The legendary compositions of the genius Rabindranath Tagore are to echo within the walls of the 450-year old chapel Our Lady of Mount. In spite being a Christian worship place, the chapel in Old Goa will hold The Monte Hill Music Festival and this year Tagore is going to take the central stage not only among the Indian performers but international ones too.

15 kms from Panaji, the music festival will feature works from the performers from Portugal, Belgium, and Britain apart from various parts of India. The musical extravaganza will be in its ninth year next month and is organized by Fundacao Oriente, a Portuguese cultural institute based in Goa. The delegate director of Fundacao Oriente, Eduardo Carvalho told the reporters that the tribute to Rabindranath Tagore is called ‘Temple Bells’.

Dancers from Mumbai, Raul and Mitali D’Souza will fuse Odissi and Bharatnatyam with the compositions of Tagore played by Belgian violinist Hans Versmeersch. The show will also have UK’s 80 year old vocalist Tony Gatward and troupe comprising of five members named Os Musicis do Tejo from Portugal. From India there will be the Paranjoti Academy Chorus, a Mumbai based 32 member group, the string quartet the Koranatus and the baroque music ensemble from a Bangalore based music school.

The Monte Hill Festival takes place during the evening coinciding with the sunset that at the Mandovi river. It is a treat for the audience as the chapel overlooks the river and the performances goes on. The festival is a three day event starting from 4th of February and will end on 6th of February, 2011.

--Sampurn Wire