Two-day music festival ends at PNCA

Islamabad : Two-day music ‘mela’ concluded here on Saturday with mesmerising performances of music for fun lovers of twin cities at Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA).

The festival was organised by Foundation of Arts, Culture and Education (FACE), that aims to strengthen, empower and educate people through arts and cultural interactions ensuring sustainable and peaceful communities. On the first day festival enthralled the audience featuring the fusion of bands and performers including, Sunny Jain Wild Wild East, Leva Dance, Saakin, Bayaan, The Late Night Cats (Switzerland), Red Studio, Dusha Connection (Austria) and others.

On the second day of the festival, Amar Bai, Rebel Club, TMUC, Nimra Rafiq, Karakoram Sunny Jain, Bakshi Brothers, Sain Tanveer, Umair Jaswal and Faris Shafi performed that pulled big crowds of people at PNCA. Bayaan is an alternative rock band/co­nt­­em­porary Pop band hailing from Lahore, Pakistan. Bayaan is renowned for its lyrical prowess and experimentation alongside thought-provoking music videos.

Saakin is a band from Islamabad, while Rebel Club, Rock n Roll band hailing from Rawalpindi aims to develop individuals through aggressive rock music. Faris Shafi is a Pakistani rapper and lyricist, popular for challenging society’s evils through his music. Amar Bai resides in rural Tando Alhayar, Sindh. As young as her age is, the more refined her art is. Started singing at the age of 7. She began as an amateur but later polished her skill and took her lessons from Master Santoosh Bheel.

Today, Amar is considered the most refined voice of her age. Leva Dance group from Balochistan has been representing diverse traditional dances of Balochistan besides Leva for the last 40 years. Shams raheel is a renowned Rabab player originating from Jalalabad, Afghanistan. He has been playing and teaching Rabab in Afghanistan for the past 23 years. He resides in Peshawar. Nimra Rafiq is a singer working professionally for the last 16 years and have made great achievements in this time span.

Karakoram is a rock band from Lahore with a wide and unique soundscape from hard hitting rock to soulful spacey arrangement. The event is among the biggest music festivals in Pakistan where, for the first time ever, we have introduced a Jazz stage featuring artists from Poland, Austria, Hungary, and the United States. It is an opportunity for cultural dialogue between various countries and Pakistan, said the organizers.

The festival focussed on celebrating diversity and humanity through the common tongue of music. The countless musicians of Pakistan that have been spreading the positive vibrations across the land due to their incessant struggles are now waking up and taking initiative in laying the foundations of an industry, the organizers said. FACE Foundation primarily focuses on international exchanges and culture to promote mutual understanding among nations.

It is specifically dedicated to promoting gender equality and women empowerment. The goal of the festival was to provide a boost to the fledgling music industry of Pakistan, particularly Islamabad - by inspiring young artists to improve their level of professionalism through performances, workshops and presentations; and to highlight the creative talent of the region in front of promoters, publishers and the media.