The Latvian-Indian Choir Festival concludes with a concert in Bangalore

On February 23, the Latvian-Indian Choir Festival came to an end with a concert at St. Andrews church in Bangalore. Festival for several weeks pleased the listeners in such cities of India as Dimapur, Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore.

During the final concert, 120 singers from different Indian choirs led by conductor Jānis Ozols performed compositions such as Eriks Ešenvald's Lux Aterna, Gabriel Faure's Requiem and even Andrejs Jurjān's Pūt vējiņi (Blow Ye Wind) in Latvian, thus confirming that culture has no borders.

Meanwhile, the concert in Delhi took place at the famous Baháʼí House of Worship/Lotus Temple, which is one of the most popular attractions in both Delhi and India.

During the festival, Jānis Ozols, conductor of the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music mixed choir MASKA, and composer, soloist, and vocal teacher Laura Jēkabsone gave masterclasses to local choirs for 16 days. In the end, in each of 4 cities, united Indian choirs, led by Jānis Ozols, performed world-renowned songs by foreign and Latvian classical music composers. The interest shown by Indian choirs turned out to be overwhelming, bringing together 21 choirs from various regions of India.

The main goal of the Latvian-Indian Choir Festival was to promote the traditions of Western choir music and to share Latvia's excellence in the classical music genre. Latvian Ambassador to India Artis Bertulis emphasizes that this project lays the foundations for long-term cooperation between Latvia and India in the field of music, including the export of musical education.

The festival was organized by the Embassy of Latvia in India in cooperation with the Associated Board of Royal Academy of Music (ABRSM), which has long been promoting access to classical music education in India. Honorary consulates of Latvia in Bangalore, Chennai, and Mumbai also provided invaluable support to the project. The event was organized within the framework of the Latvian State Centennial Public Diplomacy Program. The project also serves as the most ambitious event to date in the implementation of the Latvian-Indian Cooperation Program in the field of culture (2019-2022), which was concluded during the visit of Hon'ble Vice President of India to Latvia in 2019.