T. M. Krishna

Infobox Musical artist
Name = T. M. Krishna


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Background = Carnatic Music, Music History
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Alias = TMK
Born = Birth date and age|1976|1|22 Chennai, India
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Genre = Indian classical music
Occupation = Carnatic Vocalist
Years_active = 1988–present
URL = [http://www.tmkrishna.com]

T.M. Krishna (born 1976) is one of the leading Carnatic music vocalists of today. Hailing from a family of music connoisseurs, he was exposed to the south Indian classical music at an early age. His first concert was at the Spirit of Youth series organized by the Music Academy, Chennai (India). Since then, he has travelled widely in India and abroad and won applause from his listeners. He has received numerous awards and titles from many leading organizations, notable amongst which are the Young Achievers Award by India Today and the Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar Award by the Central Sangeet Natak Akademi. He has released many music albums from leading audio companies like Magna sound, HMV, Inreco, Amudham (USA) and Charsur.

Background

T.M. Krishna was born in Chennai on January 22, 1976. His father was a businessman in the automobile industry and his mother has been running a music school, Kalapeetam, in Chennai.

Krishna's mother used to learn from his guru (teacher) B. Seetharama Sharma when he was four years old. Sharma noticed Krishna's interest in music, and started teaching him at the age of six.

His schooling in KFI, an institution managed by the J. Krishnamurthy trust, influenced his perceptions and outlook towards life, something which the musician has himself revealed numerous times. He went on to receive his B.A. degree in economics from Vivekananda College, Madras. He married Sangeetha Sivakumar, a Carnatic musician herself, on November 7, 1997, and has two daughters, Arya and Anantha. Together, they live in Mylapore, one of the hubs of Carnatic music in Madras.

Music Training

After tutelage under B. Seetharama Sharma, Krishna underwent special Ragam Thanam Pallavi grooming under the renowned Chengalpet Ranganthan. He also advanced training from the late Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer for more than seven years.

Music Style

Krishna's resonant and mellifluous voice and strict adherence to classicism have enriched his art. His music is marked with a high level of aesthetics in conception and execution. He is also known for his "manodharma" (imagination) and "sampradaya" sangeeta or (traditional purity of music).

Teacher

Krishna has music students in India as well as abroad -- North America, Europe and Southeast Asia. A firm believer in traditional learning techniques, Krishna gives much importance to a firm grounding in fundamentals and sticking with the classicism (the ancient styles) of Carnatic music.

Composer

Krishna assisted his guru Sri Seetharama Sharma in many of his composing projects, including musical operas like The Ramayana (presented in The Reunion Islands in 1993), orchestra presentations and choir presentations. He has set music to a number of lyrics and compositions.

Krishna also toured Singapore in 2001 to compose and conduct the orchestra of the Singapore Fine Arts Society supported by a grant from the National Arts Council of Singapore. This program was titled "On a Classical Trail.”

Researcher

He is deeply involved in research in the field of Carnatic music. He has given numerous lecture demonstrations on various facets of Carnatic music and its history at important institutions. He is presently working on audio archiving the Sangeetha Sampradaya Pradarshini, a musical treatise of very great importance and significance in relation to the compositions of Muthuswami Dikshitar.

Author

In 1998, Krishna, along with musicians Vijay Siva and Dr Sunder, authored the first ever Carnatic music appreciation album titled "Learning to Appreciate Carnatic Music". In 2001, along with musician Bombay Jayashree and Sanjay Subrahmanyan, Krishna authored a book on Prof Sambamoorthy, an Indian musicologist of international repute, to commemorate his birth centenary. In 2007, he co-authored and published a book with Bombay Jayashri titled "Voices Within", the first coffee-table book of its kind, on the legends of Carnatic music.

Krishna continues to contribute many articles to various publications and Internet sites regarding art, culture and socio-political issues as well as to his own website.

Music Education & Awareness

*Co-founder of Jnanarnava Trust, an organisation devoted to the research, documentation and archival of the ancient traditions in Carnatic music. (www.jnanarnava.org)

*Initiated Kalachara Marumalarchi, an organization dedicated to the revival of cultural activities in the interior towns and villages of Tamil Nadu, India and to rejuvenate the function of the temples as cultural hubs. By organizing cultural festivals coinciding with the temples’ own celebrations, the organization seeks to involve and showcase the traditional folk arts and crafts of the local citizens while increasing the social awareness of issues such as women’s empowerment, family planning, self-help groups, AIDS, and others.

*Cofounder of Sumanasa Foundation, an organization to promote Carnatic music and musicians in and around rural areas by sponsoring upcoming musicians. This organization also actively works to identify talented, underprivileged youngsters and provides them an opportunity to further develop their skills by providing them with the necessary assistance.

*Organized, along with two other musicians, a day-long Carnatic music workshop for company executives, CEOs, CFOs, and engineers using multimedia presentations

*Served as president of the Youth Association for Classical Music (YACM) from 1996-1999 during which time he organized many lecture-demonstrations in over 100 schools (100,000 children between ages of 12 and 17) in Chennai, India, amongst other innovative and far-reaching projects.

References

*Iyengar,B.R.C., "Dulcet Tones", Kalasagaram, 2004
*Kumar, S. Vinaya, "Seasoned Musician", The Hindu
*Nisshanka, "TM Krishna: Bravado and Loudness", Chennai Online
* [http://www.matrka.org"Matrka Website"]
* [http://www.jnanarnava.org"Jnanarnava Website"]
* [http://www.tmkrishna.com/reviews.html"Other news reviews and articles"]