Kumbakonam: It was a mellifluous nadaswaram programme by N. Swaminathan, asthana nadaswaram vidwan of Sri Adhikumbeswaraswamy temple at Kumbakonam on Friday to celebrate Saraswathi Puja. Sitting before the beautifully decorated Saraswathi idol, Swaminathan was at his best for one hour accompanied by Tiruvalankadu Sakthivel on the tavil.
The difference in this programme was the instrument. The nadaswaram which he played is made of stone. Weighing three kilos and 2.5 ft long, it is a unique possession of the temple for the last hundreds of years.
The stone instrument was played by Kunchithapatham Pillai, former nadaswara vidwan of the temple in the earlier days. Though it was played during Mahamaham and Masi Maham, its use was stopped for the last 15 years. After this long gap, it was played only on Friday.
People of the temple town have been demanding that temple authorities play the nadaswaram.
Accordingly, Kavitha, executive officer of the temple, handed over the stone nadaswaram to Swaminathan, present vidwan of the temple, and asked him to play it. Swaminathan played kritis set to ragas Bantureethi, shanmughapriya and hemavathi.
Hundreds of people enjoyed the music. Saraswathi puja was special on Friday as the stone nathaswaram was played after 15 years in the temple. “I have played this instrument in the past. After 15 years, I played it again with the blessings of Saraswathi, goddess of knowledge, art, music and culture,” said Swaminathan.
Are extra efforts needed to play the stone nadaswaram? “Yes, of course, as the instrument is heavy unlike normal nadaswarams which are made of wood,” Swaminathan said.
In the programme, the second nathaswaram made of wood was played by Darasuram Thamizharasan.
