Composers Dungeon
Vāggēyakāras
The composer-poets who shaped the modern Carnatic kṛti. Each profile carries the historically-attested raga · tāla · opening sahitya for every kṛti, the composer's signature gītī, and the gamaka they made their own.
Tyāgarāja
1767 – 1847Carnatic Trinity (Tri-mūrti) — the foundational period
Saint-composer of Tiruvaiyāru; founder-figure of the modern Carnatic kṛti. Sang exclusively to Śrī Rāma.
- Mudrā
- Signs each kṛti in the abhōga / final charaṇa with his own name as mudrā
- Gītī
- Sādhāraṇī
- Gamaka
- Kampita (sustained oscillation on jīva-svaras)
- Language
- Telugu (with occasional Sanskrit phrases)
- Kṛtis catalogued
- 50
- Full sahitya
- 8
- Source
- Tillaisthanam paramparā
Favoured ragas
Sankarābharaṇam · Kalyāṇī · Tōḍī · Bhairavī · Kāmbhōji
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Muttuswāmi Dīkṣitar
1775 – 1835Carnatic Trinity (Tri-mūrti) — the foundational period
Sanskrit-language saint-composer; codified the Śrī Vidyā tantra in song through the Kamalāmbā Navāvaraṇa, Navagraha, and Pañcabhūta-liṅga sets.
- Mudrā
- Signs with the mudrā "Guruguha" (his own name, also a name of Subrahmaṇya) usually in the charaṇam
- Gītī
- Bhinnā
- Gamaka
- Dhālu-kampana (rolling extended oscillation)
- Language
- Sanskrit (with a handful of Maṇipravāḷam pieces)
- Kṛtis catalogued
- 40
- Full sahitya
- 5
- Source
- SSP (1904)
Favoured ragas
Māyāmāḷavagaula · Tōḍī · Śaṅkarābharaṇam · Hamsadhwani
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Śyāmā Śāstri
1762 – 1827Carnatic Trinity (Tri-mūrti) — the foundational period
The third of the Trinity. Composed densely-sculpted Devī-bhakti kṛtis in Telugu, Sanskrit, and Tamil, plus three landmark Svarajatis that every Carnatic student studies.
- Mudrā
- Signs with the mudrā "Śyāmakṛṣṇa" in the charaṇam
- Gītī
- Gauḍī
- Gamaka
- Andolan (slow swing on jīva-svaras)
- Language
- Telugu (with Sanskrit and Tamil compositions)
- Kṛtis catalogued
- 15
- Full sahitya
- 0
- Source
- Tanjavur śiṣya paramparā
Favoured ragas
Bhairavī · Tōḍī · Sāveri · Ānandabhairavī · Cintāmaṇi
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More composers — Śyāmā Śāstri (the third of the Trinity), Purandara Dāsa, Svāti Tirunāḷ, Annamācārya, Pāpanāsam Śivan — are planned. Each will land when their kṛti catalog has been audited against the authoritative sources our iOS catalog already uses.