Bidaram Krishnappa (1866–1931) was a musician and composer of Carnatic Indian music in the court of King

Chamaraja Wodeyar Chamarajendra Wadiyar X (22 February 1863 – 28 December 1894) was the twenty-third Maharaja of Mysore between 1868 and 1894. Adoption and accession Chamarajendra Wadiyar X was born in the old palace in Mysore on 22 February 1863, as the thi ...

IX (1862–1894) and King

Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV Maharaja Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV (Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar; 4 June 1884 – 3 August 1940) was the twenty-fourth maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore, from 1902 until his death in 1940. He is popularly called ''Rajarshi'' ( sa, rājarṣi, lit ...

(1884–1940) of the

Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...

. Bidaram Krishnappa was a Konkani-speaking Gowda Saraswath Brahmin and a native of

Nandalike Nandalike is a village in Karkala taluk in the Udupi District in Karnataka, India. It is approximately 16 km east of Padubidri and about 15 km from Karkala town. Tulu and Konkani are the most widely spoken languages. Other language ...

in modern

Udupi district Udupi district (also Udipi or Odipu in Tulu language) is an administrative subdivision in the Karnataka state of India, with the district headquarters in the city of Udupi. It is situated in the Canara coastal region, there are seven taluks, ...

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

. When he was a boy he had a chance encounter with a rich businessman who loved music. This happened when hungry Krishnappa, who came from a poor family, was singing a devotional song (''devaranama'') in a local temple. Impressed with his voice, the merchant sponsored Krishnappa to train under the guidance of a musician called Ramaswamy. He later came under the influence of Tammayya and Veena Sheshanna. Bidaram Krishnappa is credited with having popularised the singing of Kannada ''devaranama'' on stage. He adapted certain concepts of

Hindustani music Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sita ...

into his Carnatic compositions. For his scholarship in music, he earned the titles "Shudda Swaracharya", "Pallavi Krishnappa" and "Gana Visharada". One of his disciples,

T. Chowdiah Tirumakudalu Chowdiah ( kn, ಸಂಗೀತ ರತ್ನ ತಿರುಮಕೂಡಲು ಚೌಡಯ್ಯ) (1895 – 19 January 1967) was a violin maestro from India in the Carnatic classical tradition. Early years Chowdiah, was born in ...

, went on to become a music legend. Krishnappa was most famous for writing and rendering ''devaranama'' and ''

kirtan Kirtana ( sa, कीर्तन; ), also rendered as Kirtan, is a Sanskrit word that means "narrating, reciting, telling, describing" of an idea or story, specifically in Indian religions. It also refers to a genre of religious performance arts ...

s''.

Well-known disciples

Tirumakudalu Chowdiah Tirumakudalu Chowdiah ( kn, ಸಂಗೀತ ರತ್ನ ತಿರುಮಕೂಡಲು ಚೌಡಯ್ಯ) (1895 – 19 January 1967) was a violin maestro from India in the Carnatic classical tradition. Early years Chowdiah, was born in ...

R. R. Keshavamurthy RR Keshavamurthy (1913-2006) was an Indian violinist. RRK, as he was popularly known specialised in the seven-stringed violin. RRK was a student of Bidaram Krishnappa, the guru of the violinist Mysore T. Chowdiah. He was a said to be a legend o ...

Rallapalli Anantha Krishna Sharma Sangita Kalanidhi Rallapalli Ananta Krishna Sharma () (23 January 1893 – 11 March 1979) was a noted composer of Carnatic music, singer as well as a writer. He was a noted scholar in several languages like Telugu, Samkrit, Kannada & Prakrit, an ...

Places in honour

A road is named after Bidaram Krishnappa, named as Bidaram Krishnappa Street in Subbarayanakere area of Devaraja Mohalla in

Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...

. There is a Temple i.e., Sri Prasanna Sitarama Mandira established by Bidaram Krishnappa himself. In this Temple, Cultural programs will be conducted during

Rama Navami Rama Navami () is a Hindu festival that celebrates the birthday of Rama, the seventh avatar of the deity Vishnu. people from different parts of Jharkhand attended the world famous international Hazaribagh procession organized in the city every ...

festival.Ganavisharada Bidaram Krishnappa’s Sree Prasanna Seetharama Mandira, Narayana Shastri Road https://starofmysore.com/ganavisharada-bidaram-krishnappas-sree-prasanna-seetharama-mandira-narayana-shastri-road-10/

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krishnappa, Bidaram 1866 births 1931 deaths Indian male classical musicians 20th-century Indian male classical singers People from Udupi district 19th-century Indian male classical singers Musicians from Karnataka Carnatic instrumentalists