MUMBAI: Regarded as one of the oldest Hindustani Classical conferences in India, The Dover Lane music conference is scheduled to take place from 22 - 25 January 2010 at Nazrul Mancha, Kolkata.

This year's event will boast names like like Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Pt. Shiv Kumar Sharma, Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia and Rashid Khan, among the performers.

While most classical concerts are known to start off early morning, the Dover Lane Music Conference starts in the evening and runs through the night. With the outstanding nocturnal performances, and subsequent beginning of the new day etched deep into many attendees' minds, this conference is as popular among musicians for it offers them a unique opportunity. Ustad Allauddin Khan saab, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan and Pt Ravi Shankar have given quite a few landmark performances here 

The Dover Lane music conference has been now taking place for over five decades (it started in 1952). While many other music bodies that were started around the same time have become defunct since, the Dover Lane Music Conference has stood the test of time. Secretary Bappa Sen says, "The reason behind other bodies going defunct was definitely pecuniary, but we have a strong organisational structure and I believe that has worked for us. Through all these years, we have never associated ourselves with any event management group, we have our traditional sponsors backing us every year," Sen adds with pride.

About the audience profile changing over the years, he says, "The interest in classical music has surely gone up among the younger lot. There are many classical concerts happening every now and then in and around Kolkata that encourage the younger generation."

Since many stalwarts have performed here, Sen gets overwhelmed with memories, "There are so many I can't really mention one single incident." According to stories doing round in the music circles, once Bhimsen Joshi had the entire audience in tears when he sang Ramkali at this conference, while Gangubai Hangal sang through the night to save listeners the trouble of returning home late at night when the city was plagued by riots.

Schedule

22nd Jauary, 2010. (7:00 PM – Night Long)  - In Memory of Ustad Ali Akbar Khan

Anindya Banerjee (Sarod)

Shiraz Ali Khan (Sarod)

Kamal Mallick (Sarod)

Alam Khan (Sarod)

Aashish Khan (Sarod)

23rd January, 2010. (8:30 PM – Night Long)  - In Memory of Pt. Tarapada Chakraborty

Subroto Roychowdhury (Sitar)

Manas Chakraborty (Vocal)

Tarun Bhattacharya (Santoor) And Ronu Majumdar (Flute)

Manjari Asanare Kelkar (Vocal)

Shahid Parvez (Sitar)

24th January, 2010. (8:30 PM – Night Long)  - In Memory of Provat Kumar Das

Baha'ud-din Dagar (Veena)

Rashid Khan (Vocal)

Kushal Das (Sitar)

Shubhada Paradkar (Vocal)

Shiv Kumar Sharma (Santoor)

25th January, 2010. (8:30 PM – Night Long)  - Save the Environment

Jayateerth Mevundi (Vocal)

Hariprasad Chaurasia (Flute)

Padma Talwalkar (Vocal)

Amjad Ali Khan (Sarod)

Accompanists

TABLA - Swapan Chowdhury | Ananda Gopal Banerjee | Anindya Chatterjee | Samar Saha | Subhankar Banerjee | Tanmoy Bose |

Abhijit Banerjee | Subhojyoti Guha | Indranil Mallick | Ujwal Bharati | Pradyut Mukherjee | Utpal Dutta |

Debashish Sarkar | Sanjay Deshpandey | Nishad Karaljikar

PAKHAWAJ - Tapas Das

HARMONIUM - Jyoti Goho | Ranjan Mukherjee | Debaprasad Dey | Sanatan Goswami | Pradip Palit | Rupashri Bhattacharya

SARANGI - Murad Ali