By Marcellus D’Souza

Apr 14: The 20th edition of the iconic Monte Festival will be held on the weekend after Easter. This year’s festival will feature two choirs and will be held after a gap of two years of being held online due to Covid.

The festival will be shifted to the Monte Santo (Holy Hill) at the Chapel of the Weeping Cross at Santa Monica Convent since the Chapel of Nossa Senhora do Monte is undergoing restoration work.

The two choirs are Stuti Coral Ensemble under the baton of Maestro Pravesh Java and Ektall Children’s Choir which will be conducted by Nayantara de Lima Leitão.

Stuti Coral Ensemble will open the festival with a performance of part-II of G F Handel's three-part oratorio, Messiah. The performance will feature soloist Farah Ghadiali, Subin Mathai, Kersi Ghazdar and Rahul Bhardwaj. Nadini Crasto and Smit Shah on piano and the ensemble trumpets will be led by Eshvita Menezes.

The Ektaal children's choir will present a programme titled ‘Harmony in Hope'. It will feature pianist Ingrid-Anne Nazareth and violinist Frederika Cotta. The choir, formed in 2014, comprises a junior choir (ages 5-7) and senior choir (ages 8-14) and comprises 45 children from Panjim and Vasco.

A galaxy of western classical performers from India, including tenor Kersi Gazdar and baritone Rahul Bharadwaj as well as pianist Nadine Crasto and violinist Eshvita Menezes will join the performance that will held on April 23 and April 24.

Passes for the concert will be distributed on a first come first served basis at the Fundacao Oriente on their social media outlet #forienteindia.

The festival is supported by Museum of Christian Art, the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman, Cidade de Goa and Furtado Music Company.