Many thanks to all those who were part of a beautiful day of Indian classical music and dance: the artists, volunteers, sponsors, and thanks most of all the audience. It was a fine selection of performances. Thanks also to Brian Sullivan for these photos. See our Facebook album for more.

Festival director Shen Flindell said “Events such as Sangeet Mela are invaluable in cultivating Indian classical music, both as the ideal vehicle for artists to perform for a quality audience at a quality venue, and as an attractive package to attract new audiences to this wonderful culture. Unfortunately I am unable to continue to drive this event and will be withdrawing from organising large events to focus on my own practice and students. I will be very happy to support and provide continuity for any individual or organisation who would take over the management of Sangeet Mela.”

The team behind Australia’s premiere Indian classical festival are excited to announce that planning for Sangeet Mela 2019 is well under way. The event will be held on Saturday 30th March and will feature Carnatic vocal by Smt Charulatha Mani, Qawwali ensemble led by Tahir Qawwal, sarangi solo by Sri Sangeet Mishra, Bharatanatyam dance by Smt Sriranjani Chandramouli with live ensemble, and sitar solo by Sri Saikat Bhattacharya.

We are calling on community leaders to support this important cultural event, and for aspiring young Indian classical artists to apply for our Sangeet Mela Rising Star Awards.

RISING STAR AWARDS
As part of Sangeet Mela’s mission to foster Indian classical culture in Brisbane, several young artists under the age of 26 will be given the opportunity to perform at the festival and will receive a “Sangeet Mela Rising Star Award”. Each year one or two awards may be given in each of four categories (Vocal, Instrumental, Percussion and Dance), each in the two broad genres of Hindustani and Carnatic Sangeet. Many past award recipients identify these awards as a pivotal moment in their development as classical artists. Past winners include Dr Helena Joshi (Kathak dance), Sri Arthavan Selvanathan (mridangam), Ku Roshni Sriram (Carnatic vocal), and Ku Mathuja Bavan (both Bharatanatyam and violin).

We invite and request all dance and music gurus, members of the community and connoisseurs of music to circulate this information among your students or any young enthusiastic performers to apply for these awards.

Full details of the conditions of application are available on available on the Sangeet Mela Website at: www.sangeetmela.org/awards/
Applications close Friday 1st February, 2019. Winners will be informed by Friday 15th February, 2019.

FURTHER SUPPORT FOR SANGEET MELA 2019
I’m sure all community leaders understand the importance of cultivating “Indian Classical Music” (which includes the music of Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka). We request the support of community groups and businesses in any or all of the following ways:

• Please keep Saturday 30th March free in your calendar, and don’t organise any competing event.
• Forward information about Sangeet Mela 2019 to your association or school membership and other networks.
• Purchase tickets in bulk at a discount rate for your members.
• Become a sponsor of Sangeet Mela 2019.

Please get in touch with me via email on shen@sangeetmela.org or phone 0415106428 to discuss any of these ways to support the development of Indian classical music in Brisbane.

Kind Regards

Shen Flindell
Festival Director
Sangeet Mela 2019

Saturday 2nd September 2017 saw the Indian classical music lovers of Brisbane and around Australia gathering at Queensland Multicultural Centre for Sangeet Mela 2017, the 4th edition of this wonderful celebration of Indian classical music and dance.

The first session opened with a Kathak dance performance by Rising Star Award winner Ku Sheena Rinky Bala, a senior disciple of Brisbane’s leading Kathak dance guru Smt Namita Debroy. Rinky was accompanied by a live ensemble featuring Sri Shen Flindell (tabla), Smt Namita Debroy (padhant), Smt Usha Chivukula (vocal), Sri Joseph Nand (harmonium), and Sri Darshil Shah (bansuri).  (VIDEO)

The second Rising Star Award winner performance for 2017 was Carnatic vocal by Ku Madhuvanthi Muralidharan, with accompaniment by Sri Aswin Narayanan (violin) and Sri Balaram Ramagiri (mridangam).  (VIDEO)

We are very proud of our Rising Star Award winners and our tradition of recognising young talent in these challenging Indian classical arts. We hope that the experience of performing at Sangeet Mela encourages them to continue their studies and practice, and look forward to many more great performances as these young artists mature.

The afternoon session concluded with a tabla solo recital by Sri Simranjit Singh, presenting compositions of the Punjab Gharana, with accompaniment by Sri Joseph Nand (harmonium) and Sri Darshil Shah (bansuri).  (VIDEO)

After a break for snacks, stretching legs and chatting with fellow music lovers, the audience reconvened for the sunset session, commencing with a beautiful bansuri recital with a leading Indian classical artist from Japan, Sri Taro Terahara, with accompaniment by Sri Maharshi Raval (tabla – Sydney) and Taro-ji’s wife Smt Yuriko Terahara (tanpura).  (VIDEO)

Brisbane-based Bharatanatyam star performer and guru, Smt Padmalakshmi Sriram, delighted the audience with her dance presentation along with her daughter Ku Shivani Sriram.  (VIDEO)

The sunset session concluded with a sarod recital by Sri Rahul Bhattacharya (Melbourne) with accompaniment by Sri Simranjit Singh (tabla).  (VIDEO)

The dinner break was the smoothest ever with everyone getting their fill of a delicious buffet meal very quickly. Many congratulations to Murali Ramakrishnan and his team for this improvement in the Sangeet Mela experience.

The late session opened with our international star of Hindustani vocal, Smt Sunita Tikare (Mumbai), with accompaniment by Sri Maharshi Raval (tabla – Sydney) and Sri Joseph Nand (harmonium). Sunita is a senior disciple of Late Vidushi Kishori Amonkar and the audience were entranced by her renditions of compositions made famous by her esteemed guru-ji.  (VIDEO)

At last the grand finale arrived, Carnatic Saraswathi veena by Smt Nirmala Rajasekar (Chennai/USA), with accompaniment by Sri Murugaboopathi (mridangam) and Sri Ganesh Prasad (violin). The virtuosity and musicality of all three artists was just brilliant.  (VIDEO)

After another epic journey through the various styles of Indian classical music and dance, we eagerly await the next instalment of Sangeet Mela. The organisers would like to extend our deepest gratitude to all our supporters: the sponsors, audience, volunteers, performers and organising committee members.

Photos by Randhawa Media and Brian Sullivan (click on links for the full photo albums by each photographer).

Sangeet Mela 2017 was supported by  platinum sponsor Yoga King, the Lord Mayor’s Suburban Initiative Fund via The Gabba Ward, silver sponsors Sahaja Yoga Meditation, Homeopathy for Health (Rukmani Paliwal), and Sitar Restaurant, and exclusive media sponsors Brisbane Indian Times and Australian Indian Radio. It was organised by EthnoSuperLounge in conjunction with Sangeet Premi Club.