In 1937, GNB was invited to give a major concert in the Music Academy. Earlier, in 1927 itself, GNB as a young musician, had been awarded the Academy's Gold Medal for his excellent singing. His debut in the Music Academy was a major landmark in his illustrious career. He did not have to look back thereafter. His ascent to the top position in the music world was rapid. In 1940-41 he toured the whole of South India and gave memorable performances in every town and village, in temples and other festivals.

Great Team work

His accompanyists were usually Rajamanickkam Pillai and Palghat Mani Iyer, or Chowdiah and Palani Subramania Pillai. Rajamanickkam Pillai was very quick in assessing the talents of GNB and developed a special regard for him. GNB in turn, had a great respect for Pillai. After the first concert together, Rajamanickkam Pillai would smilingly ask GNB at the start of some concerts whether he had anything new to offer. GNB would politely reply: " What can I sing that you don't know already. " Between the two, a close bond of friendship developed, based on mutual respect and admiration. Very often, Pillai would request GNB to proceed with his alapana after the had finished his first phase of raga delineating. Sometimes, Pillai would make a very brief essay only and allow GNB to go ahead with his imaginative alapanas uninterruptedly. Pillai knew that he could not successfully reproduce what all GNB could do in the upper octave. What he would do after GNB had completed his singing in the middle register, was to reproduce the same; and thereafter, with a knowing smile at GNB, proceed to play in the upper octave followed by GNB's own singing. In swaraprastharas also, Pillai would leave out some intricate swara matrices and allow Pal ghat Mani Iyer to produce those effects on the mridangam more effectively. Palghat Mani Iyer had an instant rapport with GNB. Both of them had minutely studied old Kritis and modified and restructured them for concerts in a way that made the rasikas spellbound. The kritis ' Marukelara " , Sarasa Samadhana', 'Chalamelara', , Thath vameruga Tharama' are a few of the pieces in which GNB and Mani Iyer beautifully collaborated, to the delight of vast audiences.

" Butter and Fireworks"

In 1940, when GNB was riding on a wave of success and was at the peak of his popularity, his friend Rajamani arranged a concert at Kivalur. No senior accompanist was available for that date. Rajamani himself accompanied GNB on the mridangam and Thiruvalaputhur Krishnamurthy Pillai was engaged to play on the violin. Rajamani recalls that GNB's was an outstanding performance that day. After the performance, GNB thanked the violinist for his co-operation. Pat came Pillai's reply: " Ayya, what can be the role of butter in a play of fireworks" - an apt simile - to describe both the performance and his own role in it.

Success Abounding

In the middle of 1942, GNB returned to Madras after a triumphant tour of the southern districts. That was a time when the economy was booming as a result of the war effort. People's interest in music and fine arts also got a big boost. There came about a virtual renaissance in the music field. Numerous sabhas came into existence in every town, small and big. Most of these sabhas had GNB's concert for inauguration. All the bigwigs in the State vied with one another in having GNB's concert at their daughter's and son's weddings. Some were even prepared to adjust the marriage date to suit the convenience of GNB. In fact, one noted doctor changed the marriage date after the invitations had actually been sent out, to suit GNB. The invitations were reissued once again with an apology for the inconvenience caused. GNB's fee for concerts also went up sharply. But he had the big heart to obtain similar high rates for his accompanists as well. GNB also brought respectabillity to the world of performing musicians by his learning and by his inpeccable platform manners, apart from his vibrant music.

The Afficianados

Nothing succeeds like success. Rasikas thronged in thousands to all his concerts whether in Sabhas or marriage functions. Tickets were sold out in advance for his concerts and sabhas displayed' house full' boards. There were large overflows from the concert halls and rasikas used to stand in every available bit of room outside the hall and listen to GNB with rapt attenttion. For a marriage in the Perumal Chettiar family in 1943, GNB's concert was arranged with Rajamanickkam Pillai and Palghat Mani Iyer as accompanists. The entire Flowers Road in Kilpauk was a sea of heads that evening. Rasikas were standing for full four hours listening to his splendid music in rapt attention. Vedagiri, another music lover, recalls how he used to stand on one foot in the gallery of Gokhale Hall and sit crouched in a jam-packed hall of Saraswathi Gana Sabha in Nungambakkam, in order to listen to GNB's immortal music. He avers that one could not stand such a strain for four hours and more unless one was totally absorbed in the'music and.forget his physical existence. GNB's music had that gripping influence over the listeners that they felt transported to another world where they could be in union with " Nada Brahmam " forgetting the physical world altogether.

P. V. Vittal Rao of Madras says: " GNB's performances were equally entertaining in marriage kutcheris also. His voice rose above the din of the assemblage. I remember going along with my friends to the terrace of a house adjacent to the marriage pandal and listening to one such performance through the chinks of the thatched roof. Such was the pull exercised by GNB's music on the listeners."

Royal Patronage

The perfection with which GNB rendered kritis made the composers themselves wonder wehther their kritis were really so good. After hearing their kritis sung by GNB, Muthiah Bhagavathar, Vasudevachar and Papanasam Sivan, openly admitted that they woudn't have dreamt of their kritis being rendered with that technical perfection and musical excellence. Such was GNB's innovative and intelligent approach to kriti singing that made further improvement in kriti singing well nigh impossible. Even saint Thyagaraja would have approved GNB's art in restructuring some of the old kritis to suit his style since the basic structure was not violated.

In the early forties, GNB was invited to sing at the palace of the Maharaja of Travancore. Gayaka Sikamani Muthiah Bhagavathar was the Principal of the Swati Tirunal College of Music at that time. GNB was singing one of the kritis of Muthiah Bhagavathar, viz ' Sarasamukhi ' in the rare raga Gaudamalhar. He prefaced the kriti with a raga alapana which was unique for its astonishing layout. Muthiah Bhagavathar who was listening to this, was lost in wonder and delight. After the Kriti was sung, he stood up, embraced GNB and said " I bless you with all my heart, may your fame spread more and more. I have composed the kriti, but I had never believed that such possibilities existed within the rare raga. I have been singing with one of the four thamburas specially made for me and named as Rama, Lakshmana, Bharata and Satrugna. I am presenting my thambura , Bharata' to you as your devotion to music is similar to the devotion of Bharata to Rama".

The GNB Era

A similar incident took place in the Mysore Darbar when Muthiah Bhagavathar was the Asthana Vidwan. Muthiah Bhagavathar who had a special affection for GNB, arranged for the latter's concert in the immediate presence of the Maharaja. When GNB rendered the Kriti ' Brocheva ' in Khamas, it was so moving that a greatly pleased Mysore Vidwan Vasudevachar, the composer who was present in the audience, wondered whether he had really composed such a magnificent song. GNB sang kritis in Mohanam and Shanmugapriya also. The Maharaja who was knowledgeable in Karnatak Music, invited GNB to the Darbar, complimented him and patted him on the back a rare gesture because royal hands never came into contact with commoners in those days. He also rewarded him suitably. The Maharaja was so pleased with GNB's delineation of Shanmukhapriya raga that he used to refer to GNB as " that Shan- mukapriya boy" while talking about him to Muthiah Bhagavathar.

The forties will remain as the' GNB era - par excellence '. Everywhere there were posters announcing concert after concert. His engagement book used to be filled up one year in advance! He was having 20 concerts and more a month - a rare achievement indeed. Vedagiri remembers having listened to GNB on 6 days a week barring Tuesday. How he found the time to practise and bring up so many new kritis and ' thukkadas' remained a puzzle to most of his admirers. GNB was able to achieve this because of the fusion of manodharma with intricate knowledge of the raga, and his intuitive ability to improvise on the spot some sangatis previously unknown or unheard of. So popular was GNB that ' Kalki ' wrote that if there was an election in the music world, GNB would get the highest number of votes. Could there be a greater testimony to his pre-eminence in the music world?

There was no question those days of a GNB concert being a failure. Each concert was excellent and had something strikingly original and aesthetically pleasant. Whatever GNB touched used to become popular the next day. An episode in this connec- tion is worth mentioning. B. V. K. Sastry, the eminent music critic, had put in considerable effort in bringing out the compositions of Mysore Sadasiva Rao. He approached no less a person than Ariyakkudi Ramanuja Iyengar and requested him to sing a few of those kritis in his concerts and popularise them. Ariyakkudi replied: " What is the use of asking me - persuade GNB to sing a few: they will become popular overnight ". There can be no more convincing tribute to the popularity of GNB's singing style, which at once captivated the listeners and went straight to their hearts.

Memorable Concerts

It is difficult to single out from the hundreds of memorable concerts GNB gave in: the forties with Chowdiah or Rajamanickam Pillai on the violin and invariably Palghat Mani Iyer or Palani Subramania Pillai on the mridangam. Music critics writing for famous journals like ' Ananda Vikatan' and ' Kalki' had exhausted all epithets to describe his performances, e.g., " Gandharvagana Katcheri ", " Jinjamrithamana Katcheri " Mahaththana Katcheri ", were some of the epithets often used by the critics. Finding it difficult to coin new words to describe his performance, a critic writing for ' Ananda Vikatan ' wrote about GNB's Music Academy performance of 1946 thus: " The next day GNB sang with Chowdiah and Palghat Mani Iyer as accompanists. Where is the necessity to describe his performance or the crowd that was listening to him with rapt attention inside and outside the hall " ! Even though he was singing in the sabhas and marriage functions at Madras almost every week, the crowd at every performance was enormous and especially at the Academy concerts. Invariably, the GNB concerts in the December season yielded maximum gate collections for the organising sabhas. As many of his rasikas ruminate over these concerts, they emphatically conclude that such congregations of discerning rasikas have become rare.

Unique Ragam- Thanam-Pallavis

For purposes of record and for the benefit of those who did not have the opportunity of hearing GNB at the peak of his career, it may be worthwhile to describe a few of the remarkable concerts during this period. It was an inaugural performance of the Mylai Sangeetha Sabha in the grounds of the P. S. High School, Mylapore ; Rajamanickkam Pillai and Palghat Mani Iyer were the accompanists. GNB. took Bhairavi for Ragam Thanam and Pallavi that day. Reviewing that performance, 'Kalki' des- cribed how GNB elaborated the raga in all details in three octaves. He wrote: " when GNB touched the ' tharasthayi Panchama ', the audience applauded lustily; when he touched ' daivatha ' the audience was spellbound and wonderstruck ; when he touched , ' Nishada ' the audience felt as though their breathing had stopped. The thanam, pallavi, and swaraprasthara ending in a lilting swara ragamalika were all so magnificently and masterly executed that it seemed there was no aspect of Camatic Music which did not find its place suitably in that Bhairavi RTP.

The impact of the inaugural performance at the Mylai Sangeetha Sabha was so deep that, at the request of the members, the same group as arranged for another performance the very next month. Starting with' Pranamamyaham' in Gaula raga, the concert reached the top level of excellence in the swara- prasthara itself. " Then came a shimmering essay of Subapanthuvarali, followed by the now famous kriti of Thyagaraja. Kalyani raga alapana and Vasudevayeni followed. The RTP was in Shanmukhapriya. Vedagiri remembers vividly the step by step delineating of the raga in an epoch-making way, the thanam in three phases and sonorous tones embellishing it, the Pallavi , Mamava Meenakshi ' sung with great emotion and feeling, the swara clusters which made Pillai acclaim in joy and the ragamalika swaras in Yadukulakamboji, Behag and Sindhubhairavi. Those who were fortunate to listen to that concert asserted that they had not heard such a Subapanthuvarali or Shanmukhapriya in their lives.

Jagannatha Bhaktha Sabha

It was 1946. There was GNB's performance in the erstwhile Jagannatha Baktha Sabha, one of the oldest sahas of Madras.This was held in the Corporation Boy's School, Egmore. The Hall was too small for the eager and appreciative crowd of rasikas with the result that people had to sit cramped, almost packed like sardines. Yet they forgot all their discomforts when GNB started singing. T.K.Jayarama Iyer and Palghat Mani Iyer were the co-artists that day.
GNB took Saveri raga for special treatment and thrilled the audience with his captivating alapana in three octaves. The tharasthayi Dhaivata was easily manoeuvred and the uppershadja of the tharasthayi was touched effortlessly. The mandrasthayi shadja was clearly audible even at the end of the hall. The thanam in the different styles followed (Gaja and Turaga Thana). The intricate pallavi looked so simple and melodious, devoid of any trace of harshness commonly found in pallavis of that type. The swaraprasthara ending in a lilting ragamalika put the coping stone on the concert. Dr. Srinivasa Rao, Retired Director General of the Meteorological Department, while reminiscing on the concert after 20 years could go into raptures. Many of the lovers of music who had listened to this eoncert still talk with emotion and gusto about it as the ' Saveri Concert '.

Professor Sambamurthy who was in the audience, when invited to speak a few words, was bemused and tongue-tied as he had been transported, as he said, into a world of ' Nada '. However, the next day during the performance of another Vidwan, he stood up, apologised for his inability to talk fully about the Saveri RTP the other day and spoke for 10 minutes. He prefaced his talk by saying that truth could be uttered at all places and that the special features of GNB's ' Saveri ' should be explained in detail for the benefit of laymen and connoisseurs alike. He dealt in detail with the 'gamagaprayoga', the different types of thanam employed, the intricacies of the Pallavi which looked so simple and elegant and the aesthetically appealing swararagamalika. He added that there as intense rasabhava permeating the entire concert and that all those present could experience in different degrees the delight which made them sit in rapt attention unmindful of the physical discomfort. That Saveri is still 'reverberating' in the ears of those who were fortunate, to listen to that concert and as Prof.Sambamurthy put it, the like of that Saveri one could have heard only from Maha Vaidyanatha Iyer. Vedagiri recalls another concert in Parthasarathy Swamy Sabha in March 1946. Rajamanickkam Pillai and Palghat Mani Iyer were the accompanists. GNB took ' Devamanohari ' for RTP. The whole performance was so aesthetically satisfying that Vedagiri was lost in its sheer beauty. He remembers vividly how he was able to write his University examination in mathematics the very next day and answer all questions correctly in spite of a tragic occurrence that morning in the house. He says he was in a ' Yogaruda ' state for full two and a half days though attending to all routine matters as a matter of habit. Such was the compelling influence of GNB's concert which invariably took listeners to 'supersensuous levels'.

The years 1947-50 were eventful ones in GNB's life. As usual, there were innumerable concerts in Sabhas, marriages and Royal Darbars. The concert before the Maharaja of Kasi was a notable event. GNB popularised many kritis of the Trinity hitherto unknown or less known. Kalalanerchina in Deepakam, Rakasasivadana in Dakka, Chalamelara in Margahindholam, Vararagalaya in Chenchugamboji, Karikalapa Mokam in Saveri can be cited as examples. A string of captivating ' thukkada ' pieces came to the forefront. ' Chintai Arindu Vadi ' and ' Thikku Theriada Kattil ' of the early forties gave place to ' Velan Varuvarodi ', ' Kannanai Kanpadheppo ', ' Sonnathai Chaithida ' and a host of bewitching pieces which created a special interest in the post-pallavi stage of GNB concerts. Apart from Kamboji, Bhairavi and Kalyani, other ragas like Devamanohari, Sahana, Begada, Saveri and Nattakurunji came up for spacious treatment at the hands of the maestro.

Master of Sruti Bhedam

It was at this juncture that the technique of ' Sruthibedam ' (called Grahabedam also) which GNB developed to perfection and finesse, came up for criticism and ulitmate acceptance. The Expert Committee of the Music Academy discussed it in detail and decided that it had sanction in the established ' Sampradaya ' and that those who were competent to understand its limits could handle it. In earlier days, there was strong opposition to this technique. GNB, however, stood firm and carried on as ever showing his capacity to produce symphonic effects with ' Srutibedam'. His position was amply vindicated when it was accepted by the Expert Committee of the Music Academy. The music world owes not a little to GNB who, with his emancipated mind and crusading zeal could handle successfully such an intricate technique, popularise it in the teeth of oppositicm and get it established and accepted.

Tamil Isai Movement

The forties also marked another important facet of GNB's attitude to music in general and f1fs courage of conviction. In the early forties, there was the' Tamil Isai Movement' which though basically desirable, was taken to unnecessary levels of controversy by its protagonists. Many senior Vidwans did not participate in the' Tamil Isai Festival'. It was GNB who alone among the senior artists of the day took part in the inaugural festival. He might have incurred the displeasure of his seniors, but he was convinced that the basic aim of the movement was laudable despite the sectoral ' overtones' incureded in it by some journalists and others. Once he was convinced, GNB stood firm and participated in the festival.

His performance was hailed as a ' Mahaththana Kacheri' by ' Kalki '. In fact, GNB, was the only great artist who sang that year in all the three festivals - those of the Music Academy, the Indian Fine Arts Society, and the Tamil Isai Sangam. His fans could not decide which of the three was the bt!st, as all were of the same vintage class. In the succeding year, one after other of the senior Vidwans started participating in the ' Tamil Isai Sangam ' and GNB thus got his stand vindicated by gradual acceptance by his colleagues of what he thought was intrinsically good in the first instance itself. This is ample proof of the catholicity of GNB's thinking, his freedom from prejudice and narrow mindedness.

Domestic Matters

On the personal side, the decade (1941-50) was one of mixed fortunes for GNB. In 1941, Narayanaswami Iyer expired. As a father an d head of a large family, Iyer had many misgivings about his son taking to music as a profession. However, before his death, he had the good fortune to see his son esta- blished firmly in the music world. Iyer's death was a great loss to the music world, as he was one of the doyens of Karnatak music, an astute critic and a determined promoter of talents, wherever they might be the Music Academy lost an active member of its Committee of Experts.

For GNB, it was a great personal loss, as Iyer was not only an affectionate father but also a teacher par excellence and an unfailing guide and supporter during his early life spent in the dirty world of jealous musicians. Fortunately, however, GNB by then had established himself firmly in the hearts of his countless admirers and was on his sure way to the top. This decade also saw the birth of his children. His disciples grew in number. Palani Balasubramaniam joined GNB. M.L.Vasanthakumari started giving performances on her own and her style found immediate rapport with music lovers. GNB had the unique satisfaction of seeing his disciples coming up fast in the concert field. ' MLV ' on her part continued her discipleship under GNB and evinced keen interest in learning the subtle niceties that went to make her master's performance so absorbing and strikingly original.

Thiruvaiyaru Aradhana and after

The next decade 1951-60 began with, a memorable inddent as far as GNB was concerned. Early in 1951, he went to Thiruvaiyaru, as usual, to participate in the Aradhana Celebrations.

He moved freely with the vidwans and rasikas alike and at the appointed time took his place on the dais and started singing. Soon he struck form and was totally engrossed in his music. His performance that day was superb; there were thunderous applauses at frequent intervals. Everyone acknowledged that the concert was a memorable one. Ariyakkudi who was in the audience approached GNB at the end of the concert, patted him affectionately on the back and said" Mani, you sang very well indeed. This is what " real music is ". At that moment, presumably their minds travelled backwards in time over a span of 25 years. Ariyakkudi would have pictured in his mind how after listening to young Mani at his house, he had prophesied that the boy of sixteen would have a very bright future in the music world- a prophency that came true in every respect. GNB, for his part, would have wondered at the farsightedness of Ariyakkudi and felt very grateful to him for all his guidance and encouragement. It must have been indeed a memorable day for GNB as well as his' Manasika Guru '.

In 1952, when the scheme of broadcasting the National Programme of Music over all stations was introduced, GNB was invited to give a concert of Karnatak Music. Beginning with ' Kalalanerchina' in Deepakam, GNB provided a veritable feast of choice pieces like ' Mamavasadha ' of Swati Tirunal, ' Maragathavallim' of Dikshithar, RTP in Shanmukhapriya, a Javali and a Tillana. What more can one ask for in an hour-and-a-half concert? In fact, the listeners felt as though they had listened to a four-hour kutcheri. GNB had that uncanny knack of making a short alapana as comprehensive and satisfying as a long tie.

Loved by accompanists

In this period there was a significant concert of GNB at Coimbatore, ' Gurukrupa ' a music lover recalls in ' Sruti ' how GNB thrilled the packed pandal with an exhuberant Kalyani alapana. When Rajamanickam PiIlai's turn came up, he simply put down his bow and requested the musician to continue. At the end of the concert, Pillai said " what is there to play after the lion has roared a fantastic Kalyani?" Such was the admiration Pillaival had for GNB's music. This also proves that even by forgoing his chance judiciously a violinist can actually heighten the effect of the performance without in any way impairing the public's esteem of his own stature. Indeed, to be a good accompanist, it is very essential to have the instinct as to when not to play. Rajamanickkam Pillai once said that accompanists, whoever they may be, would all be only too eager to accompany GNB, as they were sure to get not only the maximum understanding and encouragement from him but full credit for their share in the success of the performance. As for himself, Pillai said that he was always satisfied and happy while accompanying GNB, That this was the feeling of all accompanists who cooperated with GNB over three decades while he was riding the wave of phenomenal success, goes to show his broad mindedness, the great respect in which accompanists held him and his keenness for team effort.