Dr. L. Subramaniam

Dr L. Subramaniam

- Talking of Now

by

Avinash Kalla

L.Subramaniam…Magical melodies.
"I find nothing more inspiring than the music of my very greatcolleague Subramaniam. Each time I listen to him, I am carried away in wonderment." -Lord Yehudi Menuhin.

Besides being a medical doctor he also holds a masters degree in Western Classical Music from California and has mastered the art of orchestral composition. Today Dr L. Subramaniam, the icon of the violin, is one of the most sought after composers across the globe and is now set to release his first commercial album that he says is another attempt at creating global music.

His illustrious career boasts of performing, producing, collaborating and conducting over 150 recordings. He is unaffected by adulation. " It's a great feeling that people appreciate your work," is the modest reply from the medical doctor-turned-musician nominated for the Grammy Award in 1981 for his album Fantasy With Truth and the composer of Mississippi Masala, Salaam Bombay, Cotton Mary, Little Buddha. "All those things were a long time ago. Let's talk about now," says Dr. Subramaniam. "I am releasing an album with my wife Kavita Krishnamurthy, Pt.Jasraj, Sonu Nigam and Lucky Ali with lyrics by Gulzar and Sameer."

Sonu Nigam and Lucky Ali? Is the doyen of the classical violin tilting to pop and commercial music? "No. It is a crossover and the album has both a philosophical and popular mix," says Dr. Subramaniam, a majority of whose works are collaborations with various artistes, be it jazz, occidental, jugalbandis or orchestra.

Ask him about the experience of teaming up with legends like Lord Yehudi Menuhin, Tony Williams and Stephane Grappelli, he says it is his insatiable love for music that has lead to these collaborations. "I experiment with all forms of music. That's why there's a strong need to collaborate," says Dr. Subramaniam who recently performed with wife Kavita, daughter Seetaa and some school kids for the Olympic torch ceremony in Delhi.

With daughter Saatee & wife Kavita Krishnamurthy

Besides being a medical doctor he also holds a masters degree in Western Classical Music from California and has mastered the art of orchestral composition. Today he is one of the most sought after composers across the globe.

Dr. Subramaniam has written compositions for the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Swiss Orchestra, The Berlin Opera and many more. He says writing orchestra is tough as it takes over six months to write a piece. You need to synchronize various artistes. Every one has a unique style and you need to put them together masterfully."

More recently he and wife Kavita were the only Asian representatives at the ceremony marking the century of the Nobel Peace Prize. "She has a vast experience of singing over 2000 songs in different languages and that comes handy in working on the melody," says Dr.Subramaniam about Kavita who is among the most popular Bollywood singers.

Apart from concerts and compositions, the Laxmi Narayana Global Music Festival held every January in memory of his father takes up most of his time. "I started it as a small tribute but over the years it has become a big global event that is now held across five continents. It's an honour to see doyens of music come to perform at this festival."

Recently he released a CD of orchestra incorporating soloists from different musical traditions titled Astral Symphony . For the widespread understanding of concepts of South Indian Classical music, he has released a collection of four CDs titled An Anthology of South Indian Music and has also written a book Euphony that his late first wife Vijayashree co-authored.

After such an eventful life does he still have anything else to achieve? Lots, he says with a smile. "Music is a vast ocean and no one can claim to know everything. The more you sail in the ocean the more you discover, the more you learn. You realize how little you know. It is an eternal quest."

Maestro L. Subramaniam

In the concert history of Indian music L. Subramaniam is among the few of the world's greatest musicians who have earned an international reputation of complete, unquestioned integrity. L. Subramaniam, who has begun a new era in violin playing, executed by his very individualistic, brilliant and masterful style, has become a legend in his own time. The most respected and renowned Indian violinist on the International scene, Subramaniam has been hailed by his critics and connoisseurs alike as one of the greatest performers of all times. "If there is any musician who has contributed towards the popularization of Carnatic (South Indian Classical) music in the West, it is the violinist L. Subramaniam" says a leading newspaper in the United States. His prodigious talent was evident at the early age of two, when he could repeat musical phrases that he heard his father, Professor V. Lakshminarayana. After initial training in vocal music and percussion, he switched to the violin and took the musical world by storm when he gave his first violin performance at the tender age of six. While he was learning and performing music, he also completed his studies in Medical school and registered as a Medical practitioner. But his love for music was all-consuming and he gave up Medicine for Music. Since then he has taken this age-old, rich tradition of music to places where it has never been heard before and also performed in prestigious venues like the Bolshoi Theatre, Lincoln Center, Royal Albert Hall, the Champs Elysees Theatre to name but a few. Besides solo and trio performances (with his brothers) he has also collaborated with several legendary musicians. On one such occasion he performed with Sir Yehudi Mehuhin at the United Nations in New York, as a special tribute to India's Fortieth Year of Independence. Later they did a recording together, in Los Angeles, which has been released as an audio-video project. He has recorded and produced close to fifty recordings including a five-volume "Anthology of Indian Music" for the prestigious Occora label of Radio France. He is also the host of the first Video presentation of Indian Classical Music and Dance entitled, "Master Musicians from India". He has received several honors, awards and titles including the coveted National Award of Padmashree from the Government of India and the title of Violin Chakravarti (Emperor of Violinists) from the Governor of madras, India.

He has scored music for award-winning Television series and movies such as Salaam Bombay and was also the musical advisor for Peter Brook's historical stage production of the Mahabharata. His compositions have also been used in various stage presentations by leading choreographers.

Dr. L. Subramaniam


Dr. L. Subramaniam, India's violinist, also known as "The Paganini of Indian Classical music", "the God of Indian Violin", is the serenity of an Indian musician combined with the magnetism of a western "star". Born in an enviable environment of music as son of Prof. L Lakshminarayanan and Seethalakshmi, he had his initial training in theoretical and practical music with his father. After initial training in vocal music and percussion, he switched to the violin and took the musical world by storm when he gave his first violin performance at the tender age of six. His career as a childhood prodigy brought him into contact with the greatest musicians and he soon imposed himself as a master of the violin. At a very young age, he was honoured with the title "Violin Chakravarthy" (emperor of the violin).

In 1958, Subramaniam's family moved from Ceylon to Madras. Settled in Madras, Subramaniam discovered another kind of musical atmosphere, more open to the world. With his brothers, he formed a trio, which grew in popularity every year to become one of the main attractions of the Madras Festival Season. He traveled extensively in India with the famous Mrudangam player, Palghat Mani Iyer, then in America from 1977 onwards. He has performed/recorded with some of the greatest Indian musicians of all times including Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, Alathur Srinivasa Iyer, T.R. Mahalingam, Palghat Mani Iyer, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, Ustad Bismillah Khan, Pandit Jasraj, Ustad Allah Rakha, Pandit Kishan Maharaj, and the list goes on…

Passionate about music, Subramaniam was also dedicated to Science. He studied medicine, sat for several competitive music exams, and was constantly improving himself by following a correspondence course in homeopathy, traditional Indian medicine as well as Western musical theory. At the end of his medical studies, he received a Master's Degree in Western Classical Music in California and he finally decided to dedicate his life to music. From then on, his artistic activity was to spread in many directions. No one else is as qualified as Dr. L. Subramaniam to experiment with new concepts and different ideas because of his stable foundation in Carnatic Classical, Western Music, Orchestration and rhythm.

Dr. L. Subramaniam is the only musician who has performed/recorded Carnatic Classical Music, Western Classical Music, both Orchestral and non-Orchestral, and also composed for and conducted major Orchestras, collaborated with a wide range of some of the greatest musicians, from different genres of music including jazz, occidental, jugalbandis with North Indian musicians, world music and global fusion. He has composed music for a select few films, including "Salaam Bombay" and "Mississippi Masala" and was the featured soloist for Bernardo Bertolucci's "Little Buddha" and "Cotton Mary" of Merchant – Ivory Productions).

If Subramaniam reinvented the violin by widening its technical and expressive capacities, taking them to new heights of emotion, he did it by relying on tradition. This secret of a successful marriage between modernity and tradition appeals directly to our hearts. This total receptivity towards the world, this polymorphous talent, this technical mastery all however find their truest experience in the service of Carnatic music, the tradition he has inherited from his Father and Guru, Professor V. Lakshminarayana. Professor V. Lakshminarayana was an inspiration and driving force behind his son, and indeed the primary reason Dr. Subramaniam decided to dedicate his life to music. He has established himself as a force that is strongly Indian, but universal in nature and approach.

He has received several awards and honors, including the coveted Padma Bhushan (2001) and Sangeet Natak Academy Award for "The Most Creative Artist" from the President of India. He has been awarded the "Nada Chakravarti" (Emperor of Sound) from H. H Sri Ganapati Sachchidananda Swami-ji at Trinidad (West Indies). He has been recently conferred with an Honorary Doctorate (D. LIT) by Bangalore University

thank you so much questyji🤗🤗...i am very fond mr subramanium.. 😳but more than his i am a fan of kavita krishnamurtyji's.😳😆

Great Post bobda... 👏

I think most of them would ve not known this that,

Dr.L.Subramaniam is Kavitha Krishnamoorthy's hubby

thanks for sharing.I think he got a daughter from his first wife.I guess she is no more.

thanx for sharing...really informative thread...