Rare technique

Pt. Vadavatti produces the dirdir... sound by pressing his tongue to the clarinet's mouth in a typical way. "Only I know how to do it," he says, not sounding egoistic. He produces the meend from the instrument, which, according to the Western musicians was not possible. Admirably, he did it without altering the instrument. "I cannot help feeling reverential towards the creator, Atal Clario, of this beautiful instrument," he says.

He dedicated everything of his to the clarinet: time, energy and creativity. In return, "music has given me everything I wanted." He has climbed a great height from the days when he created a stir by outsmarting all other participants at an All-India level music festival at Mumbai at the age of 25. Recently, he got an entry for his name in the "Who's Who of Music" published by The International Biographical Centre in Cambridge, England.

The clarinet maestro was born in 1942 in the village of Vadavatti in Raichur district. His father, Budappa, played the tabla; his mother, Rangamma, sang bhajans; his grandfather, Hobalappa, played the shahanai. Pt. Vadavatti, was first initiated into Hindustani vocal music, by the renowned Pandit Siddarama Jambaladinni, under whom he mastered the styles of Gwalior and Jaipur gharanas. Using his knowledge of vocal music, he learnt and mastered the instrument on his own.

How did he excel without a guru? He drew lessons from every quarter. Vadavatti discussed the nuances of music with critics and practitioners and took their suggestions. He particularly recalls how Padmavathi Saligram of Mumbai made a marked difference to his music, particularly the manner in which he played his favourite raga, Jaijaivanthi. So did Siddaramswami Kotwal of Bhopal and Satish Thankasali of Pune's Music Circle. He has adapted certain improvements introduced by Ustad Bismillah Khan in playing the shahanai to the clarinet. Singers such as Prabha Atre, Pt. Bhimsen Joshi, the late Mallikarjun Mansur, Rajan and Sajan Mishra brothers and bansuri-player, Pannalal Ghosh, several of them have been his manasik gurus, a great source of inspiration.

The latest in the series is Vidwan Kadri Gopalnath, the renowed Carnatic saxophone player, his regular jugalbandi partner. "I have learnt the intricacies of gamaka of Carnatic music from Vidwan Kadri," he says.