35th annual Navaratri Festival to be held at Wesleyan University's Center for the Arts October 26-30, 2011
35th annual Navaratri Festival
October 26-30, 2011
Indian culture festival to feature dance performance
by Rama Vaidyanathan and music concert by T.M. Krishna
Middletown, Conn., October 5, 2011— Wesleyan University’s Center for the Arts presents the 35th annual Navaratri Festival, celebrating the traditional culture of India with performances by some of the country's leading artists, from Wednesday, October 26 through Sunday, October 30, 2011 on the Wesleyan campus in Middletown, Connecticut. One of India's major festival celebrations, Navaratri is a time to see family and friends, enjoy music and dance, and seek blessings for new endeavors. Please see below for further details.
"For us Indian musicians traveling all over the world and especially in the U.S., this campus has been a place of great respect and wonder because of its ability to sustain this program for over thirty years," said tabla virtuoso Zakir Hussain last fall, when he performed a sold-out concert on October 30, 2010 in Crowell Concert Hall with Niladri Kumar. "It is a privilege and a blessing to be a part of this incredible environment," said Mr. Hussain.
A special Navaratri festival subscription package is available, which features a 15% savings on all three ticketed performances in Crowell Concert Hall: B. Balasubrahmaniyan (Friday, October 28 at 8pm), T.M. Krishna (Saturday, October 29 at 7pm), and Rama Vaidyanathan (Sunday, October 30 at 2pm). The Navaratri festival subscription is available for $36 for the general public; $29 for senior citizens, Wesleyan faculty/staff and non-Wesleyan students; and $18 for Wesleyan students. Tickets are available online at http://www.wesleyan.edu/navaratri, by phone at (860) 685-3355, or in person at the Wesleyan University Box Office, located in the Usdan University Center, 45 Wyllys Avenue, Middletown, CT. Tickets may also be purchased at each event beginning one hour prior to the performance, subject to availability. The Center for the Arts accepts cash, checks written to “Wesleyan University”, and all major credit cards. Groups of ten or more may receive a discount – please call (860) 685-3355 for details. No refunds, cancellations, or exchanges.
Type: Music Lecture
Title of Event: Talk by Niko Higgins - Fusion and “Confusion”: Problems with Musical Hybridity in South India
Location: CFA Hall, 287 Washington Terrace, Middletown, CT
Date: Wednesday, October 26, 2011 at 4:15pm
Fee: FREE!
Phone: 860-685-3355
Website: www.wesleyan.edu/navaratri
Description: Niko Higgins ’97 studied Karnatak vocal music with T. Viswanathan at Wesleyan. A PhD candidate in ethnomusicology at Columbia University, he is finishing his dissertation on the contemporary practice of Karnatak fusion in Chennai, India (where he studied with Smt. Rama Ravi). Drawing from his research and literature about cultural and musical hybridity, Mr. Higgins will analyze the socio-culturalimpact of ideas from South Indian classical music, film music, Western rock and jazz.
Type: Art
Title of Event: Henna and Chat hosted by Shakti
Location: Olin Library Lobby, 252 Church Street, Middletown, CT
Date: Wednesday, October 26, 2011 from 7:30pm to 9pm
Fee: FREE!
Phone: 860-685-3355
Website: www.wesleyan.edu/navaratri
Description: Experience South Asian culture through henna art and sampling of chaat (savory snacks). Hosted by Shakti, Wesleyan’s South Asian Students’ Association.
Type: Music
Title of Event: B. Balasubrahmaniyan - Vocal Music of South India
Location: Crowell Concert Hall, 50 Wyllys Avenue, Middletown, CT
Date: Friday, October 28, 2011 at 8pm
Fee: $12 general public; $10 senior citizens, Wesleyan faculty/staff, non-Wesleyan students; $6 Wesleyan students
Phone: 860-685-3355
Website: www.wesleyan.edu/navaratri
Description: Vocalist B. Balasubrahmaniyan, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Music, is joined by Artist in Residence David Nelson on mridangam and violinist K.V.S. Vinay. The concert will open with a performance by their students.
Type: Music
Title of Event: Stan Scott and the Rangila Ensemble -The Weaver’s Song: Bhajans of North India
Location: World Music Hall, 40 Wyllys Avenue, Middletown, CT
Date: Saturday,October 29, 2011 at 1pm
Fee: FREE!
Phone: 860-685-3355
Website: www.wesleyan.edu/navaratri
Description: Vocalist and guitarist Stan Scott, Private Lessons Teacher in the Wesleyan Music Department, celebrates the release of his new album of North Indian devotional songs. He will be accompanied by Harshal Tole on tabla, Steve Gorn on bamboo flute, Kedar Naphade on harmonium, and the Rangila Chorus. A reception will follow the concert.
Type: Music
Title of Event: T.M. Krishna
Location: Crowell Concert Hall, 50 Wyllys Avenue, Middletown, CT
Date: Saturday, October 29, 2011 at 7pm
Fee: $15 general public; $12 senior citizens, Wesleyan faculty/staff, non-Wesleyan students; $6 Wesleyan students
Phone: 860-685-3355
Website: www.wesleyan.edu/navaratri
Description: Vocalist T.M. Krishna is at the forefront of classical Carnatic vocalists in India, having studied with Sri Semangudi Srinivasa Iyer. He will be accompanied by HK Venkatram on the violin and Trichy Sankaran on the mridangam.
Haveli India will present a bountiful meal, from appetizer to dessert, in World Music Hall, located at 40 Wyllys Avenue, at 5pm before the T.M. Krishna concert. Tickets, which include both the dinner and the concert, are $25 for the general public; $22 for senior citizens, Wesleyan faculty/staff and non-Wesleyan students; and $13 for Wesleyan students.
Type: Religious Ceremony
Title of Event: Saraswati Puja (Hindu Ceremony)
Location: World Music Hall, 40 Wyllys Avenue, Middletown, CT
Date: Sunday, October 30, 2011 at 11am
Fee: FREE!
Phone: 860-685-3355
Website: www.wesleyan.edu/navaratri
Description: This religious service, led by A. V. Srinivasan, marks the most auspicious day of the year for beginning new endeavors. The audience may participate and bring instruments, manuscripts and other items for blessing.
Type: Dance
Title of Event: Rama Vaidyanathan - Bharata Natyam
Location: Crowell Concert Hall, 50 Wyllys Avenue, Middletown, CT
Date: Sunday, October 30, 2011 at 2pm
Fee: $15 general public; $12 senior citizens, Wesleyan faculty/staff, non-Wesleyan students; $6 Wesleyan students
Phone: 860-685-3355
Website: www.wesleyan.edu/navaratri
Description: For the past twenty years, Rama Vaidyanathan has been considered one of the finest interpreters of the South Indian dance form bharata natyam. Rama has trained intensively under the legendary dancer Yamini Krishnamurty and the eminent Guru Saroja Vaidyanathan.
The 35th annual Navaratri Festival is sponsored by Wesleyan University's Center for the Arts and made possible by support from the Jon B. Higgins Memorial Fund, the John Spencer Camp Fund, the Wesleyan University Music Department, the Wesleyan University Office of Academic Affairs, Middlesex Community College, Haveli Indian Restaurant, and individual patrons.
For more information about the 35th annual Navaratri Festival at Wesleyan University, please visit http://www.wesleyan.edu/navaratri All programs, artists, and dates are subject to change.