String power unravels

HIMALAYAN NEWS SERVICE

KATHMANDU: He hit a self-composed bluesy instrumental on stage. He was nervous but he completed what he had come for — to show his guitar skills and knowledge and to be a contender for the title of Guitar Maestro Nepal 2012. Guitar Maestro Pvt Ltd is looking for the second ‘Master of Strings’.

Yogen Gorkhali’s original piece launched Seagram’s Royal Stag Guitar Maestro 2 on July 27 at Cube, Kamaladi playing for Jyoti Ghimire, Gaurav Sharma and Nabin Thapa on the judges panel. It was the first day of audition where 40 participants turned up to try their luck.

At the audition, young guitarists were strung up to make a name in the guitar world of Nepal. However, it wasn’t that easy to get through. They had to convince the formidable wall of judges. The contestants in the first audition round presented acts which included soothing jazz standard, acoustic freestyle and trash metal showing their fretwork to riffs.

Making them anxious, the trio of judges quizzed them on the theoretical knowledge of guitar melodies, scales and harmonies.

Many participants were panicking and Suman Thapa was one of them. “I was very nervous on stage. It was very hot on the stage and I felt I was shaking along with the guitar,” he shared of his onstage moments where he performed an impromptu piece.

Deep Bikram Singh gave a confident performance which was an improvised version of John Lenon’s Imagine. For Singh whose guitar is a part of his life, Guitar Maestro is a “platform to become a solo guitarist”. He said, “We have very less

opportunity for guitar,” adding that “the competition might be tight”.

On the other side of the stage, the judges are “looking for contestants who are disciplined with good practical and theoretical knowledge of music and guitar”. As per judge Thapa, “one should play the guitar with confidence, pride and clean”.

“Guitar is a beautiful instrument. So, anyone who is playing should be good like the guitar,” he added.

The second audition in Kathmandu will take place on July 29 at Cube followed by auditions in Pokhara, Dharan and Darjeeling in the month of August.

THT Live is the voting partner of the event.