Tillānā |
Tillānā
is another genre derived from the bharata-nātyam
repertoire. In both musical and dance performances, a tillānā
is often one of the last pieces on the program (ideally, the penultimate). This genre derives from a North Indian vocal genre, tarānā [Persian, "song"] and characteristically includes non-lexical rhythmic syllables, note names, and even dance syllables. |
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Selected
Performance |
"Ni
ri ni ri ga ma . . . ," a tillānā composed by Tirukkokarnam
Subbarama Bhagavatar (early 20th century) in rāga
Pūrvī and Caturasra Rūpakatāla. [3:16] |
K. V. Narayanaswamy
with Palghat Raghu (mrdangam), V. V. Subramanium (violin),
and Sarota Balasubramanium (tambūra). |
Dhyanam/Meditation:
South Indian Vocal Music (Nonesuch H 72018; B2). |
The bulk
of the sung material is derived from svara
names and mnemonic
drum syllables. Often, text is interwoven into the performance
as well. In the following recording, the singer also incorporates
a section known as svarākṣara
in which the full note names ("niṣāda,"
"gandhāra," etc.) are sung. |
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Rāga Pūrvī |
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Caturaśra Rūpakatāla, O |4 |
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