On the occasion of Féte De La Music or World Music Day, the Alliance Française Du Bengale in association with Siddha Foundation, Calcutta Classical Guitar Society, Sienna Cafe Park Street, and Littlei presented a week-long musical celebration recently at Sienna Cafe, Park Street, Kolkata. Speaking on the occasion Shubhi Mallik, cultural coordinator of Alliance Française Du Bengale, said, “The vision is to create a homely atmosphere for singers by providing them a platform where they can showcase their talent without any inhibitions.”

A number of bands performed in multitude of genres throughout the week. The first day started with an orchestration performance by the differently-abled students of Soumya Music Group. This was followed by the performance of Fifth Harmony which presented popular Hindi and Bengali songs with the accompaniment of diverse instruments such as violin, cajon, bass and guitars.

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The next day witnessed super energetic performances by Kolkata Gaanwala, which comprised of a group of young musicians. They created their own soundscape with strong folk and popular influences from the city. The following day saw a presentation on electric music by Varun Desai, who is also known to be the founder of 5volts, a kind of audiovisual project. The day’s event came to an end with a talk by Veda Agarwal, from Calcutta Classical Guitar Society.

An acoustic performance in the next afternoon by Mondegreen trio led by Nabanita Sarkar sounded even more enticing in the monsoon weather. Their melodious songs had a universal appeal. Some of the finest young guitarists from Calcutta Classical Guitar Society gave mostly solo performances, ending with two ensembles. Their performances perfectly expressed the intricacies of western classical music. Projjwal & Friends set the mood of the evening with groovy originals in the mannerisms of Woodie Guthrie and Bob Dylan. The evening ended with a bang of energy from the Milliputs. Led by Saroni Poddar, this young group played folk music with new age musical arrangements. On the last day, there were multiple open mic performances by various artists and groups. These included performances by singer songwriter Dipto Bhattacharjee, experimental music from bands Yashus and Capo, and English covers by Somenath Sen. Other performances included Farsi music by Sreemoyi and Payman, tenor bass duo Indus and French fusion music by Dipanwita Roy. Students from Academy for Musical Excellence gave multiple performances. A musical dance drama by the differentlyabled students of Nishtha Institute of Skill Development was the highlight of the event. Virginie Corteval, Consul General of France, said, “It’s very friendly here and I would love to hear more of it. I believe in the saying that without music, life is a mistake. So I urge all to enjoy the evening.”

“Féte De La Music started in 1982 in France, and in fact Alliance Française in Kolkata celebrates it from 1983,” said Fabrice Plancon, the director of Alliance Française in Kolkata. “This day is really about music by everyone, for everyone,” he said.