Goa can hold its head up high because it has cut a niche in the music world. IFFI will showcase some of that talent on 9 December: Hema Sardessai, Remo and Bondo have become Goan icons and have etched their names in the hearts of their huge following around the world.

Western Classical music lives in the pulse of Goans. On 7 December, our budding Classical music artistes will perform a wide variety of works including the Mendelssohn and Bruch violin concertos. Fundacao Oriente in association with Pro Musica have organised a series of concerts at the Chapel of Our Lady of the Mount, Old Goa. On 28 November, the Kala Academy Children’s Choir led by Jean Kalgutkar stirred the ambience of the Chapel and the captive audience with glorious singing beginning with the St. Francis Xavier hymn and concluding with a rich medley of Goan folk songs. Joanne D’Mello, Goa’s outstanding soprano, will feature with the Goa Guitar Guild ensemble led by Schubert Cotta 0n 19 December.

For those preferring instrumental music, there are two string ensembles on 5 and 12 December led by Teresa Figueiredo and Myra Shroff respectively and a classical guitar recital by Devang Mehta on 18 December. The Chapel with its panoramic location, enhancing acoustics and historical tradition nurtures Goan talent.

On 3 December, another IFFI concert introduces a novel idea.Tourists hit the beaches of Goa to bask in the glorious tan producing sun and they leave happily “brown”. The Brown Indian Band brings together Indian musicians, many of whom have stirred the musical pot overseas, proud of their Indian roots and their physical and musical colouration. Three distinct cultural components co-exist to bring about harmonic diversity in the group.

Saish Deshpande (tabla), R. Subramanium (ghattam), Ramdas (mridangam), Dhiraj Kapadia (basuri), Yograj Naik (sitar) and S. Harikumar (violin) represent the Indian classical tradition

These musicians paint in delicate pastel shades, rhythmically and melodically richly textured.

Jazz is alive, evolving, boundless, pushing back boundaries, spilling over into new territories and incorporating , integrating every new terrain it covers. Accomplished non-brown musicians are often adopted into the fold to blend in their special tonal colour. Scot Andersen (vocals) is a Canadian whose brand of skatting creates drama on stage. Jayson Beaster-Jones (soprano sax), an anthropologist from Chicago, here on a Fellowship to compare methods of improvisation in jazz to those in Indian classical music, adds a special dimension.

The rest of the musicians are Goans. Lenny Heredia (keyboards) is a Goan living in Perth, Australia. Yvonne Gonsalves (vocals) a hit in Canada, now livens the Mumbai scene. Gerard Machad (guitar) splashes magic. Colin D’Cruz (bassplayer), a musician who has performed with just about every other jazz musician in the local circuit, leads. Lester Godinho (drums) and Carlos Gonsalves (percussion) are incredibly responsive musicians who spice the music with strong Indian and Goan beats.

The fusion of these musicians will generate new soundscapes to take our ears for a sonic spin with limitless shades of experience coming alive in an exciting way.

Goa thrives on festivals, particularly music festivals. Goan musicians in exciting combinations can be enjoyed close up in a Heritage Jazz Concert at the Armando Gonsalves mansion, located close to Kala Academy, on 5 December from 7:00 pm. The concept is to enjoy great jazz in the relaxed atmosphere of an expansive Goan home promenade.

Goa offers a wide ranging musical menu catering to all tastes and like IFFI brings together musicians from all over the world to create an international music awareness.