Continued from part 2

Part 3

naenu saitam viSwa veeNaku
tantrinai moorchanalu pOtaanu
naenu saitam bhuvanan ghOshaku
verri gontuka vicchi mrOstaanu
naenu saitam prapanchaabjabu
tella raekai pallavistaanu

A patriotic song - the kind that has to rouse rabble, passion and pressure, the kind that blows a bugle and has to awaken an entire generation reeling under slumber and lethargy. The lyricist passes down a sheet of paper with words that could be explosive and very inciting. How is the singer to deliver this message? Would he have to dig deep and find in him the intensity that needs to go along with the words or would the words, even when delivered normally, be powerful enough to raise the roof?

ee daeSam ee raajyam naadaenani chaaTinchi
prati manishi toDalu goTTi Srunkalaalu pagulagoTTi
churakattulu padunu peTTi tudi samaram modalu peTTi
simhaalai garjinchaali samhaaram saaginchaali

It is at this exact moment that Ghantasala pumps the levels up with the right amount of passion while delivering "telugu veera laevaraa" (particularly during the intonation of "churakattulu padunu peTTi tudi samram modalu peTTi"). It is clearly evident at this stage that the singer really feels the song. Emotions, particulary the visceral ones, like pathos and passion pose a definite challenge to the singer in that, he needs to finely balance the mood of the words that already exist on paper and his natural zeal while delivering the same. While the light-weight counterparts of these feelings do not require as much emotional investment on the part of the singer to completely hit the note on the head and drive home the point, the setup for such songs have the hidden trap where the singer can overplay the emotion and thereby ruin, or worse, reverse the effect that he is trying for. "idi kuLLina sangham, vayasu maLLina sangham, deeni keeLLu virichi vaeyaali, vaeLLu nariki vaeyaali" (rangaeLi raaja) thunders Ghantasla lamenting on the current state of affairs. One can clearly pick out the disgust and the disgruntlement that he holds for the system. All, just with the extra zeal and intensity, when he feels the song.

Though it is certainly a sweeping statement that almost all the professional singers operating at such levels can deliver majority of moods with slightly varying degrees of similarity, only a few of them can take these selective moods of pathos and passion, add their interpretation of the words through their vocal chords, and take them to the next plane.

nigga deesi aDugu ee siggu laeni janaanni
aggi tOTi kaDugu ee samaaja jeevacchavaanni
maaraadu lOkam maaradu kaalam
daevuDu digiraani evvaru aemayi pOnee
maaraadu lOkam maaradu kaalam

In the above, the words alone have the power to rip, slice, and tear apart the system. The disillusionment clearly comes across even without a voice attached to the words. Add Balu's chords to the words and consider the areas where he stresses on the "ga"kaaram and "Da" kaaram (nigga, siggu, aggi, aDugu, kaDugu) to further emphasize on the emotion. The pathos (aavaedana) coupled with the passion (aakrOSam, in this context) is clearly reflected in his rendition doing complete justice to not only the obvious meaning in the words but also the underlying soul hidden in them. The stress syllables (votthulu) play a very important role in order to convey the right amount of intensity. Consider the following - "bhaarata daeSapu bhaavi pourulam, bhavitvyaaniki baaTasaaralu, baadhyata nerigi bratike vaaLLam, bhaavi taraaniki punaadi raaLLam" (punaadi raaLLu). The three stress syllables - bha, dha, LLa together muster all the required force for the entire stanza. Balu's delivery of it exactly understands the demands, requirements and the standards of such stress syllables and pays respect to them, creating an honest and an emotional rendition.

Clarity in diction is an important ingredient, along with the intensity, to draw the listener's attention completely towards the song. The ability to separate each individual syllable without fusing with or flowing into the next, treating each sound with as much respect as the next, decides the capability of expression of the singer which ultimately helps in the better understanding of the moods and the words by the listener.

"kanulalOna, kanubomala lOna, adharammu
lOna, vadanammu lOna, gaLa seema lOna, kaTi seema
lOna, karayugamu lOna padayugamu lOna, nee tanuvulOni
aNuvaNuvulOna, ananta vidhamula abhinayyumulika
aaDavae" (from charaNa kiNkiNulu - chelleli kaapuram).

Hearing to Balu's delivery of the stanza, one can clearly make out each and every syllable involved in the expression, all the while staying in the mood (of delivering the words rapid fire thereby causing the character dancing to this tune lose face), and conveying the emotion. It is this amazing clarity that Balu employs in most of his rabble-rousing songs to good effect, elevating the material. For the lead character in Maharshi, the situation calls for a very callous and an insubordinate tone, reflecting the character's identity and his approach towards life and the words flow thusly - bheeruvallae paaripOnu raeyi voLLO dooripOnu, nae modalu peDitae, ae samaramainaa, naakeduru peDunaa, ae apajayam ||saahasam naa padham||. Interestingly in Maharshi, Vamsi-Illayaraja try to up the ante by including a Sanskrit disco - the most archaic language set to the most modern beat. Balu steps up to the challenge and delivers the song pitch perfectly with amazing attention paid to the clarity in his diction -

"namaamradruma samraNamOdyama
swara bhut sukha sakhi twamyaeva, nikaTa prakaTa
ghaTa, ghaTita trikuTa sphuTa, nidana nidhaanam twam
yaevaa"

If it is to the modern beat on end of the spectrum, observe the complete tonal contrast in Saptapadi where the task is evoking a sense of awe in the lead character's voice, when he finds in his wife, the deity that he prays for everyday, on their first night

"ai jagadamba kadamba vanapriya vaasa vilaasini
vaasaratae, Sikhiri SirOmaNi tunga himaalaaya Srunga
nijaalaye madhayagate, madhu madhurae madhu
kaiTabhaganjini kaitabha bhanjini raasaratae, jaya
jaya hae mahishAsuramardini ramyakapardini
Sailasutae". "mahishaasura mardini stOtram", in the voice of Balu, sounds as much reverential as much blissful (aanandaatiraekam, in this context) as Adi Sankaraacharya, the lyricist, intended it to be. In his quivering at the right notes, Balu brings in the sense of wonderment, bordering on disbelief, indicating that the character just couldn't believe his eyes about what he is seeing. - another example of elevating the material at hand.

sakala jagatini SaaSwatagamgaa
vasatam variyinchu daaka
prati manishiki jeevanam lO
nandanam vikasinchu daaka
paata paaTanu paaDalaenu
kotta baaTanu veeDipOnu
naenu saitam naenu saitam

(Continued in part 4)

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