The grand ballroom of Grand Hyatt Mumbai was swathed in the amber glow of hundreds of candles. There were no empty seats. The ambient lighting created a mesmerizing setting for the first Candlelight concert in India.
The show helmed by Live Your City made its debut in the country with a live show featuring Hindi movie soundtracks. Music connoisseurs who missed the inaugural show will have another opportunity to experience the soundtracks on July 13 and August 4.
The Four Seasons hotel will be the second venue in Mumbai before the concert travels to Delhi with a show featuring classical music from Mozart to Chopin at the SRCPA on June 14, July 12, and August 9.
The same venue will reverberate to Best Movie Soundtracks on June 28, July 26, and August 23, while LeMeridien will come alive with the tunes of Coldplay reinterpreted with classical instruments on June 16, July 6, and August 16. In the last leg of the concert, Candlelight will reach the Radisson Blu Hotel in Faridabad on July 5.
Candlelight Concerts were launched by Fever in 2019 to democratize access to classical music. The series is now present in 35 countries around the world and features an impressive, rotating roster of skilled musicians local to the cities they perform in. Unlike traditional concerts in stuffy halls, Candlelight concerts are conducted in intimate settings illuminated by thousands of candles.
Candlelight concerts are all about the pure energy of live music. Unlike many concerts today that rely on pre-production and background tracks, Candlelight lets you experience the music in its raw form. We could feel the instruments resonate and every note and chord come alive. A sea of flickering candles blanketed the stage, spilling down the steps and bathing the entire ballroom in an almost magical glow. Candlelight concerts often feature local talent, giving them a platform to showcase their skills.
The inaugural concert in Mumbai featured Shirish Malhotra on the flute and saxophone, Tamaghna Mukherjee on the drums and Nicholas Vaz on the guitar. The artists played with both poise and playfulness and took turns announcing the next piece they’d be playing.
The music ranged from the sombre tones of Roja to the exhilarating tunes of Dil Chahta Hain and the soothing melody of Kalank. They even did an encore piece, Jai Ho which was a fun number to end on as the whole crowd participated by clapping at the right moments. The highlight for us was the jugalbandi between Malhotra and Mukherjee.
Though the performances were immersive and magnificent, some more engagement from the musicians with the audience, would have truly catapulted the acts to another level. We would have loved to hear some anecdotes about the songs being played, some friendly banter between the musicians and some encouragement to sing along if the crowd felt like it. That said, there’s something particularly magical about sitting in a dark hall surrounded by the glow from a sea of candles and swaying to your favourite tracks.
Things you need to know:
Arrive at least 30 minutes before the concert begins.
Tea and coffee are available for purchase before the event.
Pictures and videos are permitted before the concert begins and during the last piece of the concert.
Tickets are priced from INR 1,199 onwards. Available online.