City musicians touring US with S P Charan

Three young Bengaluru musicians — Anantha Narayanan (21), Sudharshan Karthik (23) and Channaveeresh B L (29) — are gearing up for a tour with playback singer S P Charan, the son of the late S P Balasubrahmanyam. Titled ‘Simply SPB’, the tour will travel across cities like Los Angeles, Seattle, Austin and Chicago, and is a tribute to the musical legacy of Balasubrahmanyam, who passed away in 2020. It is tentatively scheduled for October and November.

“We have a list of about 70 potential songs, which we will play from. There are some songs I’m not familiar with, so I have started writing out the notes for them,” says percussionist Narayanan, who is embarking on an international tour for the first time. Karthik, a flautist, will also be on saxophone. “Some songs require both the flute and saxophone, so that’s going to be a bit tricky. But I’m looking forward to it,” he shares. The concert will feature a mix of popular Kannada, Tamil and Telugu songs, such as ‘Santoshakke’, ‘Jotheyali’, ‘Yenna satham indha neram’ and ‘Bangaru kodi petta’.

Apart from Charan, other noted performers on the tour include singers S P Shailaja (SPB’s sister), Sai Vignesh (known for ‘Varaha roopam’, ‘Kantara’, 2022) and Srisha.