Honors College House Concerts
Announcing the Fall 2023 Concert
Carnatic Music
Wednesday, September 13, 6:30 p.m.
Honors Student Lounge, Gearhart Hall 130
This concert is free, open to all and will be followed by a reception. Please RSVP here and come early to reserve a seat
Join the Honors College for an exploration into the rāgas of Carnatic music with Sri Vittal Ramamurthy--internationally-celebrated violinist--and Grammy-nominated Sri Poovalur Sriji--percussionist, composer and performer--as part of the Honors College House Concert series.
Carnatic music is a form of classical South Indian music that balances both devotion and creative self-expression by drawing inspiration from sacred texts. While a large portion of Carnatic music is composed, Ramamurthy and Sriji will treat
the audience to manodharma sangita – imaginative music, as most of their performance
will be improvised on the spot. Sriji will lead vocals with solkattus, spoken rhythm,
and Ramamurthy will guide the melodies by accompanying the vocals with strings.
“It’s a dialogue between the violin and the vocals,” Ramamurthy shared. “I don’t know
what [Sriji] is going to sing, and he doesn’t know what I will play.”
Although the music system is universal, “the handling of Carnatic music is different,” Ramamurthy said. He encourages those interested
in world music to attend and learn more about complementing traditional composition
with creative latitude.
ABOUT SRI VITTAL RAMAMURTHY
Sri Vittal Ramamurthy, an internationally acclaimed violinist and top-ranking artist
at All India Radio, is the torchbearer and leading disciple of the Lalgudi bani, a
distinctive style of music in which the violin is “made to sing” and mimic the human
voice. Ramamurthy describes himself as a “solo performer, accompanist, teacher and
humble student of the arts.” He has students worldwide, many of whom are leading performers. To give back to
the community he grew up in, he conducts a free summer camp in his native house Karunbithil
where he teaches more than 250 students Carnatic music in the style of Gurukulam,
an education system where students live with their guru.
ABOUT SRI POOVALUR SRIJI
Sri Poovalur Sriji is a prolific composer, performer, educator and an “A Top” grade artist at All India Radio – the highest ranking given by the Indian government. His love and expertise in Indian Classical music are inspired by his father. Many of his compositions celebrate South Indian idioms, and for decades, he has performed with leading artists from across the world. He accompanied American banjo player Béla Fleck, Hindustani classical instrumentalist Vishwa Mohan Bhatt and Chinese fiddle player Jiebing Chen on their collaborative album “Tabula Rasa,” which was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1997. He is currently an adjunct instructor of percussion at the University of North Texas and director of the South Indian Cross-Cultural Ensemble.