‘Music for the Soul’ will feature live music and seated dance sessions for participants.A book display and heritage exhibition will also take place simultaneously with the event.
CHENNAI:Have you ever been ‘voice shamed’ while singing your heart out? Has the stigma of ‘no good voice, no singing’ pushed you into your shell? Worry no more! It’s time for you to break all inhibitions, come out and sing! ‘Music for the Soul’, an event hosted by Zha, Nam Veedu, Nam Oor, Nam Kadhai and Madras Literary Society as part of the heritage day celebrations is providing an opportunity for anyone who wish to be ‘un-silenced'.
Thiruppura Sundari, a coordinator at Nam Veedu…, says that the idea to create such an event at an iconic venue in the city came about when she met Prem John, a coordinator at Zha. “With talks on heritage and culture happening regularly, we thought why not do something related to music this time? Prem liked the idea immediately and suggested we do an event showcasing the therapeutic properties of music.”
The event will take place amid a book display and heritage exhibition. “Visitors will have the opportunity to browse through racks of books, antiques and newspaper clippings while enjoying the music,” adds Sundari.
Prem John explains the idea behind the event. “A lot of people don’t sing at a public event for the fear of being judged. But we are encouraging everybody to shed their inhibitions and get ready to be rejuvenated.” Seated dance sessions for introverts, senior citizens and children with special needs, autism and developmental disabilities will also be part of the event.
The seated dance moves for seniors was designed by professionals in such a manner that those participating will find them easy to do. “We even encourage the participants to share their choice of music before the event. Each individual has a different taste in music and we would like to cater to all these individual interests,” he adds.Sing-along rounds of lullabies, classic Tamil songs and African songs will take center stage at the event. “We have even received song suggestions from registered participants. There are about 10 to 15 songs in the playlist already,” explains Sundari.
Prem says that music is all one needs to promote physical, mental and social wellbeing. “While music as therapy is slowly catching up in Chennai, we still have a long way to go. If something can change a person’s life, why not give it a shot? Why silence ourselves?” he says.
The event is also open to anyone living with a lung condition — such as asthma, COPD or various forms of breathlessness. “It’s all-inclusive and we are certain that it will break the ‘silence culture’,” adds Sundari.
‘Music for the soul’ will be held at MLS, DPI complex, College Road on Apr 22, from 9:55 am. For registrations, call: 9444253532