Venkatesa Suprabhatham - P.V.Anantasayanam and party

Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham

- Sanskrit recitation by P.V.Anantasayanam and party

HMV - N.95165 — N.95168 - [1948-52?]

Boxed set of four 78-rpm plates, eight sides.

Look what wonderous findings from my friends travels in Southern India. Together they traced down this beautiful box with 78 rpm recordings of the Venkatesa Suprabhatam the same morning prayer that I posted earlier by M.S. Subbulakshmi here.

This one is a much earlier recording maybe from the late forties or at the latest early fifties. If someone has more detail about dates or about the recording in general please come forward and say so! Here are some accompanying notes that my good friend Arvind wrote to this post! Costis took the pictures and did the scan, Zwan, the good dog finally helped with the rip by not overturning the turntable! Thank you all, and Good Morning to you!

and

A

Very

Good Morning

to

Sri Venkateswara

Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham by P.V. Anantasayanam and Party

N. 95165 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 1

N. 95165 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 2

N. 95166 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 3

N. 95166 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 4

N. 95167 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 5

N. 95167 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 6

N. 95168 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 7

N. 95168 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 8

Suprabhatham (Sanskrit: सुप्रभातम,Tamil: சுப்ரபாதம்,, "auspicious dawn") is a name given to Sanskrit hymns recited in the morning to awaken the Lord. There are many different Suprabhathams, but of all, the Venkatesa Suprabhatham must be the most well known and ubiquitous in South India. Its a common sight to see many homes here waking up to the sounds of the Suprabhatham sung by M.S. Subbulakshmi, whose name has become synonymous with it. However, this recording of the Suprabhatham predates the one by MS Amma by at least two decades.

This recording was recited by the chief priest (and his co-priests) in the temple of Lord Venkateswara, also known as Balaji, at Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, (in 1948, according to an online source I found), and was published by the Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanams in collaboration with HMV. This temple is one of the major pilgrimage centres in South India and in scale, footfalls and reputation, is somewhat analogous to the Vatican for Christians. Even today, there are only two versions of the Suprabhatham played inside the Tirupati temple; one is this one and the other of course, the version by M.S.Subbulakshmi.

This might be the earliest recorded version of the Venkatesa Suprabhatham, but we have no way of confirming this because there are no records or lists available of early 78 rpm pressings of such material made in India. The hymn was composed around 1500 by Sri Prativadi Bhayankaram Annan Swami, a disciple of Sri Manavala Mamuni, who also composed Sri Ranganatha Suprabhatham. Its chanted in four parts: Suprabhatham, Sri Venkatesa Stothram, Prapatti, and Mangalasasanam.

This edition of four 78 rpm records comes with a booklet with the full text of the Suprabhatham in Sanskrit.

Here is an English translation of the verses

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Srimati M.S. Subbulakshmi - Sanskrit Morning Recital

M.S. Subbulakshmi - Sri Venkatesan

EMI India - ECSD 2293 - P.1963

Side A

A1 Sri Venkatesan Suprabatham - Sanskrit recitation - Devotional 20'39

Side B

B1 Bhavayami - Ragamalika - rupaka - Swati Tirunal 13'35

B2 Sri Rangapura Vihara - Brindavana Saranga - rupaka - Sri Muthuswami Dikshitar 6'16

R.S. Gopalakrishnan, violin

T.K. Murthy, mridangam

At last I have come to one of my absolute favourite singers, M.S. Subbulakshmi! I will write some more about her when I start posting her concerts. But you will find loads of information about her on the web. Here is one about the recording of Sri Venkatesa Suprabhatam among many other things. Published in The Hindu where you can read some more about her relation to HMV and recording technicians.

The little girl in pavadai chattai, oiled curls pressed into a tight braid, was too timid for noisy games with other children. But she devised a secret game for herself. Rolling waste paper into a cone, she sang into it for hours – pretending to record a ‘plate' for ‘His Master's Voice', then the biggest gramophone company in India.

Little did the child know that one day she would render the company's bestseller in ‘Venkatesa Suprabhatam,' still enjoying the longest shelf life among Indian audio recording. from Recording a Legend by Gowri Ramanyan - read on

What about a little biography? Need someplace to start? Well, for instance wikipedia...

M. S. Subbulakshmi (1916 — 2004)

Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi (Tamil: மதுரை சண்முகவடிவு சுப்புலட்சுமி, Mathurai Caṇmukavaṭivu Cuppulaṭcumi ? 16 September 1916 – 11 December 2004), also known as M.S., was a renowned Carnatic vocalist. She was the first musician ever to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honor. She is the first Indian musician to receive the Ramon Magsaysay award, Asia's highest civilian award, in 1974 with the citation reading "Exacting purists acknowledge Srimati M. S. Subbulakshmi as the leading exponent of classical and semi-classical songs in the Karnataka tradition of South India." and continue here...

I first heard her more than forty years ago and the first records was bhajans and the Concert she held in USA at UN. Over the years I have continued to listen to her very regularly and her voice is like a certain antidote to all evil and misfortune. I will post more of her Classical Concerts later but lets first start with something very typical for a morning in the homes in Madras. I am sure that as I am posting this it has already played in many many homes all over Tamil Nadu this morning, and if you start listening late you may as well begin with the B-side!

Suprabhatam, literally an auspicious dawn, is a name given to Sanskrit hymns recited in the morning to awaken the Lord.

The most famous is the Venkatesa Suprabhatam recited at Tirupati to awaken Lord Balaji. The rendition by M.S. Subbulakshmi can be heard in many Tamil houses each morning.

The Venkateswara SuprabhAtam (Morning Prayer/Song of Awakening) is attributed to have been composed at the Tirupati temple by one of Sri Ramanujacharya's disciples.

It was written around A.D. 1500 by Sri Prativadi Bhayankara Annangaracharya of Kanchipuram, who also composed Sri Ranganatha Suprabhatam. Sri Venkatesa Suprabhatam consists of four parts: Suprabhatam, Sri Venkatesa Stothram, Prapatti, and Mangalasasanam.

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