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aesthetics, this gentle and generous
teacher has come to be the most sought-after guru today. One
of the greatest things about PSN Sir is his utter simplicity
and approachability. Instead of stiff formality, there is
an easy affection about him that puts us so much at ease.
He has that generosity of spirit which is so rare to come
by - a natural and sincere desire to share, give and impart
knowledge, in the most unassuming manner. He possesses an
uncanny ability to assess the capability of his student and
tailor his class accordingly. Also he has a disarming modesty.
When we heard one of his concerts and tried to tell him how
great an experience it was for us, he would wave all our compliments
away, and add," Oh, I just sang something, you should sing
even better!" He is always ready to teach any composition
that a student wants and never one to hold back anything from
his disciples.
He would never thrust his style on
us, and any slight variation in padanthara made by us, he
would willingly accept, if it conformed to the raga lakshana
and the general flow of the krithi. He also has a wonderfully
open mind - he would be the first to learn a new song even
if it came from his student. Once he taught us a Pallavi that
he had created. When we tried the same pallavi in another
talam and sang that, he exclaimed, "Wait, let me write down
this, it is even better than the original version- sing it
to me again!" We felt so humbled by his childlike openness
and lack of airs.
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P.S.
Narayanaswamy, popularly known as 'Pitchai' or 'PSN' is an
eminent artiste of high calibre with an experience of over
five decades in the field of Carnatic music.
