Kalamandalam Neelakantan Nambisan
Encyclopedia
Kalamandalam Neelakantan Nambisan (1919–85) was a trend-setter Kathakali
musician who played a crucial role in remoulding the aesthetics of singing for the classical dance-drama of Kerala
, south India
. Nambisan imbibed a set of fresh musical ideas from his epoch-making guru Mundaya Venkitakrishna Bhagavatar, developed them to sound even better and handed them over to a set of disciples, most of whom gained name and fame sooner or later.
Nambisan's weighty yet part-nasal music, which marked a quantum transition of Kathakali songs from its original Sopanam
base to more of the Carnatic
style, had such cascading effect on Kathakali music that it has since sounded radically different by becoming more ornate, sophisticated and bhava
-oriented than ever. His prominent disciples at the Kerala Kalamandalam
include virtually the who is who of the Kathakali music of the Kalluvazhi style: Kalamandalam Unnikrishna Kurup, Kalamandalam Gangadharan, Ramankutty Varrier, Madambi Subramanian Namboodiri, Tirur Nambissan
Kalamandalam Sankaran Embranthiri
, Kalamandalam Hyderali
, Kalamandalam Haridas
, Kalamandalam Subramanian, Kalamandalam P.G. Radhakrishnan, Kalanilayam Unnikrishnan and Kalamandalam Bhavadasan, Kalamandalam Gopalakrishnan.
Nambisan was born in Kothachira
village of Palakkad
district on November 2, 1919. After completing primary schooling, he received training in singing Ashtapadis
in the Sopanam
style. He had also learnt Ottamthullal
from his elder brother Parameswaran Nambisan and maddalam from Vellattanhur Raman Nambisan. Later, on joining Kerala Kalamandalam as a teenager, Nambisan was initiated into Kathakali singing by veterans Samikutty Bhagavatar and Kuttan Bhagavatar. He also learnt the basics of Carnatic music from Kakkat Karanavappadu. Soon his qualities like dense voice, adherence to the pitch, emotive rendition and sense of rhythm found grooming under the tutelage of Venkitakrishna Bhagavatar. He soon mastered anchoring the music part of storyplays—be them the choreographically intricate type or ones meriting melodramatic rendition.
Nambisan also parallelly received bits of training in Sanskrit
, Hindi
and English
. He also took classes from nadaswaram
player Govinda Swamy.
As a teacher, he joined Kerala Kalamandalam in 1946 and retired from his alma mater as its principal. He later served as a tutor in PSV Natyasangham, Kottakkal, as well.
Kathakali
Kathakali is a highly stylized classical Indian dance-drama noted for the attractive make-up of characters, elaborate costumes, detailed gestures and well-defined body movements presented in tune with the anchor playback music and complementary percussion...
musician who played a crucial role in remoulding the aesthetics of singing for the classical dance-drama of Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, south India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Nambisan imbibed a set of fresh musical ideas from his epoch-making guru Mundaya Venkitakrishna Bhagavatar, developed them to sound even better and handed them over to a set of disciples, most of whom gained name and fame sooner or later.
Nambisan's weighty yet part-nasal music, which marked a quantum transition of Kathakali songs from its original Sopanam
Sopanam
Sopana Sangeetham is a form of Indian classical music that developed in the temples of Kerala in south India in the wake of the increasing popularity of Jayadeva's Gita Govinda or Ashtapadis.-Etymology:...
base to more of the Carnatic
Carnatic music
Carnatic music is a system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent, with its area roughly confined to four modern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu...
style, had such cascading effect on Kathakali music that it has since sounded radically different by becoming more ornate, sophisticated and bhava
Bhava
The term bhāva is often translated as feeling, emotion, mood, devotional state of mind. In Buddhist thought, bhāva denotes the continuity of life and death, including reincarnation, and the maturation arising therefrom...
-oriented than ever. His prominent disciples at the Kerala Kalamandalam
Kerala Kalamandalam
Kerala Kalamandalam , lately renamed as Kalamandalam Deemed University of Art and Culture, is a major centre for learning Indian performing arts, especially those that developed in the southern state of India, with the special emphasis on Kerala. It is situated in the village of Cheruthuruthy in...
include virtually the who is who of the Kathakali music of the Kalluvazhi style: Kalamandalam Unnikrishna Kurup, Kalamandalam Gangadharan, Ramankutty Varrier, Madambi Subramanian Namboodiri, Tirur Nambissan
Tirur Nambissan
Tirur Nambissan was a Kathakali singer. Tirur Nambissan, whose name was Narayanan, was born at Tirur in the Malappuram district of Kerala in southern India. He started learning music at the age of seven, while attending the local boys' high school...
Kalamandalam Sankaran Embranthiri
Kalamandalam Sankaran Embranthiri
Kalamandalam Sankaran Embranthiri was one of the most popular Kathakali musicians, credited with initiating a new wave in the rendition of songs for the classical dance-drama from Kerala in south India...
, Kalamandalam Hyderali
Kalamandalam Hyderali
Kalamandalam Hyderali was one of the best Kathakali singers of his generation, and the first non-Hindu artiste to make a mark in the four-century-old classical dance-drama from Kerala in south India....
, Kalamandalam Haridas
Kalamandalam Haridas
Kalamandalam Haridas, more popularly known as Venmani Haridas, was a renowned Kathakali musician noted for his evocative rendition of songs for the classical dance-drama from Kerala in south India....
, Kalamandalam Subramanian, Kalamandalam P.G. Radhakrishnan, Kalanilayam Unnikrishnan and Kalamandalam Bhavadasan, Kalamandalam Gopalakrishnan.
Nambisan was born in Kothachira
Kothachira
Kothachira is a village in central Kerala, southern India. The village is located in border of Thrissur and Palakkad districts and is also known as Kothara....
village of Palakkad
Palakkad
Palakkad , formerly known as Palghat, is a municipality and a town in the state of Kerala in southern India, spread over an area of 26.60 km2.The city is situated about north of state capital Thiruvananthapuram. It is the administrative headquarters of Palakkad District...
district on November 2, 1919. After completing primary schooling, he received training in singing Ashtapadis
Ashtapadis
Ashtapadis or Ashtapadi are Indian hymns where the music has eight lines within each composition. Each ashtapadi song is set in a special raga and tala. It is a rhyme of eternal love and supreme devotion...
in the Sopanam
Sopanam
Sopana Sangeetham is a form of Indian classical music that developed in the temples of Kerala in south India in the wake of the increasing popularity of Jayadeva's Gita Govinda or Ashtapadis.-Etymology:...
style. He had also learnt Ottamthullal
Ottamthullal
Ottamthullal or Ottanthullal is a type of performing art from Kerala, India. The art form was created during the 18th century by legendary Malayalam poet Kalakkaththu Kunchan Nambiar...
from his elder brother Parameswaran Nambisan and maddalam from Vellattanhur Raman Nambisan. Later, on joining Kerala Kalamandalam as a teenager, Nambisan was initiated into Kathakali singing by veterans Samikutty Bhagavatar and Kuttan Bhagavatar. He also learnt the basics of Carnatic music from Kakkat Karanavappadu. Soon his qualities like dense voice, adherence to the pitch, emotive rendition and sense of rhythm found grooming under the tutelage of Venkitakrishna Bhagavatar. He soon mastered anchoring the music part of storyplays—be them the choreographically intricate type or ones meriting melodramatic rendition.
Nambisan also parallelly received bits of training in Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
, Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. He also took classes from nadaswaram
Nadaswaram
The nadaswaram, also spelt nadhaswaram, and also called nagaswaram , is one of the most popular classical musical instruments in the South Indian culture and the world's loudest non-brass acoustic instrument...
player Govinda Swamy.
As a teacher, he joined Kerala Kalamandalam in 1946 and retired from his alma mater as its principal. He later served as a tutor in PSV Natyasangham, Kottakkal, as well.