Mumbai is rich with stories. Walk down a street and you will find a new one, or sometimes, an old one as is the case with the Bombay Chamber Orchestra (BCO). Founded in 1962, the city’s oldest and longest running amateur orchestra is celebrating its diamond jubilee this year. Their upcoming performance at Sophia Bhabha Hall is evidence of the dedication and synergy of its members who continue to uphold the city’s legacy of Western classical music.

“The main objective of the orchestra is not performance, but education,” Alaric Diniz,  trustee, informs us. A member since 1989, Diniz will take up the clarinet on November 13. He will be joined by Bomi S Billimoria on the timpani. Honorary treasurer of the orchestra, Billimoria tells us that the BCO and its legacy owes a great deal to the 92-year-old Jini Dinshaw, MBE — the founder/director and leader of the orchestra since 1962. Dinshaw continues to be a leading player in the orchestra even today. “It is a difficult job to keep an orchestra going through all these years, but she has persisted. Her aim  is that every young musician must have a chance to play in an orchestra and that the city should have its own team.”