Lots of ‘Wows’ & ‘Oohs’ Echoed the Packed Hall at Poco A Poco’s ‘Positive Vibes’ Show in City
Mangaluru : It was a unique extravaganza showcasing Range, Technique, Talent, and all-round performance in a presentation that Mangaluru City witnessed for the FIRST time, which the music buffs found it uniquely uncommon, and enthralled them at the Sri Sudhindra Auditorium Canara Girls High School, Kodialbail-Mangaluru, on Saturday 20 July during the two shows-at 3.30 pm and 6 pm. Although the 3.30 pm didn’t attract a expected crowd, because that’s time usually Mangalureans take afternoon nap-but the 6 pm show was houseful. And the show was so unique that the audience stayed glued to their seats, and gave a loud applaud at the end of each performance.
This unique show staged by a group named “Poco A Poco” based in Bengaluru , with their show titled ‘Positive Vibes’, was an evening of choral music accompanied with the piano and a few other instruments, performed by an unlikely group of people consisting of entrepreneurs, techies, students, parents, artists, writers etc., who came together to live a melodic dream. Their performance held the audience smiling, full of joy and charmed for an hour and twenty two minutes, consisting of singing, a bit of choreographed and un-choreographed movement, a thin thread of witty dialogue running through the performance stitching one song to the next, some fabulous piano and acoustic drumming, and a few surprises thrown in.
The medley of songs performed by the team, had something for everyone, whatever their music preferences were. The motley crew of amateur vocalists and musicians led by conductor-pianist Shubira D’sa, presented songs that traversed a multitude of genres from across different eras and different countries, including a rousing number from South Africa, and also a number “Shola Jo Bhadke” from our own country-Bharath! The list of songs included- Day-O, Raise Me Up, Sakura, Besame Mucho, Malaika, Cover The World With Love, The Climb, Somebody To Love, Angel, Thousand Years, Pianica, Barbara Ann, Imagine, Lady Marmalade, Ubi Caritas, Lion Sleeps Tonight, Somewhere Over The Rainbow, Game of Thrones, Hallelujah, Thunder and Shoahaloza. The show comprised of Latin, Japanese, English, Hindi and Swahili.
Through it’s creative arrangement by a truly gifted director, pianist, singer, voice trainer and composer Shubira D’Sa, Poco A Poco’s ‘Positive Vibes’ was a showcase of range, technique, talent, and all-round performance in a presentation that the music buffs of Mangaluru found it uniquely uncommon. Shubira D’Sa, having family roots in Mangaluru, who relocated from Pune to Bengaluru, little did she knew that she would host a musical ensemble and have a stage performance in Mangaluru- seemed like it was a homecoming for the group “Poco A Poco”, meaning “Little By Little” , with majority of the group members being Mangalureans. The performance was showcased by Aditya Hosangadi, Aishwarya Bhatkal, Sharang Karkal, Mugdha Potdar, Anisha Lobo, Ashwin Christopher, Yamini Kumar, Sheryl Tauro, Andrea D’Sa, Samara Chandavarkar, Karen Saldanha, Ashish D’Abreo, Shaun D’Sa, Nikhil Gonsalves, Ravi D’Abreo, Sachin Gurjale, Arul Rasquinha, and, the eight “Poco a Poco’ children, aged 6 and up.
About the director, Shubira D’Sa is a passionate pianist, a piano and voice teacher and a music enthusiast. She has been training voices and teaching piano for the last 18 years and has worked with schools, colleges and private choirs in Pune putting up several concerts over the years. Besides accompanying choirs and solo artists she has also been giving solo recitals as a pianist. Shubira has been the music director for several plays in Pune and her previous production was the British musical comedy ‘Who The Devil Did it’, with a cast of about 30 members in which she dared to do the music live. Shubira has received the ATCL certification in Pianoforte from The Trinity College of London, while also received training in voice from voice technician and opera singer, Celia Lobo. She has built a fierce reputation for herself by singing in and directing choirs of different age groups in various cities in India.
And about the ensemble-the entire ensemble comes from varied backgrounds. Consultants, architects, writers, entrepreneurs at different stages of funding, actors, artists, brand professionals… this eclectic group brought so much range in voice and otherwise to the stage. Inspired and tested in equal measure by a talent powerhouse in director Shubira, these performers have taken their game from within the four walls of bathrooms and out through the coveted fourth wall of the stage.
And to talk about Poco A Poco – it was the dream and vision of founder and director Shubira D’Sa, Poco a Poco means ‘little by little’. It has indeed been more than 24 months of baby steps, and the journey is still being traveled, Little by little. From learning the basics of music, understanding scales of major and minor, reading music, understanding techniques in creating sound, pitching, understanding harmony, rhythm, working with dynamic. Poco A Poco has indeed come a long way. And yet, in some sense, the journey has just begun- and their FIRST gig happening in their hometown, Kodiyal ( in Konkani) aka Mangaluru!
The audience were mesmerized with a spectacular dance performance by the children to the 1951 Hindi tune from the film “Albela’- and the kids did receive a thunderous applaud from the audience, filled with whistles and claps. A few minutes before the end of the show, Shubira D’sa wanted to do something different, by making audience also join with the stage performers, where she said, “If you can speak, I bet you can also sing”. She ensured that it was not just a statement and egged the audience in singing the chorus.
And before the last number was performed, the compere of the show Ashish D’Abreo said, “Our decision to stage this FIRST musical extravaganza outside Bengaluru was initially met with skepticism. Even though we were told that Mangalureans like to take a long nap during the weekend, but we still accepted the challenge. And today looking at the audience turnout we are motivated and we will be surely planning yet another bigger show in Mangaluru, sooner or later. You audience were great, and thank you all for coming”.
Speaking to Team Mangalorean after the show, Ms Shubira D’sa said, “Our aim was to make music part of our life, where we meet and practice every Wednesday. We focus on singing, and we play all genres and eras of music which appeal to all age groups. We had no idea what to expect from the Mangalurean audience, since this was our First show in Mangaluru, but I am overwhelmed with the support we got from my hometown people, and we will definitely plan more shows in Mangaluru . None of us is a professional musician, but all of us have a passionate about singing, and our aim is to connect with people, and I can say we did connect with the Mangalurean crowd. And at the end of the show, we wanted our audience to say that they had a blast, and I bet they did, by the look on their faces. Thank You, Mangaluru-We’ll be back !”
And yes, the music buffs of Mangaluru, did experience a unique musical extravaganza showcasing Range, Technique, Talent, and all-round performance by Poco Poco’s ‘Positive Vibe’s’, and it was a great show that the audience will remember forever!
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