Vid. Sudha Raghunathan - 2007 Ramanavami Concert at Parvathi

Sangeetha Kalanidhi Vid. Sudha Raghunathan - Sri Ramanavami 2007

One of the favourites of the Parvathi audiences, and a celebrated concert artiste for over three decades, Vid. Sudha Raghunathan performed in 2007 at Parvathi to a full house. Unfortunately, the audio we can retrieve is a "hall recording" with significant sound degradation. However, the concert stands as a testament to Vid. Sudha's calibre and concert aesthetics. 

We decided to ask Perplexity.AI to list five notable facts about Vid. Sudha. Here is what it told us!!!

Here are the five best things one can say about Vid. Sudha Raghunathan:

One of India’s foremost Carnatic vocalists and a Padma Bhushan awardee: Sudha Raghunathan is widely recognized as one of the leading exponents of Carnatic music, having been honored with some of the country's highest civilian awards including the Padma Bhushan (2015) and Padma Shri (2004).

Recipient of the prestigious Sangeetha Kalanidhi: She was awarded the Sangeetha Kalanidhi by the Madras Music Academy, a distinction regarded as the highest honor in Carnatic music, and she was among the youngest to receive it, marking a generational transition in the field.

Innovator and global ambassador for Carnatic music: Sudha has evolved a distinctive style, blending tradition with innovation, and has performed at major venues worldwide, including being the only Carnatic musician after M.S. Subbulakshmi to sing at the United Nations. Her repertoire spans over 200 albums and includes forays into film and fusion music.

Dedicated disciple and torchbearer of a legendary lineage: She is a direct disciple of the legendary Dr. M.L. Vasanthakumari, and has carried forward her guru’s legacy, both musically and in her approach to professionalism, resilience, and stage presence.

Committed philanthropist and educator: Beyond music, Sudha Raghunathan has made significant contributions to society through her Samudhaaya Foundation, supporting numerous social causes including health, education, and disaster relief, and actively promoting music education and outreach.

These qualities underscore her artistic excellence, pioneering spirit, and social commitment, making her a role model in the world of Indian classical music and beyond.

Concert Details 

 Sudha Raghunathan - Vocal

 Mysore V. Srikanth - Violin 

 C. Cheluvaraj - Mridangam 

 M.A. Krishnamurthy - Ghatam 

 Date: 27 March 2007.

 Sri Ramanavami Festival conducted at the home of "Parvathi".

Song List

1. Shloka and Mathe Malayadhwaja - Khamach - Muthiah Bhagavatar
2. Vatapi Ganapathim - Hamsadhwani - M. Dikshitar
3. Shloka and Jaya Jaya Janakikantha - Nata - Purandaradasa
4. Endaro Mahanubhavulu - Sriraga Pancharathna - Thyagaraja
5. Nagumomu - Abheri - Thyagaraja
6. Marivere Dikkevaraiyya Rama - Shanmukhapriya - Patnam Subrahmanya Ayyar
7. Kurai Ondrum Illai - Ragamalika - Rajaji
8. Shloka - Bhavayami Gopalabalam - Yamuna Kalyani - Annamacharya
9. Gandhamu puyyaruga - Punnagavarali - Thyagaraja
10. Ragamalika - Uga bhoga - Baro Krishnayya - Kanakadasa
11. Viruttam - Rama Namame - Tanjavur Sankara Iyer
12. Brahmam Okate - Bauli - Annamacharya
13. Mangalam

 

Sudha Raghunathan – A Worthy Inheritor and a Shining Star

Padma Bhushan Vid. Sudha Raghunathan - Sri Ramanavami 2005

The mantle of the MLV bani sits lightly on the most successful lady musician on the Carnatic scene of the past 30 years. Vid. Sudha Ragunathan has performed at the Madras Music Season every year since 1990, the very year in which her Guru Dr. ML Vasanthakumari breathed her last. 

In 2013 she was awarded the Sangita Kalanidhi of the Madras Music Academy. She was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian honour, in January 2015. 

Her charities are very well known, carried out by her trust. Her musical collaborations, from performing with Dr. Balamuralikrishna to joining groups that created world music, are prolific and fascinating.

Vid. Sudha’s energy, charm and creativity were on full display during the Covid lockdown. She conducted a number of exciting sessions with musicians and other personalities of all ages in a warm tête-à-tête style. She even had live cooking sessions on her YouTube channel, where she sang and cooked at the same time!

We have featured several concerts of Vid. Sudha Raghunathan in the Parvathi blog already. She has been a regular in our festivals and a much acclaimed star for the Parvathi audiences.

In this 2005 concert, Vid. Sudha presents a rich bouquet of songs from many composers. Her easy style of reaching top octave notes is on display early in the concert. . All the accompanists are established names from Karnataka. Her essay of Todi and the song Chesinadella are captivating. Behind her ease in negotiating the high notes and an easy fluidity characteristic of her music lies hidden her lifelong Sadhana in a successful journey prophesied by none other than Bhagavan Sathya Sai Baba.

Concert Details

 Sudha Raghunathan - Vocal

 Mysore V. Srikanth - Violin 

 C. Cheluvaraj - Mridangam 

 M.A. Krishnamurthy - Ghatam 

 Date 21 April 2005 

 Sri Ramanavami Festival conducted at the home of "Parvathi"

Song List

1. Viriboni – Bhairavi Atatala Varnam – Pachimiriyam Adiyappayya
2. Gajavadana Beduve – Hamsadhvani – Purandara Dasa 
3. Ramanatham Bhajeyam – Pantuvarali – Muthuswami Dikshitar 
4. Mokshamu Galada – Saramathi – Thyagaraja 
5. Bhavayami Raghuramam – Ragamalika – Swathi Thirunal 
6. Dayarani – Mohana – Thyagaraja 
7. Akhilandeshwari – Dwijavanthi – Muthuswami Dikshitar 
8. Vidajaladura – Janaranjani – Thyagaraja
9. Jesinadella Marachitivo – Todi – Thyagaraja 
10. Kurai Onrum Illai – Ragamalika – C. Rajagopalachari 
11. Maneyinda Santhosha – Ugabhoga – Yamuna Kalyani – Sripadaraja 
12. Hari Smarane Mado –Yamuna Kalyani – Purandara Dasa 
13. Brahmam Okate – Bowli - Annamacharya 
14. Mangalam

ಉಗಾಭೋಗದ ಸಾಹಿತ್ಯ: 

ಮನೆಯಿಂದ ಸಂತೋಷ ಕೆಲವರಿಗೆ ಲೋಕದಲಿ 

ಧನದಿಂದ ಸಂತೋಷ ಕೆಲವರಿಗೆ ಲೋಕದಲಿ 

ವನಿತೆಯಿಂದ ಸಂತೋಷ ಕೆಲವರಿಗೆ ಲೋಕದಲಿ 

ತನಯನಿಂದ ಸಂತೋಷ ಕೆಲವರಿಗೆ ಲೋಕದಲಿ 

ಇನಿತು ಸಂತೋಷ ಅವರವರಿಗಾಗಲಿ ನಿನ್ನ ನೆನೆವೋ ಸಂತೋಷ ಎನಗಾಗಲಿ ನಮ್ಮ ರಂಗವಿಠ್ಠಲ ॥

Torchbearer of a Bani and a Role-model

Sangitha Kalanidhi Designate Vid. Sudha Raghunathan

A Review from R. Sachi

We are extremely happy to offer our felicitations and best wishes to this year’s Sangitha Kalanidhi designate Vid. Sudha Raghunathan.

A busy year indeed for Vid. Sudha Raghunathan has culminated in the famed award being announced by the Madras Music Academy for 2013. It has been a splendid journey for the lady musician since the 1970’s under her tutelage with Dr. M. L. Vasanthakumari. She has been hailed as the torchbearer of the famous MLV Bani.

We feature her concert from the 1989 Parvathi Ramanavami series. In his valedictory speech (audio featured below), Sri. K. Srikantiah hails her as a worthy successor to Dr. MLV and predicts a very bright future for her. Vid. Sudha’s music has stayed at the top of the charts all these years, garnering honors year after year.

We are also happy to feature excerpts from her interview by Lakshmi Devanath, published recently in the Hindu (click the link for the full interview):

“I dedicate this award to my Mata, Pita, Guru and Devah. They made it happen,” says Sudha. Sudha’s mother Choodamani was a trained musician blessed with a strikingly beautiful voice. Circumstances stood in the way of her becoming a professional, but the tenacious lady moulded her unfulfilled aspirations into a dream that she dreamt for her second daughter, Sudha. The way the three-year-old repeated Sai bhajans after her was enough and more indication of the child’s inherent musicality. Choodamani willed to hone that talent and entreated the Supreme Grace of Sai.

Choodamani put Sudha under the tutelage of vidwan T.V. Viswanathan and later under vidwan B.V. Lakshman. With impressive perspicacity, she decided that participation in music competitions would benefit her daughter hugely. She enrolled Sudha in every possible competition and zealously sourced teachers who would teach her daughter the stipulated songs.

The decisive turn happened, however, with Sudha winning the Central Government Scholarship for music in 1977 and subsequently, MLV’s consent to teach her.

(Courtesy : ICARC Inc)

Commenting on that crucial period in her life Sudha says, “Realising that I wasn’t in control of what was happening, I took a crucial decision - to make it big, irrespective of what I did.” This fire in her set the pace of her career graph.

“I have no time for formal teaching. You have to be sharp and grasp whatever you can when I sing.” MLV was very matter of fact in her approach. Sudha just strummed the tambura in her Guru’s performances for a year, before she graduated to being her second voice. She found the experience of sharing the stage with her teacher inestimable. Every concert was worth its weight in gold. MLV’s legendary flights of imagination as she explored ragas, her intellectually-stimulating swara matrices, her brilliant RTPs …Sudha had the privilege of being exposed to them all at close quarters. Returning home, she would mull over MLV amma’s music, listen to her recordings, sit with the notations and go back the next day fully equipped for yet another enthralling session. During her musical interactions with MLV, Sudha would always be on tenterhooks, for MLV was not given to open praise. The first telling indication of her assessment of Sudha’s capabilities happened in the early 1980s after a concert of MLV in New York. The students of Stony Brook University, who had come for the concert, requested MLV that Sudha give a solo performance at their school. MLV not only graciously agreed but also spontaneously requested her accompanists Kanyakumari and Mannargudi Easwaran to join Sudha in the concert.

The Sangita Kalanidhi award (being conferred in this Dec. season by the Music Academy on her) is an important milestone in Sudha’s career. She is overwhelmed by gratitude. “I look upon this award as an opportunity for me to thank all those who have stood by me - my family, my accompanists, my rasikas, music organisations and the press.” Even as she says this her thoughts go back to her dedication.

“I have talked about the role of my mother, father and guru. In the final reckoning they are all different manifestations of God, Sai Baba, as I recognise him. It was He who named me Sudha. I sat on His lap as a child and twirled His hair in innocent frolic. He did my aksharabhyasam, my formal initiation into the world of education. The first song that I sang was a Sai Bhajan…”

Concert Details

Parvathi Ramanavami concert held at Jaganmohan Palace on 23 April 1989.
Vid. Sudha Raghunathan – Vocal
Vid. Lalgudi Rajalakshmi – Violin
Vid. Chandramouli – Mridangam

Song List

01 Vanajakshi Varna-Kalyani- Poochi Srinivasa Iyenger *** 02 Sri Mahaganapatim- Athana-Jayachamaraja Wodeyar *** 03 Shobillu saptaswara -Jaganmohini- Thyagaraja *** 04 Marugelara Jayanthashri – Thyagaraja *** 05 Raghuvara – Kamavardhini –Thyagaraja *** 06 Shankarabharana Raga*** 07 Yeduta nilachite –Thyagaraja *** 08 Rama Rama –Vasantha -Purandara Dasa *** 09 Narayana ninna - Shudda dhanyasi – Puranadara Dasa *** 10 Shanmukhapriya Raga*** 11 Marivere dikkevarayya - Patnam Subrahmanya Iyer-Tani*** 12 speech by Sri K. Srikantiah *** 13 Rama Rama- Tilang – Purandara Dasa***

New age, new star - Vidushi Sudha Raghunathan

Even from early '80s, a young student of MLV used to feature along with her on the "Parvathi" concert stage in 'pinpaattu'. Educated in Bangalore with an MA in Economics, she went on to become a big draw in Carnatic music, carrying on the tradition of MLV's style with her presence and musical impact. She is now a reigning star. Vidushi Sudha Ragunathan is proudly featured this time, from her 1996 concert.

Much material about this artiste can be gleaned on the Internet. Subbudu, the famous critic is quoted as having written that if he ever were to be marooned on an island, his wish would be to be able to listen to a cassette of Sudha's music!

"Parvathi" Concert March 30, 1996

01. Sami ninne - Shankarabharana varna - Veena Kuppaiyar *** 02. Varavallabha Ramana - Hamsadhwani - G.N. Balasubramaniam*** 03. Jaya jaya - Naata - Purandaradasa*** 04. Sadinchane - Aarabhi pancharatna - Thyagaraja *** 05. Saarame gaani - Pantuvarali - Thyagaraja *** 06. Marugelara - Jayanthashri- Thyagaraja *** 07. Sogasugaa - Shriranjani - Thyagaraja *** 08. Sudhaamayi - Amritavarshini - Muthiah Bhagavathar *** 09. Raama kathaa sudhaa- Madhyamavati- Thyagaraja *** 10. Venkataachala nilayam - Sindhubhairavi - Purandaradasa *** 11. Brahmam Okate - Bowli - Annamacharya *** 12. Ramanamame - Desh - Tanjavur Shankara Iyer *** 13. Aaneyu karedare Suladi- Hamsanandi, Shahana, Shivaranjani- Purandaradasa + Yamanelli Kaananendu - Shivarajani - Purandaradasa *** 14. Thillana - Hamir Kalyani - ? *** 15. Mangalam