FURTADOS CON BRIO FOUNDATION

Since its inaugural event in June 2010, the Con Brio Piano Festival and Competition has been annually presented jointly by Furtados and Parvesh Java, in collaboration with the National Centre of the Performing Arts. It began as and remains a tribute to John Gomes, without whose dedication and commitment western music and especially music education in India would not have progressed and thrived as it did in the latter half of the 20th century.

The Furtados Group and the Gomes family have long championed the cause of Western music development. While the Con Brio Festival has been the most significant event in the annual calendar, other projects include outreach programmes, event collaborations and sponsorships, education projects, seminars and workshops, and teacher support and professional development.

With the creation of the Furtados Con Brio Foundation, Con Brio embarks on a new chapter in its evolution and provides the group with many further avenues of collaboration, support and outreach within the music community of the country. The Foundation very much continues to remain a testament to John Gomes and will further his legacy and already innumerable contributions.

The Foundation carries on the primary objective of Con Brio to provide various forms of support to the furtherance of music education in India — both the processes and the people involved, primarily talented young Indian musicians, music educators and aspiring professionals. Instead of being limited to once a year, only in Mumbai, and primarily centred around the piano, the Furtados Con Brio Foundation proposes to carry out support activities all year round, throughout the country, and address a variety of musicians — instrumentalists of all kinds, singers, composers, theorists, etc. It will continue to champion the many philanthropic and outreach activities of the Furtados Group, but now on a much larger scale, more inclusive and with a wider and more comprehensive reach, collaborating with other like-minded organisations already doing fine work in the space, providing support systems and advisory services for educators and professionals, workshops, professional development and career guidance, and music education recognition and advocacy.

The music landscape in India is dramatically changing with the spread of education and the aspirational appeal of music learning and music making. It is our goal to provide as many throughout the country access to the opportunities that abound. We are committed to playing a meaningful role in propagating the joy of making music in our country, and providing opportunities and platforms for learners, teachers, musicians and professionals to aspire and excel in a spirit of collaboration, inclusiveness and diversity.