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L. Subramaniam

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

L. Subramaniam · Lakshminarayana Subramaniam is an Indian violinist, composer and conductor, born in Madras in 1947. He grew up in Jaffna, had lessons from the age of five from his father, the violinist V. Lakshminarayana, and gave his first concert at the age of six. He studied medicine in Madras and worked as a general practitioner, but then chose music. Later he took a master's degree in Western classical music at the California Institute of the Arts. He is thus trained both in Carnatic music and in the Western tradition.

Music and breakthrough

Since 1973 he has made more than two hundred recordings. He has played with Yehudi Menuhin, Stéphane Grappelli, Jean-Luc Ponty, Herbie Hancock, Stanley Clarke and George Harrison, and in the late 1970s with Ali Akbar Khan, in one of the first jugalbandis between South Indian and Hindustani musicians. His records of the 1980s include Indian Express, Spanish Wave, Conversations and Fantasy Without Limits. In 1983 he wrote a Double Concerto for violin and flute, in which Western scales and microtones come together, and in 1985 Fantasy on Vedic Chants, which was premiered with the New York Philharmonic.

Influence

Subramaniam has also written for orchestras, ballet and Hollywood films and has published books about music. He performs with his daughter Bindu, his son Ambi and his wife, the singer Kavita Krishnamurthy. He showed that the South Indian violin can have a permanent place in jazz, classical music and world music.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to a recording of Fantasy Without Limits or Indian Express and notice the long, gliding tone of the violin, which in Carnatic music imitates the human voice.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists