Noted violinist M S Gopalakrishnan, who had an illustrious career spanning over 70 years, passed away here on Thursday morning following a brief illness. He was 82.
Gopalakrishnan is said to have complained of breathing difficulty late on Wednesday following which he was rushed to a private hospital where he breathed his last. Gopalakrishnan is survived by wife Meenakshi, daughters Narmadha and Latha, and son, Suresh. Suresh and Narmadha are also violinists.
A violin soloist and accompanist for over seven decades, he is generally referred to as one among the violin-trinity of Carnatic music, along with Lalgudi Jayaraman and T N Krishnan. Foremost among the exponents of Parur Bani style of violin playing, Gopalakrishnan’s initiation into music was through his father Parur Sundaram Iyer.
Gopalakrishnan is also the recipient of many an illustrious honour, prominent among them being the Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, Sangeetha Kalanidhi and Sangeet Natak Akademi awards.
Global Acclaim
Very few musical exponents gain mastery over various forms of Indian classical music. Fewer have won international acclaim. Gopalakrishnan managed to achieve both in his illustrious career.
Gopalakrishnan’s mastery over violin even won the praise of famous American violinist and conductor Yehudi Menuhin. After a violin performance, Menuhin hugged him and exclaimed: “Never have I heard such a violin in all my travels!”
Condolence Pours In
Condoling the death of violin exponent M S Gopalakrishnan, Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi, daughter of Lalgudi Jayaraman and a noted violin artiste herself, said, “His demise is not just a loss to the violin but to the field of instrumental music as a whole.”
“He was one of those few artistes who was equally proficient in Carnatic and Hindustani music. Such was the emotive appeal of his music that even violinists from other schools of thought were drawn to it naturally,” said Vijayalakshmi’s brother, Lalgudi G J R Krishnan.
T N Krishnan said, “He had devoted his entire life for music. Whatever he plays would be liked. One just could not detect a single Abhaswara (wrong note) in his renditions.” Krishnan, who had a close association with Gopalakrishnan, added, “He was also a good human being. We had immense respect for each other. I pray that his soul rests in peace.”
The Carnatic fraternity remembers Gopalakrishnan for his inter-personal skills and his ability to strike a chord with people. Noted nadaswaram artiste M P N Ponnusamy Pillai, reminisced his time with the musician. “I remember him performing at a function along with his daughter Narmadha in Madurai recently, after which we honoured him. When we later met at the Narada Gana Sabha, he came up to me and said that the honour would always be special to him. That took me by surprise.”
His association with the vocalist T V Sankaranarayanan, which dates back to over 30 years (1968-99) and innumerable concerts, is definitely the stuff legends are made of. Sankaranarayanan states that the violinist was his Guru and yet his accompaniment in concerts. “When he decided to focus on his solo career, all he said to me was ‘I’ll miss accompanying you in concerts’. Today, my emotions have come to a standstill.”