Culture, bond and reciprocity are the primary goals of every
event in Goa and it is true that no event is complete without music. The Monte
Music Festival, presented by Fundação Oriente and in its 17th edition, kindles
cohesion in a unique blend of international, national and local music played by
spectacular artistes in the field of music.
The Monte Music Festival has carved a niche of its own among
all cultural events held in the state.
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The inception of the Monte Music Festival dates back to
2002, when the Chapel of Our Lady of Monte, Old Goa was restored by Fundação
Oriente. Since the first edition, the festival has perpetually gathered
attention and interest from Western and Eastern music as well as dance
enthusiasts.
The prime objective behind organising and celebrating this
music festival is to orchestrate the strings of music and involve distinctive
societies together on one stage. “It is not about the genre of music, it is the
interaction that takes place… everyone comes to hear and see everything and not
one particular thing,” claims Maria Inês Figueira, Director of Fundação
Oriente, one of the organisers of the festival.
Over the years, people from all over the world have come to
attend the unique music festival and this year it is going to be a wholesome
experience.
Some of the musicians performing at Monte Music Festival
this year include:
‘Jheeni’ by Beej
Beej means seed, the source of creativity. An
interdisciplinary rooted in grammar and Indian classical, Beej has entertained
audiences with cultural insights of traditional knowledge through Jheeni – a
sonic and spatial weave of poems of Kabir Janabai, Ambigara, Chowkamela,
Tukaram, and Aurndathi Subramanium. With the metaphors of the cloth, the body
and the boat, the piece navigates the rich tapestry of Bhakti poems. Beej has
three wings: the beej garage, the beej school of kathak and the beej dance
company; exploring process, pedagogy and performance respectively, beej has
hosted several workshops, lecture demonstrations and performances.
Nathalie Ramirez
Nathalie Ramirez, a professional flautist, obtained her
Bachelor’s degree from the University of Veracruz, Mexi¬co. In the early years
of her career, she began studying the subject in Mexico with musicians such as
Hollving Argaez, Paul Livingstone, Abhjit Banerjee and Pandit Shubhendra Rao.
She has performed on both bamboo (bansuri) and traverse flute in numerous
concerts and festivals in Mexico, the United States and India, interpreting
different genres such as Classical Western, Latin American, Jazz, Fusion and
Hindustani music, both as a soloist and in ensem¬bles and orchestras.
Carlos Meneses
Carlos originally learnt the Violin and was a regular member
of the Goa Symphony Orchestra, and later played the guitar and keyboards. He
has been a part of the group Fado in the City and the ongoing project Fado de
Goa. Carlos will be performing along with Sonia Shirsat, Sherwyn Correia, Dr
Allan Abreu and Orlando De Noronha.
Sonia Shirsat
Sonia Shirsat has been singing professionally for the last
16 years. Rated as the best Fadista (fado singer) in India of all time, she has
performed all over India and overseas in Lux¬embourg, Macau, Kuwait, France,
Portugal, Singapore, Hawaii, Nepal, Canada, USA, UK, Israel, Dubai, Bahrain,
The crescendo will rise, as the sun sets, at the Monte
The annual Monte Music Festival will take place from
February 1 to 3, 2019 at sunset with performances being held inside the old
heritage chapel of Our Lady of Monte and its courtyard at Old Goa. Café tunes
in to the line up the festival has in store for its patronsMuscat, Brussels and
South Korea, and has sung in 14 languages. Recipient of the National Award,
Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar in 2016 by Sangeet Natak Akademi, Sonia now
takes Fado to the next generation through the ongoing project ‘Fado de Goa’.
She will be vocalizing on the third day of the event.
Carolina
Carolina was born in Germany but grew up in north of
Portugal. This is where she discovered Fado. Carolina’s performances capti¬vate
the listener, bringing the audience to their feet as her clear, deep voice
makes the words she sings come alive. Carolina has released two albums –
‘Carolina’ (2014) recorded with Antonio Zambujo and producer Ricardo Cruz; and
‘en-Cantado’ (2017) produced by Diogo Clemente.
Eshvita Annie Menezes
Annie is one of a select few Indians to hold the diplo¬ma of
the Fellow of the Trinity College London (FTCL). She has travelled extensively
playing with orchestras such as National Youth Orches¬tra of Canada, Sri Lanka
Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra of India and Bombay Chamber Orchestra.
Annie has also been concert master of the Goa String Orchestra and is a
mainstay of Con Brio festival, held at the NCPA, Mumbai, as a chamber musician
and soloist. She was one of a select few musicians invited as a soloist to
perform for the reopening of the Royal Opera House in Mumbai.
