KMMC Joined Hands with British Council, Sunshine Orchestra Chennai and Nagaland & Sistema Scotland, for the ‘Concert for Friendship’, as part of India/UK Together, a Season of Culture
KM Music Conservatory joined hands with the Sunshine Orchestra, Chennai and Nagaland Chapters, under the auspices of the A.R. Rahman Foundation for the Concert for Friendship as part of the India/UK Together, a Season of Culture, launched by British Council to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Indian independence. The Season of Culture aims to celebrate the rich cultural heritage of both nations, while foster artistic excellence among emerging young talents in the Arts, Education and English across India, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales.
For the project, the KM strings and chamber choir, in collaboration with British Council, were joined by teams of young musicians, mostly 16-18 year olds, from Scotland-based charity organisation, Sistema Scotland’s immersive Big Noise programme were flown in. Two teams from Big Noise Raploch (Stirling) and Big Noise Gavonhill (Glasgow) participated in this unique project. Eight orphans, aged 8-10, from the Sunshine Orchestra Nagaland in association with the Task Force of Music and Arts, Nagaland, also joined in.
A hectic but fulfilling week of outreach, workshops and cultural exchange and interaction were planned for the young participants. On Day 1, a visit to the Dakshinachitra Heritage Museum, and the Kapaleeswarar Temple, ended with a fun evening at the beach. A workshop was held at the Bala Vidya Mandir, a senior secondary school, in association with Rhapsody Music Education. Day 2 saw an afternoon of musical extravaganza at the Tamil Nadu Dr. J. Jayalalitha Music and Fine Arts University. The Concert for Friendship teams were exposed to Indian dance forms and the diverse cultures came together in a fascinating melting pot as the guests from Nagaland and Scotland were introduced to Indian classical music traditions and instruments. Rigorous rehearsals continued every day at KM.
On March 4, a matinee rehearsal concert was held in collaboration with Ability Foundation, for children who would otherwise be unable to access symphonic music. This concluded with a sensory tour of the instruments, in association with Access for All.
The evening of March 4 at the Sir Mutha Venkatasubba Rao Concert Hall was graced A.R. Rahman, Founder-Principal, KM Music Conservatory, Founding Director, AR Rahman Foundation and the Brand Ambassador for the India/UK Together, a Season of Culture, Oliver Ballhatchet MBE, the British Deputy High Commissioner in Chennai, Thiru Anbil Mahesh Poyyamuzhi, Hon’ble Minister of School Education, Tamil Nadu, and Janaka Pushpanathan, Director South India-British Council, among others.
The concert began with the students of the Tamil Nadu Dr. J. Jayalalitha Music and Fine Arts University, taking the stage along with the orchestra to sing the state anthem, Tamizh Thai Vazthu. This was followed by a superb blend of different musical traditions, from western opera, orchestral renditions of songs based on Carnatic raagas, and folk music from Tamil Nadu, Nagaland and Scotland. The audience sat spellbound as the orchestra played Tyagaraja’s Malavyalakinchara, Richard Strauss’s Wiener Philharmoniker Fanfare, the Carmen Overture from Bizet’s celebrated opera, ‘Carmen’, Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg’s Morning Mood and In the Hall of the Mountain King from ‘Peer Gynt’, or the soulful folk tunes of Oh Hi Yo (Naga), Hermosa Escosia or Azhagana Scotland (Scottish), and Thottu Kada (Tamil) complete with the beating of drums.
Soprano Divya S. Iyer, an alumnus of the KM Music Conservatory, gave a stunning solo rendition of the celebrated ‘Habanera’ aria from the opera Carmen, and a medley of Puccini’s O mio babbino caro and Si, mi chiamano Mimi. American guitarist, composer and KM faculty, Matt Bacon performed the world premiere of his original composition, ‘Malabar’. The spectacular evening came to an appropriate climax as the Sunshine Orchestra brass and the KM Chamber choir joined the orchestra for Beethoven’s ‘Ode to Joy’.
All performers were congratulated for the grand success by Dr. Rahman, the British Deputy High Commissioner, the Hon’ble Minister for School Education, TN, and the Director South India-British Council, as they took to the stage afterwards for felicitations.
