The 20th century witnessed the emergence of a galaxy of celebrated musicians in Southern India. Among those who furthered the cause of Carnatic music during this period was Manjapara Devesha Ramanathan, MDR in short, whose presence in the scene was of immense consequence for Indian music. MDR undertook a bohemian musical mission, one that transports the listener to a unique aesthetic experience. He does not seem to have been bothered by a lack of audience or criticism of his unusual style. He stayed staunchly loyal to his guru Tiger Varadachariar’s style and his own sense of musical vision and expression.

The Boho Baritone offered an in-depth view into the life and times of M D Ramanathan, remembered as a gentleman and a musician's musician. Curated by MOPA, to mark MDR's birth centenary, the exhibition featured many rare collectibles from the family, including rare photographs, letters, notations, books and other collectibles of MDR, carefully preserved by his wife Visalakshy and son Balaji Ramanathan. Some of the special exhibits were his hand written notes and notations between 1941 - 1965, from his time as a student at Victoria College in Palghat, as the first student to enroll in Rukmini Devi’s Sangita Shiromani course under Tiger Varadachariar at Kalakshetra, as Professor of music there and as a composer. Also on exhibit were very rare photographs, and personal items used by MDR himself.

It was launched with a simple homage on 11th December 2022, in keeping with the spirit of MDR's personality and music – an invocation by Ramakrishnan Murthy, a brief tribute to MDR by V Sriram and ‘MDR in the Classroom’, a short talk by Gowri Ramnarayan.

The Boho Baritone was on view at the Artery in Chennai (Collaborating partner) from 12-30 December 2022.

Gallery

Boho Baritone - The Artery Chennai

Team