Rhythm Divine

“What makes me very happy is that the second performance will be in Jerusalem,the birthplace of Christianity,Judaism and Islam. Thus,I get to voice the philosophy of the Bhagwad Gita in the citadel of the world’s other major religions,” says Sohal,considered the most accomplished Indian composer of western classical music. Lauding his efforts,the Indian government had awarded him the Padma Shri in 1987.

The piece on the Bhagwad Gita,called the Divine Song,for instance,starts with conch shells,symbolising the start of the war as well as the start of the piece. Arjun’s anguish as he sees his own kinsmen lined up opposite him,is depicted through dignified strokes while Krishna’s arrival is heralded through flute and celestial sounds like harps and bells. “This music evokes a sense of stillness because if the Lord of the Universe can’t be still,who can?” says Sohal.

Is there an added significance in having Israeli musicians play about a war between two branches of the same family? Sohal says the West Bank and Palestine were far from his mind during the one year he took to compose the piece. “This is a parable about making the right decisions every day. It is not a justification of war,” he adds. Moreover,the piece was commissioned by Zubin Mehta in 2006 to celebrate his own 70 th birthday and it was Mehta who chose the Israel Philharmonic.