Friday, September 2, 2011

Male choir singing the traditional choir - Red tulips

This is not very common with Raja and most Indian music composers. Traditional choir includes sining la la la or tha na na or the group repeating the main singers lines.


Raja has used male choir in a traditional fashion not frequently throughout his 4 decades of work. Raja tends to use male choir in the Western mode more than the Indian traditional way. It may be a personal preference.


Manidha Manidha from Kan Sivanthaal Man Sivakkum (1983) is a male solo with male chorus backing. The male chorus hum during the pallavi and they sing in complete baritone in the charanam. Though this cannot be treated as traditional Indian chorus, this is the closest we can get to...


Let's hear Manidha Manidha...





Engirundho Ilanguyil from Brahma (Tamil 1991). The first interlude has the male chorus for some parts with the grand violins backing them. The second interlude has the male chorus with both string and wood winds backing them. While parts of this track can be considered male harmony singing, there are parts which follow the conventional Indian format.


Azhagana Nam Paandi Naatinile from Pudhupatti Ponnuthayi (Tamil 1995) – The pallavi has Raja and the male chorus singing the lines repeatedly. In the charanams, the male chorus repeats the lines of Raja and also sing some chorus parts.


Adada Ahangara from Pithamagan (Tamil 2004). This is a very different song with complex arrangement (time signature). In the pallavi, when Yesudas sings ‘Manidha’, Raja uses the male chorus to enhance the effect of just the word being sang. The charanam has some parts sang by the male chorus.

Let's hear Adada Ahangara...



There are a few other tracks suggested by several Raja fans that need mention.

The prelude of the song Velai Vandhu from Nadigan (Tamil 1990) uses male chorus in a conventional format.

Several parts of the song Ada Maapillai from Siva (Tamil) uses male chorus in a conventional format.

Oh Party Nalla Party from Idhayam (Tamil 1991) uses male chorus in a conventional format in the second interlude.


This is a matter that needs to be debated in Raja forums as to why he does not use male chorus in a conventional format. Between the genders, it appears like flood and famine within the same category!

3 comments:

Suresh S said...

Hi Ravi,

You got me thinking. Let me listen to a few more songs and check if the number of male choirs used by Raja is so less.

BTW, the first clip plays only the violins. Can you check that up?

Anonymous said...

Hi Ravi,

Listen to Ooru Vittu Ooru Vandhu - Karagattakaran - that is a feed for this. Lovely western male chorus for a classic folk.

Cheers,
Bala

ravinat said...

Suresh

The clip has between 50 and 54 seconds, the male chorus going la la la ..

Bala

You got me wrong. My observation is Raja's usage of male chorus in a conventional format - singing 'la la la' or 'tha na na'. Not Western choir - there will be a full fledged section on that in the near future.

Cheers

Ravi