M. S. Subbulakshmi
Renowned Carnatic Vocalist
Born
September 16, 1916 Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
Died
December 11, 2004 Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi, மதுரை சண்முகவடிவு சுப்புலட்சுமி (popularly known as M.S. or M.S.S./M.S. Maami.) (September 16, 1916 - December 11, 2004) was a renowned Carnatic vocalist. She was born to a musical family, in the temple town of Madurai, situated in the state of Tamil Nadu in South India. M.S. started learning Carnatic music from a very early age and cut her first disc at the age of 10. She then began her Carnatic classical music training under Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer and then Hindustani classical training under Pandit Narayan Rao Vyas. Image File history File links Ms_subbulakshmi_meera. ... September 16 is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years). ... 1916 (MCMXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Madurai (மதுரை in Tamil) is situated on the banks of Vaigai River in Tamil Nadu, a southern Indian state. ... Tamil Nadu (தமிழ் நாடு, Land of the Tamils) is a state at the southern tip of India. ... December 11 is the 345th day (346th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Chennai (Tamil: சென்னை, formerly known as Madras , is the capital of the state of Tamil Nadu and is Indias fourth largest metropolitan city. ... Tamil Nadu (தமிழ் நாடு, Land of the Tamils) is a state at the southern tip of India. ... The origins of Indian classical music, the classical music of India, can be found from the oldest of scriptures, part of the Hindu tradition, the Vedas. ... Timeline and Samples Genres Classical (Carnatic and Hindustani) - Rock - Pop - Hip hop Awards Bollywood Music Awards - Punjabi Music Awards Charts Festivals Sangeet Natak Akademi – Thyagaraja Aradhana – Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana Media Sruti, The Music Magazine National anthem Jana Gana Mana, also national song Vande Mataram Music of the states Andaman and... Sri Purandara Dasa (1494-1564) (the follower (dasa) of Lord Purandara Vittala [Lord Vishnu in one of his many avatars. ... In Hinduism, the Trimurti (also called the Hindu trinity) are three aspects of God, or Parabrahman, in Gods personae as Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. ... Sri Tyagaraja (శ్రీ త్యాగరాజ) (17??-1848), an ardent devotee of Sri Ramachandra, was one of the most important composers of Carnatic music. ... Muttusvami Dikshitar is one of the Carnatic music composer trinity. ... Syama sastri, who is said to be one of the trimurthi in carnatic music, was born at Thiruvarur on Apr 26, 1762. ... Sri Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma (April 16, 1813 - December 25, 1846) was a South Indian king of the state of Travancore, in India. ... -1... The Å›ruti (Sanskrit thing heard, sound) is the smallest interval of the tuning system of Indian classical music. ... Raga (rāg /राग (Hindi), raga (Anglicised from rāgaḥ/रागः (Sanskrit)) or rāgam /ராகம் (Tamil)) are the melodic modes used in Indian classical music. ... In Carnatic music, a melakarta or melakartha or janaka or sampoorna raga is one that comprises all seven swaras. ... The katapayadi sankhya is a way of determining the number of a melakarta ragam from the first two syllables of the name of the raga. ... The notes, or swaras, of Indian music are Shadjamam, Rishabham, Gandharam, Madhyamam, Panchamam, Dhaivatam and Nishadam. ... In Indian classical music, Tala (tāl (Hindi), tāla (anglicised from talam; in Sanskrit), literally a clap, is a rhythmical pattern that determines the rhythmical structure of a composition. ... In the music of India, a mudra is the signature of a composer on a composition, usually in the form of a few unique words added to the song. ... September 16 is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years). ... 1916 (MCMXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... December 11 is the 345th day (346th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Timeline and Samples Genres Classical (Carnatic and Hindustani) - Rock - Pop - Hip hop Awards Bollywood Music Awards - Punjabi Music Awards Charts Festivals Sangeet Natak Akademi – Thyagaraja Aradhana – Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana Media Sruti, The Music Magazine National anthem Jana Gana Mana, also national song Vande Mataram Music of the states Andaman and... In music a singer or vocalist is a type of musician who sings, i. ... Madurai (மதுரை in Tamil) is situated on the banks of Vaigai River in Tamil Nadu, a southern Indian state. ... Tamil Nadu (தமிழ் நாடு, Land of the Tamils) is a state at the southern tip of India. ... A map of South India, its rivers, regions and water bodies. ... Dr. Srinivasa Iyer (1908 - 2003) was one of the great Carnatic vocalists of the twentieth century. ...

Singing career

M.S.Subbulakshmi

At 17, the child prodigy made her debut at the Madras Music Academy. Since then, she performed countless musical forms in different languages such as Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati, Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Sanskrit and Kannada. Image File history File links M.S.Subbulakhsmi. ... Image File history File links M.S.Subbulakhsmi. ... Madras Music Academy is one of the premier and early Music Academies in the South Indian city of Madras. ... Hindi (हिन्दी hind), an Indo-European language spoken mainly in North, Central, and West India, is the official language of the Indian Union. ... Bengali or Bangla (বাংলা ) is an Indo-Aryan language of South Asia that evolved as a successor to Sanskrit, Pali, and Prakrit. ... {{Infobox Language |name=Gujarati |nativename=ગુજરાતી GujarātÄ« |region[[Pakistan|speakers=1 million |rank=122 |familycolor=Indo-European |fam2=Indo-Iranian |fam3=Indo-Aryan |fam4=Western Indo-Aryan |script=Gujarati script |nation=Gujarat |agency=Language Academy |iso1=gu|iso2=guj|iso3=guj |notice=Indic}} Gujarati (ગુજરાતી GujarātÄ«) is an Indo-European... Tamil (தமிழ் ) is a classical language and one of the major languages of the Dravidian language family. ... Malayalam (മലയാളം) is the major language of the state of Kerala, in southern India. ... Telugu (తెలుగు) belongs to the Dravidian language family but with ample influence from the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European family and is the official language of the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. ... Sanskrit ( संस्कृतम् ; pronunciation: ) is an Indo-European classical language of India and a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. ... Kannada - aptly described as sirigannada (known to few as Kanarese) is one of the oldest Dravidian languages and is spoken in its various dialects by roughly 45 million people. ...

M.S. became famous as a film actress. Her most memorable role was Bhaktha Meera in Meera (1945). The movie had M.S. sing the famous Meera bhajans, with Dilipkumar Roy as the music director. Those renditions by M.S. continue to haunt listeners to this day. Following the success of the film she quit films and turned wholly to concert music. Meera (1498 - 1547) was a Rajput princess who lived in the north Indian state of Rajasthan. ... Meera (1498 - 1547) was a Rajput princess who lived in the north Indian state of Rajasthan. ... Dilipkumar Roy (1897-1980) was a Bengali Indian musician, musicologist, novelist, poet and essayist of a vast culture, endowed as much with intellectual gifts as with an innate devotion. ...

M.S. met Sadasivam, a freedom fighter, and a follower of Rajaji, in 1936. She married him in 1940 and their marriage spanned over 50 years. They had no children. Rajaji Chakravarthi Rajagopalachari (December 1878 - December 25, 1972), known as or Rajaji or C.R., was an Indian lawyer, writer, statesman and a Hindu spiritualist. ...

M.S. travelled to London, New York, Canada, the Far East, and other places as India's cultural ambassador. Her concerts at Carnegie Hall, New York; the UN General Assembly on UN day in 1966 (while U Thant was the Secretary General); the Royal Albert Hall, London in 1982; and at the Festival of India in Moscow in 1987 were significant landmarks in her career. London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England and is the most populous city in the European Union. ... Official language(s) None, English de facto Capital Albany Largest city New York City Area  Ranked 27th  - Total 54,520 sq. ... Far East is an inexact term often used for East Asia and Southeast Asia combined, sometimes including also the easternmost territories of Russia, i. ... An ambassador, rarely embassador, is a diplomatic official accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization, to serve as the official representative of his or her own country. ... Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in New York City located at 57th Street and 7th Avenue. ... United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. ... Maha Thray Sithu U Thant (January 22, 1909 – November 25, 1974) was a Burmese diplomat and the third Secretary-General of the United Nations, from 1961 to 1971. ... A large number of international organizations and other bodies have a secretary general or secretary-general as their chief administrative officers or in other administrative capacities. ... Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall of Arts and Sciences is an arts venue dedicated to Queen Victorias husband and consort, Prince Albert. ... Moscow (Russian: Москва́, Moskva, IPA: ) is the capital of Russia and the countrys principal political, economic, financial, educational and transportation center, located on the river Moskva. ...

M.S. renders the human art of singing with a spiritual quality and divine grace that enthralls and transfixes listeners, and transports them into a different world, as though cast under a spell. As a first-time foreign listener put it, "M.S. does not sing. She makes divinity manifest."

Mahatma Gandhi was so charmed of her Meera bhajans that he requested her to sing the song Hari Tum haro Jan ki bheer (Lord, please dispel the fear in mankind). She regretfully declined as she had a cold that day. A prompt reply came back from the mahatma's side saying "I would gladly hear subbulakshmi speak it than hear it sung by others". // Early life Gandhi and his wife Kasturba (1902) Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born into a Hindu Modh family in Porbandar, Gujarat, India in 1869. ...

In the late 1950s, as she sang at the Ramakrishna Ashram in Delhi, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister, was among the audience. At the end of the recital he was so moved that he bowed, and said, "What am I, a mere prime minister before a queen of music (he was to repeat it in every speech of his, praising her)." Jawaharlal Nehru (जवाहरलाल नेहरू) (November 14, 1889 - May 27, 1964), also called Pandit (Teacher) Nehru, was the leader of the (moderately) socialist wing of the Indian National Congress during and after Indias struggle for independence from the British Empire. ...

Not unexpectedly, "she talks, sings and lives music twenty-four hours a day," and is deeply religious. The puja (prayer) room in her house has three life-size portraits of Sri Chandrashekarendra Saraswati Sankaracharya, the saint whom she calls "divinity in flesh and blood," and who has "been instrumental in restoring the faith and religious temperament of the people of Madras and reclaiming many to the path of God" in recent years. As her guru, he selected the verses for the highly popular record she made in 1970 of the Bhajagovindam (some 30 verses composed by the poet-philosopher Sankara in praise of Lord Krishna, which are both musical and of much philosophical content) and Vishnu Sahasranamam (a musical chant of the 1,000 names of Vishnu, one of the three main gods of the Hindu pantheon). The Sage of Kanchi The Paramacharya or The Sage of Kanchi considered an avatara of Adi Shankaracharya was one of the Greatest Saints of Bharata Varsha. ...

Honours and awards

While Lata Mangeshkar called her Tapaswini (the Renunciate), Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan termed her Suswaralakshmi (the goddess of musical notes), and Kishori Amonkar labeled her the ultimate eighth note or Aathuvaan Sur, which is above the seven notes basic to all music. Her many famous renditions of bhajans include the chanting of Bhaja Govindam, Vishnu sahasranama (1000 names of Vishnu) and the Venkateswara Suprabhatham (wakeup song of Lord Balaji). This article or section is missing references or citation of sources. ... Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan (b. ... Kishori Amonkar (born April 10, 1931) is a noted Hindustani music performer who is known for singing in the Jaipur Gharana style. ... A Bhajan is a Hindu devotional song, often but not necessarily of ancient origin. ... This article needs cleanup. ... Vishnu The Vishnu sahasranāma (literally: thousand names of Vishnu) is a list of 1,000 names for Vishnu, one of the main forms of God in Hinduism and the only Ultimate Reality for Vaishnavites (followers of Vishnu). ... For other uses of the name Vishnu, see Vishnu (disambiguation). ... In Hinduism, Venkateshwara (also spelled as Venkateswara, Venkateshwer or Venkatachalapathi) is a much-worshipped form of Vishnu. ... This article needs cleanup. ...

An EMI record of MS Subbulakshmi

She was widely honored, praised and awarded. Some of them more popular ones include Padma Bhushan in 1954, Sangeetha Kalanidhi in 1968 (literally, Treasure Chest of Music. She was the first woman recipient of the title), Ramon Magsaysay award in 1974, the Padma Vibhushan in 1975, the Kalidasa Sanman in 1988, the Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration in 1990, and the Bharat Ratna in 1998. She was also honored as the court-singer of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams. MS Subbulakshmi File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... MS Subbulakshmi File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... The EMI Group is a major record label, based in Kensington in London, in the United Kingdom. ... The Padma Bhushan is an Indian civilian decoration established on January 2, 1954 by the President of India. ... Sangeetha Kalanidhi (sangeetha = music, kalanidhi = treasure of art) is the title awarded yearly to an expert Carnatic Musician by the Music Academy of Chennai. ... The Ramon Magsaysay Award was established in April 1957 by the trustees of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund (RBF) based in New York City. ... The Padma Vibhushan is Indias second highest civilian honour. ... Bharat Ratna is Indias highest civilian award, awarded for the highest degrees of national service. ... Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (తిరుమల తిరుపతి దేవస్థానములు) is an independent trust which manages the venkateshwara temple at Tirumala, Tirupati. ...

Although she was bestowed with enormous prize moneys on these awards, she donated most of them to charity.

She was an ardent devotee of Kanchi Mahaswamigal and she rendered his composition Maithreem Bhajatha (O World! Cultivate peace) in her concert at the UN in 1966. She donated many of the royalties on several best sold records to many charity organizations. Chandrasekharendra Saraswati- “Maha Periyaval” was the sixty eighth pontiff of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam. ...

With the death of her husband Sadasivam in 1997, she stopped all her public performances. M.S. died on December 11, 2004 after a brief illness, due to complications relating to pneumonia and cardiac irregularities.

See also

• Carnatic music

Timeline and Samples Genres Classical (Carnatic and Hindustani) - Rock - Pop - Hip hop Awards Bollywood Music Awards - Punjabi Music Awards Charts Festivals Sangeet Natak Akademi – Thyagaraja Aradhana – Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana Media Sruti, The Music Magazine National anthem Jana Gana Mana, also national song Vande Mataram Music of the states Andaman and...

External links

• Biography at the official site of Ramon Magsaysay award
• M.S.Subbulakshmi - One Hundred Tamils of 20th Century
• M.S. Subbulakshmi at The Internet Movie Database
• Official fanclub of subbulakshmi