Chief Minister to confer prestigious award on renowned Karnatak classical vocalist during Dasara cultural event at Mysore Palace on Oct. 11

Mysuru: Renowned Karnatak classical vocalistDr. Mysore NagamaniSrinath has been selected for this year’s prestigious ‘Rajya Sangeetha Vidwan Award’.

The Government of Karnataka confers the Sangeetha Vidwan Award on artistes for their contribution to the field of music during the inauguration of the Dasara cultural programmes    at Mysore Palace.

Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar will present the award, comprising a Saraswati plaque, shawl, garland and cash prize of Rs. 5 lakh, to her on Oct. 11.

Announcing this in Bengaluru yesterday, Kannada and Culture Minister ShivarajTangadagi said that a Selection Committee headed by PanditFayaz Khan had chosen Dr.NagamaniSrinath for the award.

Profile

Born on Apr. 7, 1950, Dr. G.N. NagamaniSrinath is a classical vocalist, composer, music educator, researcher and academic from Mysuru.

She has had a performing career spanning more than six decades and is known for her contribution to Karnatak music as a performer, teacher, author and institution builder.

Dr.NagamaniSrinath was born in Jodi Gubbi village in Hassan district to G.N. Narayana and G.N. Venkatalakshamma. She began learning Karnatak music at an early age under Arekere Narayana Rao.

She later graduated with Music as one of her subjects and received a Central Government scholarship to pursue higher studies in Music in Chennai.

At the age of 20, she became a disciple of renowned Karnatak vocalist Ramnad Krishnan and received training under the gurukula system.

Dr.NagamaniSrinath also received guidance from M.L. Vasanthakumari, T. Brinda, T. Mukta, T.N. Krishnan, Palghat K.V. Narayanaswamy, D.K. Jayaraman, T.M. Tyagarajan, GowriKuppuswamy, V. Ramarathnam, R. Visweswaran and ParurAnantharaman.

Academically, Dr. Mysore NagamaniSrinath obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Arts from the University of Mysore, graduating with a gold medal, followed by a Master’s degree from the same University. She also earned a Post Graduate Diploma in Music from the Government of Tamil Nadu. In 2014, Tumkur University conferred on her the Doctor of Literature (D.Litt) degree.

She has performed in the United States, Australia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, Europe, Hong Kong and Malaysia. She has also participated in concerts organised by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR).

In 2024, she published AntaraaladaAlaapane, a book on her experiences as a vocalist. She is a ‘Top Grade’ artiste of All India Radio and Doordarshan and has performed in their National Programmes and Radio SangeetSammelans.

She has also served as Professor and Head of the Department of Music at the University of Mysore. She has composed more than 100 classical kritis and varnas and trained hundreds of students through her music school, the Sunada Cultural Centre.

Dr.Nagamani has previously received several major honours, including the Karnataka Rajyotsava Award, the Central SangeetNatakAkademi Award and the Karnataka Kalashri Award.