[1] Gopalakrishnan was born on June 11, 1932 into a family of musicians with a history spanning over two centuries.

Viswanatha Bhagavathar, was a court musician for the Cochin Royal Family and a professor of music at the S.K.V.

[7] TVG has toured with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, John Handy, Ravi Shankar, Ustad Alla Rakha.

[8] He has also collaborated with drummer/composer Franklin Kiermyer, Don Peake, Seigfried Kutterer and Carola Grey.

[10] In 2018, he was awarded a doctorate by Bharatidasan University for his research on the topic "Layathwam in Carnatic music".