Tuning india... A R Rahman

I am going to gush about A R Rahman in this article.
Not just because he is the most talented
music director and arranger on the block,
but
just simply
because he has done us all a phenomenal service
- he has proven that we can,
as a nation of music-loving, music-making people,
find a delicate balance.

This is not merely a balancing
of styles, tastes and preferences
but of perspectives.
He has made it possible for us
to have the music of our times presented in such
a well-organised, classy package.

No fuss or frills,
but well-conceived music delivered with aplomb.
It manages the quintessential amount of lyrical classicism
with absolutely edgy,
grip-the-corner- of-your-seat
contemporaneity.

Listening to his music makes me think of
yellow autos on New York streets,
and
skyscrapers reaching the sky in Mylapore all at once.
The beauty lies in the fact that Rahman
makes such zany collages seem plausible.

I am listening to the track
Kabhi Kabhi Aditi from Jaane Tu ...
on my personal stereo.
It is peppy and uplifting.
However, what I love about it, is its ability
to traverse across style and mindsets.
It has a moving bass
that can appeal to the younger audience,
a tidily crafted melodic line that can move
the more musically oriented and it has lyrics that are clean,
crisply rendered and quite adorable.

The overall effect,
including the detailing of the various nuances of
Rashid Ali's voice
(who, if he is reading this,
should know that he has found a very loyal fan)
in the repetitive alaaps in the end are precisely monitored.

I do not know
if everyone agrees with this observation,
but Rahman is not merely
a craftsman representing our spirit.
He is the spirit.

This is India now,
a microcosm of several styles
and cultures peppered with tradition
and bursting with confidence.

This is the India
that moves on horizontal time,
each individual leading multiple lives and careers.

It is the India
that believes in possibilities and alternatives,
and no longer rushes to linear
conclusions to every decision problem.
Each of these Indias find
an echo in Rahman's music score.

With their juxtapositions of different styles,
the mixtures of varied voices and the ever-present surprise
element in each song
(a guitar riff that sounds different,
a voice that sounds unique or an instrument
one does not associate with a certain mood),
Rahman's music truly accompanies the rhythms
of our extremely colourful modern-day reality.

When Rahman attempts a remix
(try Pon Magal Vandhal from Azhagiya Tamizh Magan),
it still exceeds expectations.
A classical infusion
(like, Narumugaye from Iruvar)
works equally well, and an all-out
'dance the night away'
number (like a Fanaa from Yuva)
proves difficult to dismiss easily.

When I saw the publicity material for
Bombay Dreams
near Columbus Circle in New York two years ago,
my heart gave a lurch.
On that unaccustomed earth,
with the wind swirling the temperature down
to sub zero levels,
I still felt my face grow warm watching
the Broadway crowd crowding up
to get tickets to watch an Indian production.
Having lived in the United States at a time that world attitude
towards all things Indian gradually went through a transformation
(from
"poor nation with potential"
to
"knowledge experts and entertainment gurus"),
I found Rahman's music to be
a fitting companion score to India's zeitgeist.

In my ongoing crusade to excite more and more
composers of original sound,
and the need for Indian musicians
(classical film, whatever)
to expose themselves to as many global influences
and thought processes as possible,
I find myself returning to Rahman's music
as perhaps the most important development
in Indian sound in a long time.

India is a truly global player and its music
should be elevated to the greatest heights possible.
With our own, extremely evolved classical grammar
and our natural tendency to adapt and assimilate
with the global community,
I think that the possibilities for Indian music

are as expansive as our collective imagination.

i received this message from my yahoo group mate.i felt this as very interesting.so i'm now here sharing this message with you...............

A noble man called Rahma

Noted music composer A R Rahman, has ambitious plans up his sleeve.

In spite of his busy schedule, he has started the K M School of Music to promote and propagate Indian and Western music. He has now gone a step ahead and is aspiring to help aged musicians who are suffering due to various reasons.

'It has been my dream for a very long time to help musicians, especially aged ones who are now unable to perform,' said Rahman in a recent interview.

However, the 'Mozart of Madras' feels that he cannot run the show effectively all alone. 'I need some others too to work for this noble cause. If anyone comes forward, I will join them.'

Rahman is flying high currently for he would be composing music for the movies starring two big stars of Indian cinema - Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth. This soft-spoken music composer par excellence is scoring music for ‘Marmayogi’ and ‘Robot’ simultaneously.

how rahman composes music for a film-part 4

What do u mean by a Track ?* Many people have different definitions of tracks . "Track" is not a musical keyword but it pretty software related. We divide a tune into several sound parts. Every channel has a baud rate frequency. For example if you hum a voice in a low scale u may call it as a track 1. The song "Jaage Hain" goes very high enough to be called as track 15 . Empirically track is a pitch depth value versus volume. The intersection of the graph is the resonant value. This value is what the purest and the "Virgin tune" we call. It is difficult to acheive this reasonable value due to several reasons but Rahmans studio is feature adapted to it. Almost 99% of his songs are reasonabaly valued . We heard a lot of spectra sonics stuff in Rang de Basanti. Especially the amazing pads from spectra sonics atmosphere. He's also been using swarplug, an Indian instrument plug in, which can be heard in water and the background score of RDB. The santoor you hear in "Chanchan" from Water is actually swar plug doing the job. Its easy to use software but it ain't easy to create stuff with software. Samples are an easy way out and most music directors are going the samples way because its easier and quicker. This includes people like Salim Sulaiman sadly, they lack tunes. Himesh, lacks creativity and singers, Shankar Ehsaan Loy , these three guys are actually pretty good, Sandeep Chowta. He's not even a music director according to criticism, more a DJ kinda fellow. Someone like Rahman, takes the pain of creating his own samples as well apart from using purchased ones. Now thats a huge difference. This combined with the responsibility of making path breaking tunes is a big big task. Make no mistake about it. What thus we say can be summed up thus give the same equipments, computers, keyboards, the musicians, the software, the samples etc. To any other music director in the country they still cannot match A R Rahman it takes a genius to create something extraordinary like he does. Being the user of these sound editing softwares we can give us suggestions. The usage of sound editing softwares such as Neundo, Cubase ,Sonar and Logic is very helpful and reduces our work in the technician point of view. Though these sounds are pleasant and filling they spoil the naturalizing of the song. But Rahman' comprehension on the editing softwares and plugins and using them in his songs and BGM is fantastic. A R Rahman is the one ,who has large collections of samples in Asia.

will be continued.................

how rahman composes music for a film-part 3

*Composing Back Ground Music*

He doesn't actually sees the entire movie , he makes the director explain
the entire script 100% and in every details and then asks for a demo.
However the first version of BGM he gives is modified and re modified
numerous time after seeing the film. The BGM for the movie Guru was modified
just a month before the public release. Rang de Basanti BGM was actually
purely on script. Some parts of the movie was modified as per the BGM.
Remember the scene when the rebels walked into the radio station and the
music that comes behind it. The scene was actually pretty different but
according to the music it was modified and the modifications came in their
walking style, check the scene carefully you will find their feet falling on
the ground as per the music tune. Rahman composed this music for a period of
two years. If he really took two years to compose the films music then see
his dedication. Amazing.

*Rahman's recording and mixing*

Not just Rahman, about all music composers use loops or samples which they
buy from distributers like Sony or Apple. Its like instead of calling a
performer like a guitarist to perform for his/her song a composer buys his
recorded piece and uses it. These pieces are royalty free its like the
guitarist sells it to Sony on an agreement and Sony distributes it through
out the world. That is why you find same sound effects in two different
songs of Rahman some times. Loops are not necessary to be only a single
note. It can be chords or even a piece or a scratch.

How many of you have noticed this in Rahman songs especially those who are
musicians. All his songs irrespective of the mood has a constant 'pads' or
'strings' backing. The chords played with the pads and strings is also not
conventional. They are the 7ths, 11ths or Diminished chords. They give the
song a 'feeling', a 'soul'. Quite Technical

A classic example is the song "Thirupachi Arivalaa" from Taj Mahal. Check
out the pads in the songs. Another is "Aye Udi Udi" from Saathiya. Remove
the pads these songs become soul-less and very plain.

The only other person who uses this same method is Harris Jayaraj. And for
sure he learned it from Rahman .Wonder if more music directors should do the
same.

A R Rahman started learning Indian classical and Carnatic classical in 1992.
Since almost all his songs are Raga based just wanted to clarify that he
learned classical before or after 1992.

How does he compose a new tune. Does he play it in his piano or does he
write the swaram or how does he go about conceiving a song out of nowhere
and create a master piece.

Its a fact that no softwares in the world can create a tune. The people who
learned music will laugh their stomachs out if someone tells them that Tere
Bina or any song is a product of a software. Now what can a software do.
What does Rahman do in his studio with all those softwares. Why does he
always updates his software. It is very simple. Just a brief concept.

1. Rahman records a songs over a period of 10-15 days. A singer sings one
song perhaps innumerable time till Rahman gives a hands up. Once that signal
has been got the singer realizes that his job is done . Now rahman sits over
his singing and edits the bad parts and couples all the best parts and after
another day of hard work the singers work is ready. The singer never sang
that song continuously but his best parts are selected and sampled .

2. Rahman then records music or what you call as BGM. After that he mixes it
with the vocal part. Then suddenly he may realize that both of them don't
gel well in frequency. And then frequency division modulation takes place.
Its a huge process friends which very well packs the music and vocal part.

3. Let us take an example of Shreya Ghosal. Rahman needs Shreya Ghosal to
sing in track 15 ie the Highest. But Shreya can sing only till 11. So what
can Rahman do. Let her sing in track 8 -9 in which she is comfortable and
then simply phase modulates the vocal to appear as if she sang in track 15.
This is a very costly process and risky too so Rahman has done it only 5-6
times.

So A R Rahman is a genius , not a technician. He uses softwares but doesn't
use to "produce" tunes. Instead he use them so effectively to "edit" tunes.
And that is why perhaps he is the best. He uses Technology but his
originality is maintained in each song.

A software has no brains. It will do what you tell it to do. So if anyone
program his software to sing "Sa Re Ga Ma Pa" then yes, you are right.
Software can produce tunes. And everyone is pretty sure Rahman uses custom
made softwares. The bottom line is Softwares Do Not Produce Tunes.

will be continued..................

how rahman composes music for a film-part 2

Mixing songs*

He does all programming on Logic and also mix in Logic then he makes some
pre mixes, like all choruses in two tracks, drums in two tracks, bass in one
track if stereo then in two tracks and then he bounces all the tracks to
EUPHONIX to give some analog warmth. But Rahman uses all Logic plugins FX.

Everyone is using Logic from Salim Sulaiman to Shankar Ehsaan and Loy. Logic
is just like a Pen and Paper for a Poet. Rahman doesn't need any Logic even
he can use any other software cause he has music in his mind.

*What is Logic?*

Logic is an audio recording and mixing software. Most of Indian composers
use this software. For more details check www.apple.com/ logic/ . You can buy
and download it if you have an Apple Mac Computer.

Rahman also uses or used Absynth. You can hear one preset from Absynth in
Kannathil Muttamital title song. The flute kinda sound with a rough string
sounds behind it in the intro. Most of the songs, especially in the last few
years feature many synth sounds, probably from absynth, or some other
softsynth. The beeps, filtered sounds etc in many songs like Yeh Rishta,
Meenaxi and a couple from New, Kangalal Kaidu Sei etc can be done in
Absynth. For more details check out www.native-instrume nts.com/

*Audio Samples
*
Have you guys ever heard about audio samples. Well Rahman is the first
person who used a lot of samples in his songs and the second person is
Ranjit Barot. Ranjit used to work with Rahman. Ranjit programmed drums in
Humma Humma.

And now everybody is using samples in Mumbai like Salim Sulaiman, Sandeep
Sherodker, Jacky, Inderjeet Sharma, Ram Sampat & Sandeep Chowta. If you guys
think that how can Sandeep Chowta make sound like A R Rahman, those are
samples.

Here are some instances for Samples

1. Shabba Shabba with African voices. Those are samples not real Africans.

2. Spanish claps in Jumbalika. Samples again.

3. Chinese vocals in Latka. Its a Chinese Sample from the CD ( Spectra
sonics Heart Of Asia)

4. Background beat in Latka song from Indian. Later Anu Malik and many other
used the same loops in many of their songs eg: Mehbooba song from Ajnabee.

5. Killer drum beats in Rangeela songs. Drum samples from the cd (Best
Service XXL 1500)and its a long list.

6. Final beats of Mukkala Muqabla sounds like Dr. Alban Africa. That is too
a sample. It is not composed by Dr.Alban either. Same beats used by Sandeep
Chowtha in Kambath Ishq song.

7. Main Background beats in Mangta hai kya from Rangeela.

8. Early bands like Deep Forest and some Euro techno bands used this concept
a lot. Thats why title bird sound of Thillana Thillana from Muthu sounds
like Deep forest songs.

There are many other samples Rahman used in many of his songs. It is not
copying but just using a commercially available sample.

When Rahman was recording for "Jaage Hain" the Sound Engineers told him that
lets record the song in a low mod ie Track 5 and later FDM it to a higher
track but Rahman sing it singularly in track 15. It is his original however
Madras Choral sound was probably modulated.
will be continued tomorrow ................

how rahman composes music for a film-

1.Rahman gets an offer from the director , and he studies the script&
everything . If he likes it then he agrees else he drops the offer.


How Rahman composes a song-
2. Then he sees the actor/actress and accordingly to that he determines the singer.

3. Rahman asks the director to give the exact situation of the song and he asks why
it is needed.

4. If he is satisfied & then Rahman sits and composes the song on his own and in his voice
records every song.

5. Calls the singers after 12 am in the night [ Mark it only after 12 am ]
and makes them to hear the tunes.

6. Then the Recording starts . He never modifies the song as per the singer but he
modifies the singer as per the song .

7. Every sound in the studio is recorded even if a singer sneezes or coughs
it is recorded and it is edited . If u remember in Kadhal Virus there is a
song by Mano( O Kadhale). There he coughs at one part. He had coughed it in
the first day and then Rahman never got any realistic cough after that so he
simply included the original cough.

8. A song recording goes upto 3-4 days . Sometimes male and female singers
are separately recorded and then successfully mixed

9. After the vocal part is over, music starts . He gives his idea to his musicians
and then the musicians suggest the background tune . 90% times Rahman
doesn't like them and then he himself gives the notes and the musician have
to play them. Few songs however had tunes inspired by his musicians like his
flutist Naveen and drummer Sivamani. The musicians love ARR since he gives
them freedom and helps them grow their talent .

10.Later the vocal is added to music or vice versa and then comes the
technical part. Every interfaces start working , every part is edited ,
reedited and software are used and lets not get much into it ,but by the
time a song is finalized it is one month and the best version is out. Some
say he uses technology, but come to his studio you will know he uses
technology only to polish stuffs.

will be continued tomorrow ................

A.R.Rehman on Ada…a way of life

On Ada and the kind of music he has given for it, Rahman explains, "I chose
Ada because some people have great intentions of doing something and Tanvir
Ahmad sahib (director) showed that. Through his cinema he wanted to tell
good things which I liked too and over a period of time we developed a
friendship."

Rahman reveals that the film has been a seven years journey with Tanvir. "I
had recorded some of the songs in 2001, others in 2003 and some more in 2005
as well. Then Meherbaan was recorded this year itself. So although the
recordings have been done over a period of time, the songs have been
produced this year itself. That's the reason the music still is sounding
fresh at least to my ears.
The narration of the film has been done in very abstract way so I have made
a conscious effort to use the music in an interesting way rather than a
boring one," adds the music composer.

On what Ada means to him, Rahman comments, "Ada could mean a lot of things -
it can be style, a way of life, attitude… basically anything. This is movie
is particularly close to me because of the melodies."

Speaking about the idea behind introducing Ayaan Ahmad, he says, "Since, I
am the senior most person associated with the film, Tanvir sahab felt that I
was the perfect person to introduce his son to the media and it's my first
time too. I am personally open to promote anyone deserving and have no
reservations - be it a singer or any actor."

A.R.RAHMAN HONORED

A. R. Rahman has been conferred a Lifetime Achievement Award for his services to Indian music by the Rotary Club of Madras on the 24th of June in Chennai. The event had a question and answer session in which a humorous A. R. Rahman spoke about his favorite music and his experiences working in movies.

Lifetime Achievement at age 40. Indeed a terrific achievement.

Director Vasanth on ARR

Dear Rahmaniacs,

Director Vasanth has been credited with introducing Actor Surya, Jyothika, Simran to Tamil Film Industry. He was associated with ARR for his film Rhythm. He was an Ast Director to Balachander, Maniratnam.

It was an unforgettable experience working with Rahman for Rhythm. I met him first during IR's recording in Prasad Studio of Punnagai Mannan. The computerised song. He was in a standing in a corner with a keyboard , with his head down. We didnt know each other that time. Rahman Sir is little bit younger than me . Then I listened to Chinna Chinna aasai in Mani Sir's Venus Colony , when the intial recording was done. That was at the very initial stages. Then Balachander Sir played the same song to me later. The magic of the song, created an impact in me. Many a times, I have felt many songs to have created impact on me.

Oh La La song in Minsara Kanavu was another song which created an impact in me. When I heard it for the first time., I felt as if the song was going on for long time. I didnt like it first time. Then, after hearing the song repetitively, it became my life, and I couldnt stay away from it. Initially, I liked Thanga Thamarai Magale song from the same film, and later got hooked to Ooh La La .



About Songs in "Rhythm"...

ARR improvises a lot with the songs... Consider Nathiye Nathiye song (Dheem Thananaa) song for example. "Dheem Thana naa" was never meant to be the pallavi (antara) of the song. It was a refrain that was used in the middle of the song. Since it was catchy, he made it as the opening. The entire song did not stick to the usual format of 1 antara and two mukhda - there were lot of variations in the song - just like how the flow of a river is never uniform and varies throughout... Since each portion of the song was so different, we decided to make the "dheem Thana naa" refrain as the common link for each part, and thus we finalised the opening of the song.
Nathiye nathiye which was supposed to be the actual pallavi (antara) of the song, was made to appear only once or twice in the song!!

About ARR as a person
ARR is the only Indian composer, who is successful in the regional, national as well as the international arena... There may be many who are successful in the regional level. You can even find people who are successful in the regional and national level. But, he is the only one who has succeeded in all 3 levels... Be it Nagercoil (a small town in Tamilnadu) or New York - he is a success everywhere!
He is the pride of Tamilnadu and India..

When you consider only the film compositions, I see him as the major composer in Tamil and hindi film music. In Tamil, he is of the lineage following G.Ramanthan, R.Sudharsanam, KV Mahadevan, Viswanathan-Ramamoorhty and IR.
If you look similarly in Hindi, he follows the lineage of people like Anil Biswas, Naushad Ali, Shankar Jaikishen, SD Burman, C.Ramachandra, Madan Mohan, Kalyanji Anandji, Lakshmikant Pyarelal, RD Burman...
He is one of the Titans in Indian Film music.
According to me, there has been no TITAN music director after the arrival of ARR, in India in any language. He is the latest arrival.

In this lineage, I include only those who bring a totally new style of music. There are new composers who follow his style. They may also do some good music, but they have not created a new style of music.... not until now...

The most important aspect of his music according to me, is his technology + music. It is not technology alone or melody alone.. This is something that he pioneered. we have heard lots of melodies.. we have heard technology being used... but he put both of them together in the right mix and composed music.... He follows this in all styles of music - be it hindustani or carnatic or sufi or soft rock.
If ARR had been around in 1960s or 1970, I think, he would have given songs which are 100 times better than what he has given now!
Even now he gives the best songs, but what I'm saying is that, "story" had lots of importance in movies back then... Important aspects of ARR's music - like the melodic nature of his music, the depth of his music, the ability to show different perspectives, the ability to transport us to a different world - all these would have had more importance back then. But now, there are not many stories which can fully utilise these aspects of his music. Sotry-telling has decreased these days!


About ARR's simplicity
His simplicity is what I admire the most. I had once read about what composer Pyarelal of Lakshmikant-Pyarelal fame, had to say about ARR.

According to Pyarelal, Roja is his fav album, but the most important work in ARR's career is Thiruda Thiruda. ARR had met Pyarelal at a party, which was their first meeting. ARR himself went and introduced himself to Pyarelal, saying "I just wanted to meet you and get introduced to you... I'm A.R.Rahman". Pyarelal says that he had never seen anyone being so simple and modest, that too being a composer of international fame!
Rainahah: Usually ARR is very introverted and would not go and introduce himself to people... but since Pyarelal is a composer whom ARR respects a lot, he probably would have gone and spoken to him!


As a Director, what's your role in the music creation process?
According to me, a director's role is to create an environment or a situation for the composer to create a good song - mainly to inspire the music director... The director should strive to inspire the composer to reach greater heights... The director's intervention should not pull the composer down!!
(Raihanah ma'am interrupted here saying "Those are golden words... You should say this everywhere sir... You should say this loud and clear! It would be great if all directors understand this!!!!
Vasanth retorted saying "You seem to be really affected by such instances" (Laughs))

The director should try to bring out the best from everyone.... The director should identify what's the best aspect of the composer and bring out the most creative stuff from them.. and should never give up till the best output is produced!

Raihanah: You have explained it brilliantly, sir.. When we talk of this, the first song that comes to my mind is Nenje Nenje from Ratchagan....

Vasanth: Definitely.. Definitely... Similarly, I like Thoda Thoda Malarndhadhenna (Indra) How do I say... I'm at a loss of words...
I think ARR is the only composer who has given his heart and soul to each and every song and each and every movie. Not jus for one or two songs in a movie, but for every song.... That is why he takes more time... He has never compromised on quality any of the songs - ever! He takes each and every song seriously!!


About directors/producers asking for tunes similar to another song
That's usually done to communicate the mood that's required for the song - we sort of give examples... For some composers, you can get the best only if you communicate this way... It's more about convenience.
About asking to compose a song similar to another song - i won't comment whether it is right or wrong... but, it is wrong if the composer creates the "same" tune, instead of creating a similar mood!

In case of a big composer like ARR, we need not give any examples. If we give examples, he'll stay as far away from that tune as possible!! That's why he is in such a great position now!! He understands that it just for easier communication!


Some other composers would assume that we like that particular tune of a old song that they can satisfy us only if they use that tune, and would end up giving the same old tune!!

About Re-recording (BGMs) of ARR
Silence is as important to re-recording as the actual BGMs. In many instances, silence, after the actual BGM, creates the required impact - IR sir taught me this...
For instance, if there's a long BGM and it suddenly stops when a guy opens a door, all your focus shifts to what's behind the door. silence creates an impact there...
The composer should know when to have music in the scene and when to stop. I think Rahman is one composer who knows this and handles this beautifully!
He gives what's required for a scene, rather than playing music continuously!

Another important aspect of ARR's re-recording is his ability to use various different styles of music to elevate the quality of the scenes. For instance, in Rhythm, in the scenes involving the relationship between Arjun and the kid, he had brought an italian feel in the BGM... In the same movie, he had used a very Indian sound, for the scenes involving Lakshmi....

I think he can do this with ease as he listens to and enjoys all types of music - from carnatic to hindustani to western, pop and rock...

He brought a new style in re-recording. His re-recording gave a new dimension to the film. Even for ARR, Rhythm is one of his favourites in terms of re-recording, and he keeps mentioning this to me...


Fav BGMs in other ARR movies, apart from Rhythm:
I love everything that ARR has done for Mani Ratnam's movies, especially Bombay and Iruvar. According to me, Iruvar is Mani sir's best movie.. Iruvar's re-recording is ultimate!!

In the scene in Iruvar where it is shown for the first time that Mohan Lal has got 1000-s of people behind him, the Background score is brilliant. The BGM has "spoken" this exactly. If you just listen to the BGM without looking at the scene, you can visualise that scene in your mind - even without listening to a single dialogue!


Favourite Songs
How many songs has he made till now? About 100? So, at 5 songs per movie, there would be a total of 500 songs? so, my favourite would be all 500!!
I love every one of his songs...
Let me quote just a few songs, which come to my mind at this instant...

Pudhu Vellai Mazhai - I love this song because it does something to me... I love this song because I love it very much!!! It creates an ambience.. The rendering, the freshness, the music, the composition - everything was great... The sound was totally new - when I heard it in 1991, I knew I hadn't heard anything like this before!! The sound was so new, so emotional and so real..

love chinna chinna aasai a lot, but somehow my favourites are Pudhu Vellai Mazhai and Kadhal Rojave, with Pudhu Vellai Mazhai getting 100 points and Kadhal Rojave being a close second at 99.5!!


Similarly, I love "Minnale nee vandhadhenadi" from May Madham... I'm quoting this song specially, because of the sorrow in the song beautifully conveyed by the tune, SPB sir's voice.. above all - the intricate violin opening and interlude.... It doesnt happen often that the instrumental interludes get registered in our minds as much as the main song itself - but this violin interlude did.... I always used to hum that violin bit and my ears always long for that violin bit!


Snegithane - What do I say about this song,... This is one of the finest creations of Rahman. This is the ultimate song to portray a man-woman relationship!
(Raihanah: Sadhna's voice is so sharp - as sharp as the soung of glass breaking!)

Vasanth: I am usually not enamoured by the sweetness of a voice, for me it is always the composer who captures my heart! The emotions in the song are what attracts me!!

But if there's one voice which has attracted me a lot, it is ARR's voice... Listen to vellai pookkal... it will just make you cry!!! You dont hav to do anything else... The voice, tune, the lyrics - everything about the song is perfect - and it is as though the song conveys the entire sorrow in Sri Lanka...

I'm a big big fan of ARR, and I admire him as a human being also.. I am delighted and honoured that I got this chance to share my views about ARR, and his songs!!

A.R.Rahman named best music director at IIFA

Bangkok, June 10 (IANS) A.R. Rahman was named the best music director for his score in “Guru” at the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) 2008 awards here Sunday night, while the Shah Rukh Khan starrer “Om Shanti Om” swept a number of technical awards. Shreya Ghoshal won the honours for the best playback singer (female) for “Barso re” from Mani Ratnam’s “Guru”, which film also bagged awards for the best background score (Rahman) and best song recording (H. Sridhar).

Music that Rahman loves to hear!

Being a Rahmaniac, isn’t it always curious for us to know what songs Rahman used to hear. Now, its the time to list down the favorite tracks of A R Rahman in different genres. From International Pop to Ghazals and from Fusions to Own compositons, here comes the Musical Mantra of the Maestro.

In Indi Pop, Rahman’s all time favorite is Breathless. According to him “The song is well sung by Shankar Mahadevan and also beautifully composed”. Next comes Rabbi’s Bulla Ki Jaana in the list. Rahman adds ” The song sound different to the ear’s…..nice”. Then in the list comes his favorite Sufi singer Kailash Kher’s song Saiyyan. “Kailash is a good artiste and this is one of his better works.”

In International Pop, Bohemian Rhapsody of Queen is an all time favorite of Rahman. Then Rahman often listens to the sweet, hummable track “Time to say good bye” by Sarah Bright man and Andrea Bocelli.

Kate Bush track “Oh to be in Love” makes Rahman for great listening, anytime, every time.

When it comes to Fusion, Colonial Cousins first self titled album tops Rahman’s list for its compostion. Then comes the album Conversations “A Brilliant effort by L Subrahmanium” he adds. Rahman is addicted to IR’s album “How to name it” and according to him its a must hear for all IR Fans and even if you are not one

GHAZALS
Aaj jaane ki zid na karo : A classic master piece by Farida Khanum
Beyond time : Its a fantastic album by Jagjit Singh, hard to pick just one song
Reflections : I like Hariharans Voice

LOVE
If I fall in love it will be better : A nat king kole kopper, you need to listen to the lyrics carefully. They are loaded with meaning
Where do i Begin : This song from Love story was scored by Francis Lai and penned by Carl Sigman. Its one of my most loved songs.
I’ll always love you : I adore Whitney Houstons Voice.

BOMBAY MOVIE COMPOSTIONS
Kal ho naa ho : It was beautifully rendered by Sonu Nigam and composed by Shankar Ehsan Loy. Fantastic !
Tum se hi ~ Jab we met : I love Mohit Chauhan’s voice and Pritam’s compostion. It touches the soul. I like humming it.
Ankhon mein teri ~ Om shanti Om : Well written by Vishal Dadlani and fabulously composed by him and Shekhar together.

OWN COMPOSITIONS
Munbe Vaa’s complete sound track in Tamil
Khwaja mere Khwaja ~ Jodha Akbar
Naina from Water..............

Sakkrakatti Track Listing...

Sakkarakatti (2008)

Music: A.R.Rahman
Lyrics: Na Muthukumar, Vaali, Pa Vijay
Studio: V Creations
Producer: S. Thanu
Director: Kalaprabhu Thanu
Stars: Shantanu Bhagyaraj, Ishita, Devika
Label: Sony BMG

Tracks:

1. Taxi Taxi

Singers: Benny Dayal, Blaaze, Viviane Chaix and Javed Ali
Lyrics: Blaaze, Na Muthukumar, Viviane Chaix

2. Marudaani

Singers: Madhushree, A R Rahman, Hentry
Lyrics: Vaali

3. I Miss You Da

Singers: Chinmayi, Indai Haza
Lyrics: Na Muthukumar

4. Chinnamma

Singers: Benny Dayal, Chinmayi
Lyrics: Pa Vijay

5. Elay

Singers: Krish ,Naresh Iyer
Lyrics : Na Muthukumar

6. Naan Epoudhu

Singers: Reena Bharadwaj
Lyrics : Pa Vijay

Credits:

Chinnamma and Yeh Rishta, courtesy: Owais Hussain
Guitars and Mediterranean Strings: John Themis
Additional Vox for Marudani: Darshana, Shwetha, Janani
Vocal Supervision for Marudani and Naan Epoudhu: Shreeni and Srinivasa Murthy
Indian Rhythms: Laxminarayan, Raju, Vedachalam, Neelakandan, T.Raja
Additional Programming: Krishna Chetan and Hentry Kuruvilla
Additional Programming for Chinnamma: KJ Singh
Recorded at Panchathan Record Inn and A M Studios, Chennai.
Mixed by K J Singh at Panchathan Record Inn
Mastered at A M Studios, Chennai by S. Siva Kumar
Musicians Fixer: R Samidurai
Co-Ordination: Noel James

'Sakkarakatti' audio release on July 11

The much awaited audio release of the movie 'Sakkarakatti' with music by one of India's finest talents A. R. Rahman is slated to take place on the 11th of July.

The Tamil film industry is abuzz with excitement with the fact that extensive graphics are being created for the movie's song sequences, which is literally running close to a year.

Reports also suggest that a crore of rupees have been spent for picturizing just one song. The intensity and effectiveness of the songs composed by A. R. Rahman is said to be the reason behind the filmmakers' going through such an effort.

Another interesting piece of information is that A. R. Rahman has hummed for a song titled 'Maruthanni' which has been rendered by Madhushree. It can be recalled that all the songs that have the musician's humming have gone on to be huge chart toppers like 'Chinna Chinna Aasai' in 'Roja' and 'Sanda Kozhi' in 'Aayutha Ezhuthu'.

'Sakkarakatti' has Santhanu, son of writer, director, actor K. Bhagyaraj as hero and yet another film personality's (Kalaipuli Dhanu) son Kalaprabhu as the director.

A. R. Rahman begins composing for 'Robot'

A. R. Rahman has begun composing songs for the Rajini starrer 'Robot'.

Sources close to the music composer say that work has already begun in earnest as director Shankar is keen to start filming this August.

The director is on a location hunting spree while Rahman is busy composing the tunes. With Rajinikanth having completed the shooting for 'Kuselan', it looks certain that 'Robot' will begin this August.

'Robot', produced by Ayngaran International, will have Aishwarya Rai playing the heroine. The mega-budget movie will be shot in various locations across the globe.

Third day at blogging

hi , this blog is developed especially for the die hard fans of A.R.Rahman.In this blog you guys can know the information about biography,can also discuss about his album,and also his forthcoming projects.If you see the blog there is a music player widget in the sidebar. You can listen to the best tracks of A.R.Rahman in this widget.

A.R.Rahman's Childhood

A. R. Rahman was born to R. K. Shekhar, a composer, arranger and conductor for Malayalam-language films. His father died when Rahman was nine years old, and his family rented out musical equipment as a source of income. Rahman is a adherent of Sufism. He converted to Islam from Hinduism. During these early years, Rahman served as a keyboard player and an arranger in bands such as "Roots" and "Nemesis Avenue" with friends including Sivamani, embracing numerous music genres. He played the keyboard and piano, in addition to, among others, the synthesizer, the harmonium and the guitar. His curiosity in the synthesizer in particular increased because, he says, it was the “ideal combination of music and technology.” He began early training in music under Master Dhanraj. At the age of 11, he joined, as a keyboardist, the troupe of Ilaiyaraaja, one of many composers to whom musical instruments belonging to Rahman's father were rented to. Rahman later played in the orchestra of M. S. Viswanathan and Ramesh Naidu, accompanied Zakir Hussain, Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan and L. Shankar on world tours and obtained a scholarship to Trinity College of Music in London, where he graduated with a degree in Western classical music.

A.R.Rehman-The legend

Hey guys,
everyone of us know the popularity of the greatest Indian Music Director of all times Mr.A.R.Rahman. Even the world knows him.But this blog will take us a bit closer to Rahman himself. We will devote our time in listening to some of his best songs and start reading about this legend in India. We will also try to track his activities and get a glimpse of his personality. Not many people of his stature are humble like him.well everyone of us hope that he continues his best work forever. Let this legend of ours live forever. If you do not know anything about a.r.rehman and wish to listen to his songs,then this is place for you. We will soon instert gadgets so that you could listen to his songs.