ON Stage is the cultural magazine of the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), Mumbai, and features authoritative stories on the performing arts.
Know Your Composer
A partly sad, partly bizarre story of how Mozart (1756-91) suffered benign neglect for the better part of the 19th century, and how he was rehabilitated in the 20th century by Hollywood. By Manohar Parnerkar Today it is hard to believe that the 19th-century radical Romantics once denigrated Mozart as
News
This month, the NCPA inaugurates the Dr. Jamshed J. Bhabha Memorial Exhibition, a collection of artefacts, rare photographs and stories from the illustrious family’s oeuvre. Once upon a time, Mehrangir, the beautiful art deco bungalow in Malabar Hill, was home to two overachievers: Dr Homi Bhabha, nuclear physicist and
Interviews
Barry Douglas returns to India with Camerata Ireland – the only orchestra to unite musicians from both Northern Ireland and Ireland – to perform Beethoven’s five piano concertos. Interviewed by Cynthia Lewis Barry Douglas is more than just a renowned pianist and conductor. He is a man on a mission to
Interviews
As the students of the NCPA Special Music Training Programme return from their first concert on foreign shores, Marat Bisengaliev talks to us about the future of the programme. Interviewed by Cynthia Lewis The year 2018 is an important one for the NCPA Special Music Training Programme. The programme was
Know Your Composer
The Artie’s Festival is set to bring to the stage two chamber concerts featuring works from Brahms and Bloch, among others. Sandipan Das compiles his notes on some of the composers and their music. In the tenth year of their association with the NCPA, the Artie’s Festival, led
Music Education
Zane Dalal looks at the music, the drama and the pervasive social message of Richard Wagner’s epic music drama, Der Ring des Nibelungen Much has been written on the life and work of composer Richard Wagner, and even more on his famous tetralogy of operas, Der Ring des Nibelungen
Meet the Maestro
Prominent Polish conductor Antoni Wit has striven to keep the Polish repertory alive throughout his illustrious career. We take a look at the achievements of the acclaimed conductor, ahead of his performances with the Symphony Orchestra of India. By Beverly Pereira When the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra made its debut at
Music Education
In 2017, the Symphony Orchestra of India performed at a few unorthodox venues, such as hospitals and crèches, in order to bring their art closer to those who couldn’t reach them. By Rinky Kumar In the year 2006, when the Symphony Orchestra of India (SOI) came into being, the
Know Your Composer
An examination of early and late influences of Mozart as seen through his ‘Coronation’ Mass and the ‘Requiem’. By Zane Dalal Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart will perhaps never be fully understood, nor will our modern scholarship – that now delves deep into the psyche of composers trying to explain the ‘why’ instead
Interviews
It has been ten years since cellist Gauthier Herrmann, artistic director of the Artie’s festival India, has been coming to the NCPA with his chamber ensemble. A biannual fixture on the NCPA calendar, he talks to ON Stage about the tenth anniversary. “Ten years, 20 editions, more than 50
News
The Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra has been active in the music festival circuit in Europe and beyond for over seven decades. Ahead of its performances at the NCPA, we take a look at how the orchestra has carried forward its rich heritage. By Beverly Pereira Since 1940, the Lithuanian National
Interviews
Stephen Hough’s piano-playing is enhanced by his work as a composer, writer, painter, cultural blogger, activist, poet, novelist and professor of music. By Karishma Attari Stephen Hough is a British-born, internationally acclaimed pianist, who needs little introduction in classical music circles. His major accolades suggest his mastery of the
