Wood-Ridge, NJ, USA – December 2001 – It is with a heavy heart that I write about one of the great influences in my life, Srimati Sarada Sivanandam, the respected Carnatic musician and wife of Sangeetha Kalanidhi K.P. Sivanandam. 

Smt. Sarada passed away on October 29, 2001 at the age of 73 due to heart failure.  She was conscious until her last days and passed away peacefully in her sleep.  She is survived by her husband, her son, and three daughters. 

I first heard the soulful veena playing of K.P. Sivanandam and Sarada Sivanandam about 25 years ago.  My mother obtained a recording from a friend that featured their masterful renditions of Thodi, Kalyani, HariKambodhi, and PoorviKalyani.  My mother, sister, and I were so mesmerized with their bani (style of playing) that we sought them out on a subsequent summer trip to India.  When my mother told them that we wanted to become their disciples and that we were from the USA, Sri Sivanandam and Smt. Sarada were genuinely surprised and touched that their music had reached such far distances.  My mother (Kamala Natarajan), my sister (Raji Natarajan), and I have been privileged to call Smt. Sarada and Sri Sivanandam our Gurus for the last 25 years.

We went frequently to India and learnt how to play alapana, thanam, and swaram from these musical giants, along with a chaste paadaantharam (song rendition style) of masterpieces by the Tanjore Quartette and Muthuswamy Diskshitar.  I had the great fortune to have almost four classes a week during a one-year stay in India in 1985, during which I underwent intensive study in Carnatic music.  On every class visit, I would ask to hear their recollections about great musicians of this century and about their musical influences (Sri Sivanandam is the son of Sri Ponniah Pillai and the brother of the Bharatanatyam dance teacher, Sri K.P. Kittappa).  They spoke at length about the style of many past and current performers, but they never made disparaging remarks about other musicians.  Their observations about each musician’s style and technique were always insightful, especially since they would sing or play to illustrate their points.   They felt a great responsibility about preserving all that is classical about Carnatic music and the art of veena playing. 

Sri Sivanandam is the son of the late Sangeetha Kalanidhi Sri Ponniah Pillai (Principal of Music at Annamalai University) and the brother of the great Bharathanatyam dance teacher, Sri K.P. Kittappa.  His ancestors were the direct disciples of Muthuswamy Dikshitar, known as the Tanjore Quartet (Ponniah, Chinniah, Vadivelu, and Sivanandam).  The Tanjore Quartet is famous for their contributions in preserving the Dikshitar legacy and many original compositions including, Mayatheetha Swaroopini, Ranganathude, Amba Neelambari, numerous thillanas, varnams, javalis, and padams.

Smt. Sarada was a classicist with great devotion to the veena.  Besides being a vainika vidwan, she was an accomplished vocalist who was particular about being able to sing everything that she played on the veena.  She encouraged her students to improve their veena playing by first learning how to sing and then translating the song to the veena.  She would talk with authority about how veena playing should exemplify a gayaka (vocal) style, with minimal gimmickry and antics.  She was vehement about playing slowly to evoke deep gamakams (tonal inflections) and avoiding the splitting of fingers at all costs.  She would demonstrate how keeping the fingers together more closely approximated the human voice than the finger-splitting style.  Though they acknowledged the dexterity and skill required to play fast with finger-splitting, it was simply not their style.  On my most recent visit to their house in August 2001, Smt. Sarada said:  “The veena is not a vadhyam (instrument) for showing off speed.  There are many other instruments for speed.  This instrument is about nidhaanam (patience).  Play slowly, don’t rush (“odaadhai” in Tamil), and cultivate azhuttham (depth) in your meetu (plucking).” 

Smt. Sarada was a perpetual student.  In 1985, she asked me to teach her a small Dikshitar song that I had learnt from D.K. Pattammal, so that she could teach it to her students at the college (she respected DKP’s artistry).  She asked me to teach her the song line by line until she could sing it perfectly (that took only one hour) and then she asked me to play on the veena so that she could see how accurately I had translated the gamakams to the veena.  Then, she played the song on the veena, closing her eyes as her concentration deepened.  The experience spoke volumes about her humility and sense of perfection.   She never presented herself with any self-importance and revealed that her greatness existed on many dimensions.

Smt. Sarada met Sri Sivanandam during her days as a student almost 52 years ago.  They led the life of classical musicians from the earlier era – i.e., one marked by devotion to a great art, but with none of the commercial or monetary accoutrements.  They were well respected by musicians and classical rasikas, but did not have widespread performance opportunities to showcase their virtuosity.  They did not make any foreign tours, they did not produce any commercial recordings, they did not perform any jugalbandis, and many of their concerts were never recorded.  There were few published articles about them and they led a very private, family-centered life.  They conducted private classes from their home to many students who aspired to grasp the depth of their style.  They had long distinguished careers as music teachers at the Carnatic Music College in Chennai. 

The last time I saw her on August 2001, Smt. Sarada was in good spirits, but said that age was catching up with her.  While inquiring about my family, she asked her son to bring a veena so that she could hear me play.  She was very curious about what songs I had learnt and wanted to confirm that I was continuing my vocal music discipline.  As I played, she observed deficiencies in my playing, but said that I was on the right path.  From her gentle suggestions, I knew that I had to work harder to improve.  As I prostrated before my two Gurus, I felt blessed in having been under the guidance of such eternal spirits. 

The influence of Smt. Sarada and Sri Sivanandam in my life is too profound for words.  Their personal affection towards me gave me a connection to India that has transcended geographic distance and time.  Their encouragement made me believe that my roots in India would never die.  My goal in life is to emulate their devotion, classicism, humility, and respect for our great music.  I will cherish my experiences with them, forever and beyond.  I hope that these personal recollections may give the reader some insight about one of the great classical musicians and teachers from India.

                 Figure 2:  Smt. Sarada and Sri Sivanandam

                                           with their grand-daughter (1985?)

Please contact me if you wish to learn more about these great artists or send contributions to their family (my email address is Sam@HarvestTechnology.com).