Venkatesa Suprabhatham - P.V.Anantasayanam and party

Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham

- Sanskrit recitation by P.V.Anantasayanam and party

HMV - N.95165 — N.95168 - [1948-52?]

Boxed set of four 78-rpm plates, eight sides.

Look what wonderous findings from my friends travels in Southern India. Together they traced down this beautiful box with 78 rpm recordings of the Venkatesa Suprabhatam the same morning prayer that I posted earlier by M.S. Subbulakshmi here.

This one is a much earlier recording maybe from the late forties or at the latest early fifties. If someone has more detail about dates or about the recording in general please come forward and say so! Here are some accompanying notes that my good friend Arvind wrote to this post! Costis took the pictures and did the scan, Zwan, the good dog finally helped with the rip by not overturning the turntable! Thank you all, and Good Morning to you!

and

A

Very

Good Morning

to

Sri Venkateswara

Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham by P.V. Anantasayanam and Party

N. 95165 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 1

N. 95165 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 2

N. 95166 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 3

N. 95166 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 4

N. 95167 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 5

N. 95167 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 6

N. 95168 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 7

N. 95168 Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatham Part 8

Suprabhatham (Sanskrit: सुप्रभातम,Tamil: சுப்ரபாதம்,, "auspicious dawn") is a name given to Sanskrit hymns recited in the morning to awaken the Lord. There are many different Suprabhathams, but of all, the Venkatesa Suprabhatham must be the most well known and ubiquitous in South India. Its a common sight to see many homes here waking up to the sounds of the Suprabhatham sung by M.S. Subbulakshmi, whose name has become synonymous with it. However, this recording of the Suprabhatham predates the one by MS Amma by at least two decades.

This recording was recited by the chief priest (and his co-priests) in the temple of Lord Venkateswara, also known as Balaji, at Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, (in 1948, according to an online source I found), and was published by the Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanams in collaboration with HMV. This temple is one of the major pilgrimage centres in South India and in scale, footfalls and reputation, is somewhat analogous to the Vatican for Christians. Even today, there are only two versions of the Suprabhatham played inside the Tirupati temple; one is this one and the other of course, the version by M.S.Subbulakshmi.

This might be the earliest recorded version of the Venkatesa Suprabhatham, but we have no way of confirming this because there are no records or lists available of early 78 rpm pressings of such material made in India. The hymn was composed around 1500 by Sri Prativadi Bhayankaram Annan Swami, a disciple of Sri Manavala Mamuni, who also composed Sri Ranganatha Suprabhatham. Its chanted in four parts: Suprabhatham, Sri Venkatesa Stothram, Prapatti, and Mangalasasanam.

This edition of four 78 rpm records comes with a booklet with the full text of the Suprabhatham in Sanskrit.

Here is an English translation of the verses

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