 "Lucknow-born Upadhaya is a talented conductor who is gaining recognition in the global music industry. Image Courtesy: www.inyo.in/artist-director")
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s historic visit to Austria’s Vienna was met by beautiful music on Wednesday.
Austrian performers welcomed him with a Western version of “Vande Mataram.”
Taking to X, PM Modi said, “Austria is known for its vibrant musical culture. I got a glimpse of it thanks to this amazing rendition of Vande Mataram.”
India’s cultural envoy, Vijay Upadhyaya, led from the front and conducted an orchestra and a choir that delighted the Indian leader.
Speaking to ANI, Upadhyaya said, “We decided to perform Vande Mataram in Austria-European Symphony style… A choir and an orchestra with 50 members performed before the PM…”
Here’s all we know about India’s ‘proud’ cultural envoy:
Who is Vijay Upadhyaya?
Lucknow-born Upadhaya is a talented conductor who is gaining recognition in the global music industry, according to News18.
He is known for leading the Vienna University Philharmonic and having founded the India National Youth Orchestra. He has played a significant role in fostering cross-cultural understanding through music.
As the university’s director, he has overseen the artistic direction and planning of about 50 concerts a year with nine choirs, two orchestras, and 12 academic and staff members.
His mother taught him the piano at a young age, and he later learned Indian percussion (Tabla) and dance (Kathak).
His bachelor’s degree is in history, economics, and English literature.
His blog claims that while he was a teenager, he developed an interest in conducting and was already leading his school choir at the age of 14.
Following his education at Lucknow University, Upadhyaya travelled to Graz, Austria, to further his studies at the University of Music and Performing Arts.
In Eastern Styria, he led brass bands and choruses while learning the regional dialect and being fully immersed in Austrian culture.
Along with his conducting responsibilities, Upadhyaya has concentrated on composing since moving to Vienna.
His first symphony, Prayer Flags, premiered in 2014. The work is based on Indian literature and melodies.
Since 2009, he has been conductor and composer for the Chinese National Orchestra and Chorus, which commissioned him to write his second symphony, Chang‘An Men.
He founded the India National Youth Orchestra and Chorus in 2010 to develop young musicians and give them exposure to symphonic and chorus music.
Upadhyaya has overseen various global projects at the Vienna State Opera, the Musikverein and Konzerthaus in Vienna, the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Academia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Hamburg Schauspielhaus and the National Centres of Performing Arts in Beijing and Mumbai
Several of his foreign projects were in partnership with the European Union and the Austrian Foreign Ministry, demonstrating his global cultural contributions.
Upadhyaya was awarded the Golden Award of Honour in Austria for his musical accomplishments and cultural diplomacy.
With inputs from agencies