When the Gods Sing: The Enduring Music of Kerala and its vibrant soundscape
One of India’s most culturally resplendent regions, Kerala boasts of an insouciant musical legacy that stands tall with its incredibly diverse patterns. Though essentially embedded in Carnatic music like in Andhra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu, one of the distinguishing factors of Kerala music remains the routes it has sprouted into. The overall soundscape is splattered with a liberal dose of folk, regional and ritualistic civilization.
Proceeding beyond a cursory look music from Kerala, as is evident, has influenced other art and cultural forms. Interestingly, Kerala music is an eclectic mix of tradition and other influences including Arab and Christian Folk music.
Folk Music
Folk songs Kerala adorns have much to do with the professions, recreations and customs followed by the locals.
Theyyam is the musical composition and a Kali drama form that spring from the flowing rivers of Kerala. These include story based and other common songs as classified by the scholars. The Pana clan of Sriranga is credited with a chant called Aalatthi with the Ragavistara emerging as its most notable tune. A deluge of folk music genres fills the variegated folk traditions from Gods own country. Mappila Pattu, Knanaya Ottamthullal, among these forms have their popular appeal embellished by Panchavadyam, a percussion ensemble comprising of Madhalam, Timila, Elathalam,Kombu.
Temple Music
Temple music from Kerala has to be seen from the perspective of its emphasis on percussion music rather than Raagmala like in the other parts of Southern India or Carnatic music. Sopana Sangeetam a musical form performed on the temple steps uses the hour glass shaped drum Idakka and the metal gong Chengila. Popular Kathakali music rendered in a blend of Malayalam and Sanskrit also owes its emergence to the Sopanam style.
Carnatic music surge in Kerala
The development of Carnatic music in Kerala reached a luminous peak during the “Augustan Age” under the rule of Maharaja Swathi Thirunal (1813–1846). This period is renowned for its unprecedented royal patronage, cultural renaissance, and openness to artistic innovation. Swathi Thirunal, a prodigious composer and visionary ruler, authored more than 400 compositions in Sanskrit, Malayalam, Hindi, Kannada, and Telugu, spanning both Carnatic and Hindustani musical traditions. He invited renowned musicians—including Shadkala Govinda Marar, the Thanjavur Quartet, and Irayimman Tampi—to his court, transforming Thiruvananthapuram into a vibrant cultural hub. The Maharaja supported the modernization of both music and education: he established observatories, schools, and the first government printing press in the region. His reign thus symbolizes the “Augustan Age” of Kerala music, paralleling the artistic brilliance of contemporaries like Tyagaraja and Muthuswami Dikshitar in South India. The deep musical dialogues fostered at Swathi Thirunal’s court inspired devotional, classical, and dance compositions that continue to shape the legacy
Kathakali Music
Kathakali music, in contrast, blossomed from Kerala’s dramatic and ritual traditions during a slightly later era. Drawing inspiration from the lyrical Ashtapadi Gita Govinda and the evocative Sopana Sangeetham, Kathakali music distinguishes itself with a focus on narrative drama, rhythmic variation, and emotive improvisation. Performed in sync with Kerala’s seminal dance-drama form, Kathakali music is integral to bringing mythical stories and heroic epics to life on stage. The music employs ragas closely attuned to the emotions of the drama, punctuated by expressive vocalizations and the precise, energetic rhythms of percussion instruments like the Chenda and Maddalam. Notably, this genre departs from purely ritual music by emphasizing dramatic storytelling, providing both musicians and dancers the freedom to collaborate creatively in real time.
Over time, Kathakali music’s structure has evolved, but its role as the heartbeat of Kerala’s theatrical tradition remains central, connecting audiences to the themes of devotion, valor, and transformation that animate Kerala’s performing arts.1813–1846). This period is renowned for its unprecedented royal patronage, cultural renaissance, and openness to artistic innovation. Swathi Thirunal, a prodigious composer and visionary ruler, authored more than 400 compositions in Sanskrit, Malayalam, Hindi, Kannada, and Telugu, spanning both Carnatic and Hindustani musical traditions. He invited renowned musicians—including Shadkala Govinda Marar, the Thanjavur Quartet, and Irayimman Tampi—to his court, transforming Thiruvananthapuram into a vibrant cultural hub. The Maharaja supported the modernization of both music and education: he established observatories, schools, and the first government printing press in the region. His reign thus symbolizes the “Augustan Age” of Kerala music, paralleling the artistic brilliance of contemporaries like Tyagaraja and Muthuswami Dikshitar in South India.
Film Music
Film music has been integral part of Kerala music with strong identification in the socio-cultural elements of the time it was created in. Hindi cinema, Tamil cinema, Carnatic style in liberal doses decorated the early era of Malayalam film music. Composer MS Baburaj must be created with the expansion of Malayalam film music into other genres. G. Devarajan, V. Dakshinamurthy along with Baburaj are the preeminent stalwarts of Malayalam cinema music. Vayalar Ramavarma, Bhaskaran remain among the immortal lyricists to have graced a series of unforgettable music classics in the early era.
The saga continues with legendary voices like K.J Yesudas, S. Janaki peerless composers like M.G. Radhakrishnan, Ravindran, Johnson in sync with wordsmiths like O.N.V Kurup, P Bhaskaran adding to the mellifluous treasure trove.
The vibrant soundscape of Kerala Music
The musical journey of Kerala, thus, is not merely a chronicle of sounds but a living expression of its people’s spirit — reflective, inclusive, and ever-evolving. From the temple steps echoing with the resonant beats of chenda and edakka, to the silver screen adorned with the soulful melodies of Baburaj and Devarajan, Kerala’s music has always transcended boundaries of form and faith. It embodies a seamless confluence of classical discipline, folk vitality, and modern imagination.
Today, even as contemporary composers experiment with fusion, electronic textures, and global collaborations, the essence of Kerala’s music remains grounded in its rich emotional core — lyrical, devotional, and deeply human. Whether in the ritualistic cadence of Sopana Sangeetham, the dramatic fervor of Kathakali, or the cinematic poetry of its film songs, Kerala continues to sing of its timeless heritage — a music that listens to its past even as it composes its future.
Vibhav Rao
