Violin Duet By Lalgudi G J R Krishnan & Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi

The South Indian Cultural Association (SICA) is organising its 48th Annual Festival of Music & Dance from 10th to 16th March, at the Ravindra Bharathi auditorium. The week-long festival will feature several renowned artistes such as violinists Lalgudi G J R Krishnan & Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi, flautist Shashank, dancer Kala Krishna, and vocalists S Sowmya, O S Arun, Maharajapuram Srinivasan and Madurai T N Seshagopalan.

Brother-sister duo Lalgudi G J R Krishnan & Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi will be performing a violin duet recital on the inaugural day. They will be accompanied by Kali Vara Prasad on the mridangam and Vaikkom Gopalakrishnan on the ghatam.

GJR began his early lessons on the violin at the age of 5, under the tutelage of his grandfather and guru Lalgudi Gopala Iyer, and later from his father Lalgudi Jayaraman. He is a Post-Graduate in Commerce (M Com), a Cost and Works Accountant (ICWA) and a Company Secretary (ACS). But out of his love for music, Krishnan has chosen to pursue it as his profession. His music is characterized by pristine purity, lucidity, superb clarity, melody, perfect rhythm and a deep emphasis on the sahitya.

Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi commenced her lessons at the age of 6 under the watchful eyes of her illustrous father Lalgudi Jayaraman. She holds a Master of Arts in English Literature, and has followed it up with a diploma in music. She had her first performance at the age of 13 alongside her father.

The brother and sister duo have performed all over India and abroad, always receiving rave reviews. Their concerts overseas have been at Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Italy, West Germany, the USA, Canada, the Middle East and Greece. In 1996, Krishnan and Vijayalakshmi performed in 33 cities in the USA and Canada, all of which were roaring successes. The pair has released several cassettes and CDs together, in addition to their individual endeavors.

SICA was founded in 1959 by Dewan Bahadur Aramuda Iyengar, the Finance Minister of Hyderabad's Nizam and a great patron of Carnatic music. The association has since organised more than 1,000 concerts. It has provided a basic platform for upcoming artistes like U P Raju and Nagamani, Mandolin Srinivas and the Malladi Brothers. It conducts workshops, felicitates artistes, and provides both moral and financial support to upcoming artistes. Dr S Chakravarthy, IAS, former Chief Secretary to the Govt. Of AP, is the current President of the association, and R Chakrapani is the General Secretary.

Entry is by season tickets of Rs. 300 per head for members. For others, it is Rs. 500 per head. Please contact R Chakrapani at 2742-5374 / 98491-24675 or V Ramachandran at 92461-61420 for further details.