Accompanists: RK Shriramkumar – Violin | K Arun Prakash – Mridangam
This is a special marquee event. We are expecting a completely full hall. Only a limited number of tickets are being sold in advance. Please make your purchase early while they last.
Members and ticket holders, please be sure to arrive early and be seated at least 20 minutes before the start of the concert to ensure you have a seat. Any empty seats will be sold after that time.
Student and Senior discounts are not available for this event.
T M Krishna
As a vocalist in the Karnatik tradition, Thodur Madabusi Krishna’s musicality eludes standard analyses. Uncommon in his rendition of music and original in his interpretation of it, Krishna is at once strong and subtle, manifestly traditional and stunningly innovative.
As a public intellectual, Krishna speaks and writes about issues affecting the human condition and about matters cultural. Krishna has started and is involved in many organizations whose work is spread across the whole spectrum of music and culture. He has co-authored Voices Within: Carnatic Music – Passing on an Inheritance, a book dedicated to the greats of Karnatik music. His path-breaking book A Southern Music – The Karnatik Story, published by Harper Collins in 2013 was a first-of-its-kind philosophical, aesthetic and socio-political exploration of Karnatik Music. For this, he was awarded the 2014 Tata Literature Award for Best First Book in the non-fiction category. His long-form essay MS understood, for The Caravan was featured in The Caravan Book of Profiles, as one of their “twelve definitive profiles.” It has been translated into Tamil and published as a book ‘Katrinile Karainda Tuyar’ by Kalachuvadu Publications.
He is the driving force behind the Urur-Olcott Kuppam Festival and the Svanubhava initiative and has been part of inspiring collaborations, such as the Chennai Poromboke Paadal with environmentalist Nityanand Jayaraman, performances with the Jogappas (transgender musicians) and bringing on to the concert stage the poetry of Perumal Murugan. In 2016, Krishna received the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award in recognition of ‘his forceful commitment as an artist and advocate art’s power to heal India’s deep social divisions’. In 2017 he received the Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration Award for his services in promoting and preserving national integration in the country. In 2017, he has also received the Professor V Aravindakshan Memorial Award for connecting Carnatic music with the common man.
His new book ‘Reshaping Art’ published by Aleph Book Company, asks important questions about how art is made, performed and disseminated and addresses crucial issues of caste, class and gender within society while exploring the contours of democracy, culture and learning.
R K Shriramkumar
R K Shriramkumar belongs to the Rudrapatnam family of musicians, a family with a glorious musical tradition. He is the grandson of the much respected Vidvan Shri R K VenkataramaShastri.
Having had his initial lessons in violin playing from Vidushi Smt Savitri Satyamurthy, Shriramkumar was trained in violin playing and vocal music by his grandfather Shri R K Venkatarama Shastri. He later received guidance in violin playing from Vidvan Shri V V Subrahmanyam and in vocal music from Sangita Kalanidhi Shri D K Jayaraman.
His skills were further honed through the association and knowledge that he gained by accompanying the doyens of Carnatic music like Sangita Kalanidhis Shri Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, Smt M S Subbulakshmi, Smt D K Pattammal, Shri D K Jayaraman, Shri Palghat K V Narayanaswamy, Smt T Brinda and others.
Shriramkumar’s discography includes, apart from his solo recordings, his violin accompaniment with reputed artists and has had the blessed opportunity of participating in a very unique recording entitled ‘Divine Unison’ featuring the veterans Shri Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer and Smt M S Subbulakshmi.
A recipient of many awards, Shriramkumar has traveled far and wide on concert tours. His solo performances, lec-dems, and outreach programs have also been greatly received and appreciated by audiences worldwide.
He has set to music many a lyric and has also composed the music for many dance productions. ‘Sri Sharada Stuti Manjari’ – a recording rendered by Smt Bombay Jayashrithat contains the compositions of the Jagadgurus of Sri Sringeri Sharada Peetham, ‘Sita Vishlesha Trayam’ – a dance production by Dr Vyjayantimala Bali and ‘Sayujya’ – a collaborative production by Smt Priyadarsini Govind & Shri T M Krishna are a few notable works, amongst many, that feature Shriramkumar’s musical creations.
K Arun Prakash
Son of the famous music composer Shri L.Krishnan, Arun Prakash learned the art of playing mridangam from Ramanathapuram M.N.Kandaswamy Pillai from the age of 9. Arun started playing in concerts from the age of 11. He has given performances all over the world. His playing style is incredibly musical and he enhances the music to a different level altogether. His presence of mind and his composing skills merge together to give a different dimension to the kritiniraval and swara that is rendered on stage. He has won several awards and prizes. Arun has composed numerous pallavis sung by many musicians and he can be easily called a “thinking” musician.
