Attend this music festival in Mumbai to celebrate classical string instruments

Vijay Ghate and Joydeep Mukherjee

It is believed that the sacred syllable ‘om' gave birth to kantha sangeet or vocal music in India. Vadya sangeet or instrumental music, which came later, began with plucking of a bow's string to release an arrow. This music produced by the then seemingly single-functioned violent weapon birthed an array of calming classical stringed instruments across India.

Over time, our ears have been trained to focus on the overpowering vocals of recorded songs. We often miss the beautiful medley of instruments in the background that ensures the enhancement of the vocal experience. In an attempt to retrain our listening skills, the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA) is back with its tenth edition of Saz-e-Bahar: Festival of Indian Instrumental Music.

"If you look at any commercial music performance or concert, you will notice that instruments act as companions to vocal music," shares multi-instrumentalist Joydeep Mukherjee. "But in classical music, instrumental music is as important as the vocals." Mukherjee is largely credited for his pre-eminent role in reviving some of the lost Indian instruments.

Mukherjee, who masters the sarod - a fretless sitar-like stringed instrument generally associated with North India - revived and aced the mohan veena, which had gone extinct by the middle of the 20th century, and the sursingar - which is generally played alongside Dhrupad - the country's oldest surviving classical vocal genre.

"I have no favourites among the three," he admits, adding, "But if I had to pick one, it would be the mohan veena because it is like a bridge between sursingar and sarod. It has a unique, combining sound of the two."

Mukherjee, winner of Sangeet Natak Akademi's Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar, will be seen playing on the second day of the two-day-schedule of Saz-e-Bahar. He will be putting up a show with alap-jor-jhala on sursingar and gats; a fixed melody in a raga, on mohan veena. His performance on the mohan veena will be complemented by jodi, another rare instrument created by the fifth Sikh guru, Guru Arjan Devji.

"When you attend the performance, expect something new and innovative. What I am playing was last played before 1950. Both my instruments are coupled with rare percussion," he explains. The festival will also witness performances by Padma Shri awardee tabla player Vijay Ghate with U Rajesh on mandolin on day one, and Kushal Das playing the sitar on day two.

ON April 14 to 15; 6 pm onwards
AT NCPA, Nariman Point.
LOG ON TO in.bookmyshow.com
COST Rs 200 onwards