KARACHI: “Whenever foreign groups visit here, it is felt that understanding each other is not easy at first until we start playing music together. Then there is an instant connection,” said Arshad Mahmud, director for programmes and administration at the National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa), at a press conference held here on Monday to announce a four-day (Dec 4 to 7) Napa International Music Festival titled ‘Bridging cultures through music’.

“It is that very connection that fuelled this music festival where musicians from Germany and Italy will be joining us to show how similar they are to us when playing music,” he added.

The four-day festival will have the German Leipzig String Quartet playing on the first day. Pakistan’s celebrated classical singer Hamid Ali Khan, flute maestro Ustad Salamat Hussain, tabla maestro Ustad Bashir Khan and vocalist Akbar Ali, about whom festival-in-charge Ahsan Shabbir said he was a very talented young vocalist, will perform on day two. On the third day, the stage will be occupied by pianist, concert performer, songwriter and recording artist Kimball Gallagher from the United States. And day four will have a concert by Hathor Plectrum Quartet from Italy.

Dr Manuel Negwer, director of the Goethe Institut Pakistan, said Napa was an important stage not just for Pakistani performers but seeing how it had been growing towards international expressions of art it also held value for international musicians and artistes.

About the Leipzig String Quartet from Germany arriving here to perform at the festival, it was said that it was founded in 1988 and was the receiver of many prizes and awards, including the prestigious Busch Brothers prize and the Siemens Music Prize and scholarships from the Amadeus Scholarship Fund and Cultural Fund Foundation.

The Leipzig String Quartet had three of its members engaged in the famous Gewandaus Orchestra until 1993 following which they devoted themselves to chamber music. The quartet, comprising Stefan Arzberger and Tilman Buening playing violins, Ivo Bauer playing the viola and Matthias Moos Village playing the cello, have created their own concert series ‘Pro Quatuor’ active in holding concerts in 40 countries throughout Europe, North and South America, Australia, Japan, Africa, etc.

In Pakistan, Dr Negwer said the quartet would try to give the concert at Napa a very characteristic touch by playing classical Western music without sound systems. “There will be no amplification like it was in Mozart’s time. Just contemporary music from instruments such as violins and cello,” he said.

“The visiting musicians are all in their 40s and not too old but at the peak of their careers. So it would be a rewarding experience on both sides for them and the Pakistani musicians here to be open to new music.”

Mohammad Haroon from the Italian Consulate spoke about the Hathor Plectrum Quartet from Italy said to be one of the most famous plectrum quartet in the world that would be playing on day four of the festival.

“Founded in 2007 with the proposal to play the largest and original repertory for plectrum instruments the musicians — Antonio Schiavone (mandolin), Roberto Bascia (mandolin), Maria Cleofe (mandola) and Vito Mannarini (guitar) — would be playing soundtracks of Italian movies as well as collaborate with Napa students to be able to play some Pakistani songs as well,” he said.

Meanwhile, Arshad Mahmud said that during the festival Napa students would mostly be collaborating with the international artistes while chipping in here and there with their own performances. “Maybe one day we can also have our own quartet going to perform abroad. Gaining inspiration from hearing the visitors may help them do just that,” he said.

Published in Dawn, December 2nd, 2014