A musical legacy gives an artiste a brand name and an aura that goes a long way. The fortunate inheritors of music in our Telugu land are the Dwaram, Vasa and Nallanchakravartula families, whose names are synonymous with the Carnatic classical style in instrumental and vocal music.
The Dwaram family is known for its violin maestros, worthy successors of the genius Dwaram Venkataswami Naidu (1893-1964). We have Dwaram Mangatayaru, Dwaram Bhavanarayana, Dwaram Satyanarayana, Dwaram Lakshmi, and many others bearing the same name. They took to violin as a vocation and proved to be illustrious progeny of the clan. Says Mangatayaru, daughter of Venkataswami Naidu, “My father was fondly referred to by all and sundry as ‘fidelu' Naidugaru in Vizianagaram. He seemed born for the violin. I was more of a disciple and escort rather than just a daughter. His weak eyesight was never a deterrent to his immense practising. For instance, if he had to imbibe the nuances of the western violin he would have to listen to it 100 times while his pupil kept count with 100 tamarind seeds!”
Talking of his early days, his daughter says, “My father learnt his first lessons from his brother Dwaram Venkata Krishnaiah. As if a divine compensation was at work, my father was able to fathom with his ears and fingers what his eyes failed to garner. Through the touch of his fingers he would find the placement of swaras and hear for himself in great concentration the ‘nadam'. Later, he went on to establish the swara patterns with this instinctive swara gyanam.”
Like her father, Mangatayaru excels in seemingly simple bowing with a sound reminiscent of the human voice. She was appointed to Vizianagaram Music College as professor in 1973. A couple of years later she moved to Chennai as AIR A-grade artiste and performed there for 16 years. She now coaches foreign students who seek her out for the reputed Dwaram touch.
Dwaram Lakshmi and Dwaram Satyanarayana, presently in Tirupati and Hyderabad AIR respectively, are performing artistes carrying the mantle of their revered predecessors.
The Nallanchakravartula family of Krishna district is now in its third generation of music. Composer-musician N.Ch. Krishnamacharyulu (1923) was a legend in his lifetime. His equally scholarly son N.Ch. Bucchaiahcharyulu and young grandson N.Ch. Kaushik Kalyan have carried on the tradition. “To my father, the violin was his world,” says Bucchaiahcharyulu reverently. “His guru's entire musical genius, my father imbibed in just three months. Wherever and whenever he played his violin, he was lauded as a genius. He served at the gurukulam of Parupalli Ramakrishna Panthulu as a teacher at the tender age of 17. When the AIR was launched in Vijayawada during the late 40s, he was appointed as staff artiste. There wasn't a stalwart vocalist whom father did not accompany on the violin at concerts.”
Krishnamacharyulu was also a versatile composer and an erudite teacher. He was hailed as an authority on Muthuswamy Dikshitar and Thyagaraja and won the Vaggeyakara Award from Madras Music Academy. His wit and humour made him popular, while his razor-sharp intellect earned him reverence and awe. The wit, of course, passed on to his son Bucchaiahcharyulu, who now lectures at Government Music College in the state capital.
This multi-faceted musician began composing at a very young age. “My first composition was born when I was going on a cycle! What a situation,” he laughs. He composed 100 kritis on Devi Durga alone. In his salad days, he acted in mythologicals, and he writes in many regional newspapers. He is also a graded artiste of the AIR. He launched the N.Ch. Sangeeta Samstha Krishnamacharya Kala Peetam, which for the past nine years has honoured eligible musicians in the memory of his father.
Young Kaushik Kalyan has already attained fame through playback singing in Lokame Kothaga , Telugu Ammayi and other Telugu films. He bagged the AIR national award in 2004 and 2006 in devotional and light music. He is also a composer and classical musician. “In fact, at the end of his grandfather's last katcheri, the violin was presented to the grandson (Kaushik),” says the proud father.
Vasa Krishnamurthy (1923-1974) was known for his exceptional virtuosity and commendable control over the divine veena. Born into a musical family in Vizianagaram, he learnt the veena from his father, Vasa Venkat Rao, a vidwan teaching at the Vizianagaram music college.
He gained recognition at a very early age through recitals and AIR concerts. It is said that his compelling manodharma was a marvel to many.
During his time, he experimented with merger of Hindustani and Carnatic styles while retaining the classical tanam.
Today, Krishnamurthy's son, Venkata Vara Prasad, keeps the flag flying.
He is presently a vocalist associated with TTD's Annamacharya project at Tirupati. More well-known is Vasa Gopinath, a vocalist of acclaim now working at the Government music college in the city.
These three scions have also taught many worthy pupils who have made their mark in the world of music.
