A gifted legend

For Lalgudi Jayaraman, his lineage speaks for itself and it comes as no surprise the world witnessed a renowned violinist. His ancestor was the direct disciple of Saint Thyagaraja, who hosted the saint in his house. Born into such a family, as the great grandson of Lalgudi Rama Iyer, the court musician of the Royal House of Mysore under the benevolent Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar, and as the son of accomplished musician Lalgudi Gopala Iyer, Jayaraman literally had music in his blood. The environment was also conducive to the flowering of this innate talent. Gopala Iyer, being a hard taskmaster, saw to it that Jayaraman acquired the necessary proficiency to perform on the stage. Jayaraman too did not falter.

Lalgudi was a noted composer and became a sought-after solo artist. His skill and the unique 'gayaki' style of playing the violin brought him international fame and numerous awards, including the Padma Bhushan and a Sangeet Natak Akademi fellowship. Jayaraman accompanied several artists like G N Balasubramaniam, Madurai Mani Iyer, Musiri Subramania Iyer and Maharajapuram Santhanam.

Lalgudi was often called the human computer for his ability to instantaneously and flawlessly respond to the challenge of the main artiste. He gauged the main artiste's mood, pace and tempo and quickly adapted himself accordingly. Jayaraman is well-known for his unique style of music called Lalgudi Bani, a style that incorporates a fingering methodology which produces music that is astonishingly similar to the vocal style.

'Country has lost its greatest violinist'

Sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan condoled the passing away of legendary musician Lalgudi Jayaraman saying the country has lost its "greatest violinist". Recalling his long association with Jayaraman, Khan said, "Jayaraman was like an elder brother to me. He was the greatest violin player the country has seen."

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa too paid rich tributes to the violin maestro describing his death as a "great loss" to the world of music. "I was deeply grieved learning about his passing away," she said in statement in Chennai.