Vocal: Sweta Prasad

Sweta Prasad,a profound practitioner of Carnatic Music found a way to enthral the audience with great distinction and felicity. She is an illustrious vocalist practicing various forms for more than three decades, stems from the generous tutelage she received from her Gurus- Smt. Ramalakshmi Rangachary, Sri. NethiSriRamaSarma, Smt. Shobharaju, Smt. Vedavathi Prabhakar Rao and Dr. Pantula Rama. Sweta hails froman artistic family and is the granddaughter of the legendary Telugu Film actor Nagabhushanam of the “Raktha Kanneru" fame. Often submerged in the art Sweta’s concerts are typically immersive musical interactions between the artistes, the spectators, and the mindful integration of the two. Additionally worth noting, is the unparalleled emphasis she places on the deep-routed emotion of a musical composition, lending a compatible hand to music for dance in most forms, as versatile as herself. Sweta is a senior musician in the world of carnatic music who carved a niche for herself and tries topreserve the ancient tradition as she continues to innovate within it. Perfection of Sruti, powerful voice control, rich imagination, Bhavam and impeccable aesthetics are some of her gifted qualities. She holds a Bachelors Degree in Commerce, Masters in Carnatic music and currently pursuing M.Phil in Music forDance. Sweta’s thirty years of professional accomplishments include traditional carnatic kutcheris, television and radio concerts, festivals and lecture demonstrations and vocal accompaniment to the top classical dancers of the globe as well as film music. She rendered konakkol to the famous Kalavathi song from themovie ‘Sarkaru vaari Paata’ and sang the Tamil and Malayalam versions of the popular Panchakattu song from the film ‘Ante Sundaraaniki’.

Mridangam: Renuka Prasad

The much sought after Nattuvannar and a mridangam player, I.V. Renuka Prasad was carved into a fine mridangam player by Guru, Late Sri. Sudarshanacharya and continued his lessons from Sri. Rajagopalacharya. Prasad later on underwent his advanced training from Sri. Madurai T. Srinivasan, fondly called Seena kutty mama. A fine performer, composer and with a deep interest in mathematical progressions, Prasad shaped himself into a Nattuvannar and has been a regular featured artist in prestigious venues across India and around the world. He holds a Diploma with Distinction and is a Graded artist from the All India Radio. Prasad serves as an Asthanga Mridanga Vidwan of the Lakshmi Nrusimha Devasthanam, Yadagirigutta. He is a celebrated Nattuvannar known for his voice modulation and for lending mathematical score for several classical dance productions for top dancers of the country and has been a cultural ambassador from the Government of India and has toured more than 40 countries.

Violin: Prasiddha

Prasiddha is the talented daughter of the renowned duo Sweta Prasd and I.V. Renuka Prasad. She started her music lessons from her mother Sweta prasad and was passionate enough to learn violin under Sri. Pavan Singh. She is presently continuing her advanced lessons in violin from Sri. K.J. Dilip, Banglore. Prasiddha is presently in her 11th grade wanting to pursue her higher studies in Genetics. Her primary interest is to serve food to the poor everyday, with her own earned money.

Veena: Vijayalakshmi Madhavan

Mrs. Vijayalakshmi Madhavan has a Master's degree in Music. She trained under the tutelage of Shri. Chelluvaraja Swamy of Mysore, Padmashri Dr. Emani Sankara Sastry and Mrs. Emani Kalyani Lakshminarayana. She accompanied Padmashree Dr. Emani Sankara Sastry on radio concerts and played for All-India Radio Vaadya Vrinda and TV programs. She has performed on tours in India, the Middle East, the UK, and the US with Mrs. Emani Kalyani Lakshminarayana. She has been providing veena support for dance Arangetrams/Rangapravesams in US and Canada.

Nattuvannar: Guru Smt. Padmaja Kelam

Vyjayanthi Burma

Vyjayanthi Burma began her Carnatic vocal training under Sri Srinath Kalavicharattil at the age of 6. She then continued to study under Smt. Tadepalli Subbalakshmi and eventually moved on to learn under Smt. Sweta Prasad, an All India Radio “A” grade artist in both the classical and semi-classical genres. Viji has competed in and won various Carnatic vocal competitions such as the Australia India Music Awards International Vocal Competition, the Friends Fine Arts Association Annual International Vocal Competition, and Siliconandhra Sampada’s Vaggeyakara Competition. In addition to learning Carnatic vocal, Viji has been learning Carnatic violin since she was 8, first under Sri Papanasam K Gokul, then under Sri Mysore K.J. Diliip. She has also been learning piano under the guidance of Piotr Folkert and has most recently played a solo recital at Carnegie Hall. Viji has always been involved in the performing arts, even in school. She has been a member of her school’s theater program since 6th grade and has been in the choir program since 4th grade. Viji had participated in District Honor Chorus, All State Chorus, All State Reading Chorus, and the ACDA National Honor Chorus all through middle and high school. She was her high school A Capella club’s president and music director for 3 years, as well as the president of her school choir her senior year. She was selected as the student conductor during her choir’s concert season. She is passionate about all things music and has just finished her first year pursuing a degree in Music Education and Vocal Performance at the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University.

Bells

In Bharatanatyam, bells, or "salangai," are considered another instrument because they add a distinct auditory element to the dance, enriching the overall performance. These ankle bells produce rhythmic sounds that align with the dancer's intricate footwork, effectively transforming the dancer's movements into percussive music. The bells' jingling not only accentuates the beats and rhythms of the dance but also enhances the visual experience, making the dancer's steps more pronounced and synchronized with the accompanying musical instruments. This integration of sound and movement underscores the holistic nature of Bharatanatyam, where every element, including the bells, contributes to the narrative and emotional expression of the performance.

Master of Ceremonies: Dr. Vasanta Chivukula

Dr. Vasanta Chivukula is an Indian classical dancer with an expertise in Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam, and Kathak dance forms. She started her first lessons in dance from Smt. Vijayalakshmi Narasimhan in Bharatanatyam and later continued learning both Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi under the tutelage of Smt. Manjula Srinivas and Dr. Uma Rama Rao in Hyderabad. She has participated and won in many national-level competitions. She also learned Kathak from Smt. Kumud Savla. She is known for her depiction of intricacies in abhinaya and for rendering jathis and konagolu and for her adaptability for all three styles of dances. After working for 14 years in academics moving up the ranks to full professor and head of the division, Dr. Chivukula is currently working as a Bioinformatics scientist at the CDC.