Eena Meena Deeka…

The Monsorate Brothers have watched and performed with the irrepressible Kishore Kumar up close and personal. They will recreate some of that magic as they perform his unforgettable numbers, writes Pankaja Srinivasan

November 04, 2013 06:55 pm | Updated November 16, 2021 07:40 pm IST - coimbatore

The Monsorate Brothers

The Monsorate Brothers

Date: November 8

Venue: PSG College of Arts and Science, Coimbatore

Time: 7.30 p.m.

Genre: Hindi retro

>For the detailed schedule of Nov Fest 2013 in all five cities, click here .

The Monsorate Brothers come to Coimbatore to celebrate Kishore Kumar, and there are few in the country better equipped to do so. As musicians they have impeccable pedigree — they are sons of ace trumpeter Peter Monsorate who performed with leading lights such as Ken Mac, Hal Green and Flavian D’Costa. He was known as the Harry James of India. Like the early Afro-American jazz musicians of New Orleans, Peter Monsorate was self-taught.

Five of his seven sons — Joseph and Bosco on the trumpet, Ronnie on the piano, Rex on the drums and Blasco on the Trombone — will perform in the city. They have also been part of many jazz events and Joseph and Bosco were part of the Big Band formed by trumpeter Clark Terry of the US. They are well recognised musicians in the jazz circuit.

In Bollywood, they have been associated with giants of the music scene, including Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Kalyanji-Anandji, R.D. Burman, Bappi Lahiri and A.R. Rahman. They have played for Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhonsle, Ilaiyaraaja, Adnan Sami and Himesh Reshammiya in many world concerts. Best of all, they have performed with the man we all love, Kishore Kumar.

Ronnie Monsorate remembers an occasion when they were rehearsing with Bappi Lahiri for a recording of Kishore Kumar. “We came in early so that we could have as many rehearsals as possible before the singer arrived. But, this time, Kishore da surprised us by coming in early. He was amazed to see us practising so many times. He said, ‘Aap log kitna mehnat kar rahe hain’ (You all put in so much of effort). He also said, ‘I have sung, composed, acted, directed and written scripts, but I could never become a musician. It is a lot of hard work’.”

Ronnie also recollects another instance in the early 80s while performing at the Shanmukhananda Auditorium for the Filmfare Awards. “Kishore da came to the stage and down flat on his back. The audience gasped wondering what happened. Suddenly, Kishore da lifted one leg, then another and then his hands and started moving them around vigorously. He scrambled up to applause and complained good humouredly: ‘You will applaud only when I behave madly. If any one comes on stage to just sing, no one claps!’”

‘Geet Gaata Hoon Mein’ has been put together by Martin D’Souza, who is fresh from a hugely successful concert at Mumbai where the Monsorate Brothers played for a 3,000-strong crowd. Martin says, “I have been wanting to do a concert with them for the past 10 years, but they were always busy. Getting them together is almost impossible. But I persisted, juggled their dates and impressed upon them the nature of The Hindu Friday Review November Fest’s five-city music tour.

“It is going to be an evening to remember and the experience of watching and listening to a live trombone, saxophone and trumpet combo along with violins and double bass is going to be unique. It is not often that one gets to see a brass band perform. This one is going to be special. Vocalists Kiran Shembekar, Sandeep Shah, Ajit Deval and Ananya Bhowmick will have you up on your feet and dancing!”

>A clip of their performance .

Tickets:

>Rs. 400, Rs. 250 & Rs. 150. Season passes at Rs. 1,000 & Rs. 650

Follow us:

Website >thehindu.com/novemberfest

Facebook at >Friday Review November Fest

Twitter >@FRNovfest

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