BENGALURU: This Earth Day, which falls on April 22, musicians from six countries will be getting together for a concert like perhaps never before. Organised by Bengaluru-based Grammy Award winning musician and environmentalist Ricky Kej, the online concert will have over 40 musicians from India, USA, Senegal, South Africa, Australia and Vietnam, performing from their respective homes.
The event is being held in partnership with organisations like UNICEF, United Nations Climate Change and WWF. “Thematically, we wanted to look at the environment, sustainability, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the intersectional relationship between all of them,” says Kej. The concert, titled Ricky Kej LIVE at One Page Spotlight, is in support of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for WHO, powered by the United Nations Foundation.
Besides Kej, the lineup includes other Grammy winners like Laura Dickinson (joining from Los Angeles), Wouter Kellerman (from Melbourne), PT Vishwa Mohan Bhatt (from Jaipur) and Grammy nominee Lonnie Park (from New York). Rehearsals for this pre-recorded concert began two weeks ago, with Kej conducting one-on-one rehearsals with the different musicians.
“We got lucky since each of the artistes is technically sound. Also, we know each other’s music styles well,” he explains, adding that the biggest challenge was conducting rehearsals with the 30-member South African Mzansi Youth Choir. “It’s not easy to get 30 members to stay in sync as they perform individually from their own homes. We also added a choreography for them,” he reveals.
Given that even a one millisecond latency or lag can throw off a musician, Kej felt a pre-recorded concert (though recorded live, it will not be broadcast live) would be the best way to deliver this venture. Online concerts, he explains, are a good way for musicians to readapt to the current scenario, where many future in-person concerts have been called off. “Fourteen of my concerts in six countries stand cancelled. But online initiatives like this help musicians continue expressing themselves musically while also engaging with an audience,” says Kej.The concert can be viewed on Ricky Kej’s Facebook and YouTube platforms at 8pm IST.