RK Padmanabha Selected for Chowdiah Award 2026

Carnatic vocalist and composer RK Padmanabha has been selected for the Chowdiah Award 2026. He will receive the award at the Chowdiah Utsava on November 15 at 5.30 p.m.

Padmanabha’s musical career

Padmanabha began formal training in Carnatic music at Violin Chowdiah’s Ayyanar College of Music in Mysore. He has had 70 years of singing experience and 50 years on stage. His work includes 750 original compositions, written mostly in Kannada, Sanskrit and Telugu.

His literary output includes 60 books, among them five novels and four plays on music. He has also published a book of 200 compositions by Muthuswamy Dikshitar, with lyrics, notation and meanings in Kannada. Padmanabha returned to music around 1974 and gave his first concert in 1975.

Important Facts for Exams

• Vocal style: Carnatic compositions are generally written for singing; instrumental renditions also follow a vocal style known as gāyaki.
• Composition and meaning: A Carnatic composition combines its musical element with what its text conveys, making the words important alongside the music.
• Concert ensemble: A typical Carnatic vocal ensemble pairs the singer with violin and mridangam, while the tambura sustains a drone.