WOW! Another fabulous night at The Lyric Theatre in Granity!
On 6 February, Waitangi day, near-on 100 people from the Buller community were treated to a musical feast when 'India meets Ireland' presented by Arts on Tour NZ, took to the stage to perform their unique fusion of Indian classical music alongside contemporary and traditional Irish music.
Both cultures share a long tradition of families making music together, and 'India Meets Ireland' continued that tradition with the pairing of two father/daughter combinations.
Photo credit - Barbara Todd
Basant Madhur and his daughter Sargam performed the North Indian style of music with Sargam on the Sitar and Basant playing tablas - a tabla is a pair of hand drums which are of different shapes and sizes and tuned to different pitches - Basant is recognised internationally as a tabla master. It was fascinating to watch a person's hands move so rapidly and to hear the variety of sounds emanating from his small hand-drums.
Jon Saunders and his daughter Jenny Os hail from Dingle in County Kerry, Ireland. Jon masterfully played the bouzouki, a long necked lute which originated in Greece and was introduced to Irish traditional music in the early 1960's. Jenny Os is a singer/songwriter who also plays a mean guitar!
Jenny's vocals were incredible, her ethereal voice reverberated off the theatre's deep red walls and stunned the audience into total silence.
Each culture was showcased separately and then the ensemble combined to play a fusion of both genres.
It was truly a night full of magic capped off by a standing ovation from the people lucky enough to be in attendance.
We felt very grateful to be able to host a group of such extraordinary talent and we look forward to more high calibre concert events on our calendar thanks to Arts on Tour NZ.
Artist links:
https://sargamschoolofmusic.co.nz/basant-madhur-ensemble/
https://jon-sanders.com/
