For violin virtuosos Ganesh and Kumaresh Rajagopalan, the instrument is more than just a bridge between East and West—it is the very genesis of sound. The elder brother Ganesh, 61, recalls a story that captures this beautifully: “During the colonial era, a British officer once told the great Carnatic violinist Thirumakudalu Chowdiah, ‘You play the violin so well,’ and Chowdiah replied, ‘We have had this instrument in India even before you came.’” Indeed, echoes of this truth can be seen in ancient temple sculptures—women poised gracefully with the violin-like Dhanur Veena, such as in Tamil Nadu’s Chidambaram Temple. “I feel that Indians fit the violin,” says Ganesh, “though what we play today can rightly be called the Western violin.”
The violin has been adapted and innovated to suit the essence of Carnatic music, lending traditional ragas a contemporary sensibility. Ganesh explains, “Carnatic violin is different because it is made to suit the shruti, the pitch we are playing at. While the western violin is tuned to EADG notes, the Indian is tuned to the seven svaras beginning with shadja.” The gamaka, a technique that uses rapid curves and variations between two notes, holds the Carnatic violin significantly apart. The brothers believe that this ornamentation of instrumental music is its poetry. Kumaresh Rajagopalan, 58, says, “Playing the gamaka requires an understanding of how to move between the notes and support to both sides of the violin.” It cuts the note like a short syllable, in contrast to Hindustani music, where the sound lingers for a longer time.
In Indian traditions, an instrument has always been the heart of the melody. “Goddess Saraswati plays the veena, Krishna plays the flute, Shiva plays the damru, and people sing in their praise as instrumental musicians,” says Ganesh. Ganesh and Kumaresh Rajagopalan began playing the violin in childhood, guided by their father. When the Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee brothers perform, they are spontaneous. One takes up the treble while the other takes up the bass, but their bow sticks move in perfect synchronicity.
Kumaresh believes that Indian music is not stuck in time, and hence the colonial nomenclature of Indian music as “classical” must be changed to shastriya sangeet. Music is not evolving, he says, because it is a complete phenomenon like the divine, and it is our understanding of music that evolves. “Music is an expression of the self and a journey which connects one to the inner dimension. It is an unfathomable, invisible phenomenon meant to be experienced,” Kumaresh reflects, “Carnatic music has bestowed us with freedom to express and explore; most of the compositions we play are our own. We feel lucky that we’ve been chosen as a medium for people to experience instrumental music.” Ganesh adds, “Instrumental music goes beyond time and space, and even age, gender, region, and that’s exactly where it gives you a story."