WHAT: Music Festival.
Kabir in Every Sense – Historic melodies, mystic music and the romance of the river.
WHEN: 22 – 24 November 2019
WHERE: Varanasi, India
Varanasi (AKA Banaras, Benares or Kashi) bears witness to a musical heritage traced back to Puranic literature and is home to the Benares Gharana of Hindustani classical music. The tabla gharana founded by Pandit Ram Sahai and the vocal gharana by Pandit Gopal Mishra gave rise to a legacy continued to this day by maestros like Ustad Bismillah Khan, Pandit Ravi Shankar and Girija Devi. This distinctive style of music produced in the city and the passionate contribution of its own musicians put Benares on the UNESCO’s list of ‘Cities of Music’ in 2013.
The greatest density of Benares Gharana musicians is in the neighbourhood of Kabir Chaura, a short walk away from which are enshrined two relics – the wooden sandals and the rudraksh rosary of the 15th-century poet-saint Kabir. It is here in the alleyways of Kabir Chaura that the tabla gharana was founded 200 years ago and the choice of this place as its origin is perhaps no coincidence. The long-standing musical tradition of Benares was given a new impetus by the Bhakti movement which was championed by Kabir and his contemporaries 500 years ago.
The event offers both Festival (free) and Delegate (charged) Experiences, including Morning music, Literature Sisson, Heritage walk, and Evening music.
Morning Music
Begin your day at Mahindra Kabira with an invigorating and a soul-cleansing Morning Music Programme, featuring Kabir veterans who will perform on Guleria Ghat in the mornings of both festival days. Morning Music is a part of the Festival Experience and is open to all.
Evening Music
Mahindra Kabira days will end with their swashbuckling finale – get onto boats to travel to the destination of the Mahindra Kabira Evening Music Programme. Musicians will be staged on the river under the stars; let go, give in to the moment as you experience the magic of music on the banks of a timeless river, thronging with people, colour, sound and melody, redolent of a mighty past and a history of coming together of diverse cultures. Evening Music is a part of the Festival Experience and is open to all.
