Learnquest Baithak Forum: A Fitting Finale to a Spectacular 2010 year; by Phil Kaplan, Music Director, House of Bangalore/IndiaPartyMusic.com; Guitar Faculty, Learnquest Academy of Music, Waltham MA.

When it comes to propagating Indian classical music to the public at large, Jawed Wahid, Dr. Pradeep Shukla, Prem Nagar, and Derbashis Chowdhury are men on a mission. And this past Saturday December 11, they  have done it again by capping their first complete year of offering a “Baithak” concert series, at Mr. Wahid’s home-based recital hall, with a grand finale program including some of the best local and international talent currently performing Hindustani classical music.  

The Learnquest Baithak concert series is yet another brainchild of Mssrs. Wahid, Shukla, et al., of Learnquest Music Conference fame. The Conference is an annual music festival that has been occurring around the Easter Weekend in April every year since 2005, and it has become a coveted stop on the international performing artist circuit. Now they have brought us a year of Baithak, an more intimate listening experience for the novice and initiate alike.

“Hindustani Classical Music is traditionally a ‘baithak’ style of music,” explains Mr. Wahid. “In an intimate setting, an artist and music lovers can experience music together and music can reach unexpected heights, often lost in a large concert hall setting.”  

For an annual fee, members of the Learnquest Baithak Forum gain access at no extra charge to a series of 5 to 7 concerts offered at Mr. Wahid’s lovely home in Framingham, MA. There is usually a break mid-way through the evening programs for tea and snacks. Non-members may also attend for an individual fee. All may enjoy an up-close-and-personal experience of the artistry, breadth and width of Indian classical music, where one literally rubs elbows with some of today’s foremost proponents of the tradition. The 2010 season’s roster has featured truly luminous performances by artists needing no introduction to aficionados, including the Gundecha Brothers, Pt. Vinayak Torvi, Kaivalya Kumar, Jayateerth Mevundi, Viraj Amar, Anirban Dasgupta, and many others.

This past Saturday’s finale event was no exception, featuring an exceptional line-up: Dr. George Ruckert (sarod), Shuchita Rao (vocal), Debi Prasad Chatterji (sitar) and Sandip Ghosh(vocal). Particular mention should be made of vocalist Shuchita Rao, who offered a deep, mature Bageshri, marvelously balancing this great raag’s combination of pathos and stateliness,  followed by a lively khyaal in Desh Malhar, “Kesariya baalam” bringing joyful folk appeal of Rajasthaan and ending with the famous ghazal “Ranjish hi sahi” by poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz. Shuchita Rao, who initially learned from Malini Rajurkar of Gwalior gharana received further guidance from Pt. Ajay Pohankar, Pt. Vinayak Torvi and is now a student of Dhrupad studying with the Gundecha Brothers and teaching it at LearnQuest, should be considered a “local” artist only in the mere fact of where she currently resides. Her long and deep commitment to music shines through in her imaginative and confident command of swarvistar and her rhythmically and melodically inventive taans. “Shuchita has set the bar high for Baithak series” commented concert attendee Dr. Akshay Dalal.

May the Learnquest Baithak series become a permanent addition to the plethora of opportunities to appreciate Indian classical music that our New England region is blessed with! For more information on membership to Baithak, please contact Jawed Wahid at jawed.wahid@pcholo.com, Pradeep Shukla at shuklaemail@yahoo.com, Prem Nagar at premnagar@gmail.com, or Debashis Roy Chowdhury at debashis.05@gmail.com.

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