Born on 16th December 1947 into a family of musicians, (Mahalakshmi and late Rama Murthy) he was adopted by Yella Somanna, the mridangam maestro and disciple of late T S Palghat Mani Iyyer, a consummate mridangam player.

He accompanied many renowned and leading artists and later went on to give solo performances. Classical music with its lyrics and nuances is more elitist and is beyond the comprehension of common man. But his concerts attract large audience for the appeal it has for the senses. His concerts of traditional kritis hold the audience spellbound.

He is the one and only Yella Venkateswara Rao, the renowned Mridanga Marthanda (Maestro). His name, "Yella" in short, is synonymous with mridangam. Honors and titles sit lightly on this remarkable artist. He is adept at playing violin, vocal and veena, but his forte is mridangam.

Accompanied

There are so many renowned mridangam artists accompanying veteran musicians and to be accompanied by him is an honor. His following on the mridangam for the 'kriti' is apt. He accompanied a galaxy of top Karnatic vocal singers like Chambai Vaidyanadha Bhagavathar, Semmangudi, G N Balasubrahmanyam, M S Subbulakshmi, D K Pattamammal, T R Mahalingam, Dwaram Venkataswamy Naidu, Eemani Sankara Sastry, Balachandar, S P Balasubrahmanyam, TN Krishnan, list reads like who's who in the music world. The excellent coordination of his right with left is commendable. His clear articulation of 'jatis' is a rare accomplishment.

Experimented

Well known for his various innovative experiments, like Mridangam and Tabla Tarang, fusion and playing many mridangams at the same time - Mridangam trio, Pancha Mridangam, Laya Chitram, Nava Mridanga concert, Shodasa Mridanga Sammelanas, audience look forward to them. He tunes the mridangams to the seven basic notes and times well and it becomes an octave.

Talavadya Kacheri with eight percussion instruments and 'mimicry on mridangam' - Laya vinyasam and 'Laya mridanga dhyanam' producing sounds of birds, animals, train and rain with thunder effects won accolades in India and abroad. Fusion is yet another innovative arena he made forays into.

His Siva Thandavam, the cosmic dance of Lord Siva, with 30 percussion instruments, is something that has to be experienced than explained. He simply charms his audience. The thematic music gives a kind of inexplicable thrill to the listener and it has an electrifying effect on the audience, making them sit up.

His "VEDA" on mridangam is a rhythm of the entire universe, a unique and innovative music produced and played by him.

Accomplished

He elevated the status of the percussion instrument, mridangam, from a mere accompaniment for vocal music or for instruments like violin, veena, sitar etc. to that of an independent instrument with a place of its own on the music firmament. He made it the king of rhythmic instruments.

With his 30 hours of non-stop playing on mridangam in the "Mridanga maha Yagnam", he made it to the Guinness Book of World Records.

This 'Best Teacher' award winner is currently the Dean of the School of Fine Arts and Head of the Department of Music at Telugu University, Hyderabad. He composed Ragam, Thanam and Pallavi in different Talas. He has a book on mridangam (Theory and Practical) to his credit.

The "Yella International Institute of Mridangam and other percussion instruments" is a gurukula style institution where students from different parts of the country and from abroad learn the instrument.

Adding human face to music is yet another achievement of this mridangam maestro is his research on mridangam therapy for the mentally retarded, which is first of its kind and has yielded positive results.

Honored

Prof. Yella Venkateswara Rao held many prestigious positions like "Asthana Vidwan" (State's Laureate) of the government of AP, the TTD and Yadagiri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temples, member of Sangeet Natak Academy, New Delhi, member of South Zone Cultural Centers in many states and in many organizations which consider it an honor to have him on their Board. He received many national awards as well as private accolades in the form of being presented with silver mridangam, Suvarna Kankanam (Golden anklet), golden Simhathalam (showered with golden petals).

He won many international awards including the "Hoso Bonka" award for his "Siva Thandavam", a sound picture on Lord Siva's cosmic dance and stands out as one who plays it as the main instrument.

This mridangam player extraordinaire regaled audience with his stage concerts as well as on TV with his unique and novel programs. The soulful tunes for the popular Telugu musical, "Sapthapadi", "Viswamitra" and the musical feature on Saint Annamacharya made his name popular.