Encouraging volunteerism in talented youth

Encouraging volunteerism in talented youth
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The Society for the Promotion of Indian Classical Music And Culture Amongst Youth (SPIC MACAY), a not-for-profit organisation which focuses on the promotion of Indian heritage and culture amongst the youth and bringing in a serious sense of volunteerism among the youth,

The Society for the Promotion of Indian Classical Music And Culture Amongst Youth (SPIC MACAY), a not-for-profit organisation which focuses on the promotion of Indian heritage and culture amongst the youth and bringing in a serious sense of volunteerism among the youth, needs to be commended for its efforts in bringing talented youth to meet and learn from renowned artists.

Ahead of its ‘Gurukul Anubhav Scholarship Scheme’, wherein students will get to interact with the likes of Dalai Lama, Pandit Birju Maharaj, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, R Vedavalli, Aruna Roy, Girija Devi, Ustad Abdul Rashid Khan and Swami Niranjananand Saraswati, SPIC MACAY organised an event where cellist Nancy Lesh Kulkarni performed at Hillside School, Jubilee Hills, recently.

Nancy, an exponent of Dhrupad style, started with an alaap in Ahir Bhairav Raga and then went on to play a medium tempo jod. She then performed a composition in the same raga and explained about the modifications she had made to her instrument. Nancy followed her concert with an interactive session and answered queries coming from students about the cello and Dhrupad form of music. She was accompanied by Sri Manik Munde on the Pakhawaj.

 Nancy performs among students

Before pursuing Dhrupad, Nancy was co-principal cellist of the Rome Festival Orchestra, section cellist with the Chicago Civic Orchestra, and Orchestra del Maggio Musicale of Florence, Italy. Since 1982, Nancy has been playing only Dhrupad on her cello. She is greaty indebted to senior Dhrupad vocalist Pandit Ritwik Sanyal in Varanasi and renowned Mumbai-based brothers Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Dagar and Ustad Zia Fariduddin Dagar.

She has also received guidance from Ustad Bahauddin Dagar, Pandit Pushpraj Koshti, Pandit Uday Bhawalkar, Pandit Nirmalya Dey, Pandit K Sridhar, and the Gundecha Brothers. Rakesh Bhatnagar, a volunteer, recalls, “I still cannot forget the National Convention in 1995 when we got an opportunity to not only listen but also spend time with great artistes of the country in the field of music, dance and arts.”

Another volunteer Dali Bandhu said, “Since 2013, I have participated in most of the programmes conducted at Hyderabad Central University and it has been a great opportunity to be at the service of leading maestros like Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia.” Those interested in the ‘Gurukul Anubhav Scholarship Scheme’ can send an email to scholarship@spicmacay.com before March 28.

By:Jaywant Naidu

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