A ''viruttam'' or ''virutham'' (

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

) is a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

devotional verse sung in

Carnatic music Carnatic music (known as or in the Dravidian languages) is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and southern Odisha. It is o ...

concerts. Viruttams do not possess a set tala and are solely improvised using one or more

raga A raga ( ; , ; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a musical mode, melodic mode. It is central to classical Indian music. Each raga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, fro ...

ms. It is one of many forms of '' manodharma'' (spontaneous improvisations) in Carnatic music. A ''viruttam'' usually precedes rendition of a song. In most cases, it is sung in the same ragam as the song that follows it. Occasionally, viruttam of multiple verses are sung in different ragams, followed by a song in the same ragam as the last sung ragam of the viruttam. The artist may also sing the same verse in different ragams in different concerts. Virutham is not only used in concerts but also in traditional celebrations. Viruthams in praise of Lord Ayyappa are famous in South India. Viruthams are also sung in praise of Lord Muruga. A viruttam is called as Ugabhoga in

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

. Ugabhogas are few set of devotional lines by the Haridasas of

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

. Ugabhogas are more often sung in Carnatic concerts before a Devaranama. Ugabhogas contain the mudra of the Haridasa

References

Carnatic music Carnatic music terminology Hindu music {{Carnatic-music-stub

See also

References