King Lear,Odissi and the Sarod

A ‘By Invite only’ Festival,this year will have four performances from India,an exhibition on traditional Indian textiles and a talk by author-MP Shashi Tharoor,among others. Pandit Ravi Shankar returns to the festival after 27 years. He will perform ‘Evening Ragas’ at a concert. While Ustad Amjad Ali Khan will present the ‘Morning Ragas’,the Bangalore-based Odissi troupe Nrityagram Dance Ensemble will make its debut at the festival. The programme might seem unusual,as the festival is revered for abiding to Western classical traditions,but Mills assures this is not a gimmick. “I was curious to explore the time of the day concept in Indian classical music. The audience may not relate to it,but they will be interested. I want to highlight the importance of the atmosphere in Hindustani classical music. The time of the day you perform does not matter for a Beethoven symphony,” says Mills,who has been shuttling between India and Scotland for four years scouting for projects.

“The last five years were about shifting the central gravity of the festival away from being only about Europe,” says Mills,previously the artistic director of the Melbourne International Arts Festival and Brisbane Biennial International Music Festival.

Interpretations of Shakespere’s work will also be part of the festival. The Shanghai Peking Opera will present Hamlet in an acrobatic format and a Korean and Taipei-based group will present adaptations of King Lear and The Tempest.

The European performances have also been chosen keeping the Eastern sensibilities in mind. There will be British composer Jonathan Harvey,who is deeply influenced by Buddhist ideas and traditions. Amjad Ali Khan’s performance will be followed by an orchestra that will play late French composer,Olivier Messiaen’s symphonies,inspired by Hindustani rhythms and scales. “When one plays Messiaen’s compositions,a trained European ear notices that it is different from usual European classical music. The similarity to Hindustani music becomes clear after hearing the latter,” says Mills. Next year,the theme of the festival will be on the lines of the Olympic Games in London.

Curated For You

Amid rising complaints of stuck refunds, Income Tax Dept cites high ineligible claims; asks taxpayers to file revised ITRs

Supreme Court accepted govt’s 100-m Aravalli rule, its own panel had opposed it

Dhurandhar Box Office Worldwide Collection Day 19 Update: Ranveer’s film earns Rs 925 cr globally; Dhurandhar 2 to release pan-India