Presenter: V. R. Venkataraman, Artistic Director of The Music Circle

In this forum, V.R. Venkataraman, Artistic Director of The Music Circle, will demonstrate traditional South Indian music, how it develops from steady drones and wild improvisation, yet retains mathematical relationships as it elevates the energy of the room. Venkataraman has a passion for imparting his knowledge of culture, music, and mathematics in the age-old tradition of "Gurukulavasam". Through his vision for The Music Circle, in recent years he has introduced an event series called Parampara, Emerging Artists and Living Legends in Concert, aiming to represent the full diversity of the classical tradition with music and dance from both North and South India and by leading exponents of the fields of percussion, voice, and strings. In this presentation, V.R. will play the mridangam and will be accompanied by a student. V.R. has performed internationally with many notable western artists and has played with the greats of Indian music, including L. Subramaniam, the master of sitar, Ravi Shankar, and Harihar Rao. He met with George Harrison early in his career. He has been Professor of Music at San Diego State University, a professor of Applied Mathematics, and is currently Executive Chef at Appu’s Tumeric Café in Long Beach.