A medley of beats and tunes

Celebrating the bicentennial anniversary of the legendary Polish pianist Chopin in India,

the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in collaboration with the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, the Bangalore School of Music and Alliance Francaise presented Universal Chopin; an evening of Chopindiana music and dance.

The Embassy of the Republic of Poland is collaborating with a number of institutions all over India to organise music recitals year-round in honour of the great Polish pianist.

The event had the renowned Polish piano maestro Jerzy Sterczynski enamour the audiences with some of the greatest works of Chopin along with Madhu Nataraj and Stem Kampani, who enthralled the people with their interpretation of Chopin’s scores. This initiative was held as part of inter-cultural exchange between the two nations.

The event began with Janusz Wach, the counsel general, Republic of Poland,
addressing the crowd. Appreciating the music lovers in Bangalore, he said that Bangalore was one of the first choices as the people here truly appreciate the music of the master pianist and there also existed an openness to broaden cultural relationships between the two countries.

Talking about Chopin, he said, “He is a national treasure and his compositions are timeless. His compositions drove and inspired the Polish people to sustain language, Polish heritage and national identity.”

After this maestro Jerzy Sterczynski  took centre stage and moved the audience with  Chopin’s Mazurkas. What followed after that was the highlight of the evening, where maestro Sterczynski performed Chopin’s Barkarola while Madhu Nataraj and Stem Kampani provided an unusual dance recital.

It was a bold attempt at combining the music of Chopin with Indian dance moves. The piece included artistic representation of water and a boat – using flowing white and blue cloth and wave like movements synonymous with the theme of Barkarola, a romantic number on a boat, and traces its origins to the Venetian gondola song.

The dancers also had something to offer to their Polish counterparts which were truly Indian. They performed three other pieces; Tandav, Mandala and Sanjog, displaying various styles of the Indian dance to different Indian beats.

The event ended with the dancers again taking centre stage for the colourful swinging interpretation to the strains of Chopin’s Concerto in e minor. They infused a new dimension to Chopin’s scores creating an Indo-Polish union that was unforgettable.