ganavya

ganavya is a transdisciplinary scholar, vocalist, word-craftswoman, jalatarangam artist, and double-bassist. Recent credits include: this body is so impermanent… (2021) directed by Peter Sellars, featuring ganavya (solo voice, composition), Michael Schumacher (choreography, dance), Wong Dongling (live calligraphy); Ch.7: The Goddess (2019) directed by Peter Sellars, featuring ganavya (solo voice, composition, dance), Michael Schumacher (choreography, dance); Daughter of a Temple (2019), a sound installation composed for the 13th Bienale de Habana; featured solo vocalist and lead researcher with esperanza spalding on the 2022 “Best Jazz Vocal” Grammy award winning album Songwrights Apothecary Lab (2021), contributing librettist for Iphigenia by Elder Wayne Shorter and esperanza spalding, writer/singer of first Tamil lyrics to win a Latin Grammy award (2020), album and touring solo vocalist on the Quincy Jones’ produced Tocororo which hit #1 in jazz charts.

Albums recently recorded include: Daughter of a Temple, co-produced by esperanza spalding; the body of reality ft. ganavya (composition, singer) and Leo Genovese (piano) produced by Peter Sellars and Rajna Swaminathan. Upcoming projects include: the album let’s go out and play, the South Asian diasporic album how to cure a ghost, and an untitled opera commission for Festival d’Aix-en-Provence (2025 premiere) based off of the 2,000 year old Buddhist Mahayana text the Vimalakirti Sutra and her grandmother, Smt. Seetha Doraiswamy’s life, featuring libretto by Robert Thurman, composed by Ganavya and Sivan Eldar, directed by Peter Sellars.