Kathmandu

The exquisite city of Patan came to life at Dhokaima Café on November 9 as singer Manmohan Thapaliya performed a melodic eastern classical tune, Patan. With aalap, bandish (song) of Lord Krishna based in Yaman raaga and taan, the tune overwhelmed the venue. Much flavour was added to it by sarangi played by Prince Nepali while it was further spiced up by the western punch of music comprising guitar, bass, saxophone and drums and moments where tabala player Rabin Lal Shrestha duetted with the singer.

In other performances, the audience was touched by heart rendering number Eh Saili and grooved with Aisha. Beautiful pieces to funky numbers in which improvisation and solos soared, the Surya Nepal Jazzmandu 2015’s Jazz at Patan was a usual hit as it always has been.

“I am much enjoying the festival, especially enjoyed tonight meeting all the musicians from here Nepal. They are extraordinary and their music is emotional. It is a great experience for me,” Jazzmandu artiste, guitarist Leni Stern expressed about the event.

Jazz at Patan is where western music meets Nepali music when Cadenza meets musicians friends on the stage. And so “we were all excited to hear new sounds and to learn the songs of theirs and to have them play our songs. It is really quite amazing.”

Stern was looking forward to collaborate with local and visiting artistes. “It turned out better than my imagination,” she said adding, “The tabala player — did you hear what he just did? It’s ridiculous! It’s so enjoyable. I don’t know how I am going to sleep tonight. It is fantastic!” She was also impressed by singer Thapaliya who she found “wonderful”.

On the other hand, it was a dream come true for Thapaliya to be on the stage of Jazzmandu. “When I was watching the show in previous years, I used to wonder when I would be on that stage. They invited me to perform this year and it was fun,” he shared.

Infusing Nepalipann to the tunes of Greece or Africa or jazz pieces was sarangi player Nepali. When on stage, the young musician had a great experience creating music.

“The Jazzmandu stage was a big one for me. Collaborating with great artistes like Magda Giannikou and others, I feel honoured,” shared Nepali. “Many artistes came together on one stage and they were playing different instruments. Even though the musical language was the same, we were playing different genres of music. And the fun part was that

we were connecting musically and reading the minds during our performances.”

After amazing evening of exchange at Patan, the biggest jazz festival of the Himalayas ended at Hotel Yak and Yeti on November 10 at the Jazzmandu Finale. The Nepali and visiting artistes and bands of this year — KJC-NA Jazz Orchestra, Kjetil Huseboe, Katamon Cherry… took the stage one after another to submerge the evening air in music and great time.

First timer attendee Erika Gurung from Jhamsikhel, who attended the last day of the festival, liked and enjoyed what the fest had to offer. Jazz at Patan and Jazzmandu Finale were the shows that she went to. “I got to experience different kinds of music here. But Jazz at Patan is the show I liked as I loved the performance of song Eh Saili dedicated to those who have gone for foreign employment to the Middle East,” she cited.

The venue was filled with people. Some were listening to music and some were eating and interacting with friends and family. “We are impressed by the support. Surprisingly, the festival had a great turnout despite the crisis. We didn’t know what to expect in this situation but it went really well. In fact, the turnout is even more than last year,” shared Co-founder and Artistic Director of the festival Navin Chettri adding, “It has been great. I think people were ready for some relief and something positive.”

The Surya Nepal Jazzmandu 2015 has said goodbye for this year but it has already geared up for another year of the festival. The dates are out and it is from October 20 to 26, 2016.

The Himalayan Times was the official media partner of the event.