It was in the early 1990s, I got to attend the prestigious Sawai Gandharva music festival organized by the late Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi in Pune, India. What an extraordinary experience it was, to sit with music lovers who congregated from all over the country to savor Hindustani classical music of the highest caliber. The people I sat next to were in a sense strangers, since I did not know them personally, and, yet, I could share with them the joy of experiencing great performances and feel an unexplainable bond with them. Artists, actors, musicians, writers and dancers mingled with the general public under large white tents pitched in large open grounds from dusk to dawn and travelled through myriad, enchanting aural soundscapes painted in the air by master musicians.  When I relocated to the United States, I imagined that memories of the festival would be all that I would be able to carry in my heart to cherish for the rest of my life. I have been pleasantly surprised at how wrong my prediction turned out to be. Annual music festivals and Baithak series organized by LearnQuest Academy in Boston, music festivals organized by Chandaayan of New York City the for the last 12 years, Cleaveland Thyagaraja Aradhana, CMANA of New Jersey, Swarganga of Atlanta and initiatives by several other music organizations in United States are succeeding extremely well in popularizing Indian Classical Music in a foreign land.

Samir Chatterjee’s Chhandayaan Center for Indian Music held an all night festival on  Saturday,May 14, 2011 in the heart of Manhattan, NYC at the New York Society of Ethical Culture.  There was something extra special about the listening to Hindustani classical music in a house of worship. It felt like homage was being paid to a divine art form that bound performers and listeners into a spirit of sacred communion. The high ceiling was covered with ornate white arches. Tall wooden statues flanked the center-stage decorated quite simply with colorful vases of flowers. A large bronze chandelier provided the perfect lighting in a large semi-circular space filled with rows of black wooden benches. A sign behind the stage read “The place where people meet to seek the highest ground is holy ground.” The high quality acoustics brought listeners together into a haven of melody and rhythm where shared joy of music being presented was communicated sometimes through silent, appreciative glances and at other times with thunderous applause and standing ovations. The performers were dressed in fine Indian attire and Pandit Samir Chatterjee's change of costume for every new recital was testimony to the attention given to the visual aspect of performance.

A couple hundred die-hard classical music afficianados, some of whom had driven down from Boston and New Jersey and some of whom flew down from Los Angeles gathered together to listen to them while thunder, lightning soaked Manhattan streets in a powerful rainstorm. Early evening ragas such as Yaman melted into late night ragas such as Jog and Darbari and sweet Alhaiyya Bilawal beckoned the first rays of sunlight. Between the majestic, powerful, deep strokes on the Sarod, the rich sounds of sitar and the emotional outpourings of the muscle of the soul, the human voice, a fine feast of musical creations marked by rich imagination and spontaneity was presented to listeners.


How did the performances engage the attention of the audience through 10 hours of the night?  A Rabindra Sangeet presentation entitled “Rabi-Shastriya” marked a special beginning to the evening’s proceedings. Rabindra Sangeet compositions and their counterparts in Hindustani classical music set to ragas such as Kaafi, Des,Nat Malhar were performed with flair by a team of accomplished musicians such as vocalists Stanley Scott, Tandra Das and Samarth Nagarkar, sarod player Anirban Dasgupta, violin player Trina Basu, tabla players Stephen Celluci and Kedarnath Havaldar. It was evident that considerable thought had been given to the orchestration aspect of the presentation. The melodious music created an atmosphere of peace and harmony.

Vidushi Veena Sahasrabuddhe's open-throated, deeply melodious classical presentation had an almost “austere” quality about it. Imaginative vocal support by Jayanti Sahasrabuddhe enhanced the singing with a touch of rich synchronicity. An in-depth presentation of the evergreen Yaman and Rageshri  ragas with proper attention paid to presenting raga-grammar with appealing nuance, elegance of lyrics in the compositions presented, a taraana presentation in a perfectly controlled tempo, the presentation of a unique ragamala that spanned 14 different ragas through seamless transitions and a concluding, spiritually uplifting Nirguni bhajan were the highlights of Dr. Sahasrabuddhe's recital. She shared her pleasure on the wonderful reverb in the concert hall in a brief address to the audience after her recital.

Pandit Sanjeev Abhyankar's presentation of ragas Jog and Chandrakauns were marked by clever use of sargam in alaaps and taans. His mellifluous, well modulated voice, his long perches on higher notes, subtle and supportive tabla accompaniment by Rohit Majumdar and flawless reproduction of melodic notes on harmonium by Tanmoy Deochake made his presentation special. A short lecture demonstration on Khyaal music towards the end proved popular with the lay listeners.

Alam Khan's poignant presentation of alaap-jod-jhaala in raga Darbaari Kaanada was followed by a composition in raga Kirwani. The clarity, texture and range of sounds produced by the sarod had an almost hypnotic quality about them. Alam Khan showed depth in imagination and a confident sawaal jawaab exchange with tabla exponent Nitin Mitta was electrifying. The concluding piece in raga Maanjh-khamaj brought memories of his father, the late Ustad Ali Akbar Khan to the minds of the listeners. Alam , the youngest son of the legendary Ustad, spoke in an emotionally touching manner about his father. “My father said that my training is far from over. This music takes many many years to learn. The journey can be frustrating but I continue to stay with it because of my Guru, GOD, artists and listeners like you who come and show their support.”

Kaushiki Chakrabarty presented ragas Abhogi, Charukesi and a dadra in raga mishra Pahaadi. Her melodious voice, good looks, extraordinary command on alankaar patterns and facile use of ornaments such as meend, gamak, khatka and kan to embellish her singing, choice of compositions authored by her guru Shri Gyan Prakash Ghosh, her sweet interaction with accompanying artists Kedar Naphade on harmonium and Samir Chatterjee on tabla  made her presentation a  success. Celebrated movie maker Mira Nair sitting next to me in the audience called her performance “Stunning!” Kaushiki's pleasant stage manners and humility, her request to the audience to bless her young 18 month old son so he may become a great musician tugged on hearts of each and every member of the audience, reminding them of the universal and matchless power of mother's love.

Ustad Shujaat Khan presented raga Alhaiyya Bilawal on sitar accompanied by Pandit Samir Chatterjee. He spoke about the importance of time theory of presentation of ragas, a concept unique to North Indian Classical music. He also sang two simple devotional compositions that brought out the essence of Alhaiyya Bilawal. Christine Lafata , a New York city resident who has attended the Chhandaayan all-night concerts for 8 years commented on the universality of music. I may not understand the words of what is being sung but the music still touches me deep inside. Over the years I have learned how people from Indian subcontinent appreciate a good performance. They say Waah Waah loudly.”        

A drive from Boston to New York city and back seemed like a small price to pay for the soul uplifting experience that renewed the heart and mind’s capacity to wonder and delight in the joy of experiencing spontaneous creation of music in a concert setting. The magic of the performances has stayed as fresh in my mind as the performances of famous sitarist Pandit Ravi Shankar and vocalist Malini Rajurkar that I enjoyed two decades back while attending the Sawai Gandharva festival in Pune, India. I hope that New England will become a hub for the preservation and continuity of our rich Indian classical traditions in the United States.

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