25 Jun: Navhind Times. By Mariano A. Pereira (President Bharat Association, Frankfurt). Excerpts: Sigrid Pfeffer of the German Radio Station, Hessisches Rundfunk, was fascinated by the Konkani music she heard when on vacation in Goa. She took seven weeks unpaid leave to interview Konkani literary and music figures.The hour-long program entitled "Konkani music - the almost forgotten music of India" will be broadcast on 26 June, 2008 from 21.30 hrs [20.30, UK time; 01:00, 27 Jun. IST] on Hessisches Rundfunk (HR2). Sigrid Pfeffer is also working on a CD of Konkani music.
To listen to the programme live, go to http://www.hr-online.de/website/radio/hr2/index.jsp?rubrik=23746 For the programme website (in German), see http://biggs.hr-online.de/website/radio/hr2/index.jsp?rubrik=31124&key=stand ard_document_33624614 If you have problems with the links and/or for a photograph of Mariano Pereira visit http://www.goanvoice.org.uk/ Below is the full text of Navhind Times article of 25 June 2008. Konkani Music Program on German Radio Station. By Mariano A. Pereira, Frankfurt, Germany. Sigrid Pfeffer a German tourist heard some out-of-the-ordinary yet pleasant sounding music at a Goan guest house where she was spending her vacation. She being a music aficionada, working for the popular German Radio Station, Hessisches Rundfunk, in Frankfurt, Germany, instantly fell in love with the melodies. Ms. Pfeffer, however, was unable to determine where that music may have come from and the language in which the melodies were sung. She was puzzled. To her ears it sounded like a blend of Mexican mariachi, Italian folk tunes, Cuban sounds, and South Sea rattles. She wondered whether the Italian mandolin and Mexican trumpet had anything to do with India. Sigrid Pfeffer was surprised when she found out that the music she fell in love with were Konkani folksongs, i.e., Mandos, Dulpods, and Cantaram. She took seven weeks of unpaid leave with permission from her employer and began incessant search for the roots of this music and the Konkani Tiatrs in Goa and Mumbai. She interviewed Konkani literary figures like Uday Bhembre, John "Kokoy" Gomes, and Tomasinho Cardoso, and further went to Mumbai to continue her research where she spoke to Jazzy (Joe) Pereira, Naresh Fernandes, and Rita Rose. She also visited Goan Clubs "kuds" at Dobiltalao and even found some old Konkani records collecting dust at Mumbai's Chor Bazar. Upon carrying the Massala Mixes" as she calls them back to Germany, she thought of presenting them to Cornelia Rost, the producer of the Broadcast Program, Music of the World. She too felt the music would appeal to the German ear and gave her the green light to do an hour-long radio program devoted to Konkani music. Perhaps for first time in history such a program will be broadcast by a major German radio station. Featuring in this program among others will be songs by Minguel Rod, Jacinto Vaz, Helen D'Cruz, Henry D"Souza, Lorna, Robin Vaz, Alfred & Rita Rose, Oslando and compositions by Uday Bhembre & Chris Perry, as well as one of India's top Goan pop musicians, Remo Fernandes. The hour-long program entitled "Konkani music - the almost forgotten music of India" will be broadcast on 26 June, 2008 from 21.30 hrs on Hessisches Rundfunk (HR2). It will include an historical review of Konkani music and its unique form of Tiatro development. Sigrid Pfeffer is also working on a CD of Konkani folksongs, mandos, dulpods and cantaram for the German public slated to be in the market including music stores in Goa by the end of the year. ===================================================== Forwarded by Eddie Fernandes
