 HCL Concert Series launched in Chennai
HCL, in association with The Music Academy, Madras, has brought the eight-year-old HCL Concert Series to Chennai for the first time.
The inaugural concert was rendered by eminent Carnatic vocalist Sudha
Ragunathan.
HCL Infosystems Ltd chairman Ajai Chowdhry said the organisation would promote monthly concerts by young talent in Chennai in association with The Music Academy.
The concert is in continuation of the series that has been organised in Delhi for the past eight years and it is the first time that it has travelled outside the Capital.
The concert series, in an unbroken pattern of four concerts every month at India Habitat Centre in New Delhi, with two dedicated to dance and two to music, have brought before lovers of fine arts the finest in the classical arts of India. The series has featured some of the finest names like Sonal Mansingh; Shobhana Chandrakumar, Geeta Chandran, Madhavi Mudgal, Bharati Shivaji, Madhup Mudgal, Raja and Radha Reddy and Rita Ganguly, to name a few.
Expressing his delight at the HCL concert series coming this far, Ajai Chowdhry, an ardent music lover himself, said, ''The HCL Concert Series was conceived as 'a salute to excellence in human endeavour' in 1998. Just as the IT industry around the world has a uniquely Indian signature to it, so is Indian music and dance a distinctly Indian brand. HCL has not only created this unique platform fnr the performing arts but has also been working continuously to showcase new trends in the art that are yet to gain popularity. This series has also worked with younger artistes to stoke a spirit of experimentation within the classical idiom, to extend the repertoire of the arts."
Ajai Chowdhry said Chennai had a special place in his heart as it was here that the first computer was designed and delivered to IIT a few decades ago.
N Murali, president, The Music Academy, said the institution was happy to associate itself with the HCL Concert Series. Every month, young talent would be given opportunities to perform in the city in a bid to promote classical music among the younger generation. With an impeccable history of close to 80 years of dedication to Indian arts, it is playing an important role in encouraging and promoting primarily Carnatic music, he added.
The inaugural concert promises to be a musical treat to the art lovers of Chennai, more so with the presence of Sudha Raghunathan, one of India's leading classical musicians who is well-known for her charming and enthralling performances, keeping the audience spellbound, said J V Ramamurthy, director, Operations, HCL Infosystems Ltd.
S Vasudevan, adviser, HCL, delivered the welcome address.
R Rangaraj
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