Jazzing it UP in delhi

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Delhi, considered one of the buzzing hubs for cultural activities in the country, will finally see a jazz music festival on a grand scale with some of the best talents playing to the gallery.
In collaboration with the ICCR, Seher will present a jazz music festival at Nehru Park in Delhi from April 8 to 10. The three-day long extravaganza is going to see an interesting line-up of performances with some of the most well-known jazz artistes across the country and the world.
Nine jazz bands from different countries across the world including India will come together to put up this one-of-its-kind festival in Delhi for the very first time. Known to be steeped in tradition and culture, Delhites are going to get a taste of different genre of music.
While many other cities across India like Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore have a considerable population taking to jazz, it’s will be interesting to see if this festival draws audiences in the capital. Sanjeev Bhargava, founder and creative director of Seher says that the audience in Delhi is finally ready for a festival like this.
“We do have small jazz gigs at various musical hubs in the city, but something on this large a scale has never been done before. And the audience is in a position to experiment and take to different forms of music, with jazz being one of them,” says Bhargava.
The array of bands performing has an interesting and diverse profile. With Cesare Picco from Italy to Jensen Quintet from Canada to Jump4Joy from Sweden, the list comprises some of the best jazz bands and artistes from all over the world. Each of them is quite distinctive in their repertoire and style of playing jazz.
Cesare Picco from Italy is an author and has performed worldwide. His personal music vocabulary has a certain sense of intensity, power and spiritual approach to captivating the essence of melodies. If Picco’s approach is smooth and simple, then the Ekkehard Wölk Trio from Germany is known for their colourful arrangements. The Berlin-based piano trio comprises the pianist, composer and arranger Ekkehard Wölk with Johannes Fink on bass and drummer Andrea Marcelli. Their work is largely influenced and inspired by literature and films, based upon which they derive contemporary jazz music.
Another award winning band, which will be playing at the festival, is Jump4Joy from Sweden. The band is known to have travelled across the world delivering jazz and ska music (a kind of pop music in Jamaica) with the saxophone. However, tight in rhythm, they make music sound liquid and easy.
If you were wondering if this was just about international jazz music, then you’d be wrong. Well-known Indian musician Dhruv Ghanekar too is going to be playing at the festival with his band D-company. Known for his versatility and ability to fuse some of the most interesting genres, Ghanekar is known for his quirky, yet aesthetic abilities to make music. The other Indian group at the festival is Amit Heri and group, who are known for their Indo-jazz combo.
One of the highlights of the festival is the collaborations between Amit Heri group and the Trio AAB+Clandemonium from Scotland.
“This is the first time that these two groups will come together on the last day of the festival and their reflections of music on one another will be something to look out for. The other musicians are equally amazing, but this one just steps up the mood for jazz,” says Bhargava.
Apart from them, Be Why, a band of 20 members from France too will present jazz on the lines of funk. “It’s difficult to pick and say which among them stands out since they are quite well-established names in their own countries. And most of them have performed at the prestigious Montral International Jazz Festival and the Edinburgh music festival.”
According to Suresh Goel, director general, ICCR, “Every major city such as Montreal, London, Stockholm and Edinburgh has a world class Jazz Festival that is not just named after the city, but almost defines its cultural ethos. With a truly International ‘Delhi Jazz Festival’, we intend to include Delhi in this list and make it a truly world class city. For the lovers of music in Delhi this three-day unique festival would be a treat of great music from around the world in the serene environs of Nehru Park.”
Moreover, Bhargava says that he aims to make this festival accessible to all sections of the society. “Culture needs to be demrocratised and not confined within the walls of the auditoriums for the elite. We end up neglecting a huge bracket of music lovers when we charge them exorbitant amounts for concerts. With the entry being free, this concert will have all kinds of people coming together for the common love of music,” says Bhargava.