Nothing but Wind to Valiant !! ~ the divine Flautist of Triplicane

 

The sound of music is most pleasing to ears.  Music histories written in earlier times start with a account of the mythological invention of various instruments. Cain’s descendant, Jubal, is said to be “the father of all such as handle the harp and the organ,”  Mercury is supposed to have devised the lyre when one day he found a dried-out tortoise on the banks of the Nile. 

Maestro Illayaraja presented his “first ever western classical symphony,” titled Valiant, at London’s Eventim Apollo Theatre at midnight on March 9, Sunday. Joining Ilaiyaraaja in the historic event was London’s famous Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, in what he described as a “special surprise performance.” This performance marked a major milestone in the composer’s illustrious career. With it, he has become the first musician from the field of cinema in India to achieve this feat in London.  

Ilaiyaraaja recorded Valiant alongside the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. He recently shared a video showing what went behind the scenes during its making. At the time of its creation,  Isaignani Ilaiyaraaja  introduced himself to the Scottish orchestra and told its members that he “used to record a song or a film score” daily. He also told the team that it was a sudden decision to write a symphony in this genre. “When I started writing, I never thought I would record with you all,” said the composer.

The great music piece has earned accolades all over and he  has been showered with words of effusive praise since the announcement of the event earlier this year. He also presented an orchestra iteration of some of the most popular compositions from his career at the London theatre in March. The Western symphony adds to the musical maestro’s growing body of work, which also includes albums such as How To Name It and Nothing But Wind.  Upon his return, he had a choice meeting with Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji. 

There perhaps some myth and some history – as in recent times, the invention of musical instruments is no longer attributed to Gods and heroes. But people still clamour to know which instruments were invented first,  and they hope for the neat answers with which amateur writers so  readily supply them — a drum was the earliest or was it the Flute !! 

A flute, like most other wind instruments, produces its tone by means of an air column within a tube, which is set in longitudinal vibration either by human breath or by artificial wind. The families of wind instruments differ in the special way in which the vibrations are brought about. This is particularly complicated in the flute.  The vibrations in a flute are due to little eddies formed at regular intervals when the player blows obliquely across the sharp edge of a mouth-hole. Thus, a sharp-edged mouth-hole is the characteristic  quality of any flute.

The mouth-hole of the vertical flute is formed by the upper opening of the pipe. In the cross flute , or transverse flute , the upper end is stopped and the mouth-hole is cut in the side. In the whistle flute there is also a hole in the side, but not to be blown into; the upper end is stopped except for a small and narrow channel, called the fluey into which the player blows, and which directs his breath  to the sharp edge of the side hole.  (something read in The History of Musical instruments – Curt Sachs) 

The characteristic flute of Western music is the transverse flute held sideways to the right of the player. It was known in ancient Greece and Etruria by the 2nd century BCE and perhaps known in Indian continent since time immemorial.    The bamboo flute, is one of the oldest musical instruments known.   While the oldest flutes currently known were found in Europe, Asia too has a long history with the instrument that has continued into the present day.  Historians have found the bamboo flute has a long history as well, especially China and India. Flutes made history in records and artworks starting in the Zhou dynasty. The oldest written sources reveal the Chinese were using the kuan (a reed instrument) and hsio (or xiao, an end-blown flute, often of bamboo) in the 12th-11th centuries.  The Chinese have a word, zhudi, which literally means "bamboo flute."

Well, not intended to be any piece on Musical instruments, especially Flute, but a post on the divine flautist – Sri Azhagiya Singar Venugopala thirukolam at Thiruvallikkeni on day 2 of Thavana Uthsavam 2025. 

Of the many musical instruments -  Flute is divine. A melodic instrument for the most part, the flute has a clear and bright sound with a distinctive warmth, refinement, and subtlety to its tone.  The greatest of all musicians is of course the divine Flautist Lord Krishna – who mesmerized everyone as He grew up in Gokul. 

Thavana Uthsavam is now on at Thiruvallikkeni and today  19.3.2025 is day 2  of the Uthsavam for Sri Azhagiya Singar.  In general in the morning of Thavana uthsavam occurs  what could be the shortest of the purappadu – still one would get  the greatest opportunity of worshipping Him in close quarters.  For this uthsavam of 3 days - at Thavana Uthsava bungalow, Thelliya Singar has thirumanjanam and thence rest.   With the onset of summer, Perumal takes rest under the roof made of dhavanam (Tamil: தவனம்) [Artemisia pallens] – an aromatic herb.  In the evening there will be purappadu inside the bungalow and thereafter periyamada veethi purappadu back to the sannathi.  Today however, it was siriyia mada veethi purappadu due to some asantharpam.

எம்பெருமான் அற்புதன் .. .. அனந்தசயனன், ஆதிபூதன், சாந்தஸ்வரூபி .. எவ்வளவு அழகு ! ~ அதி அற்புதமான ஸ்வபாவலாவண்யமுடைய திருமேனி, மிக அழகான கிரீடம், நறுமணத்தை பரிமளிக்கும் மலர் மாலைகள்; நேர்த்தியாக சாற்றப்பட்ட ரம்மியமான வஸ்திரங்கள் .. அத்தகையோன்  எதற்காக நரசிங்கமாய் திருவவதாரம் பண்ணி சினம் கொண்டான் ?  எம்பெருமான் பொறுத்தல் இல்லாமல் தன் சினத்தை வெளிக்காட்டுவது அவன் தனது பக்தர்களுக்கு சிரமம் ஏற்படும் தருணம்.    எம்பெருமான் ப்ரஹலாதாழ்வான் பக்கலில் வைத்திருந்த வாத்ஸல்யம், அவனுக்கு விரோதியாயிருந்த இரணியனிடத்தில் கொண்டிருந்த சீற்றமானது.  

திருவல்லிக்கேணி ஸ்ரீபார்த்தசாரதி எம்பெருமான் கண்ணபிரான் - அர்ஜுனனுக்கு சாரத்யம் பண்ணின கோலத்தில் அல்லிக்கேணியில் எழுந்து அருளினார்.  தெள்ளியசிங்கன் - பக்தனுக்காக கோபத்தை வெளிப்படுத்திய நாரசிம்ஹன்.   தவன உத்சவத்தில் இரண்டாம் நாள் வேணுகோபாலனாக சேவை சாதிக்கிறார். 

எம்பெருமானிடத்திலே சரணம் புகுந்தவன் எவரையும் அஞ்ச வேண்டியதில்லை.  காருண்ய சீலனான எம்பெருமான், தனது பக்தர்களுக்கு துன்பம் தருபவர்களிடத்தில் சீற்றம் கொள்வான். பயந்தும், கலங்கியும் உள்ள நெஞ்சங்களுக்கு ஸ்ரீமன் நாராயணனே புகலிடம்.  ஸ்ரீபூதத்தாழ்வார் தமது இரண்டாம் திருவந்தாதியில் -  உலகளந்த பெருமானுடைய திருவடிகளையே உகந்து ஆச்ரயித்திருக்கும்படி தமது திருவுள்ளத்திற்கு உரைக்கிறார்.  நாமும் அதையே பின்பற்றுவோமாக !

 

கழலெடுத்து வாய்மடித்துக் கண்சுழன்று, மாற்றார்

அழலெடுத்த சிந்தையராய் அஞ்ச, தழலெடுத்த

போராழி ஏத்தினான் பொன்மலர்ச் சேவடியை

ஓராழி நெஞ்சே உகந்து.

 

பூதத்தாழ்வார்   தமக்கு  உரைக்கிறார் -  ஆழ்ந்த மனமே!  முன்பு எம்பெருமான் த்ரிவிக்ரமாவதாரம் செய்தருளின போது,  தனது  திருவடிகளை உயரத் தூக்கினவனாயும், அவ்வமயம் எதிரிட்ட நமுசி முதலான மாற்றோர்களை  பயாக்னி கொளுந்தின நெஞ்சையுடையவர்களாய் நடுங்கும்படியாக  உதட்டை மடித்துக் கடித்துக் கொண்டு,  பார்க்கிற பார்வையிலேயே அவ்வெதிரிகள் சுருண்டுவிழும்படி, கண்கள் வட்டமிட, நெருப்பையுமிழ்கிற போர் செய்யவல்ல திருவாழியாழ்வானை  தரித்தவனாயுமிருக்கிற எம்பெருமானுடைய, அழகிய மலர்போன்ற திருவடிகளையே, விரும்பி அநுஸந்திப்பாயாக.  

Isaignani Ilayaraja’s masterpiece - Nothing But Wind (1988), was performed by flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia and a 50-piece orchestra with  conceptual approach suggested in the title—that music is a “natural phenomenon akin to various forms of air currents”.

Here are some photos of Sri Azhagiya Singar   ‘Venugopalan ’ thirukolam  – the divine flautist and ulpurappadu inside Thavana uthsava bungalow  today.   

adiyen Srinivasa dhasan. 

Mamandur veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar