Meet Krishna Raman | Opera Singer & Voice Teacher

We had the good fortune of connecting with Krishna Raman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Krishna, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I’m from New Jersey but I am a first generation Indian American. Growing up, my musical journey began in the Indian classical world and its through that that I first experienced music and discovered my passion for singing. Growing up in a diverse community also has allowed me accept the many parts of myself that make me unique, and also value that in the others around me.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I think my roots in Carnatic music, a style of Indian Classical music, set me apart within the Western Classical music world. Carnatic music is an oral tradition, and learning it at a young age really trained my ears and gave me a basis for how to understand what I hear musically. When I started focusing more on Western Classical music, I was initially overwhelmed and felt like I was behind others who had studied the theory for a long time. However, I soon realized my ears were one of my greatest assets and that was all thanks to my Indian Classical music background. With that, I was able to work hard and catch up to others around me. Though I rarely sing Carnatic music now, I carry the many skills I gained from it into my music making. Recently, I’ve been particularly interested in singing music by other Indian American composers like Reena Esmail and Kamala Sankaram. I am really inspired by the way they’re able to fuse different styles of music and honor their Indian American heritage.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would definitely take them to some of the popular spots like Santa Monica and Griffith Observatory. Both offer such wonderful views and are must sees in my opinion. I also am a big fan of the Warner Brothers studio tour, so add that to the list along with a couple museums like the Broad and Academy Museum. On the nature side of things, I’d probably take them to the Huntington Library to walk around their beautiful gardens and maybe have some tea. In terms of food, there are so many great places to try. If I had to pick a few favorites though, I’d have to say Uovo, Sugarfish, Egg Tuck, and The Silver Lake House by Leela Thai. For dessert we could go to Salt & Straw, and for a drink, maybe The Varnish. In LA, there’s never really a shortage of things to do and different people are more excited by different things. However, these are a few things I’ve really loved that I’d be happy to share with others.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would love to dedicate this to my middle school choir director Lisa Lepore. She cultivated my love for singing, gave my opportunities to explore it further, and encouraged me to start taking private lessons. She even went so far as to recommend me for an extracurricular honors music program, allowing me to apply far past the deadline. Without her, I’m not sure I would have felt empowered to pursue music and make it my career.

Website: Krishnaramantenor.com

Instagram: @kraman.music