When composer-musician Mysore Vasudevachar passed away, Rajaji sent a letter of condolence to Rukmini Devi Arundale.
That was the headline for The Hindu’s editorial dated May 19, 1961, mourning the death of Mysore Vasudevachar. He had passed away late in the night on May 17. As was the tradition those days, The Hindu published a ‘Memoir’ which gave the career highlights of the composer-musician. Among other details, it mentioned that Vasudevachar had composed 300 songs of which 140 were published in two volumes titled ‘Vasudeva Kirtana Manjari’ and that he had published his reminiscences, ‘Na Kanda Kalavidaru’. The latter is a delightful read even today.
Dr. P.V. Rajamannar, former Chief Justice of the High Court of Madras and the then president of Sangeet Natak Akademi, in a message of condolence, remarked that “the Grand Old Man of Carnatic music has passed away.” That was no exaggeration.
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Having lived till the age of 96, he had, to quote from
The news of the passing was received with great grief, for seldom had there been a musician who had earned the love of everyone with his simplicity, gentle humour and vast knowledge. On May 19, the Sangeet Natak Akademi condoled the passing and in its resolution, noted “in his demise, the country has lost a great musician and composer of the age”.
The acharya had received the Akademi’s award in 1954 and had as late as 1960 become a Fellow of the Akademi. On the same day,
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On May 29, a condolence meeting was held at Kalakshetra for the man who had composed such wonderful music for several of the institution’s dance productions, in particular the Ramayana where he had used the verses of Valmiki to such telling effect. A message of condolence received from the Governor of Madras, Bishnuram Medhi, was read out. A veritable galaxy, including Rajaji, attended the event. Among those who spoke were T.L. Venkatarama Iyer, retired Justice of the Supreme Court and noted musicologist. He highlighted the fact that Vasudevachar was a great exponent of thana. This was an area in which Vasudevachar’s guru, Patnam, had been unequalled. He also said that Vasudevachar’s “songs were saturated with the bhakti element and were rich in ragabhava in the classical tradition of Sri Tyagaraja.”
Other speakers included Musiri Subramania Iyer, Dwaram Venkataswami Naidu, Maharajapuram Viswanatha Iyer, K. Sankara Menon and Rukmini Devi.
The acharya had died just a few days short of his 97th birthday, which fell on May 28. Many had hoped that he would live for a full century. But his name and fame will live beyond mere time periods. The Hindu ’s editorial was prescient in this regard - “It is our tradition that a considerable part of our cultural lore should centre round our great musicians. In years to come, they will continue to speak with reverence of Vasudevacharya, sing his songs and discuss the manner in which he influenced musical trends in the course of a long and distinguished career.”
The author can be contacted at srirambts@gmail.com