AMBI SUBRAMANIAM

Hailed as “India’s Itzhak Pearlmann” by Ozy Magazine, Ambi Subramaniam has been trained by his father and guru Dr. L. Subramaniam since he was three years old, and gave his first performance at the age of seven. He has received the Ritz Icon of the Year Award, the Rotary Youth Award, two GiMAs (Global Indian Music Award for Best Fusion Album and Best Carnatic Instrumental Album) and Big Indian Music Award (for Best Carnatic Album). He received a ‘Golden Violin’ from Sri Jayendra Saraswati when he was 18.

Along with his sister Bindu Subramaniam, he runs SaPa – the Subramaniam Academy of Performing Arts – which trains young children to grow into performing musicians. He also runs the SaPa in Schools program, which helps children develop 21st century skills using music as a gateway. So far, the program impacts over 30,000 children a year.

Ambi plays as part of contemporary world music band SubraMania, which he formed with Bindu. He has performed extensively with his family and collaborated with Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts, Corky Siegel and Shankar Mahadevan. Ambi was a featured soloist at the Violins for Peace concert series which featured Mark O’ Connor, Loyko and others. He also plays as part of the Thayir Sadam Project, a Carnatic fusion collective he formed with Bindu Subramaniam, Mahesh Raghvan, and percussionist Akshay Anantapadmanabhan.

He co-hosts the SaPa Show on Sankara TV, which teaches Indian music to children from the comfort of their homes. The program is broadcast to millions of viewers across the world.

Ambi is a youth delegate at the United Nations for the Sri Chinmoy Peace Meditation group. He has a bachelor’s degree in business management, an MBA, and a Ph.D.

BINDU SUBRAMANIAM


Bindu Subramaniam is a singer/songwriter, entrepreneur, author, and music educator. Bindu has been described as a “third generation prodigy” by the Hindustan Times, “a Bangalore woman changing the way children learn” by Femina Karnataka magazine and an “assured young soprano” by the Times of India.

Bindu first performed on stage in Norway when she was 12 - with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and global soloists, for a composition called Astral Symphony, written by her father Dr. L Subramaniam. Since then, she has composed and performed multiple original tracks. In 2011 she released her first solo album, Surrender, which was nominated for a GiMA (Global Indian Music Awards) in the category of Best Pop/Rock Album. She won a GiMA for best fusion album (with Dr. L. Subramaniam) and honourable mentions at the 16th and 17th billboard world song contest. Bindu was also a finalist at the Unisong international songwriting contest and appeared on Verve Magazine’s list of 12 gen-next achievers.

Bindu is the Dean of the Subramaniam Academy of Performing Arts (SaPa), an institute that trains musically inclined children to become professional performers. In 2014, she started the SaPa in Schools program, an initiative to create an ecosystem for music education in India. SaPa in Schools works with over 30,000 children across India.



In 2013, Bindu started a fusion band, SubraMania, along with Ambi Subramaniam. SubraMania has performed live in many cities across India and toured in seven European countries. The band has collaborated with Hubert Laws, Oystein Baadsvik, Lesle Lewis, and Bollywood composer Aadesh Srivastav. SubraMania’s music has been described as a “mammoth success” by the Asian Age, and their performance at the Jaipur Literature Festival in 2018 was described as “one of the major highlights” of the festival by Firstpost.

In 2018, Bindu and Ambi collaborated with Carnatic fusion artist Mahesh Raghvan to create The Thayir Sadam Project, an experimental blend of Indian classical and digital music. They have collaborated with a number of prominent artists including Carnatic vocalist duo Ranjani-Gayathri, the Trichur Brothers, and Aruna Sairam, and were described as “a talented troupe” by the Times of India (Economic Times). The Thayir Sadam Project has conducted workshops with over 5,000 students so far, teaching them global music and promoting initiatives like the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) via the 10,000 deeds campaign. They also write songs for corporate clients, including Nestle India and the State Bank of India.

Bindu is the Chairperson for the Bangalore chapter of the All India Management of Youth Leadership Council. She was a delegate of the Australia-India Youth Dialogue in 2018, and was invited to Israel as part of the delegation that contributed to advancing India-Israeli ties. She is also a youth delegate at the United Nations for the Sri Chinmoy Peace Meditation group.

She has a master's degree in law from London University, a master's certificate in songwriting and music business from Berklee College of Music, a Montessori diploma, an MPhil, and is currently working on a PhD in Music Education.