Centenary welcomes new faculty member to Hurley School of Music
SHREVEPORT, LA — Dr. Janani Sridhar will join Centenary’s Hurley School of Music as visiting assistant professor of music in August 2020. Sridhar, an accomplished performer and teacher, will provide instruction in voice and vocal pedagogy and will direct the Singers’ Workshop at the Hurley School.
"I am thrilled to welcome Dr. Sridhar to Hurley,” says Dr. Cory Wikan, acting dean of the Hurley School of Music. “She comes to us with an exciting breadth and depth of performance and teaching experience. I am eager to teach and make music with her."
Sridhar holds a Bachelor of Music from Oberlin Conservatory of Music, a Master of Music from Manhattan School of Music, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from Stony Brook University. Sought after as a pedagogue, she has taught in Singapore, New York, Connecticut, and Texas. Her students have received full marks in statewide music examinations, achieved top rankings in statewide music competitions, and won chairs in both regional and statewide choirs. Sridhar has served as an adjudicator for the Texas Private School Music Educators Association, and has also been invited to speak on panels as an industry professional.
Sridhar made headlines as the first Singaporean to win the top prize at the Llangollen International Musical Eistedfodd. The competition, commonly billed as "The Musical Olympics," is held in Wales and features over 6,000 global competitors. Sridhar’s other competition credits include the Bel Canto Award in the Orpheus Vocal Competition, Regional Finalist Award in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, District Winner in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, first place in the 58th International Llangollen Musical Eistedfodd, and first place in the Young Singer of the Year Awards.
Sridhar has performed various operatic roles with renowned companies including Singapore Lyric Opera, Salt Marsh Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, and Fort Worth Opera. Also well versed in concert repertoire, Sridhar has performed in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Schubert’s Mass No.2, Mahler’s Symphony No.8, Bach's Cantata No. 140, and Rutter's Gloria.
As a passionate proponent of contemporary music, Sridhar premiered “this is us” and Moments Near New York by composer Julien Touafek, and the role of the soprano in A Child’s Requiem by Steven Sametz. She was also selected to be a part of Fort Worth Opera's Frontiers festival which showcases new operatic works, and had the pleasure of performing in Behold the Man, and The Hatfield-McCoy Triptychs. Sridhar also had the immense honor of creating the role of the Manager in the world premiere of Yeltsin in Texas! by Evan Mack and Josh McGuire.
"I am very excited to join Centenary College this fall,” says Sridhar. “I am thrilled to be working closely with the students and faculty at the Hurley School of Music, and look forward to our exciting work together."