Sangita Sampradaya
Pradarshini |
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Many
a time, we have heard musicians referring to the Sangita Sampradaya
Pradarshini (SSP). What is this? When was it written? Who wrote
it? Why is it so important to musicans and others?
We begin a new series on the SSP trying to answer most of
the above questions as well as bringing you some of the interesting
information that is contained in the SSP.
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The author :
The SSP was written by B.Subbarama
Dikshitar. We all know that Muttuswami Dikshitar had a brother
called Baluswami Dikshitar. Baluswami Dikshitar was an asthana
vidwan of the Ettayapuram Samastanam. He had a daughter called
Annapoorni who was married to one Sivarama Iyer. Born to them
was Subbarama Dikshitar. As none of the three Dikshitar brothers
had any sons, the Ettayapuram zamindar advised Baluswami to
adopt Subburaman and so the grandson became B.Subbarama Dikshitar,
the adopted son of Baluswami Dikshitar.
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The SSP also contains a short autobiography
of Subbarama Dikshitar, where he mentions the above details.
In addition to this he also mentions the following. His name
was Balasubrahmaniam and he was born in Tiruvarur in 1839.
When he was 5 years old, he was taken to Ettayapuram by Baluswami
Dikshitar, where he was educated in music, Sanskrit and Telugu.
He also mentions receiving upadesa in Shrividya.
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Subbarama
Dikshitar
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At the age of 17, Subbarama Dikshitar
composed a tAna varna in durbAr in aTa tALa and sang it before
the Zamindar. Some vidvAns in the court misled the ruler into
thinking that Baluswami had helped his son to compose the
same. So, the king decided to test his composing prowess.
He was given an hour's time to compose a jatisvaram in yamunA
rAgam, to a given EDuppu, and a person was retained to watch
over the process. The young lad came up with the required
piece and sang it before the ruler, who pleased with the performance,
asked him to sing it before Baluswami Dikshitar too. He was
then presented with two shawls and 10 gold coins.
He was later commissioned by Jagadvira Eddappa Maharaja to
compose cauka varnams in Anandabhairavi and suraTTi and a
rAgamalika with 9 ragas, to be used in dance recitals. He
did the same and was well rewarded. He later composed a tAna
varna in rAmakriya and the kriti ShankarAcAryam in shankarAbharaNam.
He sang the kriti before the Acharya of Kamakoti math at Kumbakonam.
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Finally
Subbarama Dikshitar mentions his meeting with Chinnaswamy Mudaliar
that led to the publication of the SSP, and ends by saying that
he has a son Muttuswami Dikshitar (Ambi Dikshitar) who is well
versed in the art of music. It is this same Ambi Dikshitar that
later came to Madras and taught people like TL Venkatrama Iyer,
S.Rajam, A.Ananthakrishna Iyer, Parur Sundaram Iyer, A.Sundaram
Iyer and D.K.Pattammal. Subbarama Dikshitar died in 1906.
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Ambi
Dikshitar
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Sanjay Subrahmanyan
Click
here for part 2
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