MUMBAI: Music maestro Shankar Mahadevan will perform a seven city concert �Bolava Vithal' to pay tribute to legendary vocalist Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.

The tour organized by Shashi Vyas will start from 9 July in Goa, followed by Mumbai, Pune, Nasik, Dharwad, Bangalore and Chennai.

The concert will feature artistes like Suresh Wadkar and Rahul Deshpande along with Shankar Mahadevan rendering famous bhajans and abhangs penned by great saints like Sant Dyaneshwar, Sant Tukaram, Sant Gora Kumbhar, and Sant Janabai in the devotion of Lord Panduranga.

Speaking on the tour Shankar Mahadevan said, Bolava Vitthal tour is another opportunity for me to get back to my classical roots by singing abhangs and bhajans and it's an honour to perform in the memory of Pandit Bhimsenji....

Even though various artistes believe that the non-film music is dead Shankar strongly deems that the non-film music is hidden than being dead. According to him, non-film music is artistically manipulated in film songs such as Sajda,' �Sapno se bhare naina,' and Taare Zameen Par,' which are based on the forms of non-film music, but in a modernized way.

Doing his best to spread awareness of non-film music, Shankar will also launch his most talked about virtual music academy in India, by the end of next month. The music academy will comprehend lessons in classical, carnatic, hindustani, spiritual, devotional and bollywood music. The virtual academy is already launched in US and has boast around 200 students.