Hornbill rock for other districts too: ‘Music is meant to be shared’

HIRC continues into day-two

It isn’t about numbers; it’s the idea. Or so that’s what the leading stakeholders of the government-sponsored music events, such as the ongoing Hornbill music festival, say.
Speaking to Eastern Mirror during the ongoing Hornbill International Rock Contest (HIRC) in Dimapur, the director of the Music Task Force (MTF) Gugs Chishi said that this year ‘it wasn’t about the numbers but about the music shared among the youths.’
“The concept of Hornbill is fixed at Kisama but music can travel,” he said. The MTF plans to take the HIRC to every district through the next coming years so that everyone can experience and ‘share music.’ Chishi explained that every district in Nagaland had a unique feature which means that all who participate can get a “taste” of each tribe.
This year HIRC turned out more than a rock concert with bands performing other genres besides the usual rock. “It’s a platform for the youth to make themselves visible and get a market for themselves in making music a livelihood,” he said adding that music shouldn’t just be a hobby but a concept of being independent through music also.
When asked about sponsorships for the prize money, Chishi said that ‘due to demonetisation’ and the GST, many companies didn’t want to take the risk and ‘hesitated to cooperate’ with “social responsibility” events. He said this in regard to the MTF sponsoring the first prize of 10 lac and first runner-up cash prize of 5 lac, mentioning that usually the cellular network companies voluntarily sponsor the prizes.
Day-two had eight bands taking centre stage: Hidden Identity and Serenade from West Bengal; Switchblade from Nagaland; North H (Bhutan); The Kids We Use To Know (USA); Head Motif (Darjeeling); Titans (Tura) and Daira (Mumbai).
Eastern Mirror Desk