Ganapathy Raman's house has always been a favourite haunt of artistes. On this occasion too he plays a perfect host and takes time to unveil the path he has covered since childhood. The horizontal stripes of the vibhuti and the parabolic gobi chandan adorning his broad forehead with geometric precision makes you wonder whether he uses a mould. Over to the mridanga vidwan.
Exposure to music as a child...
Our house was always filled with music either live or through AIR/tapes. My father Sethalapathi Balasubramanian, a well known musician, was also a teacher at the RKM School T.Nagar. After school hours it was music all the way for him. Many musicians thronged our house and stayed late into the night, singing and discussing music. Seeing me play rhythm patterns with a tin, Srimushnam Raja Rao gave me my first lessons in mridangam, when I was three.
This I came to know through my father and Raja Rao though I don't remember that. As he was a very busy artist, I continued my lessons with Nagai Soundararajan. Then the late Yagnaraman, secretary, Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, enrolled me in the music school run by the Sabha and paid my first month's fees.
Kumbakonam Rajappa Iyer…
At the Sabha, Kumbakonam Rajappa Iyer and his assistant Jayaraman taught us with great interest. They were always willing to teach us everything they knew on rhythm. Never were we admonished for mistakes. It was lucky to have Rajappa Iyer as teacher. Students either shone well in music or in any other field they chose. A very simple person by nature, he was humility personified.
Entry into concert circuit…
Veena Parthasarathy's wedding reception was my first ever full-fledged concert when I accompanied my father in 1980 and the first organised one was for Sri Krishna Gana Sabha's Gokulashtami series when I accompanied Neyveli Santhanagopalan. Even before that I had played a lot in the Tiruppugazh festival at Vadapalani temple organised by Sambandam sir. Most unforgettable was an eight-hour concert I played for Madurai Somu sir alongside his son Shanmukham. (Two mridangams) Papanasam Sethuraman was on the ganjira with Mayavaram Somu.
Playing for Namasankirtanam…
Namasankirtanam is one platform that really helped me hone my skills. Every mridangam student should grab the earliest opportunity to play for namasankirtanam. With a variety fare it really is a test of skills. Right from my childhood to date thanks to my father's encouragement, I never miss any such festival subject to my concert schedule.
I never wait for an invitation but just get on to the stage and play. In that way I should say the camaraderie we mridangam players enjoy is something others envy at. One legend in this field is Mozhaiyur Ramamurthy Iyer, who is famous for his chapu and toppi playing. He has given me valuable tips.
Others who inspired you…
Those were the days when Thanjavur Ramdas, Srimushnam Raja Rao, Tiruvarur Bhaktavatsalam, M.V. Udayasankar, Sengottai Sunderarajan and so on had joint practice sessions.Watching these sessions were really useful in my development.
Your special interest…
I l prefer playing for kritis to showing my skills in the tani avarthanam. Perhaps listening to musicians sing hundreds of kritis and ragams since childhood has something to do with this.
Accompanying legends…
Playing for Lalgudi Jayaraman sir for his solo concert was a great experience. His music was out of the world. My joy knew no bounds. Same has been the case when I played for MSG. KVN had a special admiration for my father and hence featured me in many of his concerts.
The Tiruppugazh concerts I played for D.K. Jayaraman, Chingleput Ranganathan and Guruji Raghavan are great moments I cherish. M. Balamualikrishna sir despite his mighty status had kind words for me during a concert. He went out of the way to make me fly along with him in a business class from Thiruvananthapuram. Madurai T.N. Seshagopalan, another musician whom I admire a lot, has a special liking for my playing and has given me enough opportunities to play for him. It has been an enriching experience.
Your outlook…
Never do I plan a concert. I just go by my instinct and play. Nothing is rehearsed. I concentrate on the melody. I would first be a rasika on stage and the role of an accompanist is only secondary. I keep listening to recordings of veterans and now and then play tennis and cricket to relax.
