Kiranavali Vidyasankar is a vocalist, music teacher, and writer. Born into a lineage of Carnatic (South Indian) musicians that includes her legendary grandfather, Gotuvadyam Narayana Iyengar, and father, chitraveena maestro Narasimhan, she has been in the public eye since the age of five, initially in tandem with her brother K.N. Sashikiran and later as a soloist. She is the first musician to be broadcast as both vocalist and exemplar of the chitraveena (a fretless lute) by the national radio and television networks of India. Vidyasankar has performed at India's leading cultural centers, such as the National Centre for Performing Arts (Mumbai), India International Centre (New Delhi), Narada Gana Sabha (Chennai), Brahma Gana Sabha (Chennai), Shanmukhananda Fine Arts (Mumbai), and the Music Academy (Chennai). She is committed to the practice of traditional Carnatic music and to creating new compositions that bring forward-looking innovations to this tradition.
