Flautist Shashank Subramanyam has been awarded the prestigious Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by decree of July 15, 2022. The Minister of Culture of the French Republic has bestowed this award for his contributions to the French and international artistic scene. With several joint programs with French artists and frequent performances in France, Shanshank has forged an artistic and cultural cooperation between India and France.
Making his debut when he was just six, flautist Shashank Subramanyam, began performing in 1984. Trained by his father Subramanyam and legendary vocalists Palghat K.V. Narayanaswamy and Pandit Jasraj in Hindustani Music, he is one of the leading flautists today. Shashank was invited by The Music Academy, Chennai to perform in the senior slot at the age of 12! With over 38 years of a successful career, Shashank’s landmark concerts include at prestigious venues such as the Rashtrapathi Bhavan (The President's Palace at New Delhi) in 1992, Skopje Jazz Festival – Macedonia, Copenhagen Jazz Festival – Denmark, National Theater in Taipei- Taiwan, Fajr Music Festival in Tehran-Iran, Fes Festival in Morocco, The Smithsonian, Kennedy Center and National Academy of Sciences in Washington D.C, amongst several others.
Shashank often collaborates with many legendary musicians from India and around the world including guitarist John McLaughlin, Paco De Lucia, table maestro Zakir Hussain, Ustad Sultan Khan, Pt. Ajoy Chakraborthy, to name a few.
An ‘A-Top’ ranking in the All India Radio and Doordarshan, he is the youngest recipient of the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi Senior Award for the year 2017. He has also received the Kalaimamani from the Government of Tamil Nadu, Kuzhal Arasar from the prestigious Kellogg School of Management, Chicago, ‘Proclamation to the city’ award by Cities of Tulsa and Memphis, USA. Shashank is also an empanelled artist of the ICCR under outstanding and senior category since 1995.