Last year, at the time of grand concluding ceremony of Delhi International Arts festival (DIAF), a group of around 40 Indian musicians who work with Delhi-based music institute, The Neemrana Music Foundation Choir (TNMFC), literally surprised Delhiites when they presented an impressive Italian opera-Cavalleria Rusticana in association with several Italian musicians and created history.
Following their footsteps, 40 aspiring musicians from the same institution are all set to present Mozart Magic in India. This time, they will be accompanied by 19 musicians from Rouen Opera House, France and 26 from Mumbai Chamber Orchestra. The Mozart, a mix and match of German and Italian opera, organised by TNMFC in collaboration with Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), is all set to startle viewers on Saturday and Sunday at Siri Fort auditorium. At the venue, one will get to listen to some amazing opera pieces by legendary classic music composer of 18th century Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart like The Magic Flute, Idomenco, Cosi Fan Tutte and The Marriage of Figaro. The musicians also presented impressive excerpts of the show Friday afternoon at Central Park, Connaught Place which included The Magic Flute and Idomenco.
Talking about the show, conductor George Mathew, said, “The opera style that we are going to present tomorrow and day after comes from Austria. It’s a combo of German and Italian opera pieces. Over the last few years, we have only presented French operas and this show will be its departure.” Talking about the French opera, he added, “In 2012, we had presented an opera titled If I Were A King. It was set in Goa and demonstrated the times of 15th century. We showed Portuguese appearance in dark clouds, how they were defeated and were sent back to the sea. However, reality was different and this show is completely different and special.”
Though the legendary Western classical composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died at a young age of 35, he left behind a legacy of works that are now considered masterpieces. “The innumerable compositions he composed during his lifetime are played at concerts across the world. The conventional pieces we are going to present at the show are extremely popular worldwide,” informed Mathew and continued, “When ICCR contacted TNMFC for the show a couple of months back, we readily agreed as we wanted to make Indians familiar with opera. The French musicians came around two months back and all the participants have been rehearsing together since then. Earlier, only Indian musicians were practicing together.”
Was it difficult to coordinate with all the students at the same time? Commenting on it, he replied, “Not at all. The most amazing thing about Mozart is that you talk to each other through music and what the other person plays becomes the most important thing. For instance, two musicians are playing violin, then both of them need to understand what the other is playing. Understanding each other’s music is very important so when all the students performed together, there were no conflicts because they talked to each other through music. And music can never be the reason for conflicts.”
Talking about the instruments, Mathew said they have used instruments like violin, strings, cello, flute, oboe, bassoon, French horns, trumpets and metal drums. Is the stage at Siri Fort perfect for such a big performance? “No, we haven’t done any changes. The audi is one of the world’s best but the carpet on the stage should be replaced with a wooden floor as it produces an amazing sound. While the sound dies out due to the carpet,” he said.
Interestingly, the costumes for the performance have been designed by Indian designer duo of Parvesh & Jai and comprise traditional dresses kings and queens once wore. The accessories include wigs, hats, headgears, jewellery, swords, gloves, shoes and boots. “It will be around three hour-long performance and will surely aware Indians with various styles of opera. It’s a conventional performance as I haven’t fused it with contemporary music because I believe opera can never be done with hip-hop, rock or any other genre. I’m sure Indian viewers are going to love it,” concluded Mathew.
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