Expanding the Repertoire, Perfecting the Rhythm

Smt. Padma Chandilyan & Vidwan Srimushnam V. Raja Rao

Behind every performing artist who catches the discerning ear of a Carnatic connoisseur, there are teachers whose patient, exacting work rarely makes it to the spotlight. For Ram Srivatsan, two such individuals have been quietly and profoundly shaping his musical journey.

Around the same period that Ram began his pursuit of the Brinda Bani, he had the good fortune of learning under Smt. Padma Chandilyan, a teacher of considerable repute in Chennai's Carnatic circles, widely regarded for the rigour, clarity, and depth she brings to her students. Her ability to build a singer's repertoire — instilling not just compositions but a genuine understanding of each kriti's musical and lyrical substance — has placed many of her students on the concert stage with confidence and distinction. From her, Ram learnt a significant body of kritis that has meaningfully broadened the range and depth of what he brings to the concert platform.

But music, as the great masters have always said, is not learnt in isolation from its rhythm. And it was during this same period that Ram had the rare good fortune of coming to the notice of Vidwan Srimushnam V. Raja Rao — one of the most celebrated mridangists of our time, and a musician of truly towering stature.

Recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award — the highest honour the nation bestows on a performing artist — and the Kalaimamani conferred by the Government of Tamil Nadu, Srimushnam Raja Rao trained under the legendary Kumbakonam M. Rajappa Iyer and went on to accompany the greatest names in Carnatic music — among them Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, M. Balamuralikrishna, T.N. Seshagopalan, Lalgudi Jayaraman, and T.V. Sankaranarayanan. With over six decades of association with the mridangam, he is not merely an accompanist but a musical institution in himself — a vidwan whose understanding of a vocalist's inner world is as profound as his command of the instrument.

That such a musician took notice of Ram, developed an affection for him, and chose to take him under his personal guidance is not something Ram takes lightly — nor should any listener. Raja Rao's approach to mridangam emphasises stylistic depth and rhythmic creativity, with a particular gift for enhancing a vocalist's expression without ever overshadowing it. It is precisely this sensitivity — of a percussionist who listens before he plays — that has made his mentorship so transformative for Ram.

Under Raja Rao's watchful guidance, Ram's grasp of math — the fine rhythmic arithmetic that underpins every well-structured Carnatic performance — has been perfected and deepened. Equally, his manodharma sangeetham, the realm of spontaneous musical imagination that separates a competent singer from a genuine artist, has grown in depth and confidence. Ram has since been privileged to accompany Vidwan Raja Rao in his concerts — an opportunity that is, in itself, an education no classroom can replicate. The training under both Smt. Padma Chandilyan and Vidwan Raja Rao continues to this day, and Ram approaches every session with the humility and gratitude of one who knows he is in the presence of masters.

There is a beautiful tradition in Carnatic music — that a great musician's affection for a younger artist is itself a form of grace, a passing of the lamp. Ram receives that grace with both hands.