KATHMANDU:

The trio sing at the Juneli Bar, Hotel del ‘Annapurna and call themselves Rhapsody. And the band is different because the members are from two different generations — youngsters Bandana Tamang (vocal) and Kabin Karki (guitar) and Kabin’s father Narayan Karki (violin), who has been performing for the last 25 years.

They perform jazz, soft rock, classics and even commercial music.

“It was a five-member band but the band drifted apart, then my son Kabin and Bandana joined me. Since then we have been playing songs of different genres to cater the taste of all guests,” says Karki.

Playing with a father-son duo must be difficult and awkward, but Bandana says that she never ever felt like an outsider. “They treat me like family,” she says.

They were introduced by common friends and today they work hard as a band to create a memorable environment at Juneli Bar every evening.

“We are here to entertain people, who come to have a good time and refresh their minds. However, good performance depends upon the reaction of guests towards our performance,” says Bandana.

But Karki believes that as professionals once you come to perform it’s important to keep the environment alive through music.

This is a band of made of persons from two different generations. So how does it feel?

“I don’t think music has any age. We perform together and the energy level is the same. Playing with the young blood, I have learned to take things more lightly,” says Karki.

Both Bandana and Kabin believe that Karki has taught them to be more serious towards the profession and to be more patient.

They are like friends with a deep mutual respect towards each other.

Karki feels that the choice of music has changed with time.

“Previously there were more foreigner guests, so we used to focus on Western songs. Today local guests have increased, so we have to keep their choice in mind and play Hindi and Nepali songs as well,” says Karki.

There are some guests who come regularly and the band knowing their favourite songs performs them without request. The Rhapsody performs instrumental pieces. And so far they have found that guests of any origin just love the Beatles songs.