Anoushka Shankar to perform solo at Kolkata first time

Five years after she performed with her father Pandit Ravi Shankar at the prestigious Dover Lane Music Conference here, sitarist Anoushka Shankar will be back in the city with her maiden solo act at the 62nd edition of the event.

The four-day event, to be held Jan 22-25, will have recitals by maestros like vocalist Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty, flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia, violinist L. Subramaniam, who have participated in the festival on multiple occasions.

It will also see several artists for the first time.

"Anoushka will be performing as a solo artist in this conference for the first time. We have santoor player Rahul Sharma, veteran sarod player Rajeev Taranath and others for the first time in the festival. It's a mix of veteran artists and second generation players," Bappa Sen, general secretary of the conference, told reporters.

Drawing visitors from across the country and abroad, the festival has always provided a platform for budding artists who contribute to the field of Indian classical music, said vocalist Kaushiki Desikan, daughter of Pandit Chakraborty.

"It has maintained a continuity over the years and it has always inspired new musicians. There is not a lot happening in the city, so the conference has become Kolkata's representation in the national circuit," Desikan told IANS.

The Sangeet Samman Award 2014 will be conferred upon shehnai maestro Ustad Ali Ahmed Hussein Khan at the conference.

"People who want to play classical music and people who want to listen to it... for them the festival has become a tradition. It is very necessary for youngsters who are propagating the culture of classical music, to get a chance to show their talents," Khan said.

The stellar line-up includes sarod player Alam Khan, vocalist Vinayak Torvi, sitarist Anupama Bhagwat and a flute and violin duet by Ronu Majumdar and Mysore Manjunath.