Flute maestro Hari Chaurasia casts spell on city audience

SD Sharma

Chandigarh, July 25.

The Durga Das Foundation organised a music concert in which legendary flautist Pandit Hariprasad Chuarasia performed at Newton Auditorium, Strawberry Fields High School, Sector 26, as part of the fifth consecutive Model United Nations (MUN) conference, under the aegis of the foundation. The concert was supported by The Tribune.

Inaugurating the conference and concert, chief guest Capt Abhimanyu, Haryana Finance Minister, lauded the ancient Indian wisdom. He congratulated the school management for carrying forward the MUN mission. He cited references from the Vedas to corroborate his point of view.

Defying his age, and retaining magical energy spiced up with virtuosity of technique the celebrated stalwart flute maestro, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, took the centre stage only to spell magic as he bared the melodic character of raga ‘ Yaman’ through a reposeful alaap, jod alaap and many compositions (gats) in the same raga. The emotional hues deepened as the delightful musical phrases emanating from his flute wafted across Newton Auditorium.

At times his fingers were shivering but the maestro was supported by his disciple Debpriya Randive on flute. He also presented a bandish in raga Pahadi before concluding the concert with an invocatory ‘arti bhajan’.

The elite audience reciprocated with genial applause as the artists arrived at Sam after a thrilling Tihai as also his engrossing Jugalbandi of ‘Swaal Jawaab’with Pandit Ram Kumar on Tabla