Prince Aswathi Thirunal Rama Varma: Musician & Descendent of Swathi Thirunal (new)
Personalities
Aswathi Thirunal Rama Varma
Sri Aswathi Thirunal Rama Varma, born in the royal family of Travancore, is a direct descendent of Maharaja Swathi Thirunal. He has performed all over India and abroad. His first public performance was initiated by Prof T.V. Gopala Krishnan. He Learned Saraswathi Veena from Trivandrum Sri R. Venkataraman and Sri K.S. Narayana Swami. A postgraduate in Commerce, he had his initial training in music under Prof Vechoor Harihara Subramonya Iyer and is furthering his tutelage under Dr. M. Balamurali Krishna. Sri Varma is alos an excellent orator and is a popular speaker in the Carnatic Music lecture circuit, in India as well as abroad. He has a repertoire of Swathi compositions which is unmatched even by the great masters. From the rare Khamas Varna (Saa Vaama Rusha) to the popular Paahi Sreepathe (Hamsadhwani Keerthana), Varma adds a fresh touch of surprise and grandeour which has become his hallmark. Among his own favourite Swathi compositions is Aaj aaaye shyaam mohan, the hindustani bhajan popularised by the great Balamurali Krishna in a rare shade of Pahadi. Today he performs in the Navarathri mandapom during the Navarathri concerts (both vocal and veena) and also in the Kuthira Maalika Swathi Festival. Listen to his compositions from the Compositions link in this web site (Aaj aaye, Aanadavalli, Bhavathi Viswaso, Raama Raama Paahi, Raama Raama Paahi Shyaama etc).
An excerpt from review of Sri Varma’s first Navarathri Concert, by Sri Harisundar, The Hindu:
Over the years, Aswathi Tirunal Rama Varma, a member of the royal family of erstwhile Travancore has developed a style which on certain occasions resembled with the style of M.D. Ramanathan. A style which is difficult to adhere with, the presentations by Rama varma has glimpses of the maestro at certain instances. Though the artiste was presenting his maiden concert at the mandapam, the effort made by the artiste to present some unheard krithis of Swathi Tirunal are praiseworthy.
The concert started off with the unheard Saa Vaa maarusha (Kamas varnam). The tempo was kept lively with Devadeva Kalyani (Mayamalavagaula), Bhavati viswaso (Mukhari) and Rama rama pahi (Devagandhari). The concert got to great heights with the artiste choosing to sing Anandavalli kurumuda (Nilambari) with great verve. The manodharma swaras for this krithi were a treat to the listeners.
The listeners in the mandapam were presented with an exquisite alapana of Saveri which featurd Devi Pavane in adi thalam, the main item of the day. The ability of the artiste to travel through the minute nuances of the raga with the sancharas from the lower octave to the higher ones was pleasing. The main item was followed by Smara janaka (Behag).
In these days, when certain violinist tend to overtake the vocalists through harsh bowing techniques, V.V.S. Murari (Violin), the youngest among the artistes at the mandapam excelled through his dutiful accompaniment. The soft velvette touches provided by him during the accompaniment for the songs and his essays of manodharma swaras for Nilambari and the essay of Saveri were a mark of the immense caliber in him. R. Ananthakrishnan (Mridangam) provided able support throughout the concert.
Apart from being a vocalist, Rama Varma, who is also a veena artiste presented a short veena recital at the mandapam which was marked by technical excellence in a traditional style. Gopalaka Pahimam (Revagupthi), Reenamada (Behag), Aliveni (Kurinji) and Mamava Padmanabha (Varali). The alapana of Verali was marked by perfectness. R. Ananthakrishnan (Mridangam) provided able support.