N. Rajam (born 1938) is an Indian

violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...

ist who performs

Hindustani classical music Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sit ...

. She remained professor of Music at

Banaras Hindu University Banaras Hindu University (BHU) IAST: kāśī hindū viśvavidyālaya IPA: /kaːʃiː hɪnd̪uː ʋɪʃwəʋid̪jaːləj/), is a collegiate, central, and research university located in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India, and founded in 1916 ...

, eventually became head of the department and the dean of the Faculty of Performing Arts of the University. She was awarded the 2012

Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship The Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, also known as Akademi Ratna Sadasyata, is an Indian honour for the performing arts presented by Sangeet Natak Academy. It is "the most prestigious and rare honour" conferred by the Academy and is "restricte ...

, the highest honour in the performing arts conferred by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama.

Early life and training

N. Rajam was born in Chennai in 1938 in a musical family. Her father, Vidwan A. Narayana Iyer was a well-known exponent of

Carnatic music Carnatic music, known as or in the South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and Sri Lanka. It ...

. Her brother,

T. N. Krishnan Trippunithura Narayana Krishnan (6 October 19282 November 2020) was an Indian Carnatic music violinist. Along with Lalgudi Jayaraman and M. S. Gopalakrishnan he was considered part of the violin-trinity of Carnatic music. He was awarded the Ma ...

, was a prominent violinist of the Carnatic style. Rajam started her initial training in Carnatic music under her father. She also trained under

Musiri Subramania Iyer Musiri Subramania Iyer (9 April 1899 – 25 March 1975) was a Carnatic vocalist whose stage performing career spanned the 1920s to the 1940s. After retirement from the stage, he remained an iconic figure in Carnatic music as a dedicated teache ...

, and learned

raga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradition, and as ...

development from vocalist

Omkarnath Thakur Pandit Omkarnath Thakur (24 June 1897 – 29 December 1967), was an Indian music teacher, musicologist and Hindustani classical singer. A disciple of classical singer Vishnu Digambar Paluskar of Gwalior gharana, he became the principal of Gand ...

. Rajam received the prestigious titles of

Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...

and

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...

from the

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

Personal life

N.Rajam is married to T.S.Subramanian, a chartered accountant and a former executive of

Life Insurance Corporation of India Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is an Indian central public sector undertaking headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Finance, Government of India. The Life Insurance Corporation ...

. Her mother in law Mrs. Padma Swaminathan,social activist and Carnatic music singer, was the last surviving daughter of

F. G. Natesa Iyer F. G. Natesa Iyer (11 November 1880 – 23 January 1963) was an Indian activist in the Indian National Congress during the Indian independence movement. He was also one of the pioneers of modern Tamil drama and Tamil cinema. He was a talent s ...

Mrs.

Vani Jairam Vani Jairam (born as Kalaivani on 30 November 1945), also credited as Vani Jayaram, is an Indian singer. She is best known as a playback singer in South Indian cinema. Vani's career started in 1971 and has spanned over five decades. She has d ...

,playback singer in South Indian cinema, is her sister in law.

Performing career

Under the guidance of her father, A. Narayana Iyer, Rajam developed the ''Gayaki Ang'' (vocal style). Rajam has performed across the globe and in numerous places throughout India. Rajam was a professor of Music at

(BHU) in the Faculty of Performing Arts for nearly 40 years. She has been the chair of the department and the dean of the college at BHU.

Students

She trained her daughter Sangeeta Shankar, her granddaughters

Ragini Shankar Ragini Shankar is an Indian violinist who performs Hindustani classical music and fusion. She is the daughter of Dr. Sangeeta Shankar and the granddaughter of the renowned Padmabhushan Dr. N. Rajam. Early life Shankar began her training at t ...

and Nandini Shankar, her niece

Kala Ramnath Kala Ramnath is an Indian classical violinist. She belongs to the Mewati gharana, a lineage of musicians. She was awarded the Sangeet Natak Academy Puraskaar in 2016, Rashtriya Kumar Gandharva Sanman in 2008 and the Pandit Jasraj Gaurav Puraska ...

, Pranav Kumar, Prof. V. Balaji (B.H.U.) and Dr. Satya Prakash Mohanty

Awards

Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: Saṅgīta Nāṭaka Akādamī Puraskāra), also known as the Akademi Puraskar, is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama. It is the highest Indian recogni ...

, 1990 *

, 1984 *

, 2004 *Puttaraja Sanmaana, 2004 * Pune Pandit Award, 2010, by The Art & Music Foundation, Pune, India * 2012:

(Akademi Ratna) *2018: Tana Riri award

Discography

* Violin Dynasty (

Raga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradition, and as ...

Bageshri) * Dr. (Mrs.) N. Rajam (violin recital) * A Duet On Strings

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rajam, N. 1938 births Hindustani instrumentalists Indian violinists Hindustani violinists Living people Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in arts Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts Musicians from Chennai Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Tamil musicians Banaras Hindu University faculty Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship Indian music educators 21st-century violinists