COMPOSITIONS OF MUTTUSVAMI DIKSITAR. With the Notations of Vina Vidushi KALPAKAM SWAMINATHAN. VOLUME – I.

Sahityam and notations In Tamil script. Published by S. Kamakshi, San Diego, USA. Hardbound. 477 pages. March 2013.

On the occasion of the 250th birth anniversary of Muthusvami Dikshitar — the versatile genius and one of the trinity of Carnatic music, here is a book with a selected collection of his compositions with notations given by veena vidushi Sangita Kala Acharya Kalpakam Swaminathan. She had a vast repertoire of Muthusvami Dikshitar’s compositions and was considered an authority in their renditions as she had learnt them from stalwarts like Vidvan Kallidaikurichi Ananthakrishna Iyer who belonged to the Dikshitar sishya parampara, and the famous T.L. Venkatarama Iyer.

The first volume has Dikshitar’s Nottusvara sahityams, kritis on deities like Ganesa, Guruguha/Subrahmanya, Sarasvati, Lakshmi, and Devi. It has notations of the Abhayamba Vibhakti kritis, and the Kamalamba Navavaranam. More will be covered in the second volume.

As mentioned in the Publisher’s Note, it was vidushi Kalpakam Swaminathan’s wish of making her notations of Dikshitar kritis available to students and rasikas of music. “Her eagerness to share these treasures which she had carefully preserved and nurtured over a span of eight decades, is unmatched.” It is interesting to note an observation about Mami mentioned in the Note, she was very particular that the students render the kritis as she taught them and not make changes in the name of “beautification”. It was something that she herself assiduously followed. Students and rasikas of music can therefore get an authentic taste of these notated kritis — as they were meant to be sung or played.

S. JANAKI