Palghat Kollengode Viswanatha Narayanaswamy
Encyclopedia
Palghat Kollengode Viswanatha Narayanaswamy (November 15, 1923 - April 1, 2002), often referred to as KVN, was an India
n musician, widely considered to be among the finest Carnatic music
vocalists of the 20th century. He was described as the "Gentle Perfect Knight" of Carnatic music
, a phrase from Geoffrey Chaucer
, by V. K. Narayana Menon
, prominent art critic of India and recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship
.
, a district renowned for its cultural and musical traditions, on the 15th of November, 1923. Narayanaswamy was born into a family of illustrious musicians and artists. His great-grandfather Viswam Bhagavatar was renowned for his evocative Ashtapadis and rendered services for Maharaja
Ayilyam Thirunal
, ruler of the princely state
of Travancore
from 1860 to 1880. In return Viswam Bhagavatar was bestowed with government aid and hereditary royal privileges. Viswam Bhagavatar's son, Narayana Bhagavatar continued his father's legacy. His son was violin
maestro, Viswanathayyar (soon came to be known as 'Fiddle
' Viswanathayyar), KVN's father. K.V.Narayanaswamy learned basic music lessons under his father and grandfather. After studying in Palghat till the fifth form, he moved to Coimbatore
, where he briefly dabbled in theater. KVN even managed a role as the young Kanappan in the movie Kannappa Nayanar
. The movie bombed at the box office.
KVN first began extensive training under Mridangam maestro, Padma Bhushan
, Palghat Mani Iyer
. Mani Iyer proceeded to place KVN under the tutelage of Sangeetakalacharya C.S. Krishna Iyer, a highly competent vocalist, musicologist and composer
in Palghat, and then under violinist and Sangeetha Kalanidhi
Papa Venkataramiah. Viswanatha Bhagavatar was however very keen that KVN should train under Padma Bhushan
Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
, who was one of the most dominant musicians of the first half of the twentieth century along with the likes of Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer
and G. N. Balasubramaniam
. Mani Iyer soon judged KVN to be ready for gurukulavasam under Ariyakudi and in 1942, KVN took the giant step. He entered the home of Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
and remained an ardent disciple until the latter's passing away in 1967.
concert in 1954, when he was unexpectedly forced to substitute his Guru, Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
who was not in a position to attend the conference under unforeseen circumstances. Accompanied by doyens Palghat Mani Iyer
and Papa Venkataramayya, this concert proved to be a milestone in Narayanaswamy's career. The training under Palghat Mani Iyer
allowed KVN to develop a solid knowledge of rhythmic nuances. This in turn would enable him to be at ease in the company of such legends of percussion as Palghat R. Raghu
, Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman
and Palani Subramaniam Pillai
, to name a few. KVN, Palghat R. Raghu
and violin maestro T.N.Krishnan would soon become a frequent and much admired combination on stage.
K.V.Narayanaswamy was intimately connected to the Travancore Royal Family
following his skillful rendition of Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma
's Navaratri compositions. Another landmark in KVN's life came in 1964 when he participated in the East-West Encounter concerts in New Delhi. This was followed by a widely acclaimed concert at the Edinburgh Festival
in Scotland
in 1965.
On being made professor of music at Wesleyan University
, Middletown, Connecticut
, between 1965–67, he went on a coast-to-coast concert tour of USA. He was one of four artists including Bismillah Khan
, Ali Akbar Khan
, and Ravi Shankar
who participated in the hugely popular Hollywood Bowl
music festival in Los Angeles
in the summer of 1967.In 1974, KVN went to teach in Berkeley, California
for a year, in the company of dancer Balasaraswati
and sitarist Nikhil Banerjee
. Invited by the American Society of Eastern Arts, he traveled to North America
, Europe
(Berlin Music Festival in 1976) and Australia
(Adelaide Arts Festival in 1988) multiple times thereafter on various concert tours. He also joined the Music College in Madras as a lecturer in 1962 when Musiri Subramania Iyer
was its principal, and retired as Professor of Music in 1982.In 1984, Narayanaswamy was to become the first Indian musician to be awarded the Fulbright Scholarship and went to San Diego State University
in California
as an artist-in-residence under the scholarship. For nine months he taught at the university and gave performances all over North America.
, Sri Subrahmanya Namaste in Kambhoji, Bala gopala in Bhairavi
, Satatam Tavaka in Kharaharapriya
, Pahi Janani in Natakuranji, Enneramum in rāga
Devagandhari
, Pirava varam tarum in Latangi
and Kanavendamo in Sriranjani
are some of the songs that have come to bear his distinct signature. "The depth of emotion and the pathos he invested in singing certain compositions of Gopalakrishna Bharathi
, especially VarugalAmo ayya and his incomparable and unique presentation of Krishna nee beganey in the style of Jayammal and Balasaraswati
, in which he caressed the words and phrases exquisitely and had the audience in a trance as if he were a pied piper" are noteworthy. Strict adherence to Shruthi (musical pitch
), lyrical purity and a poignant rendition were distinctive features of KVN's music.
In 1948 KVN married Palghat Mani Iyer
's cousin Annapoorni. They had three daughters and a son: Muktha, Lalitha, Viswanathan and Ramaa. By a stroke of misfortune Annapoorni passed away in 1962. In 1965 Narayanaswamy married Padma, a talented musician and disciple who continues to train her husband's students in his style. Their daughter Anuradha is a trained vocalist and television actor.
See also: Carnatic music
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n musician, widely considered to be among the finest Carnatic music
Carnatic music
Carnatic music is a system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent, with its area roughly confined to four modern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu...
vocalists of the 20th century. He was described as the "Gentle Perfect Knight" of Carnatic music
Carnatic music
Carnatic music is a system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent, with its area roughly confined to four modern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu...
, a phrase from Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages and was the first poet to have been buried in Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey...
, by V. K. Narayana Menon
V. K. Narayana Menon
Dr. V. K. Narayana Menon was a scholar of classical Indian dance and Indian classical music. He was one of the prominent art critic of India and a Fellow of the Sangeet Natak Akademi....
, prominent art critic of India and recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship
Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship
The Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, also, Sangeet Natak Akademi Ratna Sadasya is an honour for the performing arts in India...
.
Early life and background
KVN was born to Kollengode Viswanathayyar and Muthulakshmi Ammal in Palghat, KeralaKerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, a district renowned for its cultural and musical traditions, on the 15th of November, 1923. Narayanaswamy was born into a family of illustrious musicians and artists. His great-grandfather Viswam Bhagavatar was renowned for his evocative Ashtapadis and rendered services for Maharaja
Maharaja
Mahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...
Ayilyam Thirunal
Ayilyam Thirunal
Maharajah Ayilyam Thirunal Rama Varma was the ruler of the princely state of Travancore in India from 1860 to 1880. His reign was highly successful with Travancore gaining the appellation of "model state of India"...
, ruler of the princely state
Princely state
A Princely State was a nominally sovereign entitity of British rule in India that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule such as suzerainty or paramountcy.-British relationship with the Princely States:India under the British Raj ...
of Travancore
Travancore
Kingdom of Travancore was a former Hindu feudal kingdom and Indian Princely State with its capital at Padmanabhapuram or Trivandrum ruled by the Travancore Royal Family. The Kingdom of Travancore comprised most of modern day southern Kerala, Kanyakumari district, and the southernmost parts of...
from 1860 to 1880. In return Viswam Bhagavatar was bestowed with government aid and hereditary royal privileges. Viswam Bhagavatar's son, Narayana Bhagavatar continued his father's legacy. His son was violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
maestro, Viswanathayyar (soon came to be known as 'Fiddle
Fiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
' Viswanathayyar), KVN's father. K.V.Narayanaswamy learned basic music lessons under his father and grandfather. After studying in Palghat till the fifth form, he moved to Coimbatore
Coimbatore
Coimbatore , also known as Kovai , is the second largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a major commercial centre in Tamil Nadu and is known as the "Manchester of South India"....
, where he briefly dabbled in theater. KVN even managed a role as the young Kanappan in the movie Kannappa Nayanar
Kannappa Nayanar
Kannappa Nayanar or Kannappan was one of the 63 Nayanmars or holy Saivite saints, the staunch devotees of Lord Shiva...
. The movie bombed at the box office.
KVN first began extensive training under Mridangam maestro, Padma Bhushan
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan, but comes before the Padma Shri. It is awarded by the Government of India.-History:...
, Palghat Mani Iyer
Palghat Mani Iyer
Palghat T.S. Mani Iyer was one of the leading mridangists in the field of Carnatic music and the first mridangist to win the Sangeetha Kalanidhi andPadmabhushan awards....
. Mani Iyer proceeded to place KVN under the tutelage of Sangeetakalacharya C.S. Krishna Iyer, a highly competent vocalist, musicologist and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
in Palghat, and then under violinist and Sangeetha Kalanidhi
Sangeetha Kalanidhi
Sangeetha Kalanidhi or Sangita Kalanidhi is the title awarded yearly to an expert Carnatic Musician by the Madras Music Academy. This honour is considered one of the highest awards in Carnatic music.-----Sangeetha Kalanidhis:-External links:*...
Papa Venkataramiah. Viswanatha Bhagavatar was however very keen that KVN should train under Padma Bhushan
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan, but comes before the Padma Shri. It is awarded by the Government of India.-History:...
Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar or more popularly simply called as Ariyakudi was born in Ariyakudi a town in the Karaikudi district of Tamil Nadu, South India in the year 1890. Ariyakudi was a Carnatic Music vocalist and is known for his unique style. He made his debut at Tyagaraja Aradhana in 1918...
, who was one of the most dominant musicians of the first half of the twentieth century along with the likes of Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer
Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer
Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer is considered to be one of the greatest Carnatic vocalists of the twentieth century...
and G. N. Balasubramaniam
G. N. Balasubramaniam
G. N. Balasubramaniam , popularly known as GNB, was a legendary vocalist in the Carnatic tradition. He became the first superstar of Carnatic music, innovating the art through emphasis on laya control & reducing the gamakas which eventually made Carnatic music appeal to the lay and the learned...
. Mani Iyer soon judged KVN to be ready for gurukulavasam under Ariyakudi and in 1942, KVN took the giant step. He entered the home of Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar or more popularly simply called as Ariyakudi was born in Ariyakudi a town in the Karaikudi district of Tamil Nadu, South India in the year 1890. Ariyakudi was a Carnatic Music vocalist and is known for his unique style. He made his debut at Tyagaraja Aradhana in 1918...
and remained an ardent disciple until the latter's passing away in 1967.
Performing career
KVN's major break came at a Madras Music AcademyMadras Music Academy
Madras Music Academy, or simply Music Academy, is one of the premier and early Music Academies in the South Indian city of Madras, now Chennai. It plays an important role in encouraging and promoting primarily the Carnatic Music south Indian art form. It also played an important role in revival of...
concert in 1954, when he was unexpectedly forced to substitute his Guru, Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar or more popularly simply called as Ariyakudi was born in Ariyakudi a town in the Karaikudi district of Tamil Nadu, South India in the year 1890. Ariyakudi was a Carnatic Music vocalist and is known for his unique style. He made his debut at Tyagaraja Aradhana in 1918...
who was not in a position to attend the conference under unforeseen circumstances. Accompanied by doyens Palghat Mani Iyer
Palghat Mani Iyer
Palghat T.S. Mani Iyer was one of the leading mridangists in the field of Carnatic music and the first mridangist to win the Sangeetha Kalanidhi andPadmabhushan awards....
and Papa Venkataramayya, this concert proved to be a milestone in Narayanaswamy's career. The training under Palghat Mani Iyer
Palghat Mani Iyer
Palghat T.S. Mani Iyer was one of the leading mridangists in the field of Carnatic music and the first mridangist to win the Sangeetha Kalanidhi andPadmabhushan awards....
allowed KVN to develop a solid knowledge of rhythmic nuances. This in turn would enable him to be at ease in the company of such legends of percussion as Palghat R. Raghu
Palghat R. Raghu
Palghat R. Raghu was a famous Carnatic musician and percussionist.- Early life :Palghat R. Raghu was born on January 9, 1928 in Rangoon, Burma . He died of cardiac arrest on June 2, 2009. As a child, he was immensely talented and inducted into mridangam lessons very early in his life...
, Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman
Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman
Umayalpuram Kasiviswanatha Sivaraman is an Indian mridangam player. He was awarded with the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian honor, on the occasion of the country's 61st Republic Day observance on January 26, 2010 and received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Kerala in...
and Palani Subramaniam Pillai
Palani Subramaniam Pillai
Palani Subramaniam Pillai was a well known Carnatic music percussionist. He was adept in playing the mridangam and kanjira. He was the sishya of the celebrated Malikkottai Panchapakesa Pillai .-Early life:Subramaniam Pillai was born on April 20, 1908...
, to name a few. KVN, Palghat R. Raghu
Palghat R. Raghu
Palghat R. Raghu was a famous Carnatic musician and percussionist.- Early life :Palghat R. Raghu was born on January 9, 1928 in Rangoon, Burma . He died of cardiac arrest on June 2, 2009. As a child, he was immensely talented and inducted into mridangam lessons very early in his life...
and violin maestro T.N.Krishnan would soon become a frequent and much admired combination on stage.
K.V.Narayanaswamy was intimately connected to the Travancore Royal Family
Travancore Royal Family
The Travancore Royal Family descended from the Venad line of the Cheras and ruled over the Indian state of Travancore until 1947.The Royal family, alternatively known as the Kupaka Royal Family, Thripappur Swaroopam, Venad Swaroopam, Vanchi Swaroopam etc., has its seat today at Trivandrum in...
following his skillful rendition of Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma
Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma
Sri Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma was the Maharaja of the state of Travancore , in India. He reigned under the regency of his mother Maharani Gowri Lakshmi Bayi from 1813 till 1815 and henceforth under the regency of his aunt Maharani Gowri Parvati Bayi from 1815 till 1829...
's Navaratri compositions. Another landmark in KVN's life came in 1964 when he participated in the East-West Encounter concerts in New Delhi. This was followed by a widely acclaimed concert at the Edinburgh Festival
Edinburgh Festival
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in 1965.
On being made professor of music at Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
, Middletown, Connecticut
Middletown, Connecticut
Middletown is a city located in Middlesex County, Connecticut, along the Connecticut River, in the central part of the state, 16 miles south of Hartford. In 1650, it was incorporated as a town under its original Indian name, Mattabeseck. It received its present name in 1653. In 1784, the central...
, between 1965–67, he went on a coast-to-coast concert tour of USA. He was one of four artists including Bismillah Khan
Bismillah Khan
Ustad Bismillah Khan was an Indian shehnai maestro. He was the third classical musician to be awarded the Bharat Ratna , the highest civilian honour in India and gained worldwide acclaim for playing the shehnai for more than eight decades....
, Ali Akbar Khan
Ali Akbar Khan
Ali Akbar Khan , often referred to as Khansahib or by the title Ustad , was a Hindustani classical musician of the Maihar gharana, known for his virtuosity in playing the sarod...
, and Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar , often referred to by the title Pandit, is an Indian musician and composer who plays the plucked string instrument sitar. He has been described as the best known contemporary Indian musician by Hans Neuhoff in Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart.Shankar was born in Varanasi and spent...
who participated in the hugely popular Hollywood Bowl
Hollywood Bowl
The Hollywood Bowl is a modern amphitheater in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles, California, United States that is used primarily for music performances...
music festival in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in the summer of 1967.In 1974, KVN went to teach in Berkeley, California
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
for a year, in the company of dancer Balasaraswati
Balasaraswati
Balasaraswati was a celebrated Indian dancer, and her rendering of Bharatanatyam, a classical dance style, made this style of dancing of south India well known in different parts of India, as also many parts of the world....
and sitarist Nikhil Banerjee
Nikhil Banerjee
Nikhil Ranjan Banerjee was a Hindustani classical musician of the Maihar Gharana who played the stringed instrument sitar.-Early life and background:...
. Invited by the American Society of Eastern Arts, he traveled to North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
(Berlin Music Festival in 1976) and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
(Adelaide Arts Festival in 1988) multiple times thereafter on various concert tours. He also joined the Music College in Madras as a lecturer in 1962 when Musiri Subramania Iyer
Musiri Subramania Iyer
Musiri Subramania Iyer was a Carnatic vocalist who's stage performing career spanned the 1920s to the 1940s. After retirement from the stage, he remained an iconic figure in Carnatic music as a dedicated teacher and leader in the Carnatic community...
was its principal, and retired as Professor of Music in 1982.In 1984, Narayanaswamy was to become the first Indian musician to be awarded the Fulbright Scholarship and went to San Diego State University
San Diego State University
San Diego State University , founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, is the largest and oldest higher education facility in the greater San Diego area , and is part of the California State University system...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
as an artist-in-residence under the scholarship. For nine months he taught at the university and gave performances all over North America.
Musical style and Song Repertoire
Though Narayanaswamy's singing bore his master Ariyakudi's Bani, over the years he evolved a unique style of his own. Strict classicism and blemish-less singing are some of the obvious facets of his music. His vast repertoire included songs that encompassed every genre, a number of languages and composers belonging to different ages.Endaro Mahanubhavulu in Sri RagamSri Ragam
Sri Ragam is an ancient raga in the Carnatic tradition. It seems unrelated to the Hindustani Shree. Notably, it takes the lower madhyamam being a janya raga of Kharaharapriya. Sri Ragam is much beloved and is considered to be highly auspicious...
, Sri Subrahmanya Namaste in Kambhoji, Bala gopala in Bhairavi
Bhairavi
Bhairavi is a fierce and terrifying aspect of the Devi virtually indistinguishable from Kali, except for her particular identification as the consort of the Bhairava.-Symbolism:...
, Satatam Tavaka in Kharaharapriya
Kharaharapriya
Kharaharapriya is a rāgam in Carnatic music . It is the 22nd melakarta rāgam in the 72 melakarta rāgam system. Kharaharapriya has a distinct melody and brings out the Karuna rasam, invoking pathos in the listeners...
, Pahi Janani in Natakuranji, Enneramum in rāga
Raga
A raga is one of the melodic modes used in Indian classical music.It is a series of five or more musical notes upon which a melody is made...
Devagandhari
Devagandhari
Devagandhari is a raga in Indian classical music. It is used in the Sikh tradition of northern India and is part of the Guru Granth Sahib...
, Pirava varam tarum in Latangi
Latangi
Latangi is a rāgam in Carnatic music . It is the 63rd Melakarta rāgam in the 72 melakarta rāgam system of Carnatic music. It is called Geetapriya in Muthuswami Dikshitar school of Carnatic music.Raganidhi by P. Subba Rao, Pub...
and Kanavendamo in Sriranjani
Sriranjani
Shree ranjani is a rāgam in Carnatic music . It is a hexatonic scale . It is a derived scale , as it does not have all the seven swaras...
are some of the songs that have come to bear his distinct signature. "The depth of emotion and the pathos he invested in singing certain compositions of Gopalakrishna Bharathi
Gopalakrishna Bharathi
Gopalakrishna Bharati was a Tamil poet and a composer of Carnatic music. He wrote a katAkALatcEpam , NantanAr Carittiram , two other works in this genre, and many independent kritis....
, especially VarugalAmo ayya and his incomparable and unique presentation of Krishna nee beganey in the style of Jayammal and Balasaraswati
Balasaraswati
Balasaraswati was a celebrated Indian dancer, and her rendering of Bharatanatyam, a classical dance style, made this style of dancing of south India well known in different parts of India, as also many parts of the world....
, in which he caressed the words and phrases exquisitely and had the audience in a trance as if he were a pied piper" are noteworthy. Strict adherence to Shruthi (musical pitch
Pitch (music)
Pitch is an auditory perceptual property that allows the ordering of sounds on a frequency-related scale.Pitches are compared as "higher" and "lower" in the sense associated with musical melodies,...
), lyrical purity and a poignant rendition were distinctive features of KVN's music.
Leading Disciples
Some of KVN's leading disciples were Padma Narayanaswamy, vocalist K.V.Ananthan, violinist and vocalist H.V.Srivatsan, Padma Sandilyan, H.S.Prashanth, Pattabhiraman Pandit M.R.Subramaniam, T S Ranganathan, Manipallavam K.Sarangan and Balaji Prasath.Personal life
In 1948 KVN married Palghat Mani Iyer
Palghat Mani Iyer
Palghat T.S. Mani Iyer was one of the leading mridangists in the field of Carnatic music and the first mridangist to win the Sangeetha Kalanidhi andPadmabhushan awards....
's cousin Annapoorni. They had three daughters and a son: Muktha, Lalitha, Viswanathan and Ramaa. By a stroke of misfortune Annapoorni passed away in 1962. In 1965 Narayanaswamy married Padma, a talented musician and disciple who continues to train her husband's students in his style. Their daughter Anuradha is a trained vocalist and television actor.
Recognition
- President of IndiaPresident of IndiaThe President of India is the head of state and first citizen of India, as well as the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. President of India is also the formal head of all the three branches of Indian Democracy - Legislature, Executive and Judiciary...
's Padma ShriPadma ShriPadma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan...
,1976 - CentralCentralCentral is an adjective usually referring to being in the center.Central may also refer to:-Directions and generalised locations:* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as Middle Africa...
Sangeet Natak Academi Award,1976 - Fulbright Scholar and visiting professor at University of California, San DiegoUniversity of California, San DiegoThe University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...
,1984–85 - Madras Music AcademyMadras Music AcademyMadras Music Academy, or simply Music Academy, is one of the premier and early Music Academies in the South Indian city of Madras, now Chennai. It plays an important role in encouraging and promoting primarily the Carnatic Music south Indian art form. It also played an important role in revival of...
's Sangita Kalanidhi Award, 1986.
See also: Carnatic music
Carnatic music
Carnatic music is a system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent, with its area roughly confined to four modern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu...