World Music Day: Singers to celebrate all genres of Bengali music

The City of Joy always had its lion’s share of musical talent; from  brilliant composers like Rabindranath Tagore to Kazi Nazrul Islam to prolific singers like Kishore Kumar, Rafi brothers to Sandhya Mukhopadhyay, the list is endless.

On the occasion of World Music Day on June 20, singers from all genres of Bengali music will come together to perform in Gaanbandhura, a unique showcase of traditional and modern Bengali music on stage.

Noted singer Riddhi Bandyopadhyay and her organisation ‘A Step for Music’ is putting together the 

first segment of the show, which will be marked by Rabindra Sangeet, Nazrul Geeti, Atul Prosad’s songs, toppa songs and songs from Bengali theatre. Renowned Rabindra Sangeet exponent Srabani Sen, and Riddhi Bandyopadhyay, an expert in multiple genres, will perform on this occasion.

Sidhu, lead singer of the famous Bangla band Cactus, will also perform Tagore’s songs, which will be rendered in English on stage.

“The script will weave together the thoughts of famous wordsmiths like Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Tagore and Kazi Nazrul Islam on the subject of music”,  Riddhi Bandyopadhyay, also the scriptwriter, told Millennium Post. 

In the second segment, put together by singer Prabir Das of Wizard Events, songs by modern musical legends like Geeta Dutt,  Sandhya Mukhopadhyay and Talat Mehmood will be featured. 

There will be a folk segment as well, since the state has a rich tradition of folk music. Other performers for the evening will include Kinjal, Dipanwita Acharya, Parama, Arpan, Gaurab Das, Shom Chatterjee, Somdatta, Aveek Mallick, Mounita, Madhurima and so on.

International Music Day was initiated in 1975 by legendary American violinist and composer Lord Yehudi Menuhin to encourage the promotion of music in all countries and among all sections of society.

The application of the UNESCO ideals of peace and friendship between people, of the evolution of 

their cultures, of the exchange of experience and of the mutual appreciation of their aesthetic values was the context. “This could be an annual event from now on,” indicated Das.