Young Voices

Brilliant in academics, Vittal Rangan, a promising young violinist, is an “A” Grade Artist of AIR and Doordarshan.

He has won accolades from senior artists and is the recipient of a number of awards. He also belongs to a rich musical lineage on his parents’ side and his guru’s side. Widely travelled, Vittal Rangan, has been a favourite accompanist of many senior artists, as well as a fine solo violinist.

Tell us about your guru parampara.

Born in a musical family, my initial training began in vocal music when I was five, from my mother Chitra Bilvam who is an alumnus of Tiruvaiyaru Raja’s Music College and an AIR graded artist, Bengaluru. Thereafter I also self-learnt the harmonium and used to play it during bhajan sessions conducted in our home. Further, my mother was very keen that I learn violin, particularly because of its high versatility and mellifluous sound. I had my initial lessons on the violin from the late R.R. Keshavamurthy for a brief period. Once, we happened to attend an ensemble led by vidushi A. Kanyakumari at Sri Rama Seva Mandali, Bengaluru. I was spellbound and inspired by the way she played along with her disciples and from then on it was my dream to become her disciple, which came true in 2003. My guru is a disciple of three legends—Ivaturi Vijeswara Rao, M. Chandrasekaran and M.L. Vasanthakumari.

School holidays brought me from Bengaluru to attend violin classes at length in Chennai, with either my mother or father accompanying me. We always looked forward to the music season in December when we stayed for three to four weeks listening to concerts. Apart from violin classes we also attended lecture-demonstrations and workshops. These left an indelible mark on the progress of my musical career.

Can you describe your guru’s teaching methods and her uniqueness?