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L. Subramaniam

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L. Subramaniam
L. Subramaniam performing at concert in Bhopal October 2015
L. Subramaniam performing at concert in Bhopal October 2015
Background information
Birth nameSubramaniam Lakshminarayana
Born (1947-07-23) 23 July 1947 (age 77)
Madras, Madras Presidency, British India
(now Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India)
GenresClassical, Carnatic, jazz fusion, Indo jazz, world fusion, Western music
Occupation(s)Violinist, composer, conductor, multi-instrumentalist, arranger, record producer, pedagogue
Instrument(s)Violin, percussion, synthesizers, vocals
Years active1958–present

Subramaniam Lakshminarayana (born 23 July 1947)[1] is an Indian violinist, composer and conductor, trained in the classical Carnatic music tradition and Western classical music.[2][failed verification]

Early years

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Subramaniam was born in Madras, Madras Presidency, British India,[1] to V. Lakshminarayana Iyer and Seethalakshmi, both accomplished musicians.[3]

He lived in Jaffna during his younger years, taking up music studies before the age of five.[4] He began training in violin under the tutelage of his father, Professor V. Lakshminarayana. "Mani", as he is fondly known by fellow musicians and his family, gave his first public performance at the age of six.

His uncles include Ramnad Raghavan and Ramnad Krishnan.[5] His brothers are also acclaimed musicians, and include the violinist-composers L. Shankar (alias. Shenkar), and the late L. Vaidyanathan.[6] He has released recordings with both.

Subramaniam developed a passion for music as well as science from a young age, studying Medicine and acquiring his M.B.B.S. at Madras Medical College. He registered as a General Practitioner, before deciding to pursue music full-time.[4] He has a master's degree in Western classical music, which he acquired at the California Institute of the Arts.[4]

Performing career

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Yehudi Menuhin, Stéphane Grappelli and L. Subramaniam

Since 1973, Subramaniam has amassed over 200 recordings to his credit, releasing several solo albums, recording collaborations with musicians Yehudi Menuhin, Stéphane Grappelli, Ruggiero Ricci and Jean-Pierre Rampal, further to making albums and performing with Ruggiero Ricci, Herbie Hancock, Joe Sample, Jean-Luc Ponty, Stanley Clarke John Handy, George Harrison[7] and several others.[8]

He has accompanied highly regarded vocalists in Carnatic music on stage including Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, K. V. Narayanaswamy, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, M. Balamuralikrishna, M. D. Ramanathan, and Alathur Srinivasa Iyer. He has also performed many concerts with the venerable Palghat Mani Iyer on the Mridangam, in addition to collaborating with musicians of North Indian Hindustani music and artists of other music systems.[8]

Subramaniam has written works for orchestras, ballets and Hollywood film scores, and written books on music – such as Euphony – in addition to composing symphonies and Carnatic pieces.[8][9]

In 1983, he composed a Double Concerto for violin and flute which combined western scales with micro intervals. Another release, Spring – Rhapsody, was a homage to Bach and Baroque music. Creations with orchestras that have followed include Fantasy on Vedic Chants with the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra, conducted by Djemal Dalgat, Turbulence with The Swiss Romande Orchestra, "The Concert of Two Violins" with the Oslo Philharmonic, and Global Symphony with the Berlin State Opera (broadcast live to 28 nations) among others.[9] He has also performed a concert tour of China, with the Beijing Symphony Orchestra in Beijing.

His compositions have been used in stage presentations of leading dance companies such as the San Jose Ballet company and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Subramaniam composed the piece "Shanti Priya" for the Mariinsky Ballet.

Subramaniam performing at a concert in 2003

The release of his albums, including Global Fusion in 1999 have brought Subramaniam widespread critical acclaim, and popularity for his advanced playing. He founded and directs the Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival, a festival based in India. In 2004, he completed a world tour with the festival, including concerts in the US (Lincoln Center, New York), the Asian Pacific region including in Perth, Australia, at the Esplanade, Singapore, the Sri Dewan Penang Hall in Penang and the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Performing with Subramaniam at the festival in January 2005 were violin maestro Arve Tellefsen, the Oslo Camerata, jazz legends Stanley Clarke, George Duke, Al Jarreau, Earl Klugh and Ravi Coltrane.

In September 2007, Subramaniam premiered and played "The Freedom Symphony" with the Fairfax Symphony Orchestra, Warrenton Chorale and Carnatic percussionists, which led to a strongly favourable ovation and an encore piece "Flight of the Humble Bee". Subramaniam is on the advisory board of composer A. R. Rahman's KM Music Conservatory in Kodambakkam, Chennai.

In 2011, he was invited to perform at the United Nations. On 24 October 2012, he performed as a Special Guest Artist with Stevie Wonder at the latter's message of peace concert at the UN. Yehudi Menuhin said of Subramaniam:

I find nothing more inspiring than the music making of my very great colleague Subramaniam. Each time I listen to him, I am carried away in wonderment."[8]

When asked about his musical accomplishments, Subramaniam has always said,

Music is a vast ocean and no one can claim to know it all. The more you know, the more you realise how little you know. It is an eternal quest.

Film career

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He composed the film scores for the films Salaam Bombay (1988) and Mississippi Masala (1991) directed by Mira Nair, in addition to being the featured violin soloist in Bernardo Bertolucci's Little Buddha (1993) and Cotton Mary (1999) of Merchant-Ivory productions.[8]

Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival

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Subramaniam performing at Kolkata in 2015

He started the Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival in 1992, to honour the memory of his father Professor V. Lakshminarayana, who died in 1990.[7] Artists have included the Subramaniam family, Al Jarreau, George Duke, Solo Cissokho, Miya Masaoka, Mark O'Connor, Loyko, Jean-Luc Ponty, Ustad Bismillah Khan, Larry Coryell, Arve Tellefsen, Pandit Jasraj, Dr. M. Balamuralikrishna and Corky Siegel.[10][11]

The festival has centred around special concepts such as Violins for Peace, Visions of India and Sounds of India.[10]

Subramaniam Academy of Performing Arts

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In 2007, the Subramaniam Foundation, a charity run by Subramaniam and his wife set up a music school called the Subramaniam Academy of Performing Arts (SAPA), in Bangalore, India.[12]

Personal life

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Performance with his son Ambi Subramaniam at Bharat Bhavan Bhopal

Subramaniam was married to Viji Subramaniam (née Vijayashree Shankar), who died on 9 February 1995. Since November 1999 he has been married to the Indian playback singer Kavita Krishnamurthy. He has four children with Viji — Gingger Shankar, Bindu Subramaniam, Dr. Narayana Subramaniam and Ambi Subramaniam.

He continues to perform pieces with his daughter singer/songwriter Bindu Subramaniam,[13] violin duets with his son, Ambi Subramaniam,[14]” and has further recorded and given several concerts with Krishnamurthy. Their collaborations have earned them the nickname Subramaniam Gharana.[15] He also performs with his eldest son Dr. Narayana Subramaniam.[16]

Awards and recognition

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Compositions

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Orchestral Compositions

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  • Astral Symphony
  • Beyond
  • Concerto for Two Violins
  • Double Concerto
  • Double Concerto for Violin, Flute, and Orchestra
  • Fantasy on Vedic Chants
  • Flight of the Humble Bee
  • Freedom Symphony
  • Global Symphony
  • Naada Priya
  • Shanti Priya
  • Spring Rhapsody
  • Turbulence
  • Violin Concerto No 1 for Violin and Orchestra

Fusion Compositions

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  • 5 3/4 (Fantasy Without Limits)
  • Ab Hum (Eulogy)
  • Alone by the Ganges (From the Ashes)
  • Ambience (The Violin Legends)
  • Apna Street (Eulogy)
  • Baba Kisses Solasaal (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Beyond Borders (Beyond Borders)
  • Beyond the flames (From the Ashes)
  • Blessings (Eulogy)
  • Blossom (Blossom)
  • Blue Lotus (Global Fusion)
  • Breeze (Mani & Co.)
  • Bujish Na Ke (Eulogy)
  • Chaipau Alone (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Chaipau Helps Chillum Across the Tracks (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Chaipau Sets Fire to Solasaal's Bed (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Chaipau's Theme (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Chameleon (Spanish Wave)
  • Chick Melody (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Chillum's Theme (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Comfortable (Comfortable)
  • Confluence (Best of L Subramaniam)
  • Conversations (Conversations)
  • Dancing Beauty (Spanish Wave)
  • Dancing Dolls (Blossom)
  • Darling Why Don't You Come to Me
  • Don't Leave Me (Conversations)
  • Driving to Sunday Lunch (Mississippi Masala)
  • End Credit Music (Salaam Bombay!)
  • End of the Tunnel (Beyond Borders)
  • Entry of Solasaal (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Escape From the Chiller Room (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Escape From the Chiller Room [Film Version] (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Fantasy Without Limits (Fantasy Without Limits)
  • Farewell to Manju (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Feeling Lonely (Fantasy Without Limits)
  • Flight of the Humble Bee (Indian Express)
  • Four Feet Away
  • French Resolution (Conversations)
  • Frenzy (Fantasy Without Limits)
  • Funeral Procession (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Ganga (Live in Moscow)
  • Garland (Garland)
  • Gipsy Trail (Global Fusion)
  • Grasshopper (Indian Express)
  • Guess What (Indian Express)
  • Hare Krishna (Eulogy)
  • Harmony Of The Hearts (Global Fusion)
  • I Can't Forget (Indian Express)
  • Illusion (Conversations)
  • Indian Express (Indian Express)
  • Infinite Journey (Garland)
  • Inner Peace (Blossom)
  • Jai Hanuman! (Global Fusion)
  • Jay's Theme (Mississippi Masala)
  • Jay's Theme [Variation] (Mississippi Masala)
  • Journey (In New York)
  • Kali Dance (Rainbow)
  • Kampala Uganda Meets Greenwood Mississippi (Mississippi Masala)
  • Lap-nils' Polska (Garland)
  • Leaving Home: Farewell to Uganda (Mississippi Masala)
  • Let There Be
  • Let's Talk (Mani & Co.)
  • Lost Love (Global Fusion)
  • Love is stronger than death (From the Ashes)
  • Love Theme (Mississippi Masala)
  • Lullaby (Beyond Borders)
  • Main Titles (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Mani Talks (Fantasy Without Limits)
  • Manju's Theme (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Memories (Conversations)
  • Memories of Jaffna (Mani & Co.)
  • Mina Chases Demetrius (Mississippi Masala)
  • Mina's Theme (Mississippi Masala)
  • Miss Melody (Live in Moscow)
  • Moonlight (In New York)
  • Motherland (Mani & Co.)
  • Musical Tribute (East Meets West)
  • Necklace Road (Beyond Borders)
  • Ninth House (Spanish Wave)
  • Offering of Love (Garland)
  • Paganini Caprice (Conversations)
  • Prayer (Blossom)
  • Rainbow Serenade (Rainbow)
  • Reunion (Beyond Borders)
  • Roots (Blossom)
  • Satya Priya (Solos Duos Trio)
  • Seventh Heaven (Spanish Wave)
  • Shadow of Heaven
  • Shloka (Intro to Global Symphony) (Eulogy)
  • Solasaal's Theme (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Souls Of Dead Children Floating (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Spanish Wave (Spanish Wave)
  • Spiritual Dance (Standing Ovation)
  • Street Children Sing a Ballad of Lost Promises (Salaam Bombay!)
  • Super Instinct (Mani & Co.)
  • Surrender (Surrender)
  • That Dream (Garland)
  • The End of the Tunnel (Live in Moscow)
  • The Pink Moment (Indian Express)
  • The way you placed my bow (From the Ashes)
  • Time Is Right (Blossom)
  • Times Must Change (Live in Moscow)
  • Towards the Island (Garland)
  • Traditional Ugandan Bar Song (Mississippi Masala)
  • Transformation
  • Tribute to Bach (In New York)
  • Tribute to Mani (Conversations)
  • Vision in White (Mani & Co.)
  • Voices in Heaven (Mani & Co.)
  • Walking in a Dream (Conversations)
  • Watch Your Step (Live in Moscow)
  • What's Happening? (Blossom)
  • Whispering Moods (Indian Express)
  • Winning the Hand
  • Winter In Austria (Spanish Wave)
  • You And Me (Spanish Wave)

Carnatic Compositions

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  • Devapriya (Tranquility)
  • Chandrapriya (Tranquility)
  • Dasharagamalika Varnam
  • Dawn (Expressions of Impressions)
  • Devipriya Tillana
  • Dwijavanti Tillana
  • Ennai katharulvai (Mohana)
  • Expressions of Impressions (Expressions of Impressions)
  • Gananathane (Hamsadhwani)
  • Ganapathi charanam (Vijayashree)
  • Kuzhal oodum (Kaapi)
  • Mahishasura mardini (Dharmavati)
  • Panchanadai Tillana (Vasanta)
  • Panchanadai Varnam (Kaanada)
  • Parameshwari parvati devi (Pantuvarali)
  • Ramapriya (Tranquility)
  • Sada manadil (Abhogi)
  • Shantipriya (Tranquility)
  • Two Minds (Expressions of Impressions)
  • Vasantapriya (Tranquility)
  • Wandering Saint (Expressions of Impressions)
  • Weeping Soul (Expressions of Impressions)

Music for films

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See Filmography

Discography (partial)

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Collaborations with other artists

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Live albums

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  • L. Subramaniam en concert: Southern Indian Violin (1983) (Harmonia Mundi/Ocora)
  • India's Master Musicians (1983) (Delos/Ravi Shankar Music Circle)
  • Live in Moscow / Time Must Be Changed (1988) (Melodiya/Boheme Music/BMG/Viji)
  • In Praise of Ganesh (featuring Anindo Chatterjee) (1991) (Audiorec)
  • L. Subramaniam en Concert (1995) (Ocora)
  • Kingdom of Peace: Live in Nepal (1997)
  • L. Subramaniam: Live in France
  • L. Subramaniam and Bismillah Khan: Live in Geneva (1991)

Filmography

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Composer

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Soloist

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Additional soundtracks

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On Subramaniam

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  • L. Subramaniam: Violin From the Heart (1999). Directed by Jean Henri Meunier.

References

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  1. ^ a b Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 2411. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
  2. ^ "NewMusicUSA: Supporting the Sounds of Tomorrow". Newmusicusa.org. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  3. ^ "Visionary Violinist". March 2001. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  4. ^ a b c "Artist: L. Subramaniam". Concord Music Group. March 1986. Retrieved 1 December 2007.
  5. ^ "L Subramaniam- The doctor who became the international face of Carnatic violin". 23 July 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  6. ^ "Music director L. Vaidyanathan dead". The Hindu. 20 May 2007. Archived from the original on 21 May 2007. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  7. ^ a b "Lakshminarayan Global Music Festival With L. Subramaniam". Chicago Reader. 17 June 1999.
  8. ^ a b c d e "L. Subramaniam: Short Biography". Sampad. February 2005. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 20 February 2007.
  9. ^ a b "L. Subramaniam: Official Site". Official Site. Retrieved 20 February 2007.
  10. ^ a b Buzz Bureau. "A Fusion Of Unique Violin Styles — Buzzintown". buzzintown.com. Archived from the original on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  11. ^ "Buy online Indian and International CDs, LPs, Blu-rays, DVDs and VCDs — Rhythm House". rhythmhouse.in. Archived from the original on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  12. ^ "SaPa India – Subramaniam Academy of Performing Arts". sapaindia.com.
  13. ^ "'Being L Subramaniam's daughter didn't help'". Rediff. 12 May 2011.
  14. ^ "Violinist Dr. L. Subramaniam — Ambi Subramaniam — Kavita Krishnamurthy — Bangalore". mybangalore.com. Archived from the original on 31 October 2018. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  15. ^ "Article — Subramaniam gharana". timesofindia.com. Archived from the original on 23 May 2014.
  16. ^ "Narayana Subramaniam during TOI Crest experience musical program organized by The Times Of India at NCUI auditorium, Delhi". indiatimes.com.
  17. ^ "Padma Awards" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  18. ^ "L Subramaniam's Official Website". Retrieved 5 December 2012.
  19. ^ Violinist L. Subramaniam Quit from the project, first he was selected to work as the music composer and completed recording songs for the project. However, before finishing his entire commitment for the film, he left the project fearing that his association with the film may offend Hindu people due to its contentious storyline. Ilayaraaja was subsequently selected to replace him and helped score music over the version recorded by Subramaniam and the songs of Subramaniam which are already shot/filmed. illayaraja had composed the music according to the lip movements in songs
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