Bengal Classical Music Festival 2016 – Maestri mesmerise musicophiles
The second night of the musical extravaganza maintained the brilliance of its beginning as the whirlpool of melodies soothed the minds of hundreds of raga-loving people.The exponents of different traditions of classical music including tabla, khayal, santoor, sitar, flute, and mandolin weaved garlands of melodies during their haunting performances.Eminent danseuse V Madhavi Mudgal and her troupe held the audience spellbound with their exquisite performances of Odissi dance at the event.
The doyen of classical music Priyanka Gope presented khayal while Rahul Sharma captivated the music aficionados with the sound of his Santoor.
Virtuoso Mohammed Shoeb rendered fabulous songs while Purbayan Chatterjee entharalled the audience with the magical melody of her sitar. The duo classical maestros Ronu Majumdar and U Rajesh swayed the music lovers by playing flute and mandolin respectively at the carnival.
Exponent Ulhas Kashalkar rendered stimulating khayal while the students of Bengal Parampara Sangeetalay electrified the listeners with the jangles of their tabla.
Madhavi Mudgal is a renowned dancer from India, an illustrious exponent of the Odissi tradition. She is the daughter of the late Prof Vinay Chandra Maudgalya, the founder of Gandharva Mahavidyalaya; one of the notable dance schools for Hindustani music and classical dance in New Delhi.
Mudgal began her training under the guidance of Guru Harekrishna Behera and continued her training under Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra.
Priyanka Gope is a notable vocalist from Bangladesh. She trained under the guidance of Pandit Arun Bhaduri, Pandit Urmi Dasgupta, Dr. Asit Roy, Waheedul Haque, Subir Nandy, Shubhra Guha and Falguni Mitra.
She is currently an Assistant Professor at the Department of Music, University of Dhaka.
Rahul Sharma is a notable musician from India. He began his vocal and santoor training under the guidance of his father and guru, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, a legend in India and the world over.
Mohammad Soheb is a notable vocalist from Bangladesh. He earned his undergraduate and post-graduate degrees in classical vocal music from Rabindra Bharati University, India. Soheb is presently a teacher at the Department of Music, University of Dhaka.
Purbayan Chatterjee is a renowned sitar maestro from India. An exponent of the Senia Maihar Gharana, he is a direct disciple of his father – Pandit Parthapratim Chatterjee – and sarod legend Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. Chatterjee has performed extensively in India and overseas.
Ranendranath Majumdar, popularly known as Ronu Majumdar, is a renowned Indian flautist.
He is firmly rooted in the Maihar Gharana and trained under the guidance of his father Dr. Bhanu Majumdar, Pandit Lakshman Prasad Jaipurwale, Pandit Vijay Raghav Rao and Pandit Ravi Shankar. Majumdar has been felicitated with many accolades for his memorable performances worldwide.
Ulhas Kashalkar is an acclaimed vocalist from India. He was born into a family of musicians. His father, N D Kashalkar, a musician in his own right, initiated him into Indian classical music. He also received training from great masters such as Pandit Ram Marathe and Pandit Gajananbua Joshi.
U Rajesh is a notable mandolin artist from India. He is the brother of mandolin maestro U Shrinivas and began his training under the guidance of his father and brother.
The prodigies of classical music Shashank Subramanyam, Dr Prabha Atre, Anindo Chatterjee, Uday Bhawalkar, Sanjoy Bandopadhyay, and Rashid Khan will perform tonight, the third night of the event.
Earlier, Finance Minister Abul Mal Abdul Muhit, MP, inaugurated the festival at a gala opening ceremony as chief guest on Thursday.
The festival, which has globally been recognised as the greatest of its kind, is scheduled to remain open from 07.00pm to 05.00am until November 28.
The music buffs will also have the privilege of witnessing the performances of Munmun Ahmed, Nilesh Ranadive, Jayateerth Mevundi, Yogesh Samsi, Subhankar Banerjee, Ranjani, Gayatri, Tejendra Narayan Majumdar, Ajoy Chakrabarty, Shiv Kumar Sharma, Kumar Mardur, Kushal Das, Arati Ankalikar, and Hari Prasad Chaurasia.
A total 165 musicians from Bangladesh will be participating at the festival this year.
Organised by Bengal Foundation, presented by Square and supported by BRAC Bank Ltd, the five-day festival is dedicated to Syed Shamsul Haq.