From: tmohan@iastate.edu (Thyagarajan Mohan)
Subject: RTP
Organization: Iowa State University, Ames, IA
Distribution: rec.music.indian.classical
Date: Sat, 12 Dec 1992 16:56:18 GMT

Hi Netters,
     This article is an attempt to describe what a `raagam thaanam pallavi'
is.Explaining this is as difficult as rendering an RTP itself.However,let us 
see some aspects of this.
     Before beginning,let me give my compliments to Srinivasan for his rather
detailed `sooLaadhi thaaLaa'.Let me add some more info. to it .
     All the  `thaaLaas' are referred as ---thaaLa,---jaathi;---gathi.As he 
said,most of the krithis are set in `chathusra gathi'.So unless specified,the
gathi is assumed `chathusra gathi'.Similarly if the `jaathi'is not specified 
depending on the `thaalas'the following are taken for granted.
     
     thaaLaa       jaathi      Tota count(aksharaas)
     ~~~~~~~       ~~~~~~~~     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     thriputa      thisra        7

     roopaka       chathusra     6

     aeka           "  "   "     4
 
     dhruva         "  "   "     14

     matya          "  "   "     10
     
     ata            kanda        14

     jampa          misra        10
  
      However `chatusra jaathi triputa thaaLaa'is known only by `aadhi thaaLaa'

         `sankeerNam'seems to be a later(!) addition,by the Pallava Knig
`Mahendra Varma'.
        `roopaka thaaLaa' is counted nowadays as one anudhrutham and a dhrutham
total three aksharaas.However,this particular `thaaLaa' seem to have a special 
name in the 108 thaaLaas;can anybody help?
        There are two varieties of the `aadhi thaaLaa'-`madhyaadi and 
dhaeschaadhi',both have eight aksharaas.Songs in madhyaadhi thaaLaa are sung in
`aadhi thaaLaa,viLambitha kaalaa';the song starts after 3/4 beats of the
thaalaa.`raaga sudHaa rasa'(aandhoeLika,St.Thyagaraja),`nija dhaasa varadha'
(kalyaaNi,Pattanam Subrahmanyaiyar)are some representative examples.
    Songs in `dhaeschaadi thaaLaa' are also sung in `aadhi thaaLaa'but in 
`madhyama kaalaa';song starts after one and a half of the thaaLaa.`marugaelara'
(jayanthasree)`bandyreethi koluvu'(hamsanaadham)of St.Thyagaraja;`marivaera'
(ShaNmukhapriya),`aparadhamula'(lathaangi),`raghu vamsa sudha'(kathana 
kuthoohalam)of Pattanam Subramnyaiyar are some examples.
    The `misra chaapu thaaLaa'(again if one were to say `chaapu thaLaa',it 
means `misra chaapu'.`kanda chaapu'has to be indicated with its adjective)is
counted (toatal three and a half aksharaas)commonly as 3/2 +1+1.The uncommon
1+1+3/2,called as `viloema chaapu'is used in some krithis of Shyama Sastry,e.g
`ninnuvinaa kamari'(poorvi kalyaaNi),`naanubhroevu lalithaa'(lalithaa),
`meenaloechana bhroeva'(dhanyaasi)etc.

Let us come back to RTP.
       
    As the name implies,this is divided into three sections,raagam,thaanam and
pallavi.This is mainly a `kalpanaa sangeetham'.This whole piece is to reveal
the `sruthi and laya' knowledge of an artist,say vocalist.The importance is
given to the pallavi.
     After a detailed elaboration(aalaapana)of a raagaa,the artist would
render the `thaanam'using the words like `thaanam,nam and thom/thoem'.In this 
section,the vocalist would comfortably `stand'on the `nyaaasa swaras'and 
goes back and forth over the notes of the raagaa with a rythm.Like aalaapana,
this also doesn't include the `thaaLaa'.But in Swathi ThiryunaaL tradition,
during the Dasara Concerts,the `thaanam'is sung with the `thaaLa'of the song.
Infact,the Mridhangam is played for support.Here the pallavi is replaced by a
regular song.
      After successfully completing the `thaanam',comes the difficult part 
pallavi.This is like any pallavi of a song,mostly confining to one cycle of a
`thaaLaa'.Most of them are self compositions.Some people use the pallavi from 
other songs.Some may include the names of the raagaa and words rhyming with 
them.As an e.g a pallavi in the raagaa `shaNmukhapriya'may be composed as


    `priyae geethapriyae shaNmukhapriyae sadhaaschiva...'.

    The importance is given to the `thaaLa'and `gathi'.The common `aadhi 
thaaLaa' etc.won't be entertained well.Another imporatnce is the `eduppu',where
the pallavi starts in the `thaaLaa'.`sama eduppu'i.e pallavi beginning with the
song is not considered great.The `thaaLaa'parameters are more important to 
colorify this piece.Rendering an RTP alone doesn't carry much weightage if the
`thaaLaa' is not something unusual.
    Generally,more than one word of the pallavi begins with the `nyaasa swara'
so that the artist can complete his sequence of `kalpanaa swaras' at different
places  of the `thaLaa' to start that word.For e.g in the above pallavi,the 
artist may give his k.s for all the words`priyae',`geethapriyae',`shaNmukha-
priyae'or `sadhaaschivapriyae'.This is to reveal his `laya' knowledge.
    Now let us see the way of singing.After an elaborate `niraval' of the 
pallavi(covering the various aspects of the raagaa)is done.After the `niraval'
the artist comes back to the  `pallavi'as it started.The FUN starts.

1. The artist goes to the lower tempo(viLambitha kaalaa)completes one cycle of 
the pallavi(which requires two cycles of the base tempo) .


2. The artist comes back to the base tempo(madhyama kaalaa)completes two cycles
of the pallavi.

3.If the pallavi were setin the `chathusra gathi',the artist is expected to do
`thisram'at this stage which completes three cycles of the pallavi in two of
the base.Otherwise he/she directly goes to the next step.

3.(Without coming back to the `madhyama kaalaa)He/she speeds/jumps up to the 
`dhuritha kaalaa'and completes four cycles of the pallavi(which require two 
cycles of the base tempo).

     After sucessfully completing these cycles (called `kaala pramaaNam),the 
artist comes back to the `madhyama kaalaa'Then begins the kalpanaa
swaraas in the same raagaa.This is finished and the `thani aavardhanam' for
the percussion instruments is given.
    One of the notable features of this `thani avardhanam' is that they
reproduce the pallavi rhythm in their instruments.(I've hardly heard this 
nowadays).
    After this `thani',the artist restarts the pallavi.He/she may render the 
kalpanaa swaraas in diferent raagaas and finally end in the original raagaa.
Some great people,after raagaamalika swaraas,revert back to the original raagaa
in the same sequence of raagaas constituted.

    Beautifying the different stages involved depends on the individual's
capability.

    In addition to `raaga maalika',`thaaLa malikaa'is also popular sometimes.
Can some people throw more info.on this?
   
MOHAN

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