Violin Maestro and eminent Guru from Mysuru, Vidwan H.K. Narasimhamurthy, fondly called as HKN, has been selected for the TTK Award for the year 2024 by the Madras Music Academy, according to a press release issued by the Academy on Mar. 17.

TTK Award is being conferred by the Music Academy on senior musicians who have made a mark in the field as icons and gurus. This award is named as TTK Award in memory of T.T. Krishnamachari, former Union Minister and industrialist, who was a great patron of arts.

The Music Academy announced Sangita Kalanidhi, Nritya Kalanidhi and other awards also for 2024. The Executive Committee of the Music Academy Madras, at its meeting on March 17, 2024, decided to confer its Annual Awards on the following artistes:

MUSIC  Sangita Kalanidhi

T.M. Krishna – One of the foremost Karnatak musicians today, he trained under Sangita Kala Acharyas Bhagavatula Seetharama Sarma and Chengalpet Ranganathan and Sangita Kalanidhi Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer. Known for his powerful voice and his adherence to tradition when it comes to the art, he has experimented widely with its format. He has also worked towards expanding the listener base of the art by taking it to varied social settings and focusing on its exploratory as opposed to tightly defined structures. He has used music as a tool for social reform. A writer with analytical books on music to his credit, Krishna has received several awards for his music, his writing and his championing of social causes.

Sangita Kala Acharya –  2 awards

Prof. Parassala Ravi (V. Raveendran Nair) – Having had early tutelage in mridanga from eminent gurus, he obtained two degrees in music from the Swati Tirunal College of Music. He has taught at several music colleges in Kerala. Prof. Ravi has authored books on mridanga, structured syllabi for teaching the art and trained several students. He has also had a busy career as a mridanga artiste.

Geetha Raja – Her training in music began under Sangita Kala Acharya Bombay Ramachandran and subsequently she trained under Sangita Kalanidhi T. Brinda from whom she acquired a truly vast repertoire of the Veena Dhanam School. She has had a busy career as a performer and is actively involved in teaching advanced and devotional music through in-person classes and online.

TTK Award – 2 awards

Thiruvaiyyaru Brothers – The brothers, S. Narasimhan and S. Venkatesan, came from a musical lineage that stretches back to Tyagaraja. For nearly forty years now, the brothers have been the repositories of the music of the Melattur Bhagavata Mela tradition. They perform Karnatak music concerts under the name of Thiruvaiyyaru Brothers.

H.K. Narasimhamurthy – After initial training in violin, he came under the tutelage of T. Puttuswamiah, brother of Sangita Kalanidhi T. Chowdiah. He later moved to Madras and trained in the Parur style under Parur Sundaram Iyer, Sangita Kalanidhi M.S. Gopalakrishnan and Sangita Kala Acharya M.S. Anantharaman. He pursued his degree course at the Central College of Carnatic Music, Madras. He has been a busy concert accompanist, a guru and an organiser.

Musicologist Award

Dr. Margaret Bastin – She qualified in music from the Queen Mary’s College with a BA degree and later completed her Master’s, M.Phil and Doctorate in Music from the University of Madras. She trained in music under eminent gurus and in musicology under Dr. Ve Pa Ka Sundaram and Dr. Arimalam S. Padmanabhan. Deeply passionate about academic research, she is a resource person who has served in multiple capacities at various educational institutions. She has several research papers to her credit and guides numerous students in research. Her presentations on the Tevaram, the works of Vallalar Ramalinga Swamigal and ancient Tamil music are widely popular. She is presently the Principal of St. Joseph’s Arts and Science College for Women.

DANCE

Nritya Kalanidhi

Dr. Neena Prasad – An MA in English Literature, she had her training in Mohiniyattam from Kalamandalam Kshemavati and Kalamandalam Sugandhi. She learnt Bharatanatyam from Sangita Kala Acharya Adyar K. Lakshmanan, Kuchipudi from Vempati Chinna Satyam and Kathakali from Vembayam Appukuttan Pillai. She obtained her Ph.D from Rabindra Bharathi University for her thesis on Lasya and Thandava in South Indian classical dances. She was awarded a post-doctoral fellowship from the University of Surrey. A top-ranking exponent and performer in Mohiniyattam, she has also established and runs the Bharathanjali Academy of Indian Dances at Thiruvananthapuram and a centre for Mohiniyattam in Chennai, where she teaches numerous students.

The Sangita Kalanidhi awardee T.M. Krishna will preside over the Academic Sessions of the 98th Annual Conference and Concerts of The Music Academy to be held between Dec. 15, 2024 and Jan. 1, 2025 and will receive the award, together with those selected for the Sangita Kala Acharya, TTK and Musicologist awards at the Sadas on Jan. 1, 2025.

The Nritya Kalanidhi awardee Dr. Neena Prasad will receive the award at the inauguration of The Music Academy’s 18th Annual Dance Festival on Jan. 3, 2025.