Vocal Vidushi Sandhya Anand- Violin Sri Prakash Rao

Carnatica brothers, Sri Shashikiran & Sri Ganesh are the grandsons of the legendary Gottuvadyam
Narayana Iyengar. Entering the Carnatic music world at the age of two as child prodigies, the duo has
since emerged as front-ranking musicians. They have performed extensively in India and in USA, UK,
Canada, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia and UAE. They have a vast experience of over 4500 concerts,
lecture demonstrations, jugalbandhis and fusion concerts. They have garnered critical acclaim and
popularity with their emotive style of singing and their strict adherence to classicism. On September 9th
and 10th 2006, Shashikiran and Ganesh performed a marathon 24-hour concert without a break in
dedication to all those who lost their lives in the various natural calamities and terrorist strikes and to mark
World Peace Day. Over the years, they have been accompanied by senior musicians including Sangita
Kalanidhi Umayalapuram Sivaraman, Sangita Kalanidhi T.K.Murthy, Sangita Kalanidhi Vellore
Ramabhadran, Guruvayur Dorai, Mannargudi Easwaran, Thiruvarur Vaidhyanathan, Srimushnam Raja
Rao, K.V.Prasad, Trichur Narendran and Kamalakar Rao on the mridangam and M.S. Anantharaman,
Nagai Muralidharan, M.A.Sundareswaran and V.V.Ravi on the violin. In January 2011, Sri Shashikiran won
the Kalaimamani Award awarded by the TamilNadu Government.
Sandhya Anand is an A graded professional Violinist and Vocalist having exposure to traditional Carnatic
Music genre for around 20 years and performed over 800 concerts in India and abroad. She started
learning vocal music at the age of 4 and continued training under Palakkad Sri. S. Krishna Iyer and Smt.
Rajeshwari Swaminathan. Sandhya has received advanced training on the Violin from Sri T. V.
Gopalakrishnan and Sri. R. Swaminathan, Professor, Chembai Music College, Palakkad, Vocal from Smt.
Suguna Varadachari and Flute from Sri K. S. Suryanarayanan. She has accompanied as a violinist many
leading artistes. She has given performances at many prestigious venues in India and has given vocal and
violin concerts in many places in the US. She has been awarded National Senior Scholarship by the Govt.
of India for undergoing advanced training in violin under Sri R. Swaminathan. She has presented papers
on Music and Sanskrit in various Universities. She has received many awards including the Tanpura and
cash prize for best budding violinist, first position in the Kalpathi Rathotsavam Music Festival
consecutively for four years and first position in the Veena Vidwan Deshamangalam Subramania Iyer
Memorial Music Competitions, Kalpathi. Sandhya has a Master of Arts degree in Sanskrit from Karnataka
University and a Master of Arts degree in Vocal Music from Mother Teresa Women’s University,
Kodaikanal.
Sri Prakash Rao received his early instruction in mridangam from Sri K. Sudarshana Acharyulu of the
Kolanka Venkata Rajulu Paddati of mridangam in Hyderabad. Since 1982, Prakash has had the privilege of
being the disciple of the greatest exponent of “Sarvalaghu”, Sangita Kalanidhi Vellore G. Ramabhadran.
He is one of Sri Ramabhadran’s most senior disciples and torch-bearer of his unique accompaniment style.
He has also received advanced instruction from Kanjira V. Nagarajan, and from Sri Palghat T. R.
Rajamani, son of the illustrious Palghat Mani Iyer. Prakash has accompanied many well known artists, both
visiting and local, such as Sangita Kalanidhi B. Rajam Iyer, Padma Bhushan Lalgudi G. Jayaraman, Sangita
Kalanidhi T. K. Govinda Rao, Padmashree T. N. Seshagopalan, Sangita Kalanidhi T. Muktha, Charumathi
Ramachandran, Trichur Ramachandran, O. S. Thiagarajan, Neyveli Santanagopalan, Lalgudi Srimathi
Brahmanandam, Chitraveena N. Ravikiran, Carnatica Brothers, Lalgudi GJR Krishnan and Lalgudi
Vijayalakshmi, Veena Jayanthi Kumaresh, Bhushani Kalyanaraman, and Madurai Sundar. Prakash has
participated in over 1000 programs including concerts, musical ensembles and Bharatanatyam and
Kuchipudi dance recitals. Along with his vainika/gayaka/flutist wife Dr. Bhavani Prakash, he conducts
workshops and lecture/demonstrations to propagate this ancient and wonderful musical form. Several of
his students have won prizes in competitions in CMANA and Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana, and are
performing in concerts in the tri-state region. Prakash is a management consultant by profession.