29/11/2005
Today, while listening to an old Ilaiyaraja classic 'Poongathave Tazh Tiravai' (Nizhalgal) I couldn't help but wonder at the smoothness that was inherent in the song. The phrases seemed so interconnected. The transition from phrase to phrase (am talking of the tune, not the lyrics) is frictionless. Each phrase complements its predecessor.
In stark contrast, is the modern Harris Jayaraj's 'Aiyangaru veettu azhage' (Anniyan) . Here, it is more like individual phrases woven together. Each phrase runs at a different pace, and the output is an agglomeration of musical phrases, each of which is of a different variety.
Just for the time being, let us ignore the composer, and concentrate on the song itself.
Now, both songs are classical-inspired. The former from the ragam Mayamalavagoulai and the latter from Nattai. True, Mayamalavagoulai being a melakartha ragam with all 7 swarams, any song based on it will have a flowing touch, whereas, Nattai has jumping notes. But, the actual difference here is not the ragam, but the layam (rhythm). Poongathave proceeds in the usual 16 beat cycle - each phrase has a fixed rhythmic count. Aiyangaru proceeds unevenly - Its first phrase has more than 16 beats (ateeta eduppu), while its second phrase (beginning 'Un poal azhagi" has in fact less than 16 beats (anahata eduppu)! This lends a lot to each phrase being distinct. In fact, the whole song has a cosmopolitan touch to it.
If you want variety, look to music!
In stark contrast, is the modern Harris Jayaraj's 'Aiyangaru veettu azhage' (Anniyan) . Here, it is more like individual phrases woven together. Each phrase runs at a different pace, and the output is an agglomeration of musical phrases, each of which is of a different variety.
Just for the time being, let us ignore the composer, and concentrate on the song itself.
Now, both songs are classical-inspired. The former from the ragam Mayamalavagoulai and the latter from Nattai. True, Mayamalavagoulai being a melakartha ragam with all 7 swarams, any song based on it will have a flowing touch, whereas, Nattai has jumping notes. But, the actual difference here is not the ragam, but the layam (rhythm). Poongathave proceeds in the usual 16 beat cycle - each phrase has a fixed rhythmic count. Aiyangaru proceeds unevenly - Its first phrase has more than 16 beats (ateeta eduppu), while its second phrase (beginning 'Un poal azhagi" has in fact less than 16 beats (anahata eduppu)! This lends a lot to each phrase being distinct. In fact, the whole song has a cosmopolitan touch to it.
If you want variety, look to music!
posted by Atul at
7:46 PM
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