Dr. L. Subramaniam's GLOBAL FUSION Makes LA Premiere at Skirball Cultural Center Tonight

The Skirball Cultural Center presents the Los Angeles premiere of South Indian violinist, composer, and conductor Dr. L. Subramaniam's Global Fusion featuring harmonica blues legend Corky Siegel, live in concert, tonight, February 22, 2013, at 8:00 p.m. Continuing the Skirball's new music series, "Journeys and Encounters" - which showcases surprising collaborations between musicians of diverse genres - Dr. L. Subramaniam's Global Fusion combines Carnatic (South Indian) music and Western classical, jazz, and rock.

Started in 1999, Global Fusion has toured to critical acclaim around the world, each time incorporating different musical cultures and showcasing new guests. For his Skirball concert, Subramaniam will perform with a seven-piece band featuring master blues harmonica player Corky Siegel, violinist Ambi Subramaniam, keyboardist Chris Rhyne, guitarist Mark Spagna, bassist Jerry Watts, and drummer Joey Heredia.

The Skirball's "Journeys and Encounters" continues with two additional concerts:

BALLAKÉ SISSOKO AND VINCENT SÉGAL
Chamber Music
Thursday, March 14, 8:00 p.m
$35 General; $30 Skirball Members; $25 Full-Time Students
West Coast debut! Malian kora player Ballaké Sissoko and French cellist Vincent Ségal's Chamber Music project is a groundbreaking collaboration between two like-minded virtuosos working in warm unison. Their intimate and lyrical compositions are renowned for creating an atmosphere of peace and calm that has moved music fans around the world. Deeply rooted in Manding music yet incorporating a variety of world music and classical influences, this is one of the most beautiful and appealing fusions undertaken in the last decade.

COMMON CHORDS
Thursday, May 16, 8:00 p.m.
$35 General; $30 Skirball Members; $25 Full-Time Students
Common Chords brings together highly accomplished musicians from diverse cultures and religions, led by famed Pakistani singer/guitarist Salman Ahmad (of Junoon) and world-renowned klezmer violinist Yale Strom. Their music blends rock, klezmer, jazz, bhangra, Indian, Sufi, qawwali, and klezmer vocals into a distinct new hybrid, brilliantly executed by Ahmad, Strom, vocalist Elizabeth Schwartz, tabla master Samir Chatterjee, bassist Mark Dresser, dhol player Sunny Jain (of Red Baraat), accordionist Lou Fanucchi, and saxophone and flute player Tripp Sprague.

Please Note: Due to scheduling conflicts the Talvin Singh and Niladri Kumar concert originally scheduled for April 4, 2013 has been cancelled.

Lakshminarayana Subramaniam (born on July 23, 1947) hails from a family of musicians. His father, a master violinist, and his mother, who played the Indian vina (Indian stringed instrument), were his first musical influences. Subramaniam was trained in the classical Carnatic music tradition and Western classical music. After abandoning a career in medicine, he formed a violin trio with his two brothers while still in India. He toured America and Europe with Ravi Shankar and George Harrison in 1974, made his first fusion album in Copenhagen (Garland), and wrote material for Stu Goldberg and Larry Coryell in 1978. He settled in the Los Angeles area in the late 1970s in order to earn a doctorate in Western music at the California Institute of the Arts.

Subramaniam has written works for orchestras, ballets, and Hollywood film scores, and written books on music, in addition to composing symphonic and Carnatic pieces. Creations with orchestras include "Fantasy on Vedic Chants" with the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Zubin Mehta, "Turbulence" with The Orquestre de la Suisse Romande, "The Concert of Two Violins" with the Oslo Philharmonic, and "Global Symphony" with the Berlin State Opera (broadcast live to twenty-eight nations). His compositions have been used in stage presentations of leading dance companies such as the San Jose Ballet company, the Mariinsky Ballet, and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Throughout his career, Subramaniam has won several awards and accolades, including a Grammy nomination in 1981. In 1996, he received the "Best Composer Award/Commission" from the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation NRK P2 radio channel, the Padma Shri in 1988 and Padma Bhushan awards in 2001. In recognition of his contribution to music, the Bangalore University in 2003, the University of Madras in 2004, and the University of Sheffield in 2008 all conferred him with Honorary Doctorates.

Corky Siegel has earned an international reputation as one of the world's great blues harmonica masters. He is a composer, blues pianist, singer/songwriter, and recent winner of the Lila Wallace/Reader's Digest/Meet the Composer's national award for chamber music composition and the Illinois Arts Council Fellowship Award for Music Composition. His career began with a fortunate break when he formed the legendary Siegel-Schwall Band, which toured the major rock palaces and clubs in the 1960s and 1970s. He was introduced to the blues through a very first steady engagement at Peppers, the internationally renowned blues club where his job included performances with blues masters such as Willie Dixon, Little Walter, Muddy Waters, and Howlin' Wolf.

Siegel has eighteen recordings and more than thirty-five reissues on Vanguard, RCA, Alligator (the exclusively Blues label) and Gadfly Records, as well as two album projects for the prestigious classical label Deutsche Grammophon (DG). He has written and performed works for Arthur Fiedler and the San Francisco Symphony, the Grant Park Symphony, and the National Symphony Orchestra for a Kennedy Center performance, after which the Washington Post proclaimed, "Siegel is a phenomenon." His music has been choreographed by five different international ballet companies and has been used for many national TV specials and motion pictures as well as the 1988 Olympic men's figure skating competition and the 1997 World Championship skating competition with Olympic Gold Medalists Torvill and Dean.

Ambi Subramaniam, at the age of nineteen, already has a number of major accomplishments under his belt. His greatest musical inspiration remains his father and guru, Dr. L. Subramaniam, with whom he tours the world, giving solo and duet performances. Ambi gave his first performance at the tender age of seven and has already performed in venues across the globe. Hailed as the new king of Indian classical violin, Ambi plays Western and Indian violin with equal ease. He is currently studying in college and is working on his first solo album.

Much in demand session player, Chris Rhyne began studying classical piano at age seven. He attended Boston's Berklee College of Music, studying composition, orchestration and piano. After his studies, Rhyne relocated to Los Angeles to work with popular A&M recording artist Gino Vanelli. He was recruited as Carlos Santana's keyboardist/arranger with whom he toured. He also recorded and toured with innovative violinist Jean Luc Ponty, and worked with Merv Griffin for the last six years of his television show.

Acoustic guitarist Mark Sganga is known for weaving a rich tapestry of beautiful melodies and imaginative improvisation. He has performed with Dr. L. Subramaniam, toured with Verve Recording artist Pete Belasco, appeared on recordings with Herbie Hancock and Maynard Ferguson, and performed with The Klezmatics. He has been declared "one of the top guitarists in NY" by WOR radio.

Since arriving in Los Angeles in 1980, bassist Jerry Watts has amassed a truly diverse and eclectic resume. His list of recording and performing credits reflects his love of music and trademark versatility and his involvement at the highest levels of pop, rock, jazz, and world music. In addition to his busy performance schedule, Watts is also Bass Department Chair at Los Angeles Music Academy.

Joey Heredia is a remarkable drummer and percussionist who blends a multitude of styles, making him a much sought-after musician. He has performed with Stevie Wonder, Sheila E, Sergio Mendez, Herb Alpert, Tania Maria, Scott Henderson, Frank Gambale, and Dianne Reeves. Early in his career, when he was only twenty-two years-old, he was chosen by Billy Childs to be part of Dianne Reeves band.

For more information, visit www.skirball.org.

The Skirball Cultural Center is dedicated to exploring the connections between 4,000 years of Jewish heritage and the vitality of American democratic ideals. It welcomes and seeks to inspire people of every ethnic and cultural identity. Guided by our respective memories and experiences, together we aspire to build a society in which all of us can feel at home. The Skirball Cultural Center achieves its mission through educational programs that explore literary, visual, and performing arts from around the world; through the display and interpretation of its Permanent Collections and changing exhibitions; through an interactive family destination inspired by the Noah's Ark story; and through outreach to the community.

The Skirball Cultural Center is located at 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90049. FREE on-site parking; street parking strictly prohibited. The Skirball is also accessible by Metro Rapid 761. Museum hours: Tuesday-Friday 12:00-5:00 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.; closed Mondays and holidays. Museum admission: $10 General; $7 Seniors, Full-Time Students, and Children over 12; $5 Children 2-12. Exhibitions are always free to Skirball Members and Children under 2. Exhibitions are free to all visitors on Thursdays. For general information, the public may call (310) 440-4500 or visit www.skirball.org. The Skirball is also home to Zeidler's Café, which serves innovative California cuisine in an elegant setting, and Audrey's Museum Store, which sells books, contemporary art, music, jewelry, and more.

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