A concert with 1,110 veenas!

Bangalore, March 29 (IANS) It was a symphony with 1,100 veenas that left music aficionados here spellbound.

Held to foster India's ancient heritage of classical music, a concert organised by the Art of Living (AoL) Foundation saw veena exponents from Bangalore and eight other cities across Karnataka play away at the Bangalore Palace grounds Wednesday evening.

The concert had veena exponents and their disciples plucking the stringed instrument to churn out some mesmerising music.

'In happy times your love for music is spontaneous. In tough times music can soothe, heal and destress you. So, make music an integral part of your life. Veena is the most ancient instrument known to mankind. Its resonance is unparalleled, captivating and takes you to another dimension,' AoL founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said on the occasion.

Exquisite compositions based on ancient ragas like raga hamsadwani, dhanashree, brindavani, kaapi, hindola, mayamalawagoula, revati and mohana were rendered, enthralling the audience.

'The inspiration behind this concert was the AoL's 'brahm naad' event in 2008 in New Delhi that brought 1,094 sitarists on one platform for the first time. It made me realise that we need to create platforms to uplift practitioners of ancient arts and enhance the exposure of Indian classical music,' said Suparna Ravishanakar, secretary at the Ranjini Kalakendra (Centre for Performing Arts).

Organisers AoL and Ranjani Kalakendra hope the unique concert would gain entry into 'The Guinness Book of World Records'.

'We always recognised music as a profound means of experiencing harmony with oneself and organised many events of music and dance,' Ravi Shankar said.