Citi | @NCPA from hene te eternity : festival of indian music Celebrating the Guru-Shishya tradition Pune |Chennai | Mumbai | Hyderabad | BangaloreAadi - the beginning, Anant - the timeless, the eternal, the one that has no end.... ‘The concept of Eternity is intrinsic to Indian philosophy, where the soul is regarded as timeless, imperishable and eternal, and the time is viewed as not linear but a cyclical entity. While in Tantric Buddhism, the concept of an endless cycle of time (kaalachakra) expresses the idea of a never-ending cycle of not only existence butalso knowledge. In the domain of Indian arts, notion of Eternity has dual expression. On one hand, artistic traditions are perpetuated from one generation to the next in an uninterrupted manner through the age-old institution of Guru (mentor) and shishya (disciple). In the eternal stream of time and knowledge, Guru-s groom shishya-s, who in turn don the mantle of Guru and the cycle thus continues... On the other hand, every generation witnesses a rise of creative minds, who strive to push the boundaries of tradition in pursuit of exploring new horizons. Such creative process ushersin changes in the tradition, which are carried forward, thus helping to redefine and rejuvenate traditions, and safeguard their survival for posterity, AAs trendsetters in their respective fields, CITI and NCPA stand committed to uphold the Indian heritage. Together, we are proud to present the fifth edition of ‘CITI-NCPA Aadi Anant festival’ across five cities: Pune, Chennai, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru, ‘The festival showcases celebrated Guru-s with their shishya-sasa testimony to the perpetuation of our traditions, We will also feature works that are deeply ‘embedded in the tradition, and yet seek to reach out in to the infinite realms of creativity, inspired by the changing socio - cultural milieu in which the next generation ofthe artistes are being groomed, With this festival, we salute our artistic legacy as well as heartily welcome the innovative endeavours, with a hope that together we can nurture and nourish creative excellence and enrich our heritage forthe benefit of generations to follow. Dr.Suvarnalata Rao Head Programming-Indian Music NCPA,Sunday, November 22, 2015, 5.30 pm Annabhau Sathe Auditorium, Pune Niladri Kumar (surbahar, sitar & zitar) with Satyajit Talwalkar (tabla) Gino Banks (drums) Sheldon D'silva (bass) Agnelo Fernandes (keyboards) Sridhar Parthasarathy (mridangam) ‘Throughout the past two millennia and more, Indian music has evolved assimilating changes from within and outside, Although at times imperceptible, there has always been a tradition of change. In every generation creative minds venture on the path less travelled, enriching the available musical palette with newer sounds and artistic expressions. The tradition thusremainsina constant flux. ‘This dynamics of boundaries and beyond’ is mirrored in the ensemble of talented young musicians led by Niladri Kumar. A fifth generation sitar player, Niladri has trained with his father, Kartick Kumar, who has had the privilege of learning from his father and other great masters, including the legendary maestro Ravi Shankar. Having emerged as one of the most promising sitar players of his generation, Niladri has become an icon of the youth with his innovation of zitar, an electric sitar, which has opened new avenues to connect the younger audiences with their roots through the language and sounds they are able torelateto. The group presents a sonic journey where tradition meets innovation, and goes beyond, with a musical dialogue across traditional acousticinstruments such as the surbahar, sita mridangam, tabla and drums, and electric instruments like zitarand the keyboard.Saturday, November 28, 2015, 6.30 pm TTK Madras Music Academy Auditorium, Chennai Zakir Hussain (tabla) with Rakesh Chaurasia (bansuri) {As one of India's leading percussive instruments, tabla has played a vital role in shaping the presentation of Hindustani music and Kathake dance, Although conventionally the tabla players were merely expected to provide rhythmic accompaniment, in recent times, the tabla players have had scope to play a more active and creative role, ‘Thus lending a new dimension to the aesthetics of the overall presentation, As a result today, the tabla player is recognised as an integral part of a performance. In this regard, the contribution made by Zakir Hussain, the Internationally renowned tabla maestro, is indeed invaluable. In this performance, the inimitable master will showcase the versatility of tabla by presenting a solo as well as providing rhythmic accompaniment to bansuri, a bamboo flute of ancient origin, Rakesh Chaurasia is a prominent instrumentalist representing the younger generation of musicians who have had the exposure to world music,Saturday, December 5, 2015, 6.30 pm Tata Theatre, Mumbai Zakir Hussain (tabla) with Kumaresh Rajagopalan (violin) & Jayanthi Kumaresh (veena) ‘The past few decades have seen emergence of several accomplished musicians who have felt a need to relate the inherited idioms with ‘contemporary reality, and thus extend the frontiers of their respective traditions, either by exploring new content or by collaborating with practitioners of otherinstrumentsand /genres. Rightly regarded as one of the architects of contemporary world music movement, Zakir Hussain's trend-setting work with artistes from diverse traditions has resulted in many historic collaborations. ‘The inimitable master collaborates with Kumaresh and Jayanthi, a talented couple trained in the South Indian tradition, The exploration, will culminate in a musical dialogue between instruments from different cultures, While the vena is regarded as acelestial instrument dating back to the antiquity, tabla is a relatively modern instrument (mid 18th century); whereas violin is adapted in to Indian tradition fromthe West (late 18th century), ‘Though bound by the technicalities of individual instruments and aesthetics of their traditions, the artistes will strive for a musical dialogue, going beyond the conventional vocabulary and expressions. Thus illuminating the unity underlying the diversity of musical traditions.Sunday, December 6, 2015, 6.30 pm Tata Theatre, Mumbai Rajan & Sajan Mishra (vocal) with Ritesh & Rajnish Mishra (vocal) supported by Arvind Kumar Azad (tabla) Arvind Thatte (harmonium) Benaras, also known as Varanasi or Kashi, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Situated on the banks of river Ganga, this holy city has been a symbol of religious and, cultural ethos for several centuries. Artistically the region around Benaras came to be known for its distinct style, especially in the field of vocal music, dance and tabla. The khayal tradition of Benaras boasts of a history that is 300 years old along with an equally rich semi-classical and folk repertoire that is today recognised as a hallmark of this region, Rajan and Sajan Mishra had the rare privilege of receiving training from Bade Ramdas, the doyen of Benaras gharana, and from their father Hanuman Prasad Mishra as well as their uncle, the sarangi virtuoso Gopal Prasad Mishra. Their lyrical yet dynamic expression and poetically rich repertoire exemplify the quintessential features of their gharana The duo, along with Ritesh and Rajnish, their senior disciples (and sons of Rajan Mishra), will present individually and together, traditional compositions in common and rare raga-s and tala-s, in the idiom and aesthetics typical to the Benaras gharana,Sunday, February 21, 6.30 pm Chowdaiah Memorial Hall, Bengaluru Rashid Khan (vocal) with Nagesh Adgaonkar (vocal) supported by ‘Murad Ali Khan (sarangi) Alay Joglekar (harmonium) Shubhankar Banerjee (tabla) Hindustani music, also known as North Indian music, finds expression through various genres, each having an idiom, character and aesthetics, of ts own, Khayal is one of the widely practiced genres today, and the gharana-s (schools) associated with it are identified by their distinct styles resulting from specialisation with respect to the voice production and specifictechniques used forunfoldinga raga, Rashid Khan and his disciple Nagesh Adgaonkar represent Rampur- Sahaswan gharana, in which the musical expression is also influenced by string instruments like rudravina and sursingar. The gharana treasures some exquisite compositions of chhota khayal and tarana composed by its legendary practitioners, which have also been adopted by performers of other gharana-s. The exploration of raga in this style shows considerable emphasis on taan-s (fast melodicruns). ‘The duo will present, individually and together, compositions created and immortalised by the stalwarts of Rampur-Sahaswan gharana ‘They will present bada khayal, chhota khayal and tarana in a style ‘marked by open-throated voice, varied types of taan-s and appealing, timbre dynamics, =Saturday, January 30, 2016, 6.30 pm Shilpa Kala Vedika, Hyderabad Niladri Kumar (surbahar, sitar & zitar) with Satyajit Talwalkar (tabla) Gino Banks (drums) Sheldon D'silva (bass) ‘Agnelo Fernandes (keyboards) Sridhar Parthasarathy (mridangam) ‘Throughoutthe pasttwo millennia and more, Indian music has evolved assimilating changes from within and outside. Although at times imperceptible, there has always been a tradition of change. In every generation creative minds venture on the path less travelled, enriching the available musical palette with newer sounds and artistic expressions. The tradition thus remains na constantflux ‘This dynamics of boundaries and beyond’ is mirrored in the ensemble of talented young musicians led by Niladri Kumar, A fifth generation sitar player, Niladri has trained with his father, Kartick Kumar, who has had the privilege of learning from his father and other great masters, including the legendary maestro Ravi Shankar. Having emerged as one of the most promising sitar players of his generation, Niladri has become an icon of the youth with his innovation of zitar, an electric sitar, which has opened new avenues to connect the younger audiences with their roots through the language and sounds they are ableto relateto, ‘The group presents a sonic journey where tradition meets innovation, and goes beyond, with a musical dialogue across traditional acoustic instruments such as the surbahar, sitar, mridangam, tabla and drum: andelectricinstrumentslikezitarand the keyboard.We Believe "In retrospect, L am satisfied that the steps taken, together with CITI, in preserving our artistic heritage, ‘are most gratifying. As the title of the festival suggests, we hope to stay committed to this cause in the future”. Khushroo N, Suntook Chairman National Centre for the Performing Arts We at Citi are once again, very proud to partner with the NCPA to present the fourth Citi-NCPA Aadi Anant: festival of Indian music. As always, the Aadi Anant festival presents music that is eternal. This year we are delighted to continue our commemoration of the timeless Guru-Shishya tradition, swhiich has been so successful in carrying forward and: _promoting music aevoss generations. Pramit Jhaveri Chief Executive Officer Citi India “The syllable gu means shadows The syllable ru, fe who disperses them, Because of the power to disperse darkness the guru is thus named” - Advayataraka Upanishad 14-18, verse 5Nagesh Adgaonkar (vocal) Ritesh & Rajnish Mishra (vocal) Rakesh Chaurasia (bansuri) Kumaresh Rajagopalan (violin) Ritesh & Rajnish Mishra (vocal) Sridhar Parthasarathy (mridangam)Sheldon D'silva (bass) ‘Agnelo Fernandes (keyboards) (drums) Satyajit Talwalkar (tabla) Jayanthi Kumaresh (vena)Asis is Bp is busy hy lh wl pus wis