Malls throw open the floor for bands to jam

Stressed techies let their hair down,while malls eye an opportunity to pull more crowd 

It might be an incredibly farsighted marketing ploy or simply a platform for stressed techies to let their hair down.Call it what you will,but the latest trend of corporate music bands performing live in malls does get feet tapping and hands clapping.

Its a have-cake-and-eat-it too situation.For techies,its not just away of relieving stress,but its also an opportunity to indulge in their favorite hobbies and passions with an audience to boot.

For mall managers,such events increase footfall to the mall and for visitors a live band is an added attraction.

Inorbit Mall in Whitefield recently conducted an event where they invited teams from different corporate companies to perform in the mall.

TECHIES KEEN TO GO BEYOND CAMPUS 

We organised such events at least twice or thrice a week and the response has been excellent, said Krishna,marketing manager,Inorbit Mall.It's not just the performers,but their colleagues also accompany them and cheer for them. 

A group of rock music enthusiasts at Information Technology Park-Bangalore (ITPB) say balancing exhausting schedules and rocking is not all that difficult.Almost every company has a band which largely performs in the office campus with colleagues for an audience.Over time,the novelty value decreases for the audience after listening to the same people over and over again.Even for performers,there is very little motivation after a point.Now,we perform in malls where the audience is varied.Its a way of building a fan base outside our companies. 

Manick,a senior software engineer with HCL who has performed at several shows outside office,revealed that inspite of a hectic schedule,he and the other members of the band make it a point to jam up at least once a week.

Our company has an official band called the Urban Intruders and we encourage employees to perform whenever possible, Manick said.

Mostly into acoustic and Bollywood music,the six core members of the band are all trained in music.The band,with colleagues joining in,make sit a point to jam up on the weekends.With corporates grabbing the chance to perform in malls,mall authorities too have increased the frequency of these events.

Ananth Patil,marketing manager of Phoenix Market City Mall,where a band from i-Gate had performed recently,said,We have an open-air music destination exclusively for this purpose.Many corporates perform on the weekends. 

Malls interested in hosting these bands get in touch with either an individual member of the band or through the company's corporate communication department.Although rare,mixed bands artistes from various companies also perform.

THRILL OF A RANDOM AUDIENCE 

If its music,I never miss a chance, said Madhumaya,an engineer with GenPact.A group of my friends come together and perform whenever we can. Hareesh,an engineer with Adobe,claimed a jam session beats a session at the bar.Instead of partying and drinking after a hectic day at work,music is the best way to relax.We ultimately should always make time for what we love to do, Hareesh said.

Performing before random audiences has helped corporate bands hone skills,so much so that they are beginning to nudge professional music bands.For example,several corporate bands had participated in Break Free,a music fest organised at Forum Mall in August this year.

We had around 40 teams participating in the music fest and of these around eight teams were from the corporate section, Forum Mall authorities said.They were very professional and it was great to see them come out and perform in public.