Venkat Raman
Auckland based Sargam School of Indian Music is organising a musical programme that will bring together the nuances of the East and the West in the true spirit of diversity and multiculturalism.
The Programme, titled, ‘Sangam Fusion: The Global Indian Project,’ will be held from 630 pm on Saturday, July 25, 2015 at Blockhouse Bay Community Centre located at 524 Blockhouse Bay Road in Auckland.
Captivating Ensemble
According to Basant Madhur, Director & Principal of the School, the forthcoming event will be a unique ensemble of Indian musical offering with a Western touch.
“The Group blends the intricacies of Indian Classical music with the delicate plucking of Mandolin, delightful sounds of the Guitar, reverberation of the Tabla, ringing sound of the earthy Ghatam, groovy beat of the Dholak, and rocking tempo of the Acoustic Drums.
“The mesmerising strokes of the Keyboard overlays the harmony, backed by vocal brilliance covering a range of genres. The band will focus on total team offering, with every artiste playing a crucial part in the collaboration, retaining the liberty to be expressive in their respective instruments or on their vocal repertoire,” he said.
Opera and Sufi
Ravi Nyayapati, a participant in the show and a member of the Organising Committee said that a fine mixture of Indian and Western songs and instruments has universal appeal, the ears and the soul.
“The ‘Sangam Fusion: The Global Indian Project’ will include Operatic and Sufi rendition, the first offering of its kind in Auckland. The aim is to shift the paradigm of typical Bollywood concerts. This would truly be a transnational and transcultural event, with the artistes of our community reaching across to other cultures,” he said.
As well as providing a musical cascade of Eastern and Western proportion, the Programme will feature a Kathak concert by Ratna Venkat.
The Singers
The singers include Akhila Puthigae, Ashish Ramakrishnan and Shirley Setia, while Basant Madhur (Tabla), Ravi Nyayapati (Dholak), Rushabh Trivedy (Piano), Saketh Vishnubhotla Saketh (Ghatam, Mandolin and Guitar) and Swapnil Gomez (Drums) are among the instrumentalists.
Mr Madhur said that mesmerising strokes of the Keyboard overlays the harmony, backed by the vocal brilliance of Ashish, a reality show winner, Shirley, the internet singing sensation, and Akhila, the singing child prodigy.
“These, with a classic touch of Ratna Venkat performing Kathak (she is also a classical dancer who also specialises in Bharata Natyam, Kuchipudi) will add to the charm of the programme,” he said.
Editor’s Note: Profiles of artistes with additional information will appear in an ensuing issue.
