Articles on P.S.Narayanaswamy

P.S.Narayanaswamy

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Sri P.S.Narayanaswamy - a senior disciple of Semmangudi Sri Srinivasa Iyer - is a contemporary Carnatic musician of high calibre. He has been in the field of music for the past five decades. Born in Konerajapuram on the 24th of February in the year 1934 to Dr.P.N.Subramaniam and Mathuram, PSN -- as he is popularly known -- had the opportunity of learning under masters like Sri Thiruppambaram Somasundara Pillai (Nadaswara Vidwan) and Sangeetha Kalanidhi Sri Mudikondan Venkatarama Iyer.

When he was eight years old PSN began his music classes with the Nadaswaram exponent Tirupambaram Sri Somasundaram Pillai. His music classes were in the late evenings and PSN would spend the night at his Master's place. PSN and two other disciples were woken up at four in the morning and their rigorous practice used to go on till eight or so. Almost 50 years later, PSN gratefully states that "it is the firm foundation laid by Sri Somasundara Pillai that has helped me all these years". In 1953, in his nineteenth year PSN came under the tutelage of the illustrious Semmangudi Sri Srinivasa Iyer. PSN stayed in Semmangudi's house at Trivandrum and for 5 years the Gurukulam continued. It was from Semmangudi that PSN imbibed the nuances of swara singing and raga alapana. PSN remembers how Semmangudi used to listen to his disciples sing and inspired by it, would start singing the raga expansively leaving the disciples spellbound.

PSN began his stage performances when he was 12. In the early 40s and 50s persuading the Sabha Secretary to give him an opportunity was a herculean task. The Secretary's standard comment used to be "Only now has your teacher's singing career begun - surely, you can wait awhile". PSN accompanied Semmangudi on many performances for 8 years. In 1975, PSN joined All India Radio Madras under the Vadya Vrinda (Symphony) Unit. PSN has created over 9 Vadya Vrinda pieces where he had to bring together more than 25-30 artistes and 7 or 8 different instruments. His Vadya Vrinda was the highlight of the show on the occasion of AIR's golden jubilee in 1981.

PSN visited the United States and Canada on a concert tour in 1984 and performed 25 concerts. He has participated in programmes conducted by almost all the leading Sabhas in India and abroad.

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