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Artist Mention
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India West, Artist Mention >>
FULLERTON, Calif. — The world’s first Korean Kathak dancer and a quartet of young tabla players enthralled more than 500 guests April 15 as the Jain Center of Southern California, in association with various other organizations and individuals, held a benefit concert for Japan earthquake relief at the Jain Center Cultural Complex here.
Entitled “Drums and Dance of India,” the benefit concert raised more than $100,000 for the victims of the recent string of disasters in Japan.
Kathak dancer JoungJin Won (Jin) and tabla artists Talavya were joined by Buena Park Mayor Fred R. Smith and Los Angeles’s Japanese Consul General Junichi Ihara in galvanizing support from the Indian American community for the sake of the thousands dead, injured, displaced or otherwise affected by the series of disasters that struck Japan in the past five weeks.
With more than $100,000 raised, it is anticipated that at least two people will travel to Japan, at their own expense, as representatives of the Indian American community to help p rovide tangible human support, such as providing medical aid or other services as needed.
The benefit concert featured one of the world‘s most unique performers.
Jin, a woman of Korean descent who has lived in India for the past 15 years training as an Indian classical dancer, opened the evening with a mesmerizing classical dance performance, displaying a wide variety of solo numbers that culminated in the memorable tale of a woman whose tears of sorrow were so strong that they were confused for rain.
In addition to her being a seasoned Kathak dancer, Jin is also a tabla player and dance instructor who unifies music and dance as an ultimate form of storytelling.
Indian tabla maestros known as Talavya wowed the audience with their unique percussion savvy. The brainchild of Pandit Divyang Vakil, Talavya fuses Indian classical music with contemporary techniques to create a unique ensemble of musicians.
The money raised that evening will benefit those who suffered from the recent earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear crisis that struck eastern Japan. Officially known as the “Great East Japan Earthquake,” a reported magnitude 9.0 undersea earthquake and subsequent tsunami struck the northeastern coast of Japan March 11. Shortly thereafter, a nuclear crisis escalated the disaster and threatened millions of lives throughout the country.
According to news reports, evacuees totaled at least 300,000 people, while the final count of the dead and missing continues to rise. The Japanese Red Cross has reported that at least $1 billion in donations has been made to victims of the earthquake.
Moved by the almost daily reports of the disaster, several key groups and individuals joined with the Jain Center of Southern California to make their own donations. Those groups included Gayatri Pariwar, SAHARA, Vaishnav Pariwar, Federation of Indo-American Associations, Matiya Patidar Samag, Indian American Senior Heritage, Asian Indian Seniors Association and the Academy of Indian Culture.
Among those who sponsored the benefit concert and evening program were Bhikhubhai and Pushpa Patel, Ukabhai and Naliniben Solanki, and Hamilton and Denise Brewart. 04/22/11 >> go there
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