Classical music often arrives fully formed before an audience, polished and precise. What remains unseen are the small memories, private rehearsals and formative encounters that shape a musician’s relationship with a song. The Storied Song, presented by Bhoomija in collaboration with the Prestige Centre for Performing Arts, is designed to bring that inner landscape to the stage. We spoke to curator Gayathri Krishna about the idea behind the format of the show that will unravel on March 1.
The concert brings together vocalists Spoorthi Rao and Rahul Vellal, with singer and theatre artiste MD Pallavi serving as narrator. For Gayathri, the impulse came from observing two musicians who have grown up in the public eye. “These two singers, Rahul and Spoorthi, are quite big stars. They are both child prodigies and they are deeply into their craft,” she says. “We are all very familiar with the classical repertoire. They singit all the time and I thought, we have this treasure with us, so why not make it into a beautiful evening where we can get to hear their stories?” she shares.
The structure centres on association and memory. “I asked them to sing what they are known for, sing what people associate them with,” she recalls. The repertoire will include bhajans, devaranamas, bhavageethe and even a film song that carries personal history. “This naturally makes it into not just the classical music audiences. This is for everybody,” she adds. Pallavi’s role is to weave the narrative together and anchor the evening in conversation. Gayathri approached her with a clear brief. “Can you just make it into a nice, happy, light, but very profound evening with these two?” she remembers asking Pallavi. Much of the preparation has focused on dialogue rather than rehearsal.
What does she hope audiences take away? “I want them to get a glimpse into the world of these two youngsters,” Gayathri smiles. “They know their music. They don’t know the memories behind it, the incidents, the moments with their gurus. That informal side, that conversation — that is what we want to bring to the show.”
INR 500 onwards. March 1, 6.30 pm. At Prestige Centre for Performing Arts, Konanakunte.
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