A high-tea and piano concert

KARACHI: Guests at the British High Commission were treated to an evening of lively music on Saturday, as Rashna Gazder, her piano pupils and guest musicians performed for the crowd.

Amid the flowers and shrubs that surrounded the stage sat a grand piano. The fresh evening air rang with the chirping of birds blended with a wide range of music, from 'Waltzes' of Strauss, played beautifully by Kekobad Marker and 'Preludes' of Bach and Chopin performed by Farisa Dar to Elton John's 'Sacrifice', performed by Alyaan Hashmi.

Gazder, a piano teacher and concert pianist who has played in Karachi for the last 27 years, performed a medley of old favourites accompanied by Terence Joseph on the keyboard. She also went on to play a medley of classical pieces, ranging from Fur Elise, Swan Lake, Vivaldi's Spring and Beethoven's Ode to Joy.

Guest performers at the event included Brendon Emmanuel who sang Sailing by Roger Whittaker, along with guitarist Furrukh Suleiman, Joseph and Gazder on the piano. They also performed Leo Sayers' 'When I Need You' and Engelbert Humperdinks 'Please Release Me'.

The strains of Mariage D'amour performed by Sharmene Sidhwa were poignant as was the beautiful rendition of Words, the Song of the Bee Gees, by Sukaina Merchant.

Waseem and Shanierah Akram were the guests of honour, as the Akram Foundation organised the event to raise funds for the Chitral Children's Education Fund. Organiser Dilnaz Avari spoke about the hardships experienced by residents of that region after it was ravaged by floods and the earthquake.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 15^th, 2016.