Fireflies Inter Cultural Centre is holding its annual music festival at its premises at Dinnepalya off Kanakapura Road on February 23. Starting around six in the evening it will continue, with short breaks, till 7 morning on the next day.  Held in the open-air amphitheatre under a huge banyan tree overlooking a large pond, the festival is part of the World Association of Festivals of Sacred Music. In fact, the setting itself has become a part of the attraction to draw more and more people every year; last year the audience numbered over 2,000.

Creating awareness

Now in its fifth year, the festival has used music to raise awareness on issues such as peace in the world, water, trees, and an inner and outer journey. This year’s theme is the plight of the adivasis.

A wide ensemble of music awaits the audience. Included in the list of over 10 bands are Emergence, an acoustic Indo-fusion band from the International Township of Auroville; Glenn Rogers; a guitarist-composer from Australia who is an adept at a variety of styles such as northern Indian classical, European classical, Brazilian, Euro jazz, bebop and 20th century classical; R K Padmanabha from Mysore,  Esperanto, a Bangalore-based band seeking to transcend cultural lines with its unique sound of hypnotic notes; and Oikyotaan, combining traditional and modern sounds to create a new genre incorporating folk music with innovative sounds and textures, folk songs of Kabir from Malva by Shabnam Virmani and Dipta Bhog, Qawali by Salim Bhai and group, Karnataka folk form Puje Kunita, Swaratma led by Vasu Dixit , and  alternative grunge band 777, and many more.

Gandhian approach

Fireflies is an institution that comes under Pipal Tree, a non-profit charitable trust working with tribal people, women, small farmers and children. The goal is  sustainable development and environmental regeneration. The approach is strictly Gandhian.

There will be food and beverage stalls to cater to the needs of the audience.
The passes are available at Reynolds inc. and Sudhir Medicals in Jayanagar and at the venue on the day of the show.

For more details call 9972504006.