Veteran carnatic music exponent of Jaffna passes away

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 October 2003, 19:29 GMT]
A veteran carnatic music exponent, Maha Vidwan Brahma Sri M.T.N.Veeramani Ayer, passed away Wednesday morning at the age of seventy-two at his residence at Inuvil in the Jaffna district. His body was cremated the same day evening at the Inuvil Hindu cemetery, in a function attended by a large gathering, sources said.

M.T.N.Veeramani Ayer

He was accorded several awards for his services rendered to the development of carnatic music and Tamil culture by a number of civil organizations and the central government. The Government of Sri Lanka conferred on him the prestigious 'Kala Ratna' and 'Kalapooshana' awards, honoring his services to carnatic music, sources said.

He was born on 15.10.1931. He worked as a lecturer of carnatic music at the Kopay Teacher Training College and the Palaly Teacher Training College for about four decades. After his retirement, he was appointed as a visiting lecturer at the Ramanathan Fine Arts faculty.

At his funeral, several educationists and musicians delivered funeral orations recalling the services rendered by the late Brahma Sri Veeramani Ayer to the carnatic music, the sources said.

Mr.S.Thevaraja, head of the Commerce faculty of the Jaffna University presided over the event.

The Vice Chancellor (VC) of the Jaffna University Professor C.Mohanadas, the former VC, Professor Pon Balasundarampillai, Professor P.Gopalakrishnan Ayer, the LTTE's Jaffna district political head, Mr.C.Ilamparuthi, Professor A.Shanmugathas, Principal of the Jaffna College of Education, Mr.S.Kamalanathan, veteran Tamil Scholar Vidwan S.Sokkalingam (Sokkan) and several others eulogized the services of the late carnatic music exponent, the sources said.