King Charles III Honours Dr Jyotsna Srikanth with MBE for Musical Achievements
His Majesty King Charles III, King of the United Kingdom awarded Ace violinist Dr Jyotsna Srikanth with the prestigious MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in his birthday honours list, the third highest civilian award in the UK for her contribution to music internationally on December 12th, 2023 at the Windsor Castle, UK.
Jyotsna, born and brought up in Bangalore is the first Carnatic musician/performer to receive this prestigious award.
Other international stars who have been awarded an MBE in the past included Adele, Ed Sheeran and Marcus Rashford.
After receiving the prestigious award, Jyotsana said, “I am honoured to receive this prestigious award and would dedicate this award to my gurus and to family who have been immensely supportive to my career. I will strive hard to contribute more to the field of music.”
Jyotsna is the most sought after South Indian Carnatic violinist and composer known for her versatility and ability to collaborate with different genres seamlessly and with ease. She has been trained in the western classical system too and has been travelling worldwide, connecting cultures and producing innovative projects.
Jyotsna has played the violin for more than 300 South Indian movies. She has given numerous carnatic solo, jugalbandhi and jazz fusion concerts apart from accompanying legendary carnatic musicians like Dr Balamuralikrishna.
Jyotsna has composed & performed with the London Philharmonic Orchestra - UK, Mendelssohn Chamber Orchestra - Hungary, VMU Chamber Orchestra - Lithuania, Krystal Quartet - Sweden, Ligeti Quartet - UK and Vindla Quartet - Sweden Jyotsna’s prime collaborations are Nordic Raga - with Swedish Folk, Raga Garage - with western classical violin, Carnatic Connection - with Bollywood Brass Band and Maya Jazz - with Balkan Jazz.
She was invited to perform at the Buckingham Palace for the inauguration of the Commonwealth heads meeting in the presence of Her Majesty The Queen of England.
Jyotsna has taken Carnatic music to remote parts of Europe and is one of the founders of Dhruv Arts & London International Arts Festival, where she has been curating & presenting Carnatic music to new audiences along with other world music genres.