SOI at NCPA

The National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), India’s premier arts and culture institution, is the home of the SOI. With five modern performance spaces, libraries, galleries, music archives, recording rooms, and a slew of programmatic, educational and research activities, the NCPA is India’s only holistic performing arts centre. It presents over 600 events a year in a rich multi-lingual tapestry, across Theatre, Music, Film, Dance and Photography. In 2006, the NCPA gave India its first fully professional symphony orchestra – The Symphony Orchestra of India.

The SOI was founded by NCPA Chairman Mr. Khushroo N. Suntook and the internationally acclaimed Kazakh violinist, Marat Bisengaliev. Over the course of the last five years, the SOI Seasons have featured a wide repertoire ranging from ballets, operas as well as challenging symphonic pieces of some of the greatest composers. The SOI Season concerts are presented at the different venues of the NCPA; however, the Jamshed Bhabha Theatre remains the home of the SOI.

The NCPA gives institutional support to the SOI, both administratively and financially. All activities of the SOI, including its educational initiatives, workshops, lecture series, and training of SOI musicians, take place at the NCPA.

In creating the SOI, the NCPA is leading the initiative to develop India’s international cultural profile along with fulfilling an important educational role of creating a hub for western classical music within India itself. We will continue to build on our aim to become a centre of musical excellence, developing international standards of professionalism among our players and thereby addressing the aspirations of young musicians and music-loving audiences throughout India