The Concert for Peace by Srinivas Reddy and Friends took place on Saturday July 6 at Blackstone Field under an overcast but rainless sky. The fallen remains of a mighty oak lay sprawled across the lawn so the band set up their tented stage on a nearby hillock. The evening began with Mahatma Gandhi‘s Two Minutes of Silence and proceeded to an exposition of Raga Bhimpalasi featuring Deven Carmichael (Hindustani trombone), Mat Becker (tanpura), Srinivas Reddy (sitar) and Ajit Acharya (tabla). The next segment of the evening was a dramatic reading of the poems of Hafez, the beloved 14th century Persian poet, featuring world-renowned poets Mahmood Karimi-Hakak and Bill Wolak, and set to a variety of light ragas and talas. The evening concluded with a rockin’ Beatles Sing-Along featuring Ian Lyle on bass and vocals with additional pickup support from Saud Ahmed Dhillon (electric guitar) and Si Jie Loo (percussion). Hindustani ragas, Perian poetry, the Fab Four and the gorgeous nature of the Seekonk River made for a most joyous celebration, not soon to be forgotten!
Srinivas Reddy
