Bengal Classical Music Fest begins December 26
The sixth edition of Bengal Classical Music Festival featuring renowned Indian classical musicians and some local participants will begin on December 26 at Abahani Limited’s playground in Dhanmondi.
The five-day festival, organised by Bengal Foundation, will begin through a presentation by renowned Indian violinist L Subramaniam with Kazakh Symphony Philharmonic Orchestra, said the organisers at a press conference held at The Westin Dhaka on Saturday.
Internationally acclaimed Indian classical musicians and instrumentalists vocalist Pandit Joshraj, vina player Vishwamohan Bhatta, violinist Kala Ramnath, ghatam player Vikku Vinayakram, vocalist Pandit Ajoy Chakrobarty, vocalist ustad Rashid Khan and flutist pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, among others, will perform at the event.
In addition, the organisers said, Indian classical dancer Sujata Mahapatra and Indian troupe Aditi Mangal Das Dance Company will present Odisy and Kathak dance, respectively, during the festival.
Five Bangladeshi dancers including Sweety Das, Amit Chowdhury, Snata Shaheer, Sudensna Shyamprova and Mehraj Haque Tushar will present dance recitals at the festival. Local classical instrumentalists sitarist Firoz Khan and flutist Gazi Abdul Hakim will be participating at the festival. Moreover, students of Government Music College and Parmpara Sangeetalaya will also perform at the event, said Bengal Foundation director general Luval Nahid Chowdhury at the press conference.
She thanked prime minister Sheikh Hasina, finance minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith and cultural affairs minister Asaduzzaman Noor for helping them organise the sixth edition of the festival, which Bengal Foundation earlier cancelled on October 22 for not getting permission from the Army authorities to use Army Stadium as the venue for the festival like its previous editions.
‘We thank the government for helping us to continue the biggest classical music festival in the world that has enriched the image of the country abroad,’ Luva Nahid said.
‘Special measures have been taken to hold the festival for five days in the busy residential area like Dhanmondi,’ she added.
Bengal Foundation chairman Abul Khair, however, thanked Bangladesh Army for allowing them to use Army Stadium as venue for the festival in the previous years.
Square Toiletries director Anjan Chowdhury and BRAC Bank senior vice president Zara Mahbub Jamil were also present at the conference.
Bengal Foundation has been organising Bengal Classical Music Festival since 2012.