14 bands from seven South Asian nations to perform in Delhi

New Delhi, Feb 19 (IANS) Fourteen contemporary music ensembles from across seven South Asian countries will treat music lovers in the capital to new trends in contemporary rhythms and sounds during the Feb 20-22 South Asian Bands Festival.

According to Sanjeev Bhargava, director of the music festival, the event will bring some of the best fusion music bands from the sub-continent.

'It is primarily for the youth. This is the second edition of the festival and the line-up is top of the chain,' Bhargava said at a press conference here Thursday.

The festival, which will be held at the 16th century Old Fort, is being presented by SEHER, a Delhi-based cultural platform, in association with the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) and the external affairs ministry.

ICCR director general Pavan Kumar Varma said the festival will feature young talent from seven countries across South Asia, highlighting the fact that music 'knows no boundaries and can play a significant role in strengthening people-to-people contact'.

The foreign bands that will perform at the festival include Aryan Band (Afghanistan), Miles (Bangladesh), Soul Sounds (Sri Lanka), Robin & The Revolution (Nepal), Trio (Maldives) and Who's Your Daddy (Bhutan).

The Indian bands participating in the festival are Parikrama (New Delhi), Them Clones (New Delhi), Jasbir Jassi (New Delhi), Shaair + Func (Mumbai), Agnee Band (Pune), Swarathma (Bangalore) and Skinny Alley (Kolkata).

'The festival will also see the rare appearance of Vishal-Shekhar from Mumbai,' said Bhargava.

Music directors and composers Vishal and Shekhar made an indelible impact on the Bollywood musical landscape when they shot to prominence with the score of the movie, 'Jhankaar Beats'. They have also composed the music for other Bollywood hits like 'Om Shanti Om', 'Bachna Ae Haseeno' and 'Dostana'.

The duo combines techno music with Indian sounds. While Vishal is a rock artist with the rock band Pentagram, Shekhar is a trained classical singer with grounding in Indian music.

'Our music is a combination of Indian classical with western rock influence and it is the fun of music that brings us together to create the well-loved music of the energetic hybrid genre that is Bollywood music,' Vishal said.

The festival, which was first held in November-December 2007, drew a packed house.

'Youngsters flocked to the festival, representing a new era of creative interaction. We are sure that the festival this year will be as successful as last time,' Varma said.

Copyright  IANS

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