Music to the ears 

BENGALURU: With several musical events taking a severe blow ever since the start of the pandemic, it appears that many are yearning to groove to live tunes again. And this show may be a glimmer of hope  for artistes and musical fans alike. Chennai-based contemporary classic band Staccato, El Fe singers (choir group), vocalists Divya Raghavan, Deepak Blue, among others are performing at the 6th edition of October Octaves, an annual musical event on Saturday. 

Staccato came to light following their performance at the London Olympics in 2012. The band specialises in recreating classics with a contemporary and western touch. During the ongoing pandemic, the band conceived an idea called Freshly Brewed and collaborated with El Fe singers, a choir group, to reproduce classics from old film songs.

Gowtham Bharadwaj, one of the founders of Staccato and the lead vocalist of the nine-member band, says, “The idea of adding contemporary style to folklore and old classics was conceived during the pandemic when a lot of us were reeling under the blues of the lockdown. We rehearsed and performed  our first song titled Anubavam Pudhumai in an empty auditorium in Septemeber 2020. We aim to bring this to Bengaluru.”  

According to Bharadwaj, the band is performing their show on a large scale for the first time in almost two years. Raghavan, a city-based vocalist, says, “We’ve had a creative loss, personally, due to the pandemic. Now, people are trying to get back to the old routine. And as artistes, we are always ready to get back on stage for them.” 

Ramesh Madhavan, organiser of October Octaves, says, “Our musical programme attempts to make Jayanagar and JP Nagar the musical hub of Bengaluru. This performance focuses on rearrangement of old classical songs with a contemporary touch and involves a young band of nine members, five vocalists, and a choir, all of whom will performing in multiple languages,”

October Octaves is taking place today at RV Dental College Auditorium, JP Nagar. Tickets: bookmyshow.com