Arts at the Armory Spotlight Series Presents L. Shankar

Arts at the Armory is delighted to welcome living legend and musical pioneer L. Shankar to the Spotlight Series on September 17, 2026.

L. Shankar is a violinist, vocalist, and composer whose career has redefined what Indian classical music can sound like on a global stage. 

Born in Madras into a family of musicians—his father V. Lakshminarayana was a Carnatic vocalist and violinist—Shankar began vocal training at age two and gave his first solo concert at seven. He earned a doctorate in ethnomusicology from Wesleyan University.

L. Shankar is known for inventing the double violin—a stereophonic double-necked electric violin; he debuted the instrument in 1981 on Phil Collins’ solo album (Face Value) and on his own album (Who’s to Know). He has released over 20 albums and dozens of unique and legendary collaborations.

Now considered a living legend, a pioneer, and a musical genius, L. Shankar's devotion to making groundbreaking music continues - in 2024, he released two world music albums: Full Moon and Over the Stars, and Answers in 2025.

For this Spotlight performance, Shankar will perform his original Indian classical ragas and compositions along with a handful of classic Shakti pieces. He will be accompanied by an all star duo of percussion, Shakti family member Selvaganesh Vinayakram, who is a two-time Grammy Award winning member of Shakti and also the son of original Shakti member Vikku Vinyakram. On tabla is Amit Kavthekar, regarded as one of the top-ranking tabla players of his generation and a longtime student of the late great Zakir Hussain and Zakir's father Ustad Alla Rakha. 

L. Shankar: double violin, vocals

Selvaganesh Vinayakram: mridangam (double-headed barrel drum), kanjira (small frame drum), konakkol (vocal percussion)

Amit Kavthekar: tabla (tuned hand drums) and spoken percussion

Tickets available now: experience the genius of L. Shankar at Arts at the Armory on September 17th. Doors will open at 7:00pm, the concert will begin at 8:00pm with a TBD opener.

Tickets: $45 advance / $50 day of show. General Admission seating.

Tickets purchased for L. Shankar are non-refundable. All sales are final.

We strive to be a welcoming, accessible community arts space. We are delighted to be a part of Mass Cultural Council’s Card to Culture program.

Arts at the Armory will offer 10 free tickets (max of 2 free tickets per person) to EBT, WIC and ConnectCareholders for each Spotlight Series performance. Please contact [email protected] for more information.

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