Charming Cellist

During Christmas, it’s a ritual for the Perieras to gather around the piano and sing carols. “In our family, we had a violinist, a pianist and a guitarist but not a cellist. I started with the violin but I wasn’t inclined towards it. My sister’s teacher introduced me to the cello,” says the gifted cellist who also plays the recorder (a wind instrument). She recently performed Mahler’s 5th Symphony, Death and Transfiguration by Strauss and Beethoven’s 6th Symphony among other works at the Symphony Orchestra Of India’s 13th season at the NCPA. Both these works are deeply influenced by life and are so intense that “sometimes while rehearsing, the emotions were overwhelming”.

Vian has represented India in the World Orchestra Concert held in South Korea at the 60th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War.

Vian studied at the Allegro Vivo Academy in Austria. “Being surrounded by some of the best names, my limits as a musician were stretched to the fullest.” She does get nervous before a performance but on stage, “the music takes over. And of course, sincere practice does pay off”. Vian puts six to eight hours of rehearsal in a day and when she is not playing the cello, you can find her practising yoga or walking on the Marine Drive promenade. On a day off, Vian reads the newspaper. “It’s a luxury I cannot afford during the week.”