Since the beginning of my musical career in the early Forties, I remember how Ahmedabad was reputed to be one of the most unmusical cities in Northern India, in spite of the fact that some rich families and individuals tried their best to promote classical music! The standard joke was that the only music Ahmedbadis liked was Rupiya Ki Jhankar (the tinkling sound of the Silver rupees!).
But since Nandan, Manju Mehta along with Smt Rupande Shah, Smt. Bhartiben Parikh and Prof.D.D. Trivedi launched Saptak in 1980 things started changing gradually and today Ahmedabad can boast to have appreciative lovers of classical music, in par with many other cities. This is also due to SAPTAK as an institution that has trained and created many musical students all through these years. I feel happy to have been performing from the very first of its' session! I send my congratulations along with my blessings to all the trustee members of Saptak. About Saptak Events
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Saptak Annual Festival of Music
The annual festival of music organised by Saptak from the 1st to 13th of January every year, is a musical feast that is the delight of any music connoisseur. This celebration of music is quite a unique experience in itself. The evening's performance always begins with an emerging talent. With several luminaries in the audience, this is a grand stage for the young performer.
As the evening progresses, some of the most renowned performers in Indian classical music take the stage. The rasikas often leave in the early hours of the morning with a Raag Baghesri, Malkauns or Lalit still humming in their ears. It's a celebration of music in its purest form. There are no tickets, no reservations, and one gets to be in the hall only through invitation. With the hall brimming over with highly knowledgeable and sensitive music connoisseurs, the performers are motivated to put forth their best performance at Saptak.
What makes the annual fare a memorable one is that it scales over popular demands to provide a rich bouquet of experience. While the audience gets treated to vintage khayal performances from the established maestros, they also have an opportunity to experience the dhrupad gayaki, thumris, rajasthani folk music, instrumental recitals of sitar, sarangi, flute, the mohan veena, rudra veena and percussion recitals on the tabla, pakhawaj and even the mridangam by the great contemporary musicians and musical experimentations of fusion . With nearly 125 top artistes and about 50 performances spread over 13 days (15 Baithaks including 2 morning baithaks), the music lovers from all over India and abroad converge at the Saptak music festival for an unparalleled experience.
Other Saptak Events
Apart from the annual festival, Saptak also organises a week long Saptak Sankalp Saptah Festival to showcase and promote emerging talents alongwith accomplished, senior Gurus. Shorter festivals to celebrate various seasons such as Vasant (spring) and Varsha (monsoon) are also organised by Saptak.
