Music is in the air

Brian Mendonça

On the 24^th of January All India Radio commemorated twenty-four years of FM Rainbow service in India. AIR announcers in Goa have been regaling listeners in English, Hindi,  Marathi, Konkani and Portuguese languages. Ever since Marconi discovered the radio, it has been a constant companion for its faithful fold.

This year the anniversary was observed in style with an evening programme hosted by staff and announcers of AIR, Panaji, at the Menezes Braganza hall, Panjim. In a rare opportunity the public had a glimpse of their favourite announcers  in front of them – rather than concealed behind the mike in the secrecy of the studio.

Steered by the dynamic Savio Noronha, Channel Head and Anchor, AIR and Doordarshan, who compered the show, AIR announcers came up two by two to interact with their audience face to face – and to introduce the artistes of the next item on the variety programme.  A troupe of young girls presented a Kathak dance. One extremely talented young duo of a girl and a boy left us on the edge of our seats with a rendition of Raga Hamsadhwani, she on the flute and he on the tabla. Another boy from Daddy’s Home, presented a puppet dance.  A soulful mando followed . . . AIR had an amazing format showcasing their strengths as well as providing a platform for budding artistes.

The same evening I took in the performance of the German National Youth Orchestra at Kala Academy, Panjim. The programme had the elements of Nature for its theme. It began with John Leif's ‘Geysir’ – a paen to the power of the Icelandic geysers. As the programme notes state, ‘Jon Leifs was . . . . aware of the vulnerability of human beings when confronted by such powerful forces . This is a reality with which all Icelanders live daily.’ The piece which lasted ten minutes started with the barely discernible discordant sounds of foghorns by ships at sea. You could visualize the geyser forming and frothing as it assumed its terrible proportions. This was the first time I heard the Icelandic composer Leifs though the piece is as old as 1961.

The Youth Orchestra continued with the Fantasia Overture from Tchaikovsky’s ‘Tempest.’ Inspired by Shakespeare’s Tempest  the piece displayed the voluptuousness and tumult of the sea. I should think Mendelssohn’s ‘Hebrides Overture’ would have been a good candidate for the programme but the Orchestra opted for Robert  Schumann’s ‘Rhenish’ which is described as ‘a piece of life by the Rhine[ river].’

I was sorry to miss Antonin Dvorak, the Czech composer who was featured the next day at Ravindra Bhavan, Margao. The haunting strains of his New World symphony, and the Slavonic dances are a measure of his virtuosity. I also missed the American composer Aaron Copland with his ‘Fanfare for the Common Man.’ (1942)

In both these events it was the young children and youth who led the way. Through their discipline and dedication to their music and dance, they pointed the way to a better tomorrow.

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Published in Gomantak Times Weekender, St. Inez, Goa on Sunday, 28 January 2018. Pix courtesy theindigoxp.