Suba Sankaran is a DORA award-winning, JUNO-nominated musician whose career began at an early age while studying South Indian classical singing and percussion with her father, master drummer Trichy Sankaran.

She graduated from York University in 1997, where she studied jazz, early music, world music and contemporary improvisation, and completed her Master of Arts degree in Ethnomusicology in 2002.

Suba is artistic director of the award-winning Indo-jazz fusion ensemble Autorickshaw and regularly performs with other world music groups including Trichy’s Trio and most recently with the Evergreen Club Contemporary Gamelan and premiere percussion ensemble NEXUS, to name a few. She crosses genres with the FreePlay Duo, and sings the top 40s of the 80s with Retrocity.

She effortlessly combines musical worlds, spanning several centuries and genres, and has performed across Canada, the US, Europe and India. Highlights include performing for Nelson Mandela, Bishop Desmond Tutu and Peter Gabriel.

Suba is in demand as a private teacher, educator, choral director, arranger, adjudicator and composer and has given numerous workshops to choirs around the world.

She has composed, recorded and produced music for theatre, film, radio, and for south Indian and modern dance. Recent highlights include collaborations with Oscar nominee Deepa Mehta.

Suba is currently artist-in-residence at the Young Centre for the Performing Arts, co-chair of the JUNO World Music Committee, and she conducts master classes with the Soul Pepper Theatre Academy, Common Thread Community Chorus, Penthelia Singers and Big Voice Studios (with Elaine Overholt). She has adjudicated and conducted choral clinics at OVF (Ontario Vocal Festival) over the last two years.

Recent highlight activities include vocal arranging for the Canadian musical theatre production Noah’s Great Rainbow, teaching at the Yukon Summer Music Camp, CAMMAC, curatorial service/programming for the CanWest Cabaret Festival and LuminaTO at the Distillery, as well as volunteering on the programming committee for the Harbourfront Centre.

Suba has performed on numerous recordings and film soundtracks and has been recorded in many contexts by CBC Radio.

She has received several awards for her musical accomplishments. Visit Suba at http://www.subasankaran.com