Aditi Devrajan
Aditi Devrajan is a freshman studying computer engineering at Rutgers University. She has been learning violin for ten years under her mother and has also received advanced training from Sri Vittal Ramamurthy and Smt. Kalyani Ramani. She has participated in several musical fundraisers and programs, accompanied youth concerts, and won many prizes in competitions conducted by CMANA and Cleveland Aradhana. She has additionally given solo concerts and accompanied her gurus, Sri Vittal Ramamurthy and Smt. Radhika Devrajan, in performances. Aditi also studied the cello for five years and won scholarships from Westminster Conservatory of Music in Princeton, New Jersey. Arjun Raghavan Arjun is currently a disciple of Kalaimamani Vidwan Shri. T.H.Subashchandran. He started learning Mridangam from Dr.Venkat Natarajan in NJ and continued with Shri.Sudhindra Rao in NC. Since 2007, Arjun has performed on the Mridangam in over 100 concerts in multiple locales in the United States and in the Chennai December Music season from 2009, including many with senior professional artists. He has also performed for dance Arangetrams, Jugalbandi programs, and numerous community musical events. Arjun has won several first prizes at the Junior and Senior levels at Cleveland Aradhana and CMANA for Thani Avardhanam, Accompaniment, and Konnakol. Arjun is a freshman in college, dual enrolled at UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke University. Arthi Nadhan Arthi Nadhan, 16, is a student of Chitravina N Ravi Kiran. She was regularly going to Chennai in the summer to advance her training in Veenai from the esteemed Vainika, the late Smt. Karphagham Swaminathan and continued her training under Smt. Jayalaksmi Sekhar. Arthi has played in multiple group performances in various Music Sabhas in India. In addition to performing in Veena Venu concersts at the Cleveland Tyagaraja Aradhana and the Balaji Temple, Arthi has also give solo concerts in Chicago, Springfield, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh and Madison. As a junior, Arthi is part of the Neuqua Valley High School Choir in Naperville. Hariharan Ravi Hariharan Ravi, and upcoming Carnatic vocalist from the USA, is a student of Palai Sri C.K. Ramachandran, a prime disciple of legendary Dr. Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer. He is known for his strict adherence to tradition and classicism. His initial guru was Smt. Poorna Sethuraman of Chicago and subsequently he learnt from Sri B.U.Ganesh Prasad. Hariharan is the title winner of both Jaya TV Carnatic Music Idol USA 2012 and the Cleveland Aradhana's Concert Competition 2012, two of the most prestigious competitions in the USA. He has had the good fortune of being accompanied and appreciated by senior musicians. He has performed in many popular venues and festivals in India, such as Jaya TV Margazhi Mahotsavam, Narada Gana Sabha, Ramjhi’s Issai Mazhalai, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, and Vani Mahal, as well as across the US and Europe. Currently, he is an undergraduate studying business at the University Of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business. Keerthi Venkataramani Keerthi Venkataramani is a Senior at South Brunswick High School in New Jersey. He started learning mridangam at the age of 6 from Sri. Suresh Ramachandran of New Jersey. For the past 4 years he has been undergoing advanced training from renowned mridanga vidwan Melakkaveri Sri. Balaji from Chennai. Right from a very tender age, Keerthi has been an avid listener of hundreds of concerts by yester-year and present-day Carnatic Music Giants. This has helped him immensely in developing a keen ear for music and percussion. Keerthi brings his intensive training and extensive listening to bear on stage to provide percussion support with an all-round sensitivity to the music as well as all his fellow-musicians, vocalists and instrumentalists alike. Neha Krishnamachary Neha Krishnamachary is a Freshman at NYU Stern School of Business. She has been learning Carnatic Violin from the age of 6. She had her basic training under Ms. Janaki Iyer and she now continues her advanced training under Vidhwan Sri. Vittal Ramamurthy. She has performed at various venues across the North East and Chennai, India. Neha accompanies several local artists in the northeast. In addition, she is very fortunate to have had the privilege to play for Kalaimamani Sri. Maharajapuram Srinivsan last summer. Neha also performed in the season this past december. Along with her Carnatic endeavors, Neha has learned the Suzuki Style of western violin from the Westminster Conservatory at Princeton. Neha is very grateful to all her teachers and would like to thank them for their support and encouragement. Shashank Subramaniam Shashank Subramaniam began learning the bamboo flute at the age of 6 from Dr. Sunitha Grandhee, disciple of the legendary flute maestro Dr. N. Ramani. They now undergo advanced training from the esteemed Sri R. Thiagarajan, son of Dr. N. Ramani. Shashank is a sophomore at the University of Michigan studying Chemical Engineering and Computer Science Sudarshan Mohan Sudarshan Mohan, from Raleigh, North Carolina, learns vocal music from Sri R. Suryaprakash, who is a contemporary torch bearer of the Madurai Mani Iyer school. Sudarshan’s repertoire also includes learnings from Palai Sri C. K. Ramachandran, a prime disciple of Sri Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, and the Cleveland Aradhana’s Sustaining Sampradaya program. Sudarshan has presented concerts in both India and the US. He is a third year student in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, double majoring in quantitative biology and biostatistics in preparation for a career in cancer therapeutics and research. Sudarshan promotes Carnatic music in the Research Triangle Park area, as the founder and president of UNC Sangeet and co-founder of Duke-UNC South Asian Classical music partnership. In 2010, Sudarshan founded and now leads the North Carolina Youth Classical Arts for Charity, which strives to empower youth artists to serve the community by conducting an annual 2 day charity music festival in the Raleigh Area. |
Abhinav Seetharaman
Abhinav Seetharaman had his initial training at the age of 7 under Sri N. Ganesh Kumar and Sri Vijay Ganesh, followed by Sri Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan. Currently, he is pursuing advanced training under Sri Kumar Kanthan of New Jersey, and world-renowned mridangam maestro Guru Karaikudi Mani of Chennai, India. Abhinav has participated and won first prizes in all of the mridangam and konnakol competitions held at the Cleveland and Chicago Thyagaraja Festivals. He has accompanied several leading artists, such as Ramakrishnan Murthy, K. Gayatri, and Aishwarya Vidhya Raghunath. Abhinav has played in several prestigious venues in the USA and India, including the United States Capitol Building, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (Washington DC), Chicago Millenium Park, Madras Music Academy, Narada Gana Sabha, and JSS Auditorium. He has also had the rare privilege of performing at the Thiruvaiyyaru Thyagaraja Aradhana. Most recently, he received an award as a promising young mridangist from Sangeetha Kalanidhi Dr. Trichy Sankaran, under the auspices of Ramana Kendra, Chennai. Abhinav is a senior in high school studying in Ashburn, Virginia. Aisvarya Chandrasekar Aisvarya is currently a senior at John P. Stevens High School. Her passion for music started at a very young age when she used sing bhajans for hours together. She was privileged to begin her formal education in Carnatic Music with Neyveli Ramalakshmi. Aisvarya continues to learn from Neyveli Ramalakshmi and receives guidance from Smt. Prema Rajamani and Sri Suresh Ramachandran. Athrey Nadhan Athrey Nadhan, from Chicago, IL, started learning the art of playing the Mridangam at the age of five and is currently undergoing advanced training from the esteemed professional, Srimushnam Sri V. Raja Rao in Chennai, India. Athrey has accompanied several leading musicians including Chitravina N. Ravikiran, Madurai R. Sundar, Flute T.S. Shankaran, Seetha Rajan, Shankaran Namboodhri, B.U. Ganesh Prasad, and Carnatic Music Idol Bharat Sundar, among many others. Athrey has performed in over 150 concerts across the United States as well as in various Music Sabhas in Chennai and Trichy including the Music Academy, Narada Gana Sabha and Raga Sudha during the Music Season in December. Athrey also learns Carnatic vocal music from B.U. Ganesh Prasad and is a sophomore studying Mechanical Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Kamalakiran Vinjamuri Kamalakiran Vinjamuri is a 11th grader in West Springfield High School in Springfield, VA, USA. His initial guru was his grand-father, Sri. Parthasarathy Iyengar. Then he had some training from Smt. Malladi Vijayalakshmi. His father, Sri. Subhash Vinjamuri, a violinist himself started teaching him violin at the age of 7. When he is in the U.S., he gets his training from his father and when visiting India, he is under the tutelage of Kalaimamani A. Kanyakumari. He has given performance in the most-prestigious Kennedy Center in Washington DC. He has won several prizes in different music competitions, both in India as well as in the US. In December 2010 music season, Kamalakiran got the Best Violinist Award from Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha in Chennai. He has accompanied several leading artistes like Sri. Sankaran Namboodri, Sri. Maharajapuram Srinivasan, Sri. Palai Ramachandran, Smt. Gayatri Venkataraghavan, Smt. Sikkil Mala Chandrasekhar, Smt. Radha Venkatachalam and several others. Most recently Kamalakiran accompanied Padma Vibushan Sri. Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna and Madurai Sri. T.N. Seshagopalan. Kamalakiran has also been giving solo performances both in the U.S. and in India. Kruthi Bhat Kruthi Bhat, born into a family of musicians, she showed her interest towords music as a toddler and was initiated into Carnatic Music by her grandmother, Smt. Krishnaveni. She is under the tutelage of her mother Vidushi Rajarajeshwary Bhat and her uncle Vidwan Vittal Ramamurthy. She has had the privilege to learn from the legendary Padmabhushan Sri Lalgudi G. Jayaraman and T. R. Subramanyan. She is also under the tutelage of Sri Neyveli Santhanagopalan and Smt. S. Sowmya. Kruthi is a recipient of numerous awards in India as well as the United States. She is a recipient of the IndianRaga Fellowship from MIT Boston 2013; she was awarded a Tamboora at the Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana 2013 for winning the Concert Competition, she received the title, Saptami Super Star at the Dallas Saptami Festival2012 and also recently won the Carnatic Music Idol USA Season 3 from Maximum Media Jaya TV. Her contributions towards society includes her concert in 2009 for Carries Heart, a school of special-needed children and a program for the Sandeepani Trust of India to bring Medical facility to rural India in 2012. She has given multiple concerts in India and The United States. She is also an exponent of Carnatic and Western violin, Pastel Art, and Bharatnatyam. A 12th grader at Austin High School, Kruthi enjoys teaching music, volunteering in care of Children and composing music. She plays Western Violin with the Houston Youth Symphony and her School Orchestras. Sharada Krishnan Sharada Krishnan is a sophomore at Holmdel High School, NJ. She started her initial training in violin at the age of 5 from Smt. Radhika Devarajan, and since 2008, she has been receiving advanced training under Vidwan Shri Vittal Ramamurthy. She has performed around the USA and in India as both a soloist and an accompanist. Sharada has been awarded many prizes from Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana and CMANA competitions. She has also had the privilege of accompanying her guru, Shri Vittal Ramamurthy, several times. Sharada is also the co-founder of a youth-run nonprofit organization, Brindavani, that aims to promote Carnatic music, provide a platform for the youth of America to perform, and encourage them to give back to the community. Sutikshna Veeravalli Sutikshna Veeravalli, 20, is a gifted Carnatic vocalist and Bharatanatyam artiste from Naperville, Illinois. Sutikshna has been learning vocal music for over thirteen years and is under the tutelage of Sri R. Suryaprakash. After her maiden concert in Sri Ranjani Sabha, Chennai, she has been performing at several venues in the US and India. She was spot selected as a finalist in the Carnatic Music Idol USA in 2011. She has participated and won several Carnatic music competitions including those in Cleveland Aradhana and Chicago Tyagaraja Utsavam. Recently, she was awarded the title of “Yuva Kala Vipanchee” for excellence in Indian Classical Music and Dance by the organization, Vipanchee, founded by Dr. M. Balamuralikrishna. Sutikshna holds the unique distinction of composing a Thillana at the young age of 14, and later performing it at her Bharatanatyam Arangetram. This was possible because of her rigorous training and well-nurtured manodharma, under her guru. Sutikshna is deeply passionate about these traditional, enriching, and complementary arts and strives to pursue it lifelong. |