D. Balakrishna is a

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

ian who plays

veena The ''veena'', also spelled ''vina'' ( IAST: vīṇā), is any of various chordophone instruments from the Indian subcontinent. Ancient musical instruments evolved into many variations, such as lutes, zithers and arched harps.

in the Mysore tradition. Born 1955-1956, he is the son of noted veena player,

Doraiswamy Iyengar Mysore Venkatesha Doreswamy Iyengar (1920–1997) was a Carnatic musician and one of the greatest exponents of the veena in modern Indian history. Early life Doreswamy Iyengar was born to a Tamil brahmin family in Gaddavalli, a village in H ...

and grandson of Venkatesh Iyengar, a student of

Veena Venkatagiriyappa Veene Venkatagiriyappa (26 April 1887 – 1951) was a highly heralded musician and Asthana Vidhwan from Heggadadevanakote in the Mysore district of India who was deeply celebrated by the Maharajas of Mysore during his time. Venkatagiriyappa' ...

. Contemporary musicians Titte Krishna Iyengar,

N. Ramani Natesan Ramani (15 October 1934 – 9 October 2015), commonly known as N. Ramani or N. Flute Ramani, was an Indian Carnatic flautist. He was awarded the Madras Music Academy's Sangeetha Kalanidhi in 1996. Ramani is also credited with introducing ...

, T.R. Mahalingam and T. Chowdiah frequently visited his father and sparked his interest in Carnatic music. In his childhood, he was sent to

mridangam The ''mridangam'' is an ancient percussion instrument originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is the primary rhythmic accompaniment in a Carnatic music ensemble. In Dhrupad, a modified version, the pakhawaj, is the primary percussion in ...

classes under Ayyamani Iyer. Later his father started teaching him veena. His first stage performance was in 1975, when he accompanied his father in a Ram navami concert in Bengaluru. By 1979, his concerts were being broadcast in

All India Radio All India Radio (AIR), also known as Akashvani (), is India's state-owned public broadcasting, public radio broadcaster. Founded in 1936, it operates under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broa ...

, where he is now listed as a "top grade" artist. He has given multiple Madras Music Season concerts over the years, starting in 1984. His "Veena Doreswamy Iyengar Memorial Trust" has organized various concerts in Bengaluru. He has an M.Sc. in statistics and has worked in the

Reserve Bank of India Reserve Bank of India, abbreviated as RBI, is the central bank of the Republic of India, and regulatory body responsible for regulation of the Indian banking system and Indian rupee, Indian currency. Owned by the Ministry of Finance (India), Min ...

. In 1997,

Karnataka Ganakala Parishat Karnataka Ganakala Parishat (also Ganakala Parishath) is an annual conference of Carnatic music held in February. The first conference was conducted in the year 1970 under the presidency of Vidwan B.S. Raja Iyengar. Over a period of several days ...

gave him ''Ganakalashree'' award. In 2015,

Karnataka Sangeeta Nritya Academy Karnataka Sangeeta Nritya Academy is a performing arts organization in Bengaluru, India that is sponsored by the Department of Kannada and Culture in the Karnataka government. It was previously known as Karnataka Sangeetha Nataka Akademi. The aca ...

awarded him '' Karnataka Kalashri - Award of Honour''. and the Central Government awarded him the 2023 Sangeet Natak Akademi award, only the 19th veena player in the 71 year operating history of the award.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balakrishna, D. Veena players Musicians from Mysore Carnatic instrumentalists Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award