Three day Veena Festival in the Chicago area
Chicago hosted its fifth three-day veena conference and festival from April 26 to 28, 2013, curated by SAPNA — the Sri Annamacharya Project of North America. The festival featured concerts by international artists and emerging students, lecture-demonstrations and panel discussions, all devoted to the veena, the ancient Indian stringed instrument at the heart of Carnatic classical music.
The inaugural concert was presented by chitravina artist N. Ravikiran in his characteristic understated yet scholarly style, with percussion support from mridangam veteran Trichy Sankaran, K. V. Gopalakrishnan on the kanjira, and Akkarai Subbulakshmi on the violin. The 2013 festival was dedicated to the memory of Dr. Sripada Pinakapani and legendary violinist Lalgudi Jayaraman.
The festival's signature format pairs senior artists with student ensembles, bringing the Tanjavur, Mysore and Andhra schools of veena playing onto a single stage — a rare chance for Chicago-area audiences to hear the instrument's many regional styles side by side.
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