Tabla unusual conversations

While Raja has extensively used tabla in his rhythm arrangements, it is not so common to put the tabla in the C&R mode. We will present some top of mind examples of Raja’s C&R that involves the tabla.

1. The first segment is from the song ‘Muthumani Sudare Vaa’ from the film Anbulla Rajnikanth (Tamil 1984). The call is from the flute and the response is from the tabla
2. The second segment is from the song ‘Vanamella Shenbagapoo’ from the film Nadodi Paatukaran (Tamil 1992). There are 4 different calls from the flute and the tabla responds to the calls with rhythm. Nice arrangement.
3. The third segment is from the famous song ‘Thakita Thathimi’ from the film Salangai Oli (Tamil 1983 or Sagara Sangamam –Telugu). The call is from the synthesizer and the response is an equally rapid one from the tabla.

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s unusual tabla  conversations...
 

Sax unusual conversations

Raja’s use of sax in his songs has been covered in a number of topics in this blog and C&R arrangements with Sax is not so common within Raja’s work. However, I will cover some top of mind examples of sax use by him in a C&R mode.

Here is a single clip with two segments that cover his sax C&R work:

1. The first segment is less than 15 seconds and is from the song ‘Ponmeni Uruguthe’ from Moondram Pirai (Tamil 1982). The long calls from the sax are answered in short by the guitar
2. The second segment is for about 15 seconds and is from the interlude of the song ‘Vaanile Thenila’ from Kaaki Sattai (Tamil 1985). The long call is by the violins and the short response this time is from the sax, the opposite of the previous segment

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s unusual sax conversations of Raja set to a C&R arrangement ...

The Cheeni Kum background score had some very interesting sax arrangements.  Readers can contribute more to this topic from the long list of Raja compositions...

Mirudhangam Unusual conversations

Raja had a great mirudhangam player with Madurai Sreenivasan. He exploited Seenu’s talent throughout his compositions. While it is hard to detail every single mirudhangam based conversations, we will call out some top of mind examples.

Let’s explore Raja’s use of mirudhangam in C&R mode in this post. The clip has several segments drawn from several songs.

1. The first 30 seconds are from the prelude of the song Manjolai Kilithano from Kizhakke Pogum Rayil (Tamil 1979). This is a percussion ensemble with the mirudhangam and the tabla in the C&R mode throughout the 30 seconds
2. The second segment is a shorter 10 second mirudhangam based conversation from the song ‘Thogai Ilamayil’ from Payanangal Mudivathillai (Tamil 1981). The mirudhangam’s call is responded in short by the veena. It is rare to hear such conversations in today’s music
3. The third segment is a slightly longer segment for about 18 seconds and the mirudhangam based conversation is the opposite of the previous example. For a long call from the veena, the mirudhangam response is short. This clip is from the song, ‘Poovil Vandu’ from Kadhal Oviyam (Tamil 1982).
4. The fourth segment is for about 10 seconds and is from the song, Ther kondu from Ennakkul Oruvan (Tamil 1984). This is an equal call and response arrangement from a time perspective and is between the mirudhangam and the flute
5. The fifth segment is from the song, ‘Megam Kottattum’ from from Ennakkul Oruvan (Tamil 1984). This is part of the postlude of the song and is a brilliant conversation in part between the drums and the mirudhangam. I did cover this part as a polyrhythm arrangement as the time signature between both these instruments are different.

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s unusual mirudhangam based conversations …

I am sure there are other examples that readers can point out.

Percussion unusual conversations

We covered some of Raja’s unusual C&R arrangements with mirudhangam. Raja’s percussion usage is huge in variety, from drum kits, synth pads to many other special percussion instruments. In this post, we will explore some of the unusual conversations around percussion instruments.

Let’s analyze this percussion based unusual conversations in two parts or clips. The first clip has several segments drawn from several songs.

1. The first segment is a melodious 15 seconds from the song ‘Mandarapoo Mooli’ from Vinodha Yatra (Malayalam 2007). The call is from a bass drum and the initial responses are from a synthesized flute. The call is again repeated by the bass drum and now the response is from a regular flute. This is a beautiful arrangement in the age of the synthesized music. Please note that the synthesized flute continues to play along with the regular flute
2. The second segment, shy of 30s econds,  is the first interlude of ‘Ila Nenje Vaa’ from the film Vanna Vanna Pookal (Tamil 1995). This is a complete percussion ensemble that is typical of Raja, tabla, drum kit, synthpads, mirudhangam – the works.
3. The third segment is almost a minute and is the second interlude of ‘Ila Nenje Vaa’ from the film Vanna Vanna Pookal (Tamil 1995). There are several percussion C&R arrangements within this one minute. First, it starts off as a dialog between the synthpad and the tabla, this is followed by another dialog between the tabla and the mirudhangam, finally a dialog between two synthpads. Brilliant!
4. The fourth segment is from the classical song, ‘Sangathamizh Kaviye’ from Manadhil Uridhi Vendum (Tamil 1987).  This is a short 10 second segment that shows the conversation between the tabla and the mirughangam. You can notice the difference in arrangement between this one and the ‘Ila Nenje’ song , though the instruments are exactly the same
5. The fifth segment is a short 12 second clip from the prelude of the song ‘Oora Vittu’ from Karagattakaaran (Tamil 1989).  The call is by the Thavil and the response is by the drum kit
6. The fifth segment is a 22 second clip from the prelude of the song ‘Therke Veesum’ from the film Kolangal (Tamil 1995). This is a dialog between two mirudhangam (or two synthesized tones)

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s unusual percussion ensembles set to a C&R arrangement...

 

Next, let’s analyze some of Raja’s percussion and violin based conversations. These are a Raja specialty and deserve a separate clip.

1. The first 11 second segment is from the interlude of the song, ‘Ilancholai Poothathaa’ from the film Unakkaagave Vaazhgiren (Tamil 1986) and is a melodious conversation between the violins and the mirudhangam. The call by the violins is long and the response from the mirudhangam is short
2. The second segment is almost 32 seconds long and is from the song, ‘Mandhiram Idhu’ from Aavaarampoo (Tamil 1992). The arrangement is something that only Raja can think of. Harmonized Indian classical violins  make the call and they get a short response from the tabla. These conversations eventually merge with a violin ensemble.
3. The third segment is from the song, ‘Nadha Vinodhangal’ from the film, ‘Salangai Oli’ (Tamil/Telugu 1983). The long call is by the thundering violins and the short response is from the mirudhangam

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s unusual percussion/violin ensembles set to a C&R arrangement...

 

Jathi - Unusual conversations

Raja had the opportunity to set to music several songs that had a dance background. Jathis are part of the dance tradition and Raja has considered it as another musical instrument, in my view. He has used them as part of his interludes, charanams and sometimes as part of his pallavis too.

Let’s explore Raja using jathi in C&R mode in this post. The segments are from the song Ther Kondu from Ennakkul Oruvan (Tamil 1984).

1. In the first 5 seconds, the call is by the jathi voice and the response is by the mirudhangam. Very routine in the dance circuit
2. Between 15 and 20 seconds, the call is by the flute and the response is by the jathi voice. Now, Raja takes standard practice from the dance circuit and replaces it with his own creativity
3. In the third segment after 27 seconds, Raja further embellishes this with the call from the violin and the response is by the jathi voice.

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s unusual jathi based conversations ...

Chorus Unusual conversations

Raja uses chorus extensively in his interludes and we have analyzed it in a series of posts on how he has exploited voices in his compositions. We will see how he has exploited chorus and instruments such as flutes, guitars or violins in a C&R mode. First, let’s take a look at a sample of Raja’s unusual conversations between chorus and flutes.

1. There are two segments in this illustration. The first segment is from the song Madurai Marikozhundhu Vasam from Enga Ooru Paatukkaran (Tamil 1987). In this segment, you will hear rapid C&R interaction between the chorus and the flute – both the call and the response is short and is repeated three times
2. The second segment is from the song Malligaiye Malligaiye from Periya Veetu Panakkaran ( Tamil 1990). Here the chorus’s call is quite lengthy and the response from the flute is equally lengthy

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s unusual Chorus-flute conversations...

Let’s next move on to chorus conversations with guitar.

1. The first segment is from the song Marakudaiyal from Manasinakkare (Malayalam 2003). The call is from the chorus played with the distortion guitar in the background. The response is a short one from an electric guitar (could be a synthesizer) and the C&R is repeated 4 times
2. The second segment is from the song Puzhaiorathil  from the film Adharvam (Malayalam 1989). There is a reversal of role here. The call is by the electric guitar and the response is a lengthy one from the chorus.

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s unusual chorus-guitar conversations...

Let’s next move on to chorus conversations with violins.

1. The first segment is from the song Ponmane Kovan Eno from Oru Kaidhiyin Diary (Tamil 1983). The call is from the chorus set in scat mode and the response is from the violins
2. The second segment is from the song Poonkatre Theendhathe from the film Kunkuma Chimizh (Tamil 1985). The call again is from the chorus and the response is from the violins.  The chorus is set to Indian melody this time.

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s unusual chorus-violin conversations...

These are top of mind examples. If one does deeper research, a number of other examples will surface.

Bass Guitar Unusual conversations

Raja’s use of bass guitar is famous and we did cover this briefly in some of the earlier posts – ‘Basically Raja’. While there are so many examples on how Raja has used the bass guitar as part of his C&R arrangements in his interludes, I will call out two top of mind examples. The clip below has two segments separated by a few seconds of silence.

1. The first segment is from the song Thogai Ilamayil from Payanangal Mudivathillai (Tamil 1982). The first 5 seconds is a fantastic conversation between a bass guitar and a flute
2. The second segment is from the song Laali Laali from Swathi Mudhyam (Telugu 1985). Between 10 and 15 seconds you can hear a beautiful conversation between a bass guitar and a veena. Beyond that, the conversation gets into a counter melody which is outside the rules of this section. You may notice that between 15 and 25 seconds, a flute joins the melody and plays a different melody; between 25 and 30 seconds, the flute is replaced with violins

These are very unusual arrangements that only a gifted composer can think of. I am sure there are other such clips I may have overlooked. Readers may throw in their comments.

Let’s hear the sample of Raja’s bass guitar unusual conversations…