Techno-musical activities and research
Shashikiran is the producer, author and brain behind the world's first interactive and encyclopaedic CD-ROM on carnatic music, titled 'Nadanubhava - The horizons of Carnatic music'. He is also the joint creator and the developer of the world's first twin-pack VCD on carnatic music, titled 'Nadopasana - My own Carnatic tutor'. Nadopasana and Nadanubhava have both received tremendous acclaim worldwide.
Shashikiran has also produced other popular albums like the 'VCD on Bharathiyar Songs', 'Vintage Reminiscences' and 'Melting Melodies'. He is the designer of one of the first websites on classical music http://www.carnatica.net
He has brought out several audio-video presentations on the life and music of immortal musicians like Smt M.L.Vasanthakumari, Shri M.D.Ramanathan and Bharath Ratna Smt M.S.Subbalakshmi (titled 'Kaatrinile Varum Geetham').
Currently, Shashikiran is working towards preserving, promoting and propagating carnatic music using Information Technology. He has also initiated Project Carnatic Music – 2010, for documenting carnatic music, through the Carnatica Archival Centre.
Shashikiran has presented a number of research papers in major centers like the Rice University, Houston, Enthomusicology Society, Indiana State University and Drew University, New Jersey. He has done extensive research on the techniques of enhancing the quality of the human voice. He has designed several voice culture exercises for improving different facets of the voice - these have proved useful to musicians and students all over the world. A compilation of some of these voice exercises have been released as a CD, 'Voice Culture - Carnatica Gurukulam Series'. Shashikiran has contributed articles to websites, articles and journals and has presented lecture demonstrations on Voice Culture in several sabhas in India and the USA.
He has tuned several songs written by Dr.Brazil Subramaniam; compilations of these songs have been released as CDs and cassettes. He has also composed music for a dance-drama “Silappadikaram”.
Shashikiran is the founder of the Carnatica Global Mobile Gurukulam and the Carnatica Cyber Vidyalaya, both of which have hundreds of students all over the world. He also founded the Carnatica Cultural Child Care Centre, the 5C, where children are taught music, bhajans, yoga, harikatha, dance and other aspects that are unique to Indian culture right from their most impressionable age.
In an effort to take music albums to people at their doorsteps, Shashikiran founded the Carnatica Mobile Music Store - these were tricycles stocked with cassettes, CDs, VCDs, books and CD-ROMs, which made brisk sales in the streets of Chennai!
In 2005, he came up with the concept of a cultural showroom for carnatic CDs, cassettes and instruments and thus was born 'Samskriti - The Cultural Shoppe'. Samskriti, located at Carnatica's T.Nagar office, now hosts a range of CDs, cassettes, VCDs, DVDs, books, musical instruments and other cultural products.
Events
As the Director of Carnatica, Shashikiran is constantly coming up with unique ideas to promote carnatic music and new ways to implement them.
Shashikiran has conceptualised and organised several successful events like the Raganubhava, Sahityanubhava, Layanubhava, Vadyanubhava and Natyanubhava series. Every year on the 21st of June, he organises World Music Day celebrations and on December 31st, the Eastern Ethnic Eve, to welcome the new year, both featuring a galaxy of musicians.
On the 6th of August 2002, Shashikiran organised a grand celebration of Semmangudi Shri Srinivasa Iyer's 95th birthday, in association with Sri Krishna Sweets. The event included a prayer session and distribution of prasadam from about 120 temples in Tamilnadu. On the 15th of August 2002, he organised a mega musical march in Chennai to commemorate India's 55th Independence Day, involving all the major music organisations, musicians, schools and colleges.
In 2003, he conducted a mega talent hunt for music and dance, 'Kreativ 2003', which elicited an overwhelming response from participants across various cities. Carnatica has been promoting the winners of this talent hunt for the past three years and they have now become professional musicians themselves. In December 2003, he organised Paddhati, a music festival featuring multimedia presentations on yesteryear greats, panel discussions on specialised subjects, lecture demonstrations and concerts.
Shashikiran pioneered the 'Cultural Renaissance', a movement to bring back the success story of the musical bhakti movement of a bygone era. It was propelled by the concept of Call N' Sing, in which concert opportunities were provided to deserving singers, after a screen test.
In November 2005, he organised the 'Bharath Sangeet Utsav - 2005', an extensive nine-day festival in Chennai, featuring Hindustani and Carnatic musicians. This festival has now become an annual event, drawing huge audiences, and has expanded to Bangalore and Delhi. He also instituted the 'Virtuoso Awards - 2005' for the best musicians in the classical and the film fields. In a glittering ceremony in Chennai, music greats including Smt D.K.Pattammal, Shri Ilayaraja, Pandit Viswamohan Bhatt and Shri S.P.Balasubramaniam were honoured.
On September 21st 2006, Shashikiran organized a day long program for world peace, which included music performances and multi-faith prayers, in association with Peace One Day, an international organization.
In November 2007, Shashikiran organised 'Carnatic Idol – 2007', a unique all-India talent hunt. Shashikiran also organises summer camps and special courses every year for students and rasikas of music, taught by experts in the field.
For the past two years, Shashikiran has been organising a unique festival in the month of December – 'Samarpanam', featuring senior and reputed artistes. This festival has received an overwhelming response from rasikas. With help from Carnatica's recording studio 'Sound of Silence', concerts held in this festival were later released as albums.
Global Carnatic Music Association
From July 31st to 4th August 2008, Shashikiran organised a 100-hour marathon concert, at the Thyagaraja Sangeetha Vidwat Samajam, in which about 150 musicians participated. The concert was a tribute to the doyen of Carnatic music Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, whose birth centenary fell on 25th of July. It was also a prayer on behalf on all musicians for the cause of our deteriorating environment and against global warming. The concert was held under the auspices of the Global Carnatic Music Association, of which Shashikiran is the co-founder, along with musician Sudha Ragunathan.
'Power of Silence'
On 8th of August 2008, he organised an event called 'Power of Silence', in which celebrities assembled at the Marina beach, Chennai and observed 8 minutes of silence from 08:00:08 am to 08:08:08 am, listening only to the sounds of nature. This event was organised in collaboration with Sri Krishna Sweets and Exnora International, in a bid to sensitize people about the deteriorating environment and the ill-effects of global warming.
