The Palakkad Karnataka Music Association organized various functions on Saturday to celebrate three legends

On Saturday, the Palakkad Carnatic music community held a variety of events to honour three icons. Palghat Mani Iyer, a master of the mridangam, was honoured on his 111th birthday, while two of his friends who were vocalists of the time were honoured on their 100th anniversaries.

It ended up being a melancholy occasion as 20 of Mani Iyer's students gathered at Viswanathaswamy Temple in Kalpathy to pay their mridangam teacher floral and musical tributes. They gave a two-hour performance in the temple's Kundambalam.

The performers were led by T.R. Rajamani, the oldest son and well-known mridangam player of Mani Iyer. After a brief hiatus, we are restarting this yearly tribute to the legend. This will continue every year, Mr. Rajamani stated.

Mani Iyer passed away in 1981, and starting in 1982, his legacy was honoured annually. Prior to the COVID-19 epidemic, the festivities ended.

The Palghat Fine Arts Society held an audio-visual performance in Tharekkad in honour of the birth centenaries of famed vocalists M.D. Ramanathan and K.V. Narayanaswamy at the same time that the 20 mridangam players paid tribute to Mani Iyer at Kalpathy.

"In their own ways, each of the three of them was a legend. They captivated enormous crowds when they performed together around the nation, according to P.N. Subbaraman, secretary of the Palghat Fine Arts Society.

The audio-visual performance was hosted by Bombay Balaji, another prominent student of Mani Iyer, at Palghat Fine Arts Society Auditorium. The audience was given a unique opportunity to watch and listen to audio and video clips of Narayanaswamy and Ramanathan's performances, talks, and conversations. "For music enthusiasts, it was a unique occasion. In reality, it was nostalgic, according to Mr. Subbaraman.

The audio-visual show also includes a few of the performers' amusing public interactions.

In honour of the Carnatic vocal masters in their 100th year of birth, the Palghat Fine Arts Society presented a presentation last month as well. In honour of Ramanathan and Narayanaswamy, four renowned Carnatic performers, including Saketharaman and Prince Rama Varma, gave a performance. Mr. Rajamani received recognition during the event as well.