The splendour of notes

Splendor of Masters’, organised by Banyan Tree, was held at the Chowdaiah Memorial Hall recently.

The concert saw a mix of musical styles and featured five great artistes from the world of music — Shujaat Khan on sitar, Prasanna on guitar, Phil Mathurano on drums and Selvaganesh on khanjira with vocals by Abhishek Raghuram.

The concert began with a solo piece by sitar maestro Shujaat Khan who presented raga Yaman in Hindustani style, which was thoroughly enjoyed by the audience. The second piece, which was a Carnatic one, was performed by Prasanna and Abhishek Raghuram and got an enthusiastic response. This was followed a solo khanjira performance by Selvaganesh, where he played a variety of notes. A jugalbandhi between Selvaganesh and Phil Mathurano followed after this, where both the artistes showcased their skills at the instruments.

The concert came to an end with all the artistes coming together to present fusion music, from Hindustani to Carnatic and jazz.

The audience was delighted at the variety of music it got to hear.

   Suprato Baghini, a fan of Carnatic music, said that he had come to listen to his favourite form of music. “It was a blessing to hear both Hindustani and Carnatic music on the same platform. Even though both the styles are classical, they vary in format. And despite being from the older generation, I really enjoyed the fusion of the two styles,” said Suprato.

While these artistes represented different styles and were individualistic in terms of their techniques, together they created magic. “It was like having a musical menu in front of you and being allowed to choose the style of music you like. With the drum beats and khanjira, the music which came together from different parts of the world was the perfect mix,” shared Ragini Dwarkanath.

Those who had attended the earlier editions of the musical event were glad that they hadn’t missed the show. “There was another event I had to go for. But I chose to come here because my mother is a fan of classical music and has attended the earlier editions of this show. I’m glad we came here as this was such a joyful yet peaceful experience,” said Nirupen Das, a college student.