Kanchipuram Naina Pillai

Artistes' Panorama

THE PAST - VOCALISTS

Kanchipuram Naina Pillai

Glittering rendition, emphasis on laya, a full bench of accompanists were the hallmarks of Kanchipuram C Subramanya Pillai's (later known as Naina Pillai) concerts. For one who didn't exhibit much interest in music as a youngster, Naina Pillai's achievement is indeed great. Evidently, music was in his blood. His mother and aunt were disciples of Kasi Sastri, a great grandson of Syama Sastri. The real turning point in his life was at the concert of Konerirajapuram Vaidyanatha Iyer. The concert was so inspiring that the irrepressible Naina became the most ardent devotee of music to blossom into one of the stalwarts of Carnatic-music of ever-lasting fame. His biggest asset was the way in which he could handle kritis, full of crispness and vigour. Some of his favorites include Janakiramana (Suddhaseemantini), Mamavasatatam (Jaganmohini), and Paramatmudu (Vagadheeswari). An authority on Tyagaraja's compositions, he was also responsible for setting to tune many Tiruppugazhs. An expert in Pallavi-singing, he trained several disciples like T Brinda, Chittoor Subramanyam etc, who later became musicians to reckon with.