SARASWATHI RANGANATHAN (INDIA/USA)

www.saraswathiveena.com

Saraswathi Ranganathan
An award-winning practitioner of the ancient south Indian classical instrument, the veena. She has performed at various concert halls and festivals around the world including World Music Festival Chicago, Richmond Folk Festival, BU Global Music Festival, Lotus Festival, Ragas Live Festival and many more. Sara is a champion of bringing the veena to new musical spaces. She founded the 12 member, world music ensemble Surabhi, which brings together Indian classical, Flamenco, with Arab music and dance. The ensemble has toured globally since 2019 across Europe, Asia, Africa, and Mexico. Saraswathi is also a proud member of the Chicago Immigrant Orchestra.

As a cross-cultural ambassador, Saraswathi Ranganathan aims to create deeper connections across cultures through her performances, presentations, and community engagement. Sara created an educational program for grade school students with Lotus Festival of the Arts and others. She brings with her a legacy of firsts. She is the first Indian woman veena artist to win a Chicago Music Award, and the first artist to introduce veena to the theater world as an orchestra member of Disney’s Jungle Book production. Ranganathan is known as the most versatile veena artist based in the USA and plays with dynamic savagery and dreaminess, enthralling the audience at every opportunity. More info at https://saraswathiveena.com