RR Keshavamurthy was a violinist of great repute and precision from Karnataka, who accompanied many stalwarts during his time.

A specialist in the seven-stringed violin made famous by Mysore T Chowdiah, RRK was a fellow disciple of Bidaram Krishnappa. He was also the only exponent of the modified instrument to have lived well into the 21st century.

Known for his rigorous practice and discipline, RRK trained a number of young musicians and taught and mentored senior musicians like T. Rukmini, Bhuvaneshawariah and Anoor Ramakrishna. The list of his students performing today includes Meenakshi Ravi, Jyotsna Srikanth, Mysore Sanjeev Kumar,  Nalina Mohan, Jyotsna Manjunath and Nikhil Joshi.

Keshavamurthy’s awards and honours include the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, Sangeeta Vidya Sagara. Sangeeta Kala Ratna, Nada Bheeshma Vidwan, Veena Seshanna Memorial Award and Kanaka Purandara Prashasthi.

Keshavamurthy authored a dozen books on music. RRK presented many papers on the subject of violin playing and violin fingering techniques.