Kadri Gopalnath October 14th, 2006Music is part of his every day routine as his father was a Nagaswaram Vidwan of Pane Mangalore, and kadri began training in Nagaswaram from an early age, but destiny had a different story for kadri Gopalnath. He saw the saxaphone played in hte Mysore palace Band Set. Thrilled on hearing the vibrant tone of saxophone he decided to master it.
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Sangeetha Sivakumar October 1st, 2006Sangeetha has a mellifluous, resonant voice and her command over the technical aspects of carnatic music is highly appreciated by musicians, critics and rasikas alike. She is an upholder of the G.N.Balasubramaniam bani. Her music is known for its crispness, clarity of thought and presentation. She has the great capacity of being extremely creative within the bounds of tradition and classicism.
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Gowri Ramnarayan September 9th, 2006Gowri Ramnarayan is a respected journalist, playwright, translator and music critic. She has had the privilege of providing vocal accompaniment for her grand aunt MS Subbulakshmi for more than 15 years. She will be presenting a program which will highlight the contribution of MS to the world of Carnatic music.
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Kalpana Venkat August 3rd, 2006
Bhargavi Prabhu - Violin, Ravi Balasubramaniam - Ghatam, Vinod Seetharaman - MridangamKalpana began her training on the violin at the age of six under her mother, Seetha
Kishore, a vainika. Like many children who have gone on to become professional musicians today, Kalpana won numerous prizes and awards as a child artiste.
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Roja Kannan, Priya Murle, Lavanya Ananth
July 8th, 2006This is production is an attempt to bring out the greatness of the poet Subramamanya Bharathi by giving
his verses a visual dimension. His verses are used to give life to his fiery patriotism, his religious fervor, his
progressive thoughts on women's liberation, and his ardent and gentle romanticism. Presented by three
senior exponents of Bharathanatyam representing an confluence of different styles. more
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Mysore Manjunath & Nagaraj June 25, 2006
Thiruvarur Bhakthavatsalam - Mridangam, Ravi Balasubramaniam - Ghatam"Nagaraj and Manjunath popularly known as the "Mysore brothers" returned from their hectic US tour where they gave duet violin performances and lecture-demonstrations. Both the brothers learnt under their father Mysore Mahadevappa, the retired head of the department of violin, Mysore. At 14 Nagaraj received "best violinist Award" from the prestigious Madras Music academy and was given a gold medal. Today Nagaraj and Manjunath are among a handful of "A Top" All India Radio artistes.
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Subhan Kasim & Subhan Babu
June 17, 2006
Trichy Senthil Kumar - Thavil"Kasim and his brother Subhan Babu recently performed in Bangalore. Dressed in conservative jari veshti and gold laced shawls, the brothers enchanted the audience with their impeccable performance on the nagaswaram, which as Kasim and Babu themselves admit is the most trying of all wind instruments as it involves tremendous breath control. But it is something they love to play on. Playing without inhibitions in a Hindu ambience to a Hindu audience, they swept the listeners off their feet with their evocative rendering of time honoured compositions like Yelaa Nee DayaRaadhu…….?
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Ranjani & Gayathri June 10, 2006
H N Bhaskar - Violin, K. Arunprakash - MridangamRanjani and Gayatri are among the few who have achieved enduring success in both violin and vocal music. After more than a decade as successful violinists of high calibre, the sisters' foray into vocal music has brought them instant recognition and wide acclaim.
Ranjani and Gayatri began their music career as violin duet artistes even before they reached their teens. The sisters started giving vocal concerts since 1997, and within barely three years, have won high praise from discerning critics and music lovers all over the globe.
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Smt. S. Sowmya May 19,2006
Sriramkumar - Violin, Neyveli Naranyan - MridangamIt is not an overnight achievement. Several years of training and hard work have gone into her efforts to find a place in the field. She is none other than Smt. S. Sowmya, who is one of the topmost musicians of today. A postgraduate in Chemistry, from IIT, Sowmya opted to tread the musical path, when the question arose whether to pursue her passion of continuing her research in Chemistry or to take up a musical career. Born in a family where music is worshipped, Sowmya started her initial training from her father Dr.M.Srinivasan, who is basically a Chemical Engineer. At the age of six, she became a student of Sangita Kalanidhi Dr.S. Ramanathan.
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Smt. Nalini Prakash & Vijay Palaparty
 Nalini Prakash is an accomplished Bharata Natyam dancer and has performed
widely in India and also is an accomplished teacher. Nalini is the Founder Trustee
of Silambam, an institution of Bharata Natyam and allied arts in the Nilgiris
region of India. Nalini is also the Secretary of the Bharatiya Vidya
Bhavan, Nilgiris Kendra. A promoter of the arts, Nalini has been coordinating programs
in educational institutions for SPICMACAY in the Nilgiris for the past 4 years.
Nalini has a bachelor’s degree in Carnatic music and a master’s degree in Performing
Arts (Bharatanatyam).
Vijay Palaparty is a student of both Bharata Natyam and Kuchipudi styles of
Indian classical dance. He has studied Kuchipudi with Dr. Uma Rama Rao of
Lasya Priya in Hyhipudi with Dr. Uma Rama Rao of
Lasya Priya in Hyderabad and Bharata Natyam with Sudharani Raghupahty in
Chennai. He has performed throughout the United States and in India. Most
recently he appeared in a Colgate University/Shree Bharatalaya production,
Silappadikaram: The Tale of Puhar in Chennai. Vijay has performed in several
Srishti Dances of India productions in Pittsburgh. Apart from dance, Vijay
works in development at the African American Cultural Center in
Pittsburgh.
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D.V.Mohana Krishna
May 5, 2006
 Bala Murali Krishna's intense presence amidst his accompanying musicians was in itself a delightful sight for the audience. His rendering transformed the environment into a musical haven. The promising melody of Arabhi took the audience into a benevolent mood. But after listening for some time, the sensitive ones or the 'Sahrudayas' among the audience could hear a docile and dainty voice that almost echoed the forcible renderings of Bala Murali Krishna.
The sound seemed like a shadow, a gentle mirror image of the celebrated voice of Bala Murali, and it came from the person seated in a composed manner behind the maestro, singing in tune and in support throughout the recital.
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R.Suryaprakash
April 29, 2006
Pakala Shri. Ramadas - Violin, Melakkavery Shri. K. Balaji - Mridangam
 Belonging to a family of musicians, Suryaprakash has been trained under Sangeethakalanidhi T.V. Sankaranarayan in the bani of Madurai Mani Iyer. His initial training was under his uncle Thirukodikaval V. Rajamani. He has also been trained by V.V. Srivatsa and Sulochana
Pattabhiraman.
Suryaprakash says Madurai Mani Iyer influenced not only his music but also his outlook towards life. Suryaprakash, who has performed all over India and abroad, has more than a decade's experience in giving concerts. He is a recipient of several prestigious awards and honorary titles such as the best vocalist by Srikrishna Gana Sabha and Indian Fine Arts, Chennai, and Yuva Kala Bharathi award..
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Smt Vijayalakshmy Subramaniam April 9, 2006
Appearing in her first concert at the age of twelve, Vijayalakshmy has an impressive record of performance with several concerts in India and abroad.
Vijayalakshmy is an 'A' grade artiste with the All India Radio. She has performed in the prestigious Akashvani Sangeet Sammelan Concerts and sings regularly over the Chennai Station of All India Radio.
Vijayalakshmy Subramaniam started her training at the age of five under Shri K. Padmanabhan, a disciple of Harikesanallur Shri Muthiah Bhagavathar. Under the guidance of guru Sangeeta Bhushanam Shri K Krishnaswamy of Annamalai University, she learnt detailed aspects of manodharma sangita or improvisation. Vijayalakshmy further honed her skills under the guidance of eminent Vidwans Shri S.Rajam, Shri T.R.Subramaniam and ShriV.R.Krishnan.
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Maharajapuram Srinivasan
 Grandson of Sangita Kalanidhi Sri Viswanatha Iyer and son of Sangita Kalanidhi Sri Maharajapuram Santhanam, Sri Maharajapuram Srinivasan is an acclaimed musician in his own right. He has been giving individual concerts since 1986. He has had the good fortune of being the primary disciple of both his grandfather and father and has imbibed their rich musical heritage. He has performed all over India in all leading sabhas. He is also regularly performing for Doordarshan and AIR as an ‘A’ grade artiste. He has accompanied his father in all his concerts both in India and abroad. Endowed with a fine feeling for melody, he is striving to admirably combine the lakshana and lakshiya styles handed down to him by his ancestors.
He has received many awards including, Asthana Vidwan of Vysaraya Mutt, Asthana Vidwan of Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam awarded by Sri Jayendra Saraswathi on the occasion of his 70th birthday celebrations. He was awarded Simha Dwani Samrat by Pujya Sri Swamiji of the Vysaraya Mutt, Best Vocalist in the Sub Senior category from the Music Academy in 2000 and has received rave reviews from senior music critics appreciating his performance in various concerts.
His son M.S.Ganesh Viswanathan is a child prodigy who has won the appreciation of many and has been performing individual concerts and is also accompanying his father in concerts all over the world.
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Kallidaikurichi S. Sivakumar
Kallidaikurichi S.Sivakumar hails from a musical family. Siva Kumar had an interest in laya from an early age of five. Discovering the interest of Sivakumar, his parents took him to his guru Vaitheerswaran Koil Sri.S.Vaidyanathan. He had his tutelage from the age of seven and started accompanying concerts from the age of sixteen. Vairamangalam Sri.Lakshminarayanan, who had deep interest in Sivakumar’s upcoming, took him to the mridangam maestro, the veteran Padmasri Palghat R.Raghu.Sivakumar has played in all the reputed organizations all over the country. . He is the recipient of the first prize in the 1990 mridangam competition conducted by Maharajapuram Viswanatha Iyer Trust.
Sivakumar has traveled widely and has accompanied senior artists like N.Ravikiran, Smt.Charumathi Ramachandran, Sikkil Sisters, Malladi Brothers and Vijay Siva.
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R.Sathish Kumar
Violinist R.Sathish Kumar is a disciple of Violin Maestro Sangeetha Kalanidhi Sri.M.S. Gopalakrishnan. He has also been undergoing intense training from Vidwan Sri Palghat T.R.Rajaram. This has made him understand the subtle nuances in vocal music and thus it has enabled him to provide adept and comfortable violin support to all vocalists. Having won several prizes and awards from various sabhas and institution in and out of Chennai, he started to step into concert platform at the age of eight.
He has performed over 500 concerts throughout India. He has accompanied leading vidwans like Mandolin Srinivas, T.V.Gopalakrishnan, Nithyasrree Mahadevan and Sudha Raghunathan etc. He is also a graded artist of AIR
and Doordarshan.
He has received Best Violinist Awards from Maharajapuram Viswanatha Iyer trust, Navras Recording Company-London, Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha, Sri Krishna Gana Sabha and Mylapore Fine Arts Club for the December Music Festivals. He was also winner of the National Level competition held by AIR – Chennai in the year 1998 and was awarded a direct graduation by the Music Audition Board.
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Madurai Sundar
 Sundar had his initial training
from his aunt Smt. Ananthalakshmi Sadagopan and his advanced
training with Madurai T.N.Seshagopalan. During the five years at
IIT Madras, he had the opportunity to compete in the music
competitions in Chennai and also to attend music concerts
regularly. Thereafter he joined the Indian Institute of
Management at Ahmedabad and got an MBA in Finance and Computer
Systems. Despite the busy schedule, he found opportunities to
both practise and perform carnatic music. Sundar has been
pursuing a dual career at Detroit since 1989 - IT Manager and
musician-cum-teacher. Along with his wife Padma he runs the
Trinity Academy of Fine Arts and offer one-on-one lessons in
vocal music. Sundar is a popular vocalist giving regular
performances both in US and in India.
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Kalpana Venkat
Kalpana Venkat, formerly Kalpana
Kishore, began her training on the violin at the age of six
under her mother, Seetha Kishore and continued with Sangeetha
Chudamani Smt. T. Rukmini. Kalpana has accompanied several top
ranking carnatic musicians from both the senior and current
generations. Kalpana has won several awards over the course of
her career, including numerous awards from The Music Academy,
Madras. She was also awarded the ‘Yuva Kala Bharathi’ in
1993. by Bharat Kalachar. She holds a Masters degree in Carnatic
Music from Madras University. She has also released numerous
cassettes and CDs of her solo and jugalbandhi performances. She
is an ‘A’ grade artist of All India Radio and has performed
on Indian national television and radio on numerous occasions.
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Vinod Seetharam
Vinod Seetharam started learningmridangam at the age of seven from Sri Ardhanareeswaran and
later from Shri Umayalpuram Sivaraman. Is now having advanced
training from Bangalore Arjun Kumar. Has accompanied a host of
leading vidwans and vidhusis at several prestigious
organizations in India, USA, and Canada. Has won many music
competitions and prizes and is a graded AIR artist with many
radio and television concerts to his credit. Holds a master's
degree in Industrial technology and is pursuing a career at Ford
Motor Company.
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Ravi Balasubramanian
Ravi Balasubramanian has been
playing the ghatam for about 11 years and learnt the art from
great teachers like Palghat P.K. Sekar (Ranganathan), Sangitha
Kalanidhi Dr. T.K. Murthy, and V. Suresh. In December 2003 he
received the title 'Yuva Kala Bharati' from Bharat Kalachar in
Chennai. He has played in many concerts in India, USA, Canada,
Singapore, Malaysia, and Australia and accompanied a host of
prominent musicians. Ravi is a welcome presence on the concert
platforms both in U.S. and India. He is a graduate student
specializing in robotics at the Carnegie-Mellon, Pittsburgh.
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Prof. Janakiraman
 Prof. S R Janakiraman, received training under several great masters. such as Tiger Varadachari, Budalur Krishnamurti Sastri, T K Ramasami Ayyangar and Kalpagam Swaminathan at Kalakshetra, and Musiri Subramanya Ayyar, Tiruppambaram Swaminatha Pillai, Mayavaram V V Krishna Ayyar and T Brinda at the Central College of Carnatic Music. He was trained in musicology by Profs. P Sambamurti, Balakrishna Ayya and P K Rajagopala Ayyar. In addition to his gurus' immense knowledge and wisdom, Janakiraman also imbibed a style of presentation with powerful delivery, _expression, and diction. His method of analysing original treatise and of evolving ones own ideals and concepts soon placed him high in the annals of musicology in India.
Janakiraman has taught musicology at various levels, including advanced, graduate and post-graduate courses for over 30 years. He was the Head of the Dept. of Musicology at Sri Venkateswara College of Music, Tirupati. Later he was associated with The Music Academy, Chennai as a Research scholar and an Advisory Member of the Experts Committee. He is currently the Principal of Music Academy's Teachers College of Music inChennai.
Janakiramans excellence in the theoretical and practical aspects of music earned him several titles including Sangita Siromani, Sangita Kala Acharya, Kalaimamani, and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award.
He has authored several books including Sangita Sastra Saramu three volumes of Raga Lakshanas & Ragas of Saramrta, He has presented a 3-hour video documentary titled Varna through the Ages and an audio-visual dissertation on the 72melakartas.
His lecture-demonstrations are not only instructive but also inspiring, and have drawn august audiences from all over the world.
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Jayshankar Balan
Jayshankar hails from a family of musicians. He learnt violin from Alamelu Subramanian and later from T.S.Krishnaswamy and N.S. Chandrashekaran in Bombay. Presently he is under the guidance of Madurai Sundar. He has worked with several leading artists such as Shri T.N. Seshagopalan, Dr Yesadas, Nedunuri Krishnamoorthy and Ravi Kiran. He is a graded artist of AIR and has represented India in major international cultural festivals. He holds a Masters in Computer Science and a MBA in International Finance and is settled in Michigan.
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Vinod Seetharaman
Vinod started learning mridangam at the age of seven from Sri Ardhanareeswaran and later from Shri Umayalpuram Sivaraman. Is now having advanced training from Bangalore Arjun Kumar. Has accompanied a host of leading vidwans and vidhusis at several prestigious organizations in India, USA, and Canada. Has won many music competitions and prizes and is a graded AIR artist with many radio and television concerts to his credit. Holds a master's degree in Industrial technology and is pursuing a career at Ford Motor Company.
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Sri Ravikiran and party
Chitravina N. Ravikiran
 Chitravina N Ravikiran was hailed as an unprecedented phenomenon when he took the music world by storm at the age of two (in 1969) and again when he presented his first recital, a 3-hour vocal concert at age five.He gave his first instrumental concert on the Chitravina when he was 11 and a record setting 24-hour non-stop recital with no breaks when he was 18.
Today, he is renowned as one of the preeminent virtuosos in the world who has taken slide instrument techniques to unsurpassed heights. A versatile
composer who has composed over 500 pieces, Ravikiran is the creator of Melharmony, an exciting concept that has added color to world music.
Also lauded as a vocalist of class, Ravikiran has set standards that have inspired several others to emulate him. He is constantly out to expand his horizons, be it through collaborations with top-notch world music maestros or designing new instruments such as the
navachitravina.
His accomplishments, though widely reported and documented across the world, read like a fairy tale. But they are not the sole reasons for his uniqueness. He is a multi-faceted genius with far-reaching goals and objectives.
The media acclaim Ravikiran:
Infinite capacity for micro-tonal shadings reminiscent of the human voice the core of Carnatic music played with teasing precision (The New York
Times); ...an impressive solo on the wonderfully resonant chitravina (The BBC Music Magazine, UK;
"...one of the world's greatest slide players - whose instrument is NOT a guitar! ...an amazing slide player in anybody's language. "; Radio National, Australia)
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Rohan Krishnamurthy
Master Rohan Krishnamurthy, who lives in Kalamazoo, Michigan, began learning mridangam at the age of eight under Damodharan Srinivasan. Rohan met the famous Guruvayur Dorai in Michigan and the latter agreed to train him. Rohan has performed in many concerts in the US and won first prizes in several competitions held by various Thyagaraja Aradhana festivals, in particular the junior and senior prizes in Cleveland. Since 1998, Rohan has been a constant presence in the annual Chennai music festival . He has accompanied leading musicians both in India and in US and has drawn rave reviews. He was conferred the title yuvakala bharati by Bharat Kalachar in 2003.
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Vijay Siva
He exhibited a rare intuitive capacity to identify ragas at the age of four. He received his initial training in music from his mother, and later from Sangita Kalanidhi Sri D.K. Jayaraman since 1977. During this time he was the recipient of Government of India Cultural Scholarship for vocal music. Passed the Higher Grade Examination with distinction in vocal music conducted by the Tamil Nadu Government and Sangeet Alankar Course conducted by the Gandharva Mahaviyalaya, New Delhi. At present receives guidance in vocal music from Sangita Kalanidhi
Smt. D.K.Pattammal.
Is an accomplished Mridangist, having been trained by Kumbakonam Sri Rajappa Iyer. Secured more than hundred prizes both for vocal music and for
mridangam.
Participated in the Music Festivals at home and abroad. Awarded "Youth Award for Excellence" in 1995, the title "ISAI PEROLI" in 1995 and the "Kalki Krishnamurthy Award" in 1996).
Vijay is the founder Secretary of the Youth Association for Classical Music (YACM) an organization to promote young Musicians and
rasikas.
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R. K. Sriramkumar
Shriramkumar is the grand son the atna' Shri R.K. Venkatrama Sastri. He learnt initially under Smt Savitri Satyamurthy and was later trained by his grandfather and had advanced guidance from the famed violinist Professor V V Subramanyam. He has also had training in vocal music from Sangita Kalanidhi Late Shri D.K. Jayaraman. He is a leading violin artist providing accompaniment to all the prominent Carnatic musicians. He has also given many solo violin concerts and reached a high level of proficiency and stature at a very young age.He has accompanied doyens like Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, M.S.Subbulakshmi, D.K.Pattammal and his guru (late) D.K.Jayaraman, T. Brinda, K.V.Narayanaswamy, N.Ramani, and Dr. M. Bala-muralikrishna. He has toured US, and many other countries in Asia, Europe and Australia.
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J.Vaidhyanathan
Vaidhyanathan is a highly sought-after mridangist of the day. He is the son of Sangeetha Kalanidhi D. K.Jayaraman and the nephew of Padma Bhushan D. K.Pattammal. He has received advanced training from Sangeetha Kalanidhi T. K. Murthy. He has won numerous prizes and awards. He has accompanied leading musicians such as M. S. Subbulakshmi, D. K. Pattammal, M. L. Vasanthakumari, D. K. Jayaraman, S. Ramanathan, K. V. Narayanaswamy, B. Rajam Iyer, T. N. Krishnan and M. S. Gopalakrishnan. He has toured USA, Australia and Singapore.
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Prof.T.R.Subramanyan
T. R. Subramanyam, or TRS as he is more popularly known amongst most music loving rasikas is a vidwan with uncommon traits. He is unconventional in the sense, that he is a daredevil willing to explore new avenues, regardless of whether his new ideas are accepted or not. He may not start his concert with a traditional varnam or a kriti on Ganesha. On one occasion, the opening item of his concert was a javali in Kapi
ragam!
TRS is scholarly and original in his approach to learning new kritis. Though TRS is a multilinguist, until he is confident of the meaning of song- whether the kriti is in Telugu, Kannada, Sanskrit or Tamil, he will not attempt to sing it. Before presenting a new kriti at a concert he pays particular attention to learn the correct words of the sahitya and the correct pronunciation of each word. When TRS renders a kriti, each sangati is rendered with clarity allowing the listener to pick up the words of the song.
In his swaraprastharas, he uses swarams intelligently- he is skillful on the use of swaraksharams. If for instance, he is attempting swara prastharas for a sahitya like - Paramapavana - he will use swarams such as Pa, Ri and Ma to correspond with the
sahitya.
TRS as a teacher is unmatched for his enormous patience and understanding. He quickly becomes aware of the limitations of each of his students. He modifies his teaching technique to each individual student in such a way that the student is easily able to comprehend the nuances of the raga bhavam and develop an understanding of the different sangatis in a particular sahityam. I have witnessed TRS encouraging his pupils with his everpresent smile and going through the sahityam with the student several times till the student completely grasps it and is comfortable singing the
sahityam.
It is not unusual for TRS to have younger artistes with limited concert exposure to accompany him during his concerts. The ragam-tanam-pallavi is TRS's forte. He is likely to pick a rare raga like Hemavati with an uncommon tala and an unusual eduppu. He has mastery over 'kanakku', (rhythmic arithmetical calculations). Junior artistes enjoy accompanying TRS because he is never one to embarrass them, if for instance the accompanying artistes do not get a particular piece right the first time, he will skillfully assist them.
TRS's lecture demonstrations on rendering pallavis are widely appreciated by both rasikas and students of music. They are so popular that they attract sizeable audience. TRS's skill in rendering the ragam-tanam-pallavi is unrivaled.
TRS is a disciple of Musiri Subramania Iyer. Prior to learning from Musiri, he learnt music from other teachers. He has formally graduated from the University with college degrees. TRS has expressed his fascination for GNB's music and talks glowingly about GNB's skill as a musician.
TRS has also composed some varnams, kritis and tillanas. He occasionally renders his compositions in concerts. He has also tuned some Purandaradasa kritis. TRS has a wide repertoire of songs which he sings in concerts, many of which include compositions of modern
composers.
TRS retired a few years ago from the University of Delhi, where he was a Professor in the Department of Music. He is highly respected by all his former students for his knowledge, skill as a concert artiste, his patience as a teacher and his charming demeanor. Anyone who has had the privilege of interacting with TRS will agree on this count.
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Ashwin & Rohin Iyer
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Ashwin & Rohin Iyer
Ashwin Iyer and Rohin Iyer had their initial training in Toronto, Canada under Smt. Renuka Balachandran and Smt. Vasumathy Nagarajan. During their summer holidays, they periodically undertook advanced training, at the Sri Venkateswara Temple in Pittsburgh, under senior musicians and musicologists, including Shri T. R. Subrahmanyam and Shri T. K. Govinda Rao, USA and in Chennai, respectively. In 1993, they were fortunate enough to receive training in Pittsburgh under Sangita Kala Acharya Shri S. R. Janakiraman, and have remained under his sole guidance and tutelage since 1998. The brothers have participated in various music competitions across North America, including the Cleveland Tyagaraja Aradhana, Cleveland, USA. They have performed at numerous venues in Canada, the US, and India. Ashwin is currently pursuing his PhD in Electrical Engineering at the University of Toronto, and Rohin is pursuing a Bachelors degree in Biomedical Engineering, also at the University of Toronto. The brothers plan to continue their study of Carnatic Music.
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Ravishankar Rajagopalan
Ravishankar Rajagopalan was initiated into violin at the age of 8 under the guidance of Shri T.V. Ramanujacharlu, a renowned violinist working with All
India Radio(AIR), Tiruchirapalli. He also had brief opportunities to learn from Tiruppur Shri. Mohan (AIR, Coimbatore), and Shri N.C. Madhav (AIR, Vizag) during his formative years. He has been performing as a concert accompanist since 1995 and has also given duet
concerts along with his guru. He is a recipient of The Senior Government of India scholarship. He is trained in vocal music as well by his father Shri K. Rajagopalan, a disciple of Tiger Shri.Varadachari. Ravishankar is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in Industrial & Systems Engineering at The Ohio State University, Columbus.
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Dr. Sriram Suryanarayan
Sriram trained under Mridanga Vidwan Guru T.S. Nandakumar of Mumbai for over a decade and has carved out a niche for himself on both the Mridangam and Kanjira. Has accompanied renowned musicians like N. Ramani, T.N.Krishnan, T.K. Govindrao, T.N. Sheshagopalan and Ustad Zakir Hussain. He has won over twenty awards at competitions organized by leading institutions. He is a graded artist of All India Radio in Mridangam, Kanjira and Ghatam. He was awarded the prestigious Junior Fellowship by the Government of India for developing a website on Carnatic Percussion Music. He has been regularly giving performances on AIR , Doordarshan and several leading sabhas all over India and North America, including sabhas in Madras like the Narada Gana Sabha and Naadopasana of Madras.
Sriram has a Ph.D in Chemistry from the Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Mumbai. He is presently pursuing post-doctoral research at McMaster University.
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Karthik Venkataraman
Karthik has grasped the intricacies of the kanjira in the past few years. under the guidance of the famous mrdanga vidwan Sri.Srimushnam Raja Rao. He has accompanied many local artists as well as musicians visiting North America. He took up the kanjira as he felt the art of playing this instrument was becoming rare and there were few practitioners in North America, let alone in India. Karthik is very much involved in the sponsoring of carnatic music tours in North America being a volunteer with Bhairavi fine arts and Cleveland Aradhana committee. He is also the sound engineer for concerts in Toronto. He holds degrees in electrical engineering, computer science and an MBA from the State University of New York. Currently, he is employed as a M.I.S. Director.
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Malladi Brothers
Ram Prasad and Ravi Kumar (aka Malladi Brothers) received their training from their father Sri Malladi Suri Babu, a student of late Voleti Venkateswarulu, himself a disciple of Dr. Sripada Pinakapani. They received additional training from two Sangeetha Kalanidhis - Pinakapani himself and his other well-known disciple, Nedunuri Krishnamurthy. Their music naturally has the influence and style of the Pinakapani school, known for its high standard of manodharma and creative excellence. The brothers possess a large repertoire of carnatic musical composition of the Musical Trinity, Kshetrayyapadams, jawalis, Annamacharya kritis, etc. The brothers bagged several national awards in Classical, Light Classical and Light Music from All India Radio competitions during 1989 to 1994; the Voleti Venkateswarulu Memorial Award, in both 1994 and 1995, for the best concert at Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai; the best concert award from the Madras Music Academy in 1998 and the Srirangam Gopalarathnam Memorial Award the following year. The brothers are post graduates in Carnatic Classical Music from Andhra
University and "A" grade vocal musicians of All India Radio.
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Embar S. Kannan
Embar S. Kannan, is highly accomplished as a violinist and is in the forefront of violinists of the younger generation. His bowing technique is of high quality, marked by sweetness and clarity. Kannan is a disciple of Smt. Kanyakumari. Kannan is the recipient of many awards and honors for both his solo and his accompanying skills. He is an A grade artist of the All India Radio (AIR) and has played solo concerts and violin duets with his guru.He has accompanied many leading artists such as T.V.Sankaranarayanan, Trichur Ramachandran, T. N.Seshagoplan, Sudha Raghunathan, Kadri Gopalnath, Unnikrishnan, and Sowmya. He has also traveled widely and performed in concerts in USA, Europe, and the Far East.
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Arjun Kumar
Hailing from a family of mridangists, Arjun Kumar was initiated into the art of mridangam playing at the young age of five by his father, Sri. Arjunan, one of the very senior artists in the field of percussion. He then came under the tutelage of the mridangam
legend, Sri. Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman. Kumar soon became one of the youngest 'A' Grade artists of All India Radio
and Television. He has played in prestigious programs such as the South Zone Hook Up and the All India Sangeetha Sammelan. He has traveled widely and performed in concerts with senior artists in US, Canada and other places.
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T M Krishna & Party
Krishna (b. 1976) is one of the leading young artists in the field of carnatic music today. From a tender age, he exhibited talent for classical vocal music and his mother put him under the tutelage of Vidwan Sri Seetharama Sharma from whom he has been learning ever since. He is also learning from Dr. Semmengudi Srinivasier and took special training in pallavi singing with Sri Chengalpet Ranganthan. He is known for his tremendous Manodharma (Imagination) and Sampradaya (Traditional) Sangeetha (music). His complete involvement in the music and his ability to gracefully develop the ragas have left many a listener enraptured. His renditions of vilamba kalam (slow tempo) compositions are soaked with bhakthi (devotion) and bhava (emotion). He has traveled widely in India and abroad and won applause from connoisseurs and critics. He has received numerous awards and titles from many leading organizations such as: Best main performer- Youth Association for Classical Music- 1989, CMANA prize for Talented vocalist under the age of 25- Madras Music Academy -1994 & 1995, Best junior vocalist –Krishna Gana Sabha-1995 , Musician of the year – Narada Gana Sabha-1995 , Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar award - Music Academy- 1996, ‘Yuva Kala Bharathi’- Bharath Kalachar – 1997, Srirangam Gopalrathnam award – Music Academy – 1998 , G.Rama-krishna Iyer award - Music Academy – 1999 , Best senior performing artist – Music Academy - 2001 , Youth Award for Excellence – Maharajapuram Vishvanatha Iyer Trust - 2001 , Kalki Krishnamurthy Award –
2001.
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R K Shriram Kumar
R.K. Shriramkumar is the grandson of renowned violinist Sangeetha Kalaratna R.K. Venkatarama Shastry. After initial training on the violin from Smt Savitri Satyamurthy, Shriramkumar had advanced training from his grandfather and later from Prof.V.V. Subramanyam. Shriramkumar has also had formal training in vocal music from Sangeetha Kalanidhi D.K. Jayaraman. He had the privelege of accompanying some of the legends of Carnatic music like Semmangudi, MS, DKP and Balamuralikrishna. Shriram is also most sought after among the younger generation accompanying them with unfailing regularity. He also goes on frequent foreign trips with artistes such as P.Unnikrishnan, Sanjay Subrahmanyan, TM Krishna and Vijay Siva. He received several prizes and endowment awards from institutions like The Music Academy, Indian Fine Arts Society, and Mylapore Fine Arts Club. He received the title of Yuva Kala Bharathi from Bharat Kalachar and the Kalki Krishnamurthy Memorial Award. Shriram is a follower of Papa bhani patented later by his grandfather, Shri T.N.Krishnan and his guru Shri VVS. In 2002 he received the title of Nada Oli from Nada
Inbam."
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K Arun Prakash
Arun Prakash is the son of music composer L.Krishnan and has learnt the mrudangam from Shri Ramanathapuram M.N.Kandaswamy Pillai. A left handed mrudangist Arun is very popular among the present generation playing regularly with Sanjay Subrahmanyan, Unnikrishnan, Bombay Jayashri, T.M.Krishna and the likes. He has also accompanied seniors like KVN, DKP and TNS. Arun works for the Indian Railways in Chennai. Arun has recieved many prizes and awards including the Yuva Kala Bharati and the Kalki Krishnamoorthy award besides the Best Mrudangist from the Music Academartists in US, Canada and other places.
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B.S.Purushotham
B.S. Purushotham is the most sought after Kanjira player today. He has studied under Bangalore ML Veerabhadraiah, Sri V. Praveen and Sangitha Kalanidhi TK Murthy. He has accompanied leading artists like KV Narayanaswamy, M.Balamuralikrishna, Lalgudi
Jayaraman, and others. He has traveled around the world and performed in major festivals including Adelaide World Music Festival, World Drummers Meet Stockholm and the Hanover World Expo 2000.
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Manjula Surendra
Manjula Surendra is an accomplished veena artist following the Mysore Bani. She was initiated into music by her father late. Sri. Subramanya Bhatt, mother Smt. Usha Bhatt and Uncle Vidwan Sri. Sripada Bhat. She had her initial training from Vidhudhi. Smt. Gnanambal. She continued her training with Late. Mysore. Sri. C. Krishnamurthy. Presently she is under the able guidance of Ganakalasri Vid. D. Balakrishna (son and disciple of Padmabhushan Dr. V. Doreswamy Iyengar) and
Ganakalasri. Vidhushi Smt. M.S. Sheela.
Manjula is a recipient of various prestigious scholarships from renowned organizations like the Karnataka Sangeetha Nritya Academy and from the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Govt. of India. She was awarded the Best Musician Award at the Bangalore Gayana
Samaja.
Manjula has performed in various sangeetha sabhas and music festivals solo and as an accompaniment to her Guru Vidwan D. Balakrishna. She has received considerable media acclaim; e.g.
"....She displayed an excellent command over laya combined with keen
aesthetic sense to make the concert an enjoyable one." THE HINDU
(2004).
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Sriram Satagopan
Sriram Satagopan learnt Mridangam for about 3 years from Shri.Gandeeravan and then for about 2 years from Shri. Madhusoodhanan (both from Srirangam). After moving to Chennai, he was under the tutelage of Kutralam Shri. Viswanathaiyar for a while, before joining Nanganallur Shri. Sriram (a disciple of Karaikudi Shri. Mani). He has won several prizes in music competitions in school and in inter-hostel competitions at IIT-Bombay. Sriram has given a lot of performances as part of music troupes at school, IIT-Bombay, and in Nebraska, USA. He has completed his Ph.D in Biochem from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and is currently a post-doctoral researcher at The Ohio State University.
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Mysore Smt. Nagamani Srinath
Nagamani Srinath started her training at an early age of 5 and at 9 had her first concert. She is a disciple of “Musician of Musicians” late Sri Ramanad Krishnan. Learnt the nuances of music under famous musicians such as Vidwan Sri Arakere Narayana Rao, Sri Ramaratnam, Sri T. M. Tyagarajan, Sri D. K. Jayaraman, Sri K. V. Narayanaswamy, Professor. T. N. Krishnan, Vidushi Brinda, Vidushi Muktha, Smt Gowri Kuppuswamy and Sri R. Venkateswaran. She is also an astute grammarian with a deep insight into the facets of carnatic music. She has enriched the field by providing new nuances to the traditional and established compositions of famous composers of yester years. She holds M. A. (Music), Mysore University, Vidwat (Music) – Government of Karnataka and Post Graduate Diploma in Music –Tamil Nadu Government , all with a First Rank. She is currently Professor and Head of the Department of Music, Government Maharani’s College, Mysore University. She is the receipient of many awards from prestigious institutions like the Madras Music Academy and titles such as Ganasaraswathi (Vice President of India), Ganakalasri (Ganakala Parishat), Sangeetha Saraswathi (Udipi Pejawar Mutt), Karnataka Kalasri (Karnataka Sangeetha Nritya Academy) and Rajyothsava Prashasthi (Karnataka State Award). She has composed more than 200 pieces of her own - Varnas, Tillanas and Kritis - in rare ragas and in Sanskrit, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil.
She has recorded a number of audiocassettes and has done yeoman service for the propagation of Haridasa composition. Her recordings include more than 20 discs on Haridasa Kirtanas, Slokas, Vachanas, Sangeetha roopakas, Classical Carnatic Music and Jugal Bandis. She has traveled extensivelyis. She has traveled extensively both in India and abroad and is an “A” grade artist of AIR and Doordarshan.
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Chandrika Ramanna
R. Chandrika learnt music from Vidushi Nagamani Srinath and Vetern Vidwan R. K. Srikantan. She has many audio and CDs to her credit released by well known organizations. She has won both Central and State Government Scholarships for learning Carnatic music, at a very young age. She started giving concerts at the age of 15 and has been performing for many reputed organizations all over India. She has traveled abroad and given concerts. This is her first visit to the United States. Chandrika is a double graduate, working as a Staff Artist in All India Radio. She is a “A” graded artist in AIR and Doordarshan.
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B. S. Raghavendra Rao
Raghavendra Rao was initiated into music at an early age of five by his father B.Sudarsana Rao. He trained rigorously on the violin for several years and is at present a disciple of the violin “Maestro” Sangeetha Kalanidhi Shri.T.N.Krishnan. He also received invaluable guidance and concert experience from Dr.M.Balamuralikrishna. He has won several prizes and awards from various sabhas in Madras. He has participated in the prestigious Bharat Cultural Integration Committee's (B.C.I.C) music festivals organised
all over India. He has traveled extensively both in India and
abroad. His devotion and quest for perfection is obvious.
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Melakaveri K. Balaji
Melakaveri K. Balaji had all his training in Mridangam beginning at the age of nine under the tutelage of his father Mridanga Vidwan Melakaveri K. Krishnamurthy. He has been a professional Mridangam Artist since he was 14 years old and has regularly provided percussion support to almost all Senior/Junior Vidwans and Vidhushis both in their vocal and instrumental music concerts all over India and abroad. He has also extensively traveled all over the world. He is the recipient many awards from music organizations like Madras Music Academy , Bharat Kalachar. He is a B-High Grade Artist in Mridangam for All India Radio, Madras.
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Udupi Sreedhar
Udupi Sreedhar has had his initial training in Mridangam under Karamana Sri Krishnankutty Nair from the age of 8. He received advanced training in Mridangam from Late Padmashree Mavelikkara N. Krishnankutty Nair. He subsequently learned Ghatam frolm Vidwan Kalaimamani Sri K. M. Vaidyanathan. He is a graded artiste of All India Radio – “A” grade in Ghatam and “B” High Grade in Mridangam, He has been providing accompaniments for eminent vocalists and instrumentalists for their performances throughout India and abroad., He has been featured in various programs in All India Radio and Doordarshan in the National networks including Akashvani Sangeetha Sammelan
programs. He has traveled extensively all over the world.
Sridhar is a Post-Graduate in Commerce and is now working for
Union Bank of India, in Trivandrum.
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Grand Violin Duet
Lalgudi GJR Krishnan & Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi
Padma Bhushan Lalgudi Sri G Jayaraman entered the scene of Carnatic music more than six decades ago as a young and talented violin artist and established the Lalgudi tradition for classicism, perfection, rhythmic precision and melodic appeal. Lalgudi G.J.R. Krishnan and Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi are the children and worthy disciples of the great maestro.
Krishnan’s concert debut in 1973 heralded the arrival of a worthy successor to the ‘Lalgudi’ school. He has since given hundreds of concerts both as a soloist, accompanist to main artists, violin duets with his father and more recently with his sister Vijayalakshmi as well as violin trio concerts featuring the father and the two siblings. He has also participated in jugal bandhi concerts with Hindustani musicians. He has been awarded innumerable prestigious titles and recognitions including: Jaycees award in 1981, the Best Violinist award in 1986 from the Madras Music Academy, Bharat Kalachar's Yuva Kala Bharati in 1987, the creatalent award in 1990, the coveted "Isaiperoli" from Karthik Fine Arts in
1992, the Rajamanickam Pillai award from Sri Ragam Fine Arts in 1997 and the Rotary Award for Vocational Excellence in 1997 from the Rotary Club of Nanganallur. He has been conferred the title "Sangeetha Choodamani" by Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai, as also being the recipient of the Kalki Krishnamoorthy Award, both in the year 1998. He has been recently awarded the prestigious title "Nadabhushanam" in 2004 by Sri Shanmukhananda Sangeetha Sabha, New Delhi. He has numerous releases of audio cassettes and CD’s, He has traveled extensively all over the world.
Vijayalakshmi commenced her music lessons at the age of six with her father and at thirteen, she went on stage for the first time with him. Since then, she has been performing regularly in violin duets and trios with her father as well as her brother Krishnan. She has travelled widely on concert tours both in India and abroad, and has performed in countries all over the world. She also has led a music ensemble of the Violin, the Venu or flute and the Veena, a concept originally introduced by Sri Lalgudi Jayaraman and performed over 50 concerts all over India. In recent years, she also has provided superb violin accompaniment to several leading musicians. She is also a very talented vocalist. She has
won several awards and titles. In 1990, she was conferred the Creatalent award in recognition of their music. She received the Yuva Kala Bharati from Bharat Kalachar in 1993, the 'Kalki Krishnamoorthy Memorial Award' in 1998 and the 'Best Accompanist Award' from the prestigious Madras Music Academy in 2002. She holds a Master of Arts in English
Literature and a Diploma in Music.
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Neyveli B. Venkatesh
Neyveli B. Venkatesh started training in mridangam with his father S. Balaraman. Had advanced training from Ramanathapuram M.N. Kandaswamy Pillai and P. P. Venkatesan. Has been on the concert stage from the tender age of ten and has accompanied many famous artists such as Dr. K. J.Yesudas, U. Srinivas, Kadri Gopalnath, Dr. N. Ramani, T. N. Seshagopalan etc. Venkatesh
is noted for his excellent support of the main artist. Has
traveled to South Africa, UK, Switzerland, Italy, Denmark,
Belgium, Holland, France, Germany, Austria , US and Canada.
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Tripunitura Radhakrishnan
Tripunitura Radhakrishnan learned the art of mridangam and ghatam playing initially from father Narayanaswamy and later under his illustrious cousin, T. V. Gopalakrishnan. He has secured degrees in both Mridangam and Ghatam and is a lecturer in a Music College in Kerala. He has won several titles and awards including Kerala Sangeeth Natak Academy. Has accompanied major artists and toured abroad extensively. Top |
