An invitation to attend Antarrashtriya Sangeet Mahotsav or International Music Festival 2026, and to present what was called a pragyik mantavya or academic opinion, brought me both happiness and a challenge. It was a major music festival organised by stakeholders such as the Lalitkala Campus of Tribhuvan University and Ramchandra Mandir of Battisputali, with the performance venue held in Kathmandu from June 13-17, 2026.

A few things struck me. First, it was claimed to be a classical musical performance of historical significance, supported by serious kinds of mimamsa or discussions on the various aspects of music. Second, it was claimed to be a classical musical festival of Indic nature with a motto of creating a melange of music, culture, dialogue and coexistence. This was definitely an important event. Another question that struck me was, why is it happening now, after more than a century? Why are the organisers evoking this musical form, which is facing various challenges in the Indic region and, naturally, in Nepal?

With the participation of other countries, it was clear that it was an international conference on classical music, with its historical context and current predicament. But I should admit at the outset, holding festivals of Indic classical music is not common in Nepal. Music festivals evoke the history and practice of music sadhana and achievements.

For lack of sufficient information, I was hesitant to participate at first. But when I saw the names of senior academics, including Dhrubesh Chandra Regmi, Beni Rawal Jangam and several other musicians and scholars, I felt that this classical music festival and its procedures were serious and productive. I have written an introduction under the rubric ‘Dynamics and Historicity of Nepali Musical Traditions’ to Dhrubesh Chandra Regmi’s book Music, Myth and Melody (2023), based on his PhD research. I also had the opportunity to be associated with Beni Jangam’s PhD dissertation and research. With the involvement of these scholars and musicians, the conference was organising a very important mimamsa or discussion about music, its historicity and presentism.

The musical tradition of Nepal, especially of classic orientation, once had its origins in, both, power and classical traditions. The programme organised on the occasion foregrounds the historicity of Nepali classical music, revealing a system of patronage, initiatives and promotions by individuals and minuscule institutions. The first international classical music programme, the Bagedi festival, was held during the reign of Bir Shumsher Rana in 1899. Prominent musicians from Nepal and India had participated in the month-long festival. King Mahendra is known to have organised several classical musical programmes, but perhaps they lacked the continuity and scale of Bagedi. The organisers, by evoking that historicity, claim that this is the first such international classical music festival held in Nepal after Bagedi.

The tradition of musical pedagogy is given continuity by privately run music schools through prominent gurus of classical music. There does not appear to be a solid pedagogical tradition of music in Nepal. Various institutions gave life to our classical musical tradition. Some prominent institutions, such as the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Radio Nepal and Sanskritik Sansthan, Nepal Academy, now separately instituted as the Academy of Music and Theatre, provided continuity to the classical tradition. A nondescript bulletin given to me lists the names of the individuals who kept the tradition of classical music and pedagogy alive to this day. The brochure lists 13 individuals and institutions that have played various roles in keeping the classical musical tradition in Nepal going up to this point.

I was asked to briefly review the ideas presented by some professors of Indian and Nepali classical music on the last day. Rajesh Shah of Banaras Hindu University discussed the problems of the continuity of making traditional musical instruments today. A nonmusician like me would not imagine that giving continuity to the body of the musical instrument has become a problem. An academic at BHU, Praveen Uddhav, a performer and scholar, linked the musical rhythm to the dynamism of the body and its laya. Dhrubesh Regmi explained some copyright infringements and their treatments. Beni Rawal Jangam traced the historicity of women’s classical music sadhana in Nepal Mandala by drawing on texts and sculptures.

I now wish to raise some questions to explore this topic further. Are we talking about the revival of classical music or its existential problems today? Is the music pedagogy in Nepal designed or framed to give continuity to the classical musical tradition? Is classical musical pedagogy capable of coping with the developments of our times including the digital nature of the treatment? This last question struck me, especially after listening to the Indian academics who were discussing various challenges posed by the new developments in the preservation of the classical musical tradition, including instruments and interpreting the mathematical modes of classical music in this context.

Finding both practitioners (sadhakas) and audience for real Indic classical music has become a problem today. I think the very strict tradition of the student-mentor relationship in classical music, which requires time, patience and devotion, is in short supply in Nepal. The spiritual thrust propelled by the rigorous tradition is facing problems. But what is surprising is that it is going the same way in India, as an academic shared. The melancholia of classical music in the Indic region stems from certain features, most notably the continuity and maintenance of tradition.

I want to close by making a few observations about Nepali classical music. As shown by this festival, one can assume that interest in classical music in Nepal is alive. Browsing through the list of programmes, I could see encouraging participation by musical instrument players in classical music. That is a very important subject. But what should be noted here is that the Nepali classical musical tradition, maintained by individual sadhakas and some minuscule institutions they represented, lacked any workable or permanent institutional foundation to sustain or preserve it. There are a few gharanas that have carried on the tradition of classical music. For example, Dhrubesh Chandra Regmi represents the fourth generation of the sitar vadak family. These features should be explored by the academics and practitioners of Nepali classical music.