U. Shrinivas

Uppalapu Shrinivas, a name which has become synonymous with the instrument as Mandolin U  Shrinivas was a maven of Carnatic music. He adapted the Mandolin to suit the subtleties of Carnatic music as he reduced the number of strings of the instrument from eight to five. The new version which he created was more compact but well suited to the pace of the musician.  He also made it electronic to enhance the sound. The new mandolin found a suitable place in Carnatic music as all the ragas, bhava and gamakas were very clean and smooth. Shrinivas was in complete control over his new invention and he could produce all notes of Carnatic music from it.

His made his debut publically in a Carnatic concert which was held in 1978  during the  Thyagaraja Aradhana festival at Gudivada in Andhra Pradesh. Thereafter many concerts followed and very soon his popularity crossed all barriers. The notes struck by him on his electric mandolin were mesmerizing and soon won him lot of national and international praise and critical  acclaim. He later collaborated with with John McLaughlin, Michael Nyman, and  Michael Brook .

His passion won him many awards too like Padma Shri (1998); Sangeet Natak Academi Award (2010) and National Citizens Award (1991).