S. Sowmya (born 16 April 1969) is a

Carnatic music Carnatic music, known as or in the Dravidian languages, South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, an ...

singer. She learnt music initially from her father Dr. Srinivasan, and later from Dr. S. Ramanathan and Smt.

T. Muktha Thanjavur Muktha, also spelt Mukta and often referred as Mukthamma, (1914–2007) was one of the foremost representatives of the Veena Dhanammal school of Carnatic Music. She, along with her elder sister T. Brinda, formed one of the first women d ...

. She received the

Sangeetha Kalanidhi Sangeetha Kalanidhi or Sangeeta Kalanidhi (Tamil: சங்கீத கலாநிதி, Sanskrit : संगीत-कला-निधि) (''sangeetha'' = music, ''kala'' = art, ''nidhi'' = treasure or ocean) is the title awarded yearly to ...

title by Madras Music Academy in 2019 and the Isai Perarignar by the Tamil Isai Sangam in 2022. She was appointed by the Govt of Tamil Nadu as Vice Chancellor of the Tamil Nadu Dr J Jayalalithaa Music & Fine Arts University on April 8, 2022, for a period of three years.

Education

* Ph. D. (Univ. of Madras, 2012) for dissertation "A study of the effect of temperature variations on the pitch of a double-headed drum (mridanga)" * M.Sc. (Chemistry), Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, 1992

Musical career

Sowmya made her concert debut at the age of 11 at the samadhi of Sadasiva Brahmendra, in Nerur. In 1986, she had her first performance at the Madras Music Academy, aged just 17 and thereafter performed every year for 35 years. She has performed in all major sabhas all over India and has presented her concerts in the United States of America, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia,

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

, Germany, France, Singapore,

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

, and various other destinations throughout the world. She made her film debut as an actress in the movie ''Vaanavil Vaazhkai'', which was released on 13 February 2015. Sowmya has appeared as a guest judge in several episodes of

Vijay TV Star Vijay is an Indian Tamil language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Disney Star (formerly Star India), a subsidiary of Asianet Star Communications. The channel's headquarters is in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Star Vijay change ...

's musical reality-talent shows, including seasons 2, 3, and 4 of ''

Airtel Super Singer Super Singer is an 2006 Indian Tamil-language reality television singing competition, that is sponsored by Asian Paints for the nine Season. The show is televised in India on Vijay TV, and worldwide through partner broadcasting networks. The s ...

'', and seasons 2, 3, and 4 of ''

Airtel Super Singer Junior Bharti Airtel Limited, commonly known as (d/b/a) Airtel, is an Indian multinational telecommunications services company based in New Delhi. It operates in 18 countries across South Asia and Africa, as well as the Channel Islands. Currently, ...

''. She was a permanent judge in seasons 1 and 2 of

Raj TV Raj TV is a Tamil language Indian general entertainment channel based in Chennai, India, which was launched on 14 October 1994. Rajtv became as the second most popular channel in Tamil. It is available through digital and mobile entertainment ...

's Carnatic music reality-talent show, '' Tanishq Swarna Sangeetham''. Sowmya was also a permanent judge in seasons 1 and 2 of

Jaya TV Jaya TV HD is a Tamil language satellite television channel based in Chennai, India. Jaya TV HD is also broadcast to the expatriate Tamil community via various media partnerships. Hemant Sahai of HSA had Jaya TV HD as his first client. Jaya TV ...

's Carnatic music reality-talent show, "Carnatic Music Idol". In 1998, Sowmya co-founded Carnatica - an institution dedicated to classical music & dance instruction, archival, talent search and other related activities. She also co-authored the first comprehensive reference CD-ROM on Carnatic music, Nadanubhava. She is a visiting professor at the Advanced School of Carnatic Music of the Music Academy Madras. She has served as a member of the academic council of the Tamil Nadu Music & Fine Arts University and a member of the Governing Body of the

Kalakshetra Foundation Kalakshetra Foundation, formerly simply Kalakshetra, is an arts and cultural academy dedicated to the preservation of traditional values in Indian art and crafts, especially in the field of Bharatanatyam dance and Gandharvaveda music. Based in ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sowmya, S. Living people Women Carnatic singers Carnatic singers 1969 births Singers from Tamil Nadu Indian women classical singers 20th-century Indian singers 20th-century Indian women singers 21st-century Indian women singers 21st-century Indian singers Women musicians from Tamil Nadu