It's interesting how some of the most successful people learnt their skills the old-fashioned way. This Sangeetha Kalanidhi was at a gurukul. And it would be quite interesting to see the way that he runs his own college now. But while we'd have to travel to Chennai for that, learning from him today is a shorter journey - just to Ravindra Bharathi.
B Rajam Iyer, a veteran classical singer and Sangeetha Kalanidhi awardee, will perform today as part of the Dr Vinjamuri Varadaraja Iyengar 10th memorial concerts being organized by the South Indian Cultural Association (SICA).
Iyer is one of the most distinguished scholar musicians in the classical music tradition, with a captivating style of music that brings out the essence of a raga in the shortest span. He is a top-ranking vocalist and is the senior-most disciple of the renowned late Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar. He entered the Gurukula of Ariyakudi in 1937 (in his teens) and came out, predictably, with immense knowledge in classic music.
A recipient of many awards for his music, he has given a number of concerts and lecture demonstrations in India and abroad - in particular at the USA, Canada and the UK. Currently he is the Principal of the Music Academy Teachers' College in Chennai.
In today's vocal concert of Iyer, Charulatha Ramanujam on the violin, Nemani Somayajulu on the mridangam and Ghantasala Satyasai on the morsing will support him.
Entry to this program is by invitation for SICA members, and by tickets for non-members. Please contact Veeraraghavan at 351-6265/323-5149 for further details.
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