The founders of Lahore Music Meet (LMM) couldn’t be stopped by the prevailing air of terror in the city, from pulling off the second edition of Pakistan’s maiden Music Symposium.

People from all walks of life converged at Alhamra Arts Centre last week, to attend the two-day event. Walking past the metal detector, I made my way through the security personnel, having submitted a copy of my CNIC prior to my entrance. Even before sitting through a session, the vibrant sight of the entire setup and the influx of people walking in convinced me that I wasn’t going to waste my Sunday.

LMM ‘16 aimed at the promotion of music, showcasing upcoming talent and practically bridging the gap between a musician and their admirers. The discussions gave us insights into the chosen artists’ lives and how they are stereotyped as ‘maraasi’ yet they continue to make us proud, how nobody cares about the bassist, the intricacies of concert management, the evolution of music video in Pakistan, producing satirical music, and so on. It won’t be wrong to say that the organisers spared no effort to touch upon every aspect of music.

Music comes to us as a product from an artist and we take seconds to either approve or reject it. But getting the final product out to the audience isn’t a hassle-free task; it takes a cascade of intricate steps. Such important procedures were duly highlighted by the artists in the various sessions at LMM ’16.

Day 1 saw noted singer Tina Sani and, later, a session with the rock band Noori. Sani talked of the vacuum in classical singing in today’s times. She went into the history of the genre, and concluded that the households trained in classical were becoming extinct. This shall have a devastating impact on diversity in music, she said.

On the other hand, Noori discussed what inspired their music. Our latest folk sensation Mai Dhai brought the evening to a glorious close as she chanted some of her native melodies.

For fans of contemporary music, Islamabad based Indie rock band Red Blood Cat took charge of the stage with a high-voltage performance.

The fervour didn’t seem to subside on day 2. Anticipating another bunch of exciting sessions, the music lovers of all age groups, from all social backgrounds, made their way to Alhamra.

Prince of pop Ali Zafar also guested on a session moderated by Ali Sethi, where he famously talked about coming from a humble background and struggling to achieve his goals. He added how a gloomy mood is a musician’s productive time and how pain has a connection with creativity.

In another interesting session on "(In)corporating Music," Zoe Viccaji, Jamal Rahman and Umnia Iftikhar presented an in-depth analysis of the relationship between corporate entities and artists in a country like Pakistan. They agreed that an artist’s experience with companies could not be defined simply as good or bad. The experience varies from brand to brand; some like to dominate the artist while others trust the artist. Maintaining a balance of authority between the project head and the artist is crucial, otherwise the product quality would be compromised.

The trio pointed out that artists in Pakistan are vulnerable "to exploitation by corporate organisations because they do not have a legal forum in the country which could determine the artists’ rights."

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Music producer Jamal Rehman, whose last major work was for Sarmad Sultan Khoosat’s feature film Manto, was of the view that because making independent music requires a lot of money, the artists have no option but to agree to the conditions set by the corporate heads.

Umnia Iftikhar spoke of the importance of branding, particularly for young artists. The artists would have to make an appealing public image that an agency/company would be willing to associate with, she said.

"A worn out, unkempt talented artist won’t be any good [to the corporate firm] because he/she can’t become the face of their brand."

Zoe Viccaji stated how she never likes lip-syncing to pre-recorded songs "because that makes me feel like a clown who’s just murmuring words on stage."

In a session, interestingly titled ‘You Can’t Be Serious: Satirical Music in Pakistan,’ Ali Gul Pir and Moroo talked about the need of protest songs and using music as a medium to highlight the ills of the society.

Pir explained how his real-life experiences, right from his childhood, had shaped the way he now looked at issues and helped him say things that were taboo before. ‘Wadere ka beta,’ the song that catapulted him to fame, was inspired by a true story he had witnessed from close quarters where the son of a feudal lord fled to exotic islands after committing an offence and the state’s law could never catch him.

Moroo told the audience how he would make funny faces to himself in the mirror and make himself laugh. "Later, I’d make my family laugh and, finally, realised how much I enjoyed doing it and that that was what I wanted to do in life."

Both the guests agreed on how PTV’s classic show, Fifty Fifty, and Anwer Maqsood’s Loose Talk had inspired them to juggle with the genre. However, they agreed that satirical music is in its infancy in Pakistan. "Often, not all kinds of audiences can relate to the message."

Pir said that he had been advised by his family to call himself an "Entertainer" but not a "maskhara" (joker/comedian). "I aim to continue with my work and help change music paradigms."

There were performances by fast rising band Keeray Makoray and others going on in the open air as well.

LMM’16 concluded with a performance by Sound of Kolachi and, finally, the veteran Attaullah Esakhelvi who had the crowd going gaga, when he sang, ‘Kameez teri kaali.’