Women In Concert 2009

KATHMANDU, March 23: Musical events in Nepal don’t usually have the habit or the stamina to become an annual event for enough years for the audience to see it evolve and grow. Women In Concert, however, just might defy that stereotype. [break]

“In the spring of 2003, a group of Nepali women – Sapna Thapa, Rachana Gurung Sharma, Palmo Khampa and Sheri Thapa gathered at Hotel Shangri La to listen to Nepal’s finest singer-rocker Abhaya Subba Weise. Carried away by the music, the ambiance and, possibly some wine, the ladies enthused about doing an annual concert with women performers,” explained one of the event’s central figures Vidhea Shrestha to the audience gathered at The Resort.

By September that year the “whimsical idea” had became the first Women In Concert, held at the Dechenling Garden Restaurant. “To borrow from President Obama’s slogan, CHANGE is what we need… So instead of shying away from change, we should embrace it and celebrate it,” she went on. And changed the music scene it did!

This year, the event was hosted in collaboration with The Chevrolet Miles Music Festival organized by the Kathmandu Jazz Conservatory (KJC), which still includes several more days of good music in Kathmandu including a couple of free events. (For details: http://www.milesmusicfestival.com). And The Conservatory made its mark.

While several of the voices on stage were veterans of the event, as well as a couple that clearly lacked practice, it was the newcomers that really raised eyebrows and made the audience’s ears perk up. Each and every one of KJC’s students were remarkable performers, although the same perhaps can’t be said of their teachers.

Without a doubt The Trio, sisters Kencho, Sonam and Sangay, took the cake for being the cutest on stage. Besides KJC students, Astha Tamang, the young singer/songwriter who has just released her debut album Sabai Thikai Huncha, was a highlight too. The in-house band for the night was Humble Bee, with Vikku Chhetri (lead guitar), Hemu (drums), Isaan (bass) and Srijan (keyboards).

Apart from providing great entertainment, WIC has also contributed a total of NRs 163,000 to various charitable causes in Nepal over the years. This year the event made contributions to Orchid Garden Nepal, an NGO based in Maligaon.

One of the original ideas behind WIC was “to be a platform for non-professional, though talented, women to sing in public as well as to inspire young aspiring female Nepali musicians to sing and perform publicly, and perhaps even make a career of it,” MC Vidhea said. And if you can say one thing about Women In Concert 2009, it is that the girls ruled the stage. But will they make a career out of it? I guess we’ll have to wait for future WICs to find out.

(All photos by Kashish Das Shrestha.)