The Backstreet Boys are back. Not only are we on the albeit chaotic road for hours on end, we also feel like stars live on stage…

Our first concerts in front of local audiences (after all, our performance at the Swiss embassy didn’t exactly feel genuinely Indian) really went off with a bang. The relaxed and jovial atmosphere in the band soon spread to the audience during the concerts at the universities in Delhi and Bangalore. Ripples of spontaneous applause, sometimes before the solos had even started, spurred the band on. And when, towards the end of the set, we performed the number Jai Ho – the title song from “Slumdog Millionaire”, which our trumpeter, Henning Thomas, had arranged especially for the tour – the audience erupted. After the shows, we were mobbed by people wanting to have their photos taken with us, and some even asked us to sign their lecture notes! We felt like the Backstreet Boys or Tokyo Hotel, albeit with the small but significant difference that we had adults for groupies instead of pubescent teenagers: women, men – even seasoned professors. It is wonderful to see how people to whom the concept of big band music is largely alien can become so inspired by it. If you ask me, this is just another example of how open-minded the Indians are.

The four concerts at the universities were followed with another tour highlight: Tuesday evening’s concert at the Kyra Club in Bangalore. The Kyra Club is one of the few venues in the city – probably even India – that has the infrastructure and clientele to accommodate a band like ours. The atmosphere in the band was fantastic and, like we had already experienced at the afternoon concert, our cheerful mood immediately spread to the audience. This motivated the band and we probably gave our best show yet – despite the fact that most of the musicians were suffering from a distinct lack of sleep. On the one hand, we all want to celebrate our successful performances; on the other hand, our schedule is so tight that we have to sacrifice our beauty sleep if we want to make merry.

On Tuesday, we crawled out of bed at 4 o’clock in the morning to catch our flight from Delhi to Bangalore. Thanks to bouts of jetlag, some of us hadn’t even slept a wink, so we took it easy during the daytime, just giving one concert in the evening. We all enjoyed a welcome lie-in. Most of the band members then spent the afternoon strolling around the streets of Bangalore, getting a taste of the real India: the hustle and bustle of the markets, where you can buy everything under the sun. You can find home-made hammers, nails or drills alongside the effulgent exotic fruit and various kinds of vegetables – most of which hardly any of us know – spice stalls, silk material and so much more.

Now and then, much to our delight and amusement, a cow would suddenly appear amidst the crowds of market-goers. The poor market sellers could do nothing but sit back and watch as the sacred animals helped themselves to their beautifully presented vegetables. Ah, to be a cow! But we shouldn’t complain: everyone has made us feel so welcome here. And, according to Indian values, politeness and gratitude always goes hand in hand with good food! Every day, we are spoilt with mouthwateringly good meals.

All in all, we feel very at home here, even if every day does bring something new and unexpected. You gradually get into the Indian groove, and it is fun to walk around and talk to people. We’re bound to have learnt a thing or two about negotiating to boot, although I’m sure that people have still made a tidy little packet out of us! We’ll all be a bit sad to leave on Saturday. But the ETH Big Band still has three full, adventure-packed days in India in store!

Big Band on Indian tour

Margrith Leuthold, Anders Hagström and Gabriela Blatter from International Institutional Affairs (IAA) from ETH Zurich are touring India from November 6 – 16 on a quest to find new cooperative partners for scientific collaborations and student exchanges. The delegation is accompanied by the ETH Big Band with the aim of encouraging cultural dialog with their music – which also features interpretations of well-known Indian songs.