Bangalore, July 16, 2013: ‘Naad Bhed’, a reality show on classical music is all set to hit the small screen. SPIC MACAY and Doordarshan will present the show, which will promote and popularise classical arts and provide a platform for classical singers. The show will be hosted by Shabana Azmi and feature T.N. Krishnan, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, Begum Parveen Sultana, Vidwan T.V. Shankaranarayana, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Vidushi Vedavalli and R.K. Srikantan as judges, according to a release. Auditions for the national show will be conducted in Dharwad (August 4), Gulbarga (August 11), Mangalore (August 18) and Bangalore (August 25).

Six categories of awards have been instituted in the name of M.S. Subbulakshmi (Carnatic vocal), Sheikh Chinna Maulana Yuvapuraskar (Carnatic instrumental), Palghat Mani Aiyar Yuvapuraskar (accompanist), Bhimsen Joshi Yuvapuraskar (Hindustani vocal), Ravishankar Yuvapuraskar (Hindustani instrumental) and Alla Rakha Yuvapuraskar (Hindustani accompanist).

The last date to apply for auditions is July 31. Applications can be downloaded from www.spicmacay.com, the release added. 

Source: The Hindu, DT. July 16, 2013.