha exposition is to be heard to be believed

nHearing his Harikatha is like travelling through a beautiful path,, with the mountain of his eloquence on one side and the ocean of his knowledge on the other side seated on the cushion of his music.

nA very enchanting travel indeed!

Fingers vying with his voice

nWhen he plays veena or keyboard his fingers seem to compete with his voice for excellence as though jealous of his vocal magnificence. Nothing seems invincible to him and he has enthralled the audience in playing the ragas like Thodi which are professed to be impossible to play on the keyboard and made the listeners wonder at such a feat. His veena speaks and one can hear the words. The resonance is something fantastic as he produces infinite gamakas with just one stroke of his finger. What a versatile genius!

nKuralvannatthai minjatthudikkum viralvannam

A to S of Seshagopalan

nA Alluring Alapana

nB Brilliance in Bhava

nC Conquering Charisma

nD Dazzling Dexterity

nE Exquisite Eloquence

nF Fabulously Fantastic

nG Genius Galore

nH Honey-like Harmony

nI Incredibly Intuitive

nJ Jugular Jugglery

nK Kingly Kudos

nL Laudable Laya

nM Magnificent Maestro

nN Nectarine Nuances

nO Overwhelming Ovation

nP Passage to Paradise

nQ Quintessence of Quality

nR Regality of Ragas

nS SUPREMELY SPLENDID SESHAGOPALAN

Seshagopalan – A definition

nSharp intellect has he, armed with discrimination,

nEven temper that conquered the negative impulses;

nShrunk did he the mighty ocean of Music and

nHeld it in the hollow of his hand, standing

nAstride like a Collossus over the great lake of Raga;

nGlorious he shines like the full moon

nOver the world in the sky of Nadha,

nPleasing the heart of his sincere rasikas;

Ardent devotion to his master has brought

nLasting fame through the Guru’s Grace:

nAll his efforts maybe crowned with success,

nNothing may deter his path to glory.

A musician like TNS comes only once in a millenium. Some singers cash on their melodious voice alone, others try to become popular by gimmicks and set patterns and even those who are able to put feeling into their singing lack the skill of presenting a raaga in its full splendour or fail to indulge in a delightful swaraprasthaara with a mastery in laya . TNS alone possesses all these skills and heart rendering melody in addition and also depth of feeling enhanced by the mastery over raaga and laya.

If the musician contacts the divinity through his music he is able to communicate it to the fortunate rasika who is a sahrdhaya and receives the divine outburst of the musician like a well tuned wireless receiver equipment.When that happens the rasika is no more satisfied with anything less like the mongoose in Mahabharatha which became golden in one half and was not satisfied with anything which could not make his other half golden too. The experience on listening to TNS to me is akin to standing in front of the Lord in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple because one feels the same ecstasy. When God chooses to appear to me through the music of TNS who am I to prevent Him!

Salutations to a genius

Longlive TNS and his Music

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