There is an alluring quality about rivers that is best experienced when you see it for yourself. And when this is captured musically it can elevate the experience to another level. And this is what Indian Youth Symphony is all about. Conceptualised by flautist Praveen Godkhindi this is based on a narrative by theatre director and playwright S Surendranath. The sets and lights are designed by Surendranath himself. The costumes have been designed by Divya Runwal with Vasanthi Hariprakash is the voice in this narrative.
Surendranath explains how he is bringing together 22 brilliant young musicians, in the age group of 16 to 24, to perform in an ensemble that is based on a narrative.
“The narrative is about River Cauvery - the music flows in the manner that Cauvery flows from her birth till she merges with the sea - so many moods, so many colours and such variation in just one river and that is what the music will reflect. These youngsters learn from different schools of music and rarely do they get an opportunity like this where they get together to learn from a different Guru altogether,” says Surendranath.
Praveen Godkhindi avers, “the show is about bringing youngsters come together to make music - ensemble music is rare in Indian classical music and it is always a great feeling when one gets to work together. The music has been composed based on a narrative that has been conceptualised by well-known theatre director and playwright S Surendranath. To me, it was a wonderful challenge to compose music for this narrative. Acoustic instruments bring an original sound that is unmatched. We are always very excited to work with acoustic instruments and I want the youngsters to appreciate the difference too.”
The artistes include Srilakshmi Belmannu, Swati S Pandit, Sanjana Rao, Rakshita Bhaskar, Arundhati Dattaraj, Sumadhur AD, Venkat Athreya, Omkar Amarnath, Dhanuh Jagadish and Manojavvam Athreya in vocals, Rakshita Ramesh on Veena, Krithik Koushik, Archana Marathe, Sanath Kumar Naibhi and Rajagopalan on Violin, Shadaj Godkhindi, Shashank Jodidar and Rakesh Dath on Flute and Vinod Shyam Anoor, Prabodh Shyam Anoor, Roopak Kallurkar and Pranav Dutt on Rhythms.
Gayathri Krishna, the managing trustee of Bhoomija says, “youngsters, acoustic instruments, a well-known theatre director who has woven a narrative, an extraordinary flautist wielding the baton, an aesthetic set, lighting and costume design, and an energetic voice for the narrative text - all the ingredients of a signature Bhoomija ensemble.” Get ready for a magnificent symphony and ensemble of Indian music that is sure to make you appreciate the nuances music in a new light.
