Vidushi R. Vedavalli (born 9 November 1935) is an Indian Carnatic vocalist.

Early life

R. Vedavalli was born in

Mannargudi Mannargudi () is a Municipality in Thiruvarur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters of the Mannargudi Taluk, Mannargudi taluk. The town is located at a distance of from the district headquarters Thiruvarur, 12 ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

to Ramaswami Iyengar and Padmasani Ammal.

Career

R. Vedavalli's talent for music was identified early on by Maurai Srirangam Iyengar, who brought the five-year-old a

harmonium The pump organ or reed organ is a type of organ that uses free reeds to generate sound, with air passing over vibrating thin metal strips mounted in a frame. Types include the pressure-based harmonium, the suction reed organ (which employs a va ...

, and got her started on vocal lessons. The family moved to

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

in a few years time, and Vedavalli came under the tutelage of Mudicondan Venkatarama Iyer. She received a Central Government scholarship to specialize in Padams and Javalis with T.Muktha, and in

Pallavi A pallavi is a refrain in carnatic music, commonly associated with South India. It is the first part of any formal composition ( Krithi) which has three segments – Pallavi, Anupallavi and Charanam (which can be one or more). Pallavi is usuall ...

s with Venkataramana Iyer. Though she has performed since childhood, it was

Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar (19 May 1890 – 23 January 1967), popularly known as ''Ariyakudi'', was a Carnatic music vocalist, born in Ariyakudi, a town in the present-day Sivaganga district of Tamil Nadu. Ariyakudi developed a unique style of ...

who advised her to turn into a professional musician, when he heard her sing as an 18-year-old. She has travelled throughout India and abroad in North America, South-East Asia, the Far East and the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

region, giving concerts and lecture demonstrations. Vedavalli served in the Teacher's College of Music of the

Madras Music Academy Madras Music Academy is one of the earliest established music academies in South India. Before the concept of infrastructure was introduced to India in the early 1920s, it was a gathering for elite musicians simply called (and is still more ...

for several years before becoming Professor of Vocal Music in the Government College of Music Adyar. She has thus shared her deep knowledge and extensive repertoire with numerous students at these institutions apart from training some privately. She is also trained in playing the

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.

, and has a good command over

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of South India ** Telugu literature, is the body of works written in the Telugu language. * Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Tel ...

, which helps her sing with greater understanding or ''artha bhava'' (meaning and emotion). She lived in

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

with her husband D. R. Santhanam and mother Padmasani Ammal, at the turn of the century. Later she and her husband moved to Pune to be with their daughter, and D R Santhanam died in Pune in July 2021.

Awards and recognitions

From a very young age, Vedavalli won several awards in prestigious competitions including All India Radio's first prize for Classical Music and Light Classical Music, awarded by the President of India. In 2000, she received the

Sangeetha Kalanidhi Sangita Kalanidhi () is the title awarded annually to a Carnatic musician by the Madras Music Academy. From 1929 to 1941, the award did not exist. The award was conceived in 1942 by Academy President K. V. Krishnaswami Iyer and on 1 January 1 ...

, which is considered the highest award in Carnatic music. She is one of the few women to have received this honor. She also received the ''

Sangeetha Kalasikhamani Sangeetha Kalasikhamani or Sangita Kalasikhamani (Sanskrit: ; from sangeetha = music, kala = art, sikhamaṇi = gem of a diadem or crest) is the title awarded yearly to an expert Carnatic music Carnatic music (known as or in the Dravidi ...

'' award given by the Fine Arts Society, Chennai in 1995.

Disciples

Among her disciples today are accomplished performers, researchers, teachers and writers. Sumitra Vasudev and her daughter Sushruti Santhanam are her disciples. Sushruti is based in Pune and teaches music there.

References

External links

*
Her article on her childhood
Tamil singers Women Carnatic singers Carnatic singers Indian music educators Sangeetha Kalanidhi recipients 1935 births Living people Indian women classical singers People from Tiruvarur district 20th-century Indian singers 20th-century Indian women singers Singers from Tamil Nadu Women musicians from Tamil Nadu Indian women music educators Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award {{Carnatic-music-stub