Delhiites queue up to hear US jazz greats

New Delhi: The huge popularity of jazz in the capital came as a surprise to many as thousands stood for hours in a serpentine queue to gain entry to the concert by American music greats including Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter.

The concert was held to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and was dedicated to Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi.

However, getting to the Siri Fort Auditorium here, where the concert was held on Tuesday evening, was itself a huge task for most with traffic snarls right in front of the venue.

Reaching there was no relief as most were forced to join almost a kilometre-long line of jazz aficionados.

"We were waiting in our car for half-an-hour right in front of the auditorium and then were faced with a one-hour hour wait in the kilometre long line to get inside. I never thought jazz was so very popular in Delhi," said a reader at Delhi University, Shanta Nedugadi.

The demand for jazz took the American Center, which had organised the musical evening, aback too.

The Center had obviously over-issued passes with many people having had to head back from the gates.

Several complained about the seating as well. "We were sitting right in the corner of the upper balcony.

The musicians were like small specs from there. But we were lucky enough to get in and enjoy their music...so no hassles," said a physiotherapist by profession, Gita Rastogi.

Cut to the concert itself, it was truly a treat for the fortunate Delhites who managed to hear it.

Hancock's solo performance on the piano and Shorter's piece on the saxophone were hugely applauded.

"It was a special evening to see a legend like Herbie Hancock in the flesh and performing too. Their entry was announced in a very entertaining manner by the woman who sang the Blues," said Kamini, another fan who stood for over two hours to get in.

There was also a surprise package in the evening with Hancock inviting Indian sitarist Anoushka Shankar, daughter of the legendary Ravi Shankar, to perform with them.

Though it was nice to see an Indian sharing the stage with the jazz giants, a few felt the stringed instrument didn't fit in with the other two.

"Anoushka was good but I don't think the sitar-saxophone combination worked too well," said a college student, Tania Dixit.