kAmbOji

Historical References: kAmbOji is an ancient rAga and is mentioned in texts like

Sangita Ratnakara. It is a sampUrNa rAga, and a bhAShAnga rAga. Raga Lakshanas:
Subbarama Dikshitar gives the ArOhaNa/avarOhaNa as
ArOhaNa : S R2 G3 M1 P D2 N2 D2 S
AvarOhaNa : S N2 D2 P M1 G3 R2 S. The accepted ArOhaNa/avarOhaNa is
ArOhaNa : S R2 G3 M1 P D2 S
avarOhaNa : S N2 D2 P M1 G3 R2 S. M, D, and N are the jiva svaras which lend gre
at beauty to the rAga. Important prayOgas are 'DSR, MGPDS', PMaMGaRS DSNNDDP, S'
DDP etc. SRGS, RPMGS, RMGS are some of the common phrases. MGS, PDM, MGPDS, S'PS
'NiD are particularly appealing. The anya svara N3(foreign note) occurs at some
places, mostly in the descent. An example is the prayOga S'NPDS. In Muttuswami D
ikshitar's compositions in kAmbOji, in most of the descending, i.e., avarOhaNa p
hrases like S'NPDS, the N is kAkali niShAda (N3). The usage of N3 is very limite
d in Tyagaraja kritis. kAmbOji is a sarva svara gamaka varika rakti rAga, i.e.,
all svaras in this rAga lend themselves to graces. Long kArvais (glides) especia
lly on the P and the D and the kampita gamaka (oscillation) on the M are 'a thin
g of beauty and a joy for ever'. Compositions: The varnam kamalAkShi of Kunrakku
di Krishnayyar is a masterpiece. So is Swati Tirunal s sarasijanAbha (aTa tALa). O
rangashAyI, marimari ninnE, evari mATa, mA jAnaki, shri raghuvarApramEya and ma
hita pravriddha shrImati are some of the important kritis of Tyagaraja. shri sub
rahmaNyAya namastE, shri valmIka lingam, the fourth KamalAmba NavAvaraNa song, k
amalAmbikAyai, all of Muttuswami Dikshitar, are other important kritis. The NavA
varaNa is an excellent piece that explores the entire gamut of kAmbOji. This kri
ti is meditation itself. kAmbOji and shri subramaNyAya namastE are synonymous. T
his composition suggests the influence of the Hindustani dhrupad style on Dikshi
tar. Shyama Sastri's dEvi nI padasArasa is a rare song he has composed on Goddes
s Meenakshi of Madurai. SvarAksharas and the jatisvaram Shyama Sastri has incorp
orated make the kriti sparkling. kOniyADina nApai of Veena Kuppayyar is a grand
composition. tiruvaDi caraNam of Gopalakrishna Bharati brings out the pathos inh
erent in this rAga, proving that it is capable of various rasas. The padams vada
raka pOvE and bAla vinavE of Kshetrajna and padari varugudu of Ghanam Krishnayya
r are slow tempo compositions that explore the rAga fully and prove that it can
be used to depict shringAra rasa too. Papanasam Sivan's kANa kaN kODi is also a
major piece. Maestros' Renditions: Many vidwans have distinguished themselves by
their excellent renditions. The Nagaswara vidwans revelled in playing this rAga
that offered immense scope for their manOdharma. Rajaratnam Pillai's sancArAs i
n the mandra regions especially, have brought out hitherto un-hidden beauties. F
lute Mali's kAmbOji was always the toast of rasikas. His chauka kala meanderings
between the madhyama and tAra shadja and vice-versa, as also his mandra sthAyi
meditations around the dha would give goose-bumps to rasikas. Ariyakudi's favour
ites were shri subramanyAya namastE and evari mATa. Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer an
d M. S. Subbulakshmi revelled in singing evari mATa and O rangashAyI. Madurai Ma
ni Iyer's forte were mA jAnaki and kANa kaN kODi, and the niraval and svaraprast
haras he sang for these songs are evergreen favourites. Musiri Subramania Iyer m
ade tiruvaDi caraNam immortal. M. D. Ramanathan's alapana was always in-depth an
d long drawn out. The kAmbOji RTP sung by M. L. Vasanthakumari at the Krishna Ga
na Sabha in August 1983 was memorable for its wholesome treatment of the rAga. G
NB, her Guru, was similarly known for his detailed RTPs in the rAga. kAmbOji's v
ishrAnti and serenity are revealed by Brinda-Mukta's sublime rendition of the Ks
hetrajna padam vadaraka pOvE. Brinda-Mukta's version of shri subrahmaNyAya namas
tE is different from the other versions and is invested with a variety of gamaka
s, jarus and beautiful karvais, constructing a colourful and magnificent edifice
in the process. Aruna Sayeeram : Beginning with a strong base in the classical
core as represented by T Brinda and Bombay Ramachandran, Aruna Sairam has moved
on to a position from where she seeks to attract both the cognoscenti and the la
y listeners to Carnatic Music. Her strong base in classicism has ensured that sh
e does not dilute her standards, while at the same time offering music that seek
s to entertain emotionally. She thus forms a unique bridge that unites the intel
lect with emotion. Blessed with an extensive repertoire that is unique in many a
spects, Aruna's concerts are extremely lively affairs. This rendition features t
he exquisite bAla vinavE as learnt by Aruna from the authentic padam tradition r
epresented by T Brinda and Bombay Ramachandran, two of Aruna s gurus. The padam ea
sily features as the crown jewel in this offering of gems in kAmbOji. sarasijanA
bha (varnam) aTa Swati Tirunal kANakaNkODi Adi Papanasam Sivan kOniyADina nApai
Adi Veena Kuppayyar bala vinavE Adi Kshetrajna mAjhE manO (abhang)