KARACHI: The youth circle of Synapse, a neuroscience institution, organised a concert for youth mental health at the Pak-American Cultural Centre (PACC) on Saturday evening.

It was a delightful event on multiple levels. First of all, the cause for which the whole programme was arranged is exceedingly important. Mental health is not usually associated with the younger lot, particularly teenagers; therefore attention towards it is necessary. Secondly, the quality of singing, since the kids who performed aren’t professional singers, was impressive.

But most of all, what came as a pleasant surprise was the choice of songs that the youngsters presented on stage. The variety was eclectic and the eras from which they were picked — in this age of Instagram and streaming services — is difficult to associate with those born in the 21st century.

Known musician Asif Sinan and his band provided good support to the young artists. In fact, the concert kicked off with Sinan’s rendition on guitar of Sohni dharti and the national anthem.

The tone for the show was beautifully set by Enaya Noor, who sang Billy Joel’s Vienna. She did justice both to the lyrics to the song and the melody. It was just the right kind of start required for the evening.

Then came Mary who presented Gaadi ko chalana babu, from the 1956 Pakistani film Anokhi. The young girl engaged the audience, which comprised a nice mix of youth and not-so-young men and women, with her; and they did not disappoint her.

Enaya came back to sing Dolly Parton’s Jolene. Again, it was astounding to see a teenager presenting a yesteryear classic with ease and poise.

Things took another lovely turn when Maha Aslam sang the Athar Nafees ghazal Wo ishq jo hum se rooth gaya originally sung by the inimitable Farida Khanum. Maha’s voice has a distinct, beautiful texture. To boot, she seemed to know well the meaning of each verse, something essential for ghazal singing.

Enaya kept the Urdu mood going with pop band Strings’ Na janey kyun.

The gear shifted from Urdu poetry to rock when Mary returned to belt out the Bryan Adams classic Summer of 69. Almost all of the audience members knew the number, as they, albeit not loudly, sang some of its lines with Mary. She remained on stage to croon Atif Aslam’s Hona tha pyar, again, a popular track with the attendees.

Next up was a splendid addition to the concert when a young boy, Amar, holding a guitar, played an original song. It was his own composition Querida which he also sang. The youngster has oodles of talent and his guitar playing and vocal variation were great to witness.

The 20-minute break was followed by a Punjabi song Kameez teri kaali which showed Enaya’s diverse taste in music. Perhaps the organisers wanted the audience to keep guessing what genre would come up next so that predictability didn’t set in, as Maha’s second appearance on stage was to sing the iconic Aaj jaane ki zid na karo. And the show carried on in the second half in the same spirit.

Earlier, Enaya and Ayla informed the audience on the objectives of the youth circle for organising the event.

Published in Dawn, August 28th, 2023