Pallavi Concert Series: Aparna Balaji

Join us for the final concert in our Pallavi Series, where the talented Aparna Balaji presents an evening of Carnatic vocals. She will be accompanied by Bala Skandanon mridangam, disciple fo Karaikudi R. Mani of Chennai and S. Sharada, disciple of Vittal Ramamurthy on violin.Aparna Balaji hails from a family of musicians. Aparna’s music has been meticulously shaped by her grandfather Sangeetha Booshanam Shri. O.V Subramaniam, father Shri. Sangeetha Choodamani Shri. O.S.Thiagarajan and Shri. Neyveli R.Santhana Gopalan, who found in her a discerning student. Aparna has a pleasing voice ,excellent spontaneity, vast repertoire, and clear diction. A firm believer of giving back to the music community, Aparna has been an active performer for the past 17 years, both in India and in the US. Aparna performs in the Chennai music season every December, in all major music organizations including the prestigious Music Academy of Chennai, and has won many awards. She has been conferred the title “ Ilam Isai Mamani” conferred by Madras Kali Bari temple,Aparna is the founder/director of Abhyaas in Boston, MA. Bala Skandan is a performer/teacher/composer of Carnatic (South Indian) Percussion. He plays the Mridangam (double-headed drum), Kanjira (frame drum) and Konnakkol (vocal percussion). Bala Skandan is based in Manhattan and performs widely in the US. As a percussionist, he has accompanied established international musicians for several years. He is the lead performer in Akshara, a percussion ensemble based in NY. In 2007/08 Bala Skandan had the distinction of teaching and conducting the first Carnatic student recital at the prestigious Juilliard School of music. He is also Artistic Director of Jiva Performing Arts.Sharada Krishnan started learning Carnatic violin from Smt. Radhika Devarajan. Since 2008, she has been receiving advanced training under Vidwan Shri Vittal Ramamurthy. She has performed around the USA and in India as both a soloist and an accompanist and has been awarded many prizes from Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana and CMANA competitions. Sharada has also had the privilege of accompanying her guru, Shri Vittal Ramamurthy, several times. She is the co-founder of a youth-run organization, Brindavani, that aims to promote Carnatic music, provide a platform for the youth of America to perform, and encourage them to give back to the community. She enjoys teaching violin as well.