Matrka: Voices Within
 | |
| Author | Bombay Jayashri & T.M. Krishna, with Mythili Chandrasekar |
|---|---|
| Country | India |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Non-fiction, novel |
| Publisher | Mātṛkā |
Publication date | 2007 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover with dust jacket) |
| Pages | 188 pp |
| ISBN | 81-7525-555-2 |
| OCLC | 122304641 |
Overview
This book is a result of the authors' desire to find ways of giving back something to an art that, as performing Carnatic musicians, has been their livelihood.
They pay tribute to some of the maestros who had an influence in shaping the system of Carnatic music, and bringing it to where it is now.
Contents
Seven is a magical number in Carnatic music. So Voices Within is about seven stalwarts who laid the foundation and chartered the course of Carnatic music They were musicians who were entrepreneurs.
The book deals with seven musicians of the last century:
- Sri Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
- Sri T.N.Rajarathnam Pillai
- Sri Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer
- Sri G.N. Balasubramaniam
- Sri Palghat Mani Iyer
- Smt M.S. Subbulakshmi
- Sri T. R. Mahalingam (Mali)
Many biographies have been written about the above maestros. Voices Within presents its content about these people in a very different manner, new to the field of Carnatic music. It presents perspectives as opposed to direct information. It is more of an offering and a sharing and passing on of an inheritance.
Special Features
It is a coffee table book – the first of its kind in Carnatic music. It contains essays, rare photographs, letters, notes, Conversations and reflections between T.M. Krishna and Bombay Jayashri.
Snippets on the backdrop and the ethos of the times including:
- Music and the Freedom Movement
- Patronage of the arts moving from the kings to institutions
- All India Radio
- The talkies and Carnatic music
- Madras becoming the capital for Carnatic music
Audience
In India, the book reaches out to a much larger audience than just the core Carnatic music rasika, as other books have in the past. Even they have only seen either theoretical books or biographies.
References
- George, Nina C, "Two Authors and a Book", The Hindu
- Ganesh, Deepa, "They are part of our being", The Hindu
- Rajan, Anjana, "In Celebration of Musicians", The Hindu