BENGALURU: Virtual concerts are the way forward in the music industry, with many now opting for this format. But this upcoming concert, called ILA - The Earth Symphony, might feel more special to Bengalureans, given the number of city-based artistes it features. The concert, produced by Grammy winning artiste Ricky Kej, features puppeteer Anupama Hoskare, dance troupe Nritarutya, artist Vilas Kumar and more. The event, happening on Sept. 27, also marks the launch of an album – The Earth Symphony – which is sung by New York-based Indian classical singer Ila Paliwal.
Kej, who finds the environment and planet Earth to be his favourite muse, says he is looking forward to the concert. “Ila and I have known each other for quite long and have been working on the album for almost a year now. The album, which contains nine songs, also features Soweto Gospel Choir, who have three Grammys to their credit, and celebrates the beauty of the planet. The songs also make use of Sanskrit in the lyrics,” says Kej, who has also co-produced the album. Interestingly, the album was recorded at Abbey Road studio, where rock music legends like Beatles and Rolling Stones have also recorded their songs.
The album was first supposed to be released in August with a performance in Washington DC, which was cancelled due to the pandemic. The digital concert will now see performances by Soweto Gospel Choir, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Salomé Chamber Orchestra and others. Looking at the bright side, Kej explains that going digital has, in fact, been a boon. Case in point, he adds, Sir David Attenborough, who recently joined Instagram. “They say that you have to do funny or frivolous things to get followers online. But he is 94 years old and with just one post about how we need to act to save the planet, he already has around 2.8 million followers. So you can make a point without doing something extra,” says Kej, who got a chance to work with the natural historian in the project Wild Karnataka.
The excitement is high among the other performing artistes too. Anupama Hoskere, director of Dhaatu Puppet Theatre, says she has created a new puppet for the six-minute song – Jhoolein. “There are more than 12 puppets performing in the song and one of the them represents Mother Earth,” says Hoskere. Mayuri Upadhya, artistic director, Nritarutya, says there will be two dance performances – a solo and a duet - on songs from the album. “The solo one is on Shanti and the other one is on Shringara,” she says.
Paliwal says, “Music has brought so much joy and calm during this time of trauma. And through the
concert, I didn’t just want showcase music but some visual arts as well.” Concert will take place on
social media of Ila Paliwal on Sept. 27