Inheriting the legacy from his Embar family, Kannan is a leading violinist among the younger generation of musicians. Born in 1975 to Vidwan Sangeetha Bhushanam Sri Embar Sadagopan, Kannan is known for his silky and soothing touches in the violin and for his impeccable Sruthi alignment. He is acknowledged as one of India’s top classical music violinists.

Kannan’s performing, touring and recording credits are impressive. A loving disciple of renowned violinist Ms. A. Kanyakumari, Kannan has traveled the globe performing in prestigious venues like the Theatre de Ville in Paris, Al-bustan Palace in Muscat, Radio France and Toronto York University. Kannan is a sought after accompanist and has accompanied all top artist and has been featured in many festivals.

Kannan is also a part of many music ensembles. In the ensemble, “HeArtbeat”, he leads the melodic wing. This ensemble released their first CD “Taka Dimi Taka Junu” which was highly acclaimed by both the press and public.

Kannan also records and performs proficiently in settings as varied as traditional Indian classical music, jazz and fusion. Kannan is a key member of drummer Nagi’s fusion band “Dhinak Dhin”. Kannan also features frequently in other fusion groups and in ad-jingles as a guest artist.

Kannan blend of aesthetics and innovation is remarkable. Kannan is also a violinist in demand in the Indian film industry primarily as the leading violinist in Maestro Ilayaraja’s film crew. With the knowledge of reading and writing western notation, Kannan has composed music for serials, advertisements and devotional albums. Kannan has been awarded many prizes both for his solo performance and his role as an accompanist from various prestigious institutions like the Music Academy in Chennai, All India Radio, Indian Fine Arts (Chennai) and Annamalai Mandram. In 1998, Bharat Kalachar awarded him the title “Yuva Kala Bharathi”.

Kannan is a A-Grade artist in All India Radio’s panel of artists. Kannan holds a Masters Degree in Commerce.