User:Malolanarasimhan/sandbox

Dr. R.S. Nanda Kumar, Musician, Scholar and Srividya adept

Early Life and Background

Dr. R.S. Nanda Kumar¹ was born in 1960 in Bhadravathi, Karnataka, India². He hails from a distinguished lineage of musicians and scholars. His father and mentor was the doyen of Indian musicology and danceology, Mahamahopadhyaya Padmasri awardee Dr. R. Sathyanarayana³, under whom he has imbibed the authentic scholarly disciplines, diligent preservation of authenticity and creative fervour. This rich musical heritage provided him with a deep-rooted foundation in Karnataka music, Srividya Tantra and Yoga.

Career

Dr. Nanda Kumar has a distinctive musical career characterized by his contributions to resurrecting, reconstructing and reviving ancient Indian musical forms. He is known for his unique presentations of traditional music in contemporary settings and his extensive research into the musical heritage of the Haridasas of Karnataka. He has a huge treasure of musical repertoire by the famous Mysuru Composers. He has revived and performed various rare musical forms, such as Gadya, Dandaka, Suladi, Vrittanama, and Bhramaragita, maintaining their authentic shastra-ic styles. He is a noted music composer and his unique music for some of the famous Kannada plays (nataka) was cherished by the nataka artists as Nandakumar nataka sangitotsava held in rangayana of mysore.

Performances

Dr. Nanda Kumar has performed extensively in India and internationally, including in the UK, USSR, Germany⁴, and USA. His performances are noted for their scholarly depth, aesthetic appeal and authenticity in traditional and innovative formal content in Karnataka Sangita. He has performed in the famed La Fenice in Venice⁵. He has given performances on national networks like Doordarshan and All India Radio and has published numerous audio recordings.

Thorough the social media channels like ‘nadanandana⁶’ on YouTube⁷ and Facebook⁸, he has uploaded many unique music videos and talks.

Research and Academic Contributions

Dr. Nanda Kumar received Senior Research Fellowship from Ministry of Culture, Government of India to do in depth study on Ela, which is one of the most ancient forms of music compositions in Indian music. His other research include significant works on the Mysore School of Bharatanatyam (compositions of the era when it emerged as a style) and a D.Litt. thesis on Sripadaraya awarded by Kannada University, Hampi, Karnataka⁹. He has served as a professor of musicology in Rasarishi, SRSD, Bangalore and held various administrative and academic roles, including being the Hon. Director of Prasaranga at the Karnataka State Dr. Gangubai Hanagal Music and Performing Arts University¹⁰ in Mysuru of Karnataka in India.

Awards and Recognition

Dr. Nanda Kumar has received numerous awards and titles, including:

• Asthana Vidwan of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, Tamil Nadu
• Karnataka Kalasri by Sangita Nrtya Academy, Government of Karnataka¹¹
• Sushameendra Award by Sri Raghavendra Swami Mutt, Mantralaya
• Shastra Kausthubha by Ananya, Bangalore
• Gayana Gandharva Title Award by Sri Raghavendra Swamiji of Anathasevashrama, Malladi Halli
• Arabhata Award (2003)
• Sangita Parampara Nidhi Title by Chintalapalli Parampara Trust, Bangalore
• Sadhana Tapasvi Title by Vipra Foundation
• Sangita Kala Tapasvi Title by Sri Tyagaraja Purandara Celebration Committee, Karnataka
• Nrtyalaya Trust Award for Excellence in Music
• Sangita Kalottunga Award by Kala Sandesha Pratishthana¹², Karnataka

Ongoing Projects

Dr. Nanda Kumar continues to contribute to the field of Karnataka music through various projects, including:

• Publishing the Brihaddeshi of Matanga Muni in Kannada, English, and Hindi for Kannada University, Hampi, Karnataka
• Forthcoming publications on Research works on Sripadaraya, the Musicological History, Ragarathnakara of Gandharvaraja, Sangita Sudhakara of Haripaladeva in English, Kala Deeksha Paddhati, in Kannada,
• Researching and reviving the ancient Prabandhas
• Translating and transcribing Sanskrit music and dance works into Kannada
• Producing audio books and CDs on various aspects of Karnataka music, musicology and Srividya tantra
• Develop a unique OCR framework for scanning, transcription (helpful for critical editions), and preserving manuscripts in Indian Music and tantra.

Personal Life

Dr. Nanda Kumar resides in Mysore, Karnataka, where he continues his research, teaching, and performance activities. He now heads Brahmavidya¹³ : foundation for music and dance and presently serves as the president for KCMC¹⁴, Bangalore.

References

1.       https://rsnandakumar.in/

2.       https://kn.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%B2%AD%E0%B2%A6%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%B0%E0%B2%BE%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%A4%E0%B2%BF

3.       https://wiki.riteme.site/wiki/R._Sathyanarayana

4.       https://www.facebook.com/AarohaNamGermany/

5.       https://www.teatrolafenice.it/en/

6.       https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCb_3XwH-iYvX5dqq45Oa2gg

7.       https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCb_3XwH-iYvX5dqq45Oa2gg

8.       https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100067211438376

9.       https://kannadauniversity.org/english/

10.   https://musicuniversity.ac.in/about-university/

11.   https://wiki.riteme.site/wiki/Karnataka_Sangeeta_Nritya_Academy

12.   https://www.kalasandesha.com/#/kalotthunga-awardees/2014

13.   https://brahmavidya.co.in/

14.   https://kcmctrust.org/