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Damal Krishnaswamy Pattammal, isa front ranking vocalist in Carnatic music.She is the member of what is known as 'Female Trinity of Carnatic Music', with M S Subbalakshmi and M L Vasanthakumari.
Pattammal was born on March 2, 1919 to Damal Krishnaswamy Dikshitar and Rajamal, in the temple town of Kancheepuram, in Tamil Nadu. From very young age Pattammal showed her talent for music.Her first Guru wasSri Ambi Dikshitar, a scion of the Muthuswamy Dikshitar family. She approached Papanasam Sivan for learning his compositions. When she was 14, she gave her first public performance at the Mahila Samaj in Egmore and won much acclaim.
Pattammal is known for her adherence to the classic traditions but she could manage to shed the binding coils of orthodoxy in taking to concert music, she dared to venture into a musical area as pallavi singing, hitherto considered a male preserve and came to be known as "Pallavi Pattammal." She has been an outstanding exponent of strict adherence to the pitch and unerring observance of rhythm with voice culture and clarity of expression. She popularized Deekshithar compositions and the Tamil kritis of Papanasam Sivan and Subramaniya Bharati.
