Sangita Sampradaya Pradarshini Archival Project

Objective: Audio archival of all musical compositions published in the Sangita Sampradaya Pradarshini, a publication on Carnatic music (1904), in conformity with the musical notation provided by its author. Project advisors: Dr N Ramanathan Dr R S Jayalakshmi Musicians: T M Krishna Dr R S Jayalakshmi R K Shriramkumar K Arun Prakash A brief historical background: Subbarama DikshitarThe Sangita Sampradaya Pradarshini (henceforth referred to as SSP) was written by Subbarama Dikshitar (right), in the year 1904. Subbarama Dikshitar, a great composer and musician, was Muddusvami Dikshitar’s brother’s grandson. Muddusvami Dikshitar was one of the most influential composers in the history of Carnatic music, along with Thyagaraja and Shyama Sastri. The idea behind the SSP is credited to A. M. Chinnaswamy Mudaliar, a superintendent of the then Madras Secretariat. A Roman Catholic and a Latin scholar, he acquired a great passion for Carnatic music and published a journal, Oriental Music. Compositions in Carnatic music were published in this journal using staff notation, with the words in the English, Telugu and Tamil alphabet. Though this journal was praised by many, the response was meager and Chinnaswamy Mudaliar had to discontinue its publication. But during this period, he came into contact with Subbarama Dikshitar and the Rajah of Ettayapuram (a place in Tamilnadu). This relationship was most significant, as it culminated in the publication of the SSP in 1904, with the patronage of the Rajah of Ettayapuram. Significance of the Sangita Sampradaya Pradarshini: The SSP was one of the first publications that attempted to notate Carnatic music. It contains 229 fully notated compositions of Muddusvami Dikshitar. The notation was developed by its author, who devised a self contained and consistent scheme to notate various gamakas. As mentioned earlier, the author of the SSP belonged to the musical and genealogical lineage of Muddusvami Dikshitar. It is generally accepted that Muddusvami Dikshitar was very particular in preserving the older forms of ragas through his compositions. Hence the SSP is a singularly valuable resource for analyzing and understanding the important musical tradition represented by Muddusvami Dikshitar. In addition to the compositions of Muddusvami Dikshitar, the SSP contains notated compositions of other composers, providing insights concerning the practice of Carnatic music 150 years ago.