Eighty flautists take to the stage together

Flautist Vivek Sonar will take the stage with 80 flautists at a city

concert

to perform a

flute

symphony. The show will see artistes pay tribute to flute legend Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, who turned 80 this year. “Getting 80 flautists to follow the same tune is difficult. For that, we need a lot of rehearsals because we don’t keep notations while playing on stage. So everyone has to memorise all the compositions,” says Vivek Sonar.

Interestingly, the 80 flautists who will take the stage at the Eleventh

Bansuri

Utsav on October 14 come from diverse age groups – the youngest one, Adhya Nair, being eight years old, and the eldest one, Hemant Gokhale, being 80. The group, which will be accompanied by Pandit Bhavani Shankar, Sangeet Haldipur, Sachin Nakwa and Gaurav Murkar, will conclude the flute symphony with a composition by Pandit Chaurasia. For Sonar, paying homage to the flute legend is an honour. “Pandit ji is God on flute. He’s the one who gave the Indian bansuri an international recognition. His physical age is 80, but his spirit is like that of a 20-year-old,” he says.

Interestingly, besides honouring the flute legend, the evening will also see

santoor

legend and former musical partner of Pandit Chaurasia, Pandit

Shivkumar Sharma

, being felicitated. “Music connoisseurs will not only witness a unique flute symphony, but also see my close friend, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, getting honoured. Felicitating the legendary musician will be an honour for us,” says Pandit Chaurasia, who, along with Maharashtra’s Cultural Minister Shri Vinod Tawde, will present the Flute Legend Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia Puraskar to the santoor icon.