He had few parallels when it came to playing the nagaswaram . But music was not the only thing that defined Tiruvavaduthurai N. Rajarathinam Pillai: he was a great conversationalist too and his interview with T. Sankaran for the All India Radio (AIR) bears testimony to this. He had also written a fine article about nagaswaram playing and carnatic music, which was published in the literary magazine Sakthi run b y Vai. Govindan between 1939 and 1945.
Rajarathinam Pillai had said the head of the Tiruvavaduthurai Mutt – Ambalavana Desikar – arranged music tuition for him under violinist Tirukodikaval Krishna Iyer, the uncle of Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer. “I also learnt from Konerirajapuram Vaidhyanatha Iyer when I was eight years’ old and had been giving vocal concerts since I was nine,” he had said. In the article, he also lists great nagaswaram players he had listened to and analyses their strengths and weaknesses.
“Hard work, efforts and brihas at breakneck speed are the hallmarks of Chinna Pakkiri’s nagaswaram playing. But you cannot expect outstanding gamakas that are vital for ragas,” he said.
Rajarathinam Pillai had also played with Semponnarkoil Ramsamy Pilli, who was known as Pallavi Ramasamy Pillai. “Madurai Ponnusami Pillai had done a lot of research in music. But there is no imagination and embellishments in his music though his nagaswaram always aligned with perfect sruthi,” he had written.
While he had stressed that vocal training was very important for a nagaswaram player, he was firm that it was nagaswaram that had prevented the degeneration of carnatic music.
“Some people seek to differentiate the music pattern based on vocal singing and nagaswaram playing. But all instruments and vocal singing follow only nagaswaram . If they say there is a different pattern, it will take them nowhere,” he had said.
Dhanammal, the guru
Pillai, an ardent fan of Veena Dhanammal, had said he used to invite her to Tiruvavaduthurai to listen her music.
“I will join her with my nagaswaram and absorb the gamakas and other unique aspects of her music and reproduce them in my playing,” he had explained.
Sometimes Dhanammal would tease him, asking what was the need for him to listen to her when he could produce colourful brihas on his own.
“It will make me angry and I would ask her whether she had come to the conclusion that I was not able to follow her pattern. Then she would mollify me and play for me again. She is my last guru,” he had said.
Rajarathinam Pillai was also very critical about playing the nagaswaram as part of a pair.
“It will lead the rasikas deserting the players,” he had remarked.
And, he strongly expressed his views against the concept special thavil .
“A thavil player can perfectly align with a nagaswaram player only if he constantly accompanies the latter. Special thavil is a bad trend and nagaswaram players should take with them the thavil players who regularly play for them,” he said and urged vocalists not to perform along with accompanists with whom they never had played in the past.
Rajrathinam Pillai also had a word of advice for vocalists singing for AIR.
“They have not realised that sruthi is missing. Singing for AIR alone will not get them fame,” he said.
