The life of Swathi Thirunal was an offering in music to God. A rare renaissance personality, Swathi Thirunal was a king among musicians and musician among kings. His musical compositions and his life were a mutual translation of his devotion to LordPadmanabha, the presiding deity of the Travancore Royal House....
More>>>>
Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma
was a progressive ruler who lived ahead of his times and was committed to the welfare of the people. Being an able administrator his far sighted reforms were responsible for introducing modern medicine, English education and a humane judicial system in Kerala....

More>>>>


Composers and Musicians


Muthuswamy Deekshithar (1776-1835)


Deekshithar Ragalist

Muthuswamy Deekshithar was born in Thiruvavoor in the Thanjavoor district of Tamil Nadu. His father Ramaswamy was a composer and musician of repute. He had his early education in Sanskrit, grammar and puranas along with music. He was a veena exponent. Following the advice of a Guru , Deekshithar went to Kasi and spend five years there . It is after his return from Kasi that he started concentrating in music. All his 500 odd compositionds are in Sanskrit.He used to spend long hours at the Saint Thyagaraja temple at Thiruvavoor composing and singing songs.
He has composed navavarana kritis praising the Kamalambika temple at his village. He was a great devotee of Devi or the mother godess. His compositions on the five elements and the nine planets are also well known. Deekshithar compositions are known for their poetic quality and they are difficult to render. He has composed in Hindustani style and according to western notations too. The disciples of Deekshithar known as the sThanjavoor bothers Vadivelu, Ponnaiha and Sivanandam were prominent members in Swathi’s court . In 1835 Deekshithar died while rendering a composition on his favorite deity.

 
 
 
Copy Right 2003 , All Rights Reserved, Designed and Maintained by C-DIT , www.cdit.org