Giriraja Kavi Explained

Girirāja Kavi
Native Name:గిరిరాజ కవి
Native Name Lang:tel
Background:non_performing_personnel
Birth Place:Kakarla village, Cumbum taluk in Prakasam district, Andhra Pradesh
Death Place:Tiruvarur, TamilNadu.
Genre:Carnatic music
Occupation:Composer

Giriraja Kavi (Telugu: గిరిరాజ కవి) was a noted composer of Carnatic music, who lived in the 18th century in the kingdom of Thanjavur. His hometown, Tiruvarur, lies in the present-day state of Tamil Nadu.

Roughly 200 of his padas, ragas, and talas are housed in the Saraswathi Mahal Library in Thanjavur. Giriraja wrote about 150 padas in honour of his patron, Śāhaji, and Śāhaji's lover Rājamōhini. Kavi was one of the first, if not the first, to use northern Hindustani ragas, such as Brindavani, in the south.

Family

Giriraja's brother, Kavigiri, was known as Venkatagiri and was a scholar and musician.

Giriraja's grandson by one of his daughters was the composter Tyagaraja.[1]

Notes and References

  1. Kuckertz . Josef . 1998 . On textual understanding in the songs of Tyagaraja . Journal of the Indian Musicological Society . 29. .