Bengal Classical Music Festival Bangladesh 2014 promises to deliver big, again
By Wafiur Rahman
Photo Mizanur Rahman Khoka
One of my friends, who, despite being a jazz music aficionado, had barely scraped through his life so far without listening to Indian classical music. But last year was the time when, at my behest, he attended the 4-day long Bengal ITC SRA Classical Music Festival 2013. After the event had concluded, his ignorance about how versatile and soothing classical music could be was drawn to his perception. He cited additional reasons for his newly-found love for the Subcontinent’s musical maestros – the event was well-organised, the crowd was well-behaved and attentive and the event had an aura of educating the audience and showing them how cool classical music could actually be.
Countless other people went through the same pseudo-metamorphosis, and to their delight, Bengal Foundation has brought the event back again this year. It will begin on November 27, and will go on till December 1. The show will open at 6:30PM daily, (6 PM on Friday 28th and Saturday 29th) and finish the following day at 5AM. Titled ‘Bengal Classical Music Festival Bangladesh 2014’ and dedicated to the eminent folk poet and lyricist Jasimuddin, it is being presented by Square Group. BRAC Bank Ltd is supporting the event.
Just like the previous two occasions, it will be held in the Army Stadium. After massive response from the audience and well-wishers, the event has extended itself to a five-day long musical bonanza (the initial festival in 2012 was three days and four days last year.) When it had initially begun in 2012, the festival’s purpose was to bring back the general listeners to classical music and enlighten today’s generation about the structures and technical beauty of it. Their success was amplified given their enthusiasm, disciplined concentration (given the high audience turnout,) their patience in listening to classical music and the ability to be enthralled by the overall experience.
The genres of music and dance forms that will be showcased in this year’s festival include Bharatnatyam, Kathak, Dhrupad and Kheyal. There is a substantial presence of Carnatic music – violin, percussion and vocal. Instrumentals will include solos and duets in the Sarod, Violin, Tabla, Sitar and Slide Guitar. Returning maestros will include Ustad Shahid Parvez Khan (sitar), Vidushi Girija Devi (kheyal and thumri), Pandit Shivkumar Sharma (Santoor), Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia (Flute), Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty (vocal) and Pandits Rajan and Sajan Mishra (vocal), and more. First timers will include the classical music icon Padmabhushan Vidushi Kishori Amonkar (kheyal), Padmabhushan Ustad Amjad Ali Khan (Sarod), Karaikudi Mani (carnatic percussionist), Ganesh Rajagopalan (Carnatic violin), and more. A total of 160 artists will be performing for close to 55 hours in these five days.
‘We are proud and excited that Bengal Classical Music Festival Bangladesh 2014 is going to be held,’ said Anjan Chowdhury, Managing Director of Square Group, at a press conference held on 23 October 2014. ‘It is our belief that Bengal Foundation and the classical music festival has expanded given its sheer success,’ he added, all the while pledging their allegiance to the festival in the years to come.
‘With all the Subcontinental artists and musical legends gracing us with their presence again this year, Bengal Foundation has achieved a hat-trick of successful organising,’ said Sadya Afreen Mallick, Editor of Arts and Entertainment at The Daily Star. She also thanked Bengal Foundation for proving that there are still a good number of listeners of classical music in Bangladesh. Sajjad Sharif, Managing Editor of Prothom Alo, had perceived Bengal Foundation’s initial vision regarding the festival as madness. He was late awe-struck by the level of discipline and organization, which he thinks has taken Bangladesh to newer heights. He also thanked the audience for making it possible thus far.
‘We were skeptical, whether the festival was only going to be held as a one-off event,’ said Syed Mahbubur Rahman, Managing Director and CEO of BRAC Bank Ltd, ‘but given the tremendous response from the music lovers of this country, BRAC Bank will try to patronise such events in order to eradicate moral and social decadence and give priority to the exposure of artistic excellence to the Bangladeshi people.’ Similarly, CEO of Maasranga Television, Syed Fahim Munaim, voiced his surprise that expatriate Bangladeshis have been seen to take leave from their work this time of the year, so that they can come to Bangladesh and witness this extravaganza firsthand.’
Abul Khair, Chairman of Bengal Foundation, spoke about his vision behind initiating the festival. “Many of the greats who introduced Indian classical music to the world, had their roots in East Bengal, but they moved in the wake of the Partition. I wanted to revive interest in classical music, and I knew that the only way it could be done would be to give it a powerful thrust, through a large-scale event. I knew that there were corporate benefactors who could be convinced, and a venue as big as the Army Stadium could be used. After massive audience commendation and high registration numbers, we knew that we had made it happen. As with all other Bengal Foundation endeavours, it is free for all. We will never compromise on quality or any other attribute of the event. We hope that the audience and the patrons would be with us in the years to come.’
Maasranga Television is the broadcast partner, ABC Radio the radio partner and ICE Today the media partner, of the event. Prothom Alo and The Daily Star are strategic partners. Amari Dhaka has joined as the hospitality partner. Square Hospitals is the medical partner. The event will be managed by Blues Communications.
