Parur Sundaram Iyer

Parur Sundaram Iyer was born in 1891 at Kaladi, Kerala to Anantarama Bhagavatar. He learnt violin under Trivandrum Ramaswamy Bhagavather, Asthana Vidwan of the Travancore Palace. After a performance in Cochin, the connoisseur Sait Govindanaik was impressed and sent him to Mumbai.

In Mumbai, Sundaram Iyer was introduced to Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar, principal of Gandharva Maha Vidyalaya. Panditji appointed him professor of violin and also taught him Hindustani music. In this way, violin was introduced in Hindustani music in 1909 by Sundaram Iyer.

In 1916, he received a gold medal and Certificate of Proficiency. In 1922, he moved to Chennai and served as a faculty member in the Music Department of the University of Madras, where he taught violin for many years.

He created a new style of violin playing known as the Parur style, which is widely followed by violinists. He was respected by contemporary vidwans, many of whom visited his residence for chamber music performances.

His sons M. S. Anantharaman and M. S. Gopalakrishnan became celebrated violin maestros. Sundaram Iyer accompanied well-known vocalists of the 1920s and 1930s, later giving solo performances and then trio concerts with his sons. He was also one of the founders of the Tyagaraja Vidwat Samajam in Mylapore.