Wednesday, July 15, 2009
LOVE THE SOUND TRACK OF KAMINEY....
I have always been a big fan of Vishal Bharadwaj. I have been following his music even when he was not a well known music director. I loved his score for a certain Malayalam movie called Daya that starred Manju Warrier a long time back. Then it was Maqbool, Omkara and now Kaminey.Dan tan naan is a classic club mix. I love the vocals of Vishal Dadlani and Sukhwinder Singh.The guitar of Spanish style is simply fantastic. The video too is good featuring Shahid Kapoor.Its a must buy for me and a clear chartbuster for the season. I guess after Kailasa Album, this one is sure shot recommendation from my side to all you guys.So untill next time...Dan tanaan !!!1
Confluence III - A Meeting By The Nile
After the grand success of his collaborative opus with Richard Clayderman, Rahul Sharma joins forces with the Egyptian Oud maestro Georges Kazazian on yet another journey of two cultures.
“Confluence III – A Meeting by the Nile’, is the third album in the successful Confluence series. Rahul Sharma, India’s leading new-age musician pushes his musical boundaries to bring in the real essence of music from across the globe through innovative collaborations with musical geniuses from other disciplines.
The Premise
Two ancient cultures, two rich and age-old musical traditions, two maestros on heritage instruments, meet to celebrate something timeless and create something new. The historic magic of the Nile and the grandeur of the pyramids mingle with the romantic majesty of the Taj Mahal in the alluring music that is born as a result. This is World Music of the finest order. A must-have for all lovers of World, Ethnic and Folk music.
The Music
Rahul Sharma is the young heir to a lineage of classical maestros whose mastery over the 100-stringed santoor from the valleys of Kashmir has delighted audiences worldwide. Georges Kazazian is a leading oud player grounded in both classical and popular Egyptian instrumental music. Both bring centuries of tradition and years of rigorous practice to any musical encounter, ensuring a standard of excellence which is further enhanced by an eagerness to experiment and push boundaries. The musical instruments themselves are special, acoustic folk instruments whose very tones evoke rich cultural histories and emphasize the eternal power and magic of sheer expertise and technique.
Aesthetically, the soothing, silvery tones of the santoor blend beautifully with the poignant sound of the oud, which adds bass and depth to the overall musical tapestry, creating compositions that range from the raw and powerful to the mystical and tranquil.
Bollywood singing sensation Sunidhi Chauhan lends her voice on “Marhaba Jaanam’, composed and written by Rahul; and further exciting tones and textures are added by a variety of ethnic instruments including the Egyptian kanoun, dumbak and different types of percussion. The album is programmed by Jackie V., a leading Bollywood sound designer whose recent work includes arranging the music of blockbusters like Om Shanti Om and Jab we Met. The musical outcome is an unusual blend of the traditional and the experimental.
“Confluence III – A Meeting by the Nile’, is the third album in the successful Confluence series. Rahul Sharma, India’s leading new-age musician pushes his musical boundaries to bring in the real essence of music from across the globe through innovative collaborations with musical geniuses from other disciplines.
The Premise
Two ancient cultures, two rich and age-old musical traditions, two maestros on heritage instruments, meet to celebrate something timeless and create something new. The historic magic of the Nile and the grandeur of the pyramids mingle with the romantic majesty of the Taj Mahal in the alluring music that is born as a result. This is World Music of the finest order. A must-have for all lovers of World, Ethnic and Folk music.
The Music
Rahul Sharma is the young heir to a lineage of classical maestros whose mastery over the 100-stringed santoor from the valleys of Kashmir has delighted audiences worldwide. Georges Kazazian is a leading oud player grounded in both classical and popular Egyptian instrumental music. Both bring centuries of tradition and years of rigorous practice to any musical encounter, ensuring a standard of excellence which is further enhanced by an eagerness to experiment and push boundaries. The musical instruments themselves are special, acoustic folk instruments whose very tones evoke rich cultural histories and emphasize the eternal power and magic of sheer expertise and technique.
Aesthetically, the soothing, silvery tones of the santoor blend beautifully with the poignant sound of the oud, which adds bass and depth to the overall musical tapestry, creating compositions that range from the raw and powerful to the mystical and tranquil.
Bollywood singing sensation Sunidhi Chauhan lends her voice on “Marhaba Jaanam’, composed and written by Rahul; and further exciting tones and textures are added by a variety of ethnic instruments including the Egyptian kanoun, dumbak and different types of percussion. The album is programmed by Jackie V., a leading Bollywood sound designer whose recent work includes arranging the music of blockbusters like Om Shanti Om and Jab we Met. The musical outcome is an unusual blend of the traditional and the experimental.
Garava is back for Marathi listeners
Garava is back for Marathi listeners Ten-year-old Garava is re-launched with Sanjh Garava and Nakshatradene by Asha Bhosle in MP3 format as “Punah Garava’.
“People have been listening to Garava even after ten years and so Sony music has decided to re-launch the album. It will definitely reduce piracy as listener will get the album in reasonable prices”.
“We did not had to put in anything new in this so as to give people the same old original Garava,” singer adds.
“Two generations back, college student never listened to Marathi songs but after Garava young generation started listening to Marathi songs. Songs are so melodious that it had worked on word of mouth and not by promotions,” recalls Kishore Kadam, the writer.
Sony music aims to milk the album again after ten years this monsoon, recycling is surely beneficial.
“People have been listening to Garava even after ten years and so Sony music has decided to re-launch the album. It will definitely reduce piracy as listener will get the album in reasonable prices”.
“We did not had to put in anything new in this so as to give people the same old original Garava,” singer adds.
“Two generations back, college student never listened to Marathi songs but after Garava young generation started listening to Marathi songs. Songs are so melodious that it had worked on word of mouth and not by promotions,” recalls Kishore Kadam, the writer.
Sony music aims to milk the album again after ten years this monsoon, recycling is surely beneficial.
Rahman is expected to sign deal with Universal Music
Rahman is expected to sign deal with Universal Music After winning two Academy awards for his score in Slumdog Millionaire, music maestro A R Rahman has captured the world’s attention and has made India proud on the international platform.
This Oscar-winning music composer is now expected to sign a multi-million dollar deal with Universal Music Publishing Group pretty soon, through which he aims to bring out his music to people across the world.
Talks are doing rounds that Rahman may also be signing an exclusive album series for Universal Publishing Production Music (UPPM), the world’s leading production music library.
Apart from this, Rahman is also hoping to release his own album through Interscope Records and also collaborate with many international artistes.
This Oscar-winning music composer is now expected to sign a multi-million dollar deal with Universal Music Publishing Group pretty soon, through which he aims to bring out his music to people across the world.
Talks are doing rounds that Rahman may also be signing an exclusive album series for Universal Publishing Production Music (UPPM), the world’s leading production music library.
Apart from this, Rahman is also hoping to release his own album through Interscope Records and also collaborate with many international artistes.
Shruti Haasan croons to glory
Shruti Haasan croons to glory - wins best new vocalist award! Shruti Haasan who is soon making her debut in Shree Ashtavinayak Cine Vision Ltd.s upcoming action adventure “LUCK’ surely has talent written all over her!!! While the leggy beauty seems to be grabbing eye balls for her sleek and stylish looks in the promos of LUCK, she seems to have already won the hearts of audiences down south with her singing skills too! Shruti has been awarded the “Best New Vocalist Award’ by the Tamil Music awards industry for renowned director Gautam Menon’s film “Vaaranam Aayiram’ which also stars south superstar Surya. And here’s good news for all those eagerly waiting to watch her in Soham Shah’s “LUCK’ - you will also get to see Shruti crooning to the title track “Aazma Luck’ in a special video featured on her… (The promos will be hitting the channels today) Word has it, the director Soham Shah who had attended Shruti’s concert in Mumbai was mighty impressed with her and wanted to incorporate the same energy into the film! And thanks to Soham’s vision, the music directors Salim Sulaiman came up with a unique and electrifying version of the title song which brought out Shruti’s rock-star image! Going all the way, to give it an authentic feel they even had a band in the song and the lyrics are a blend of Hindi & English!!! Shot in Filmcity over a period of 2 days, Shruti epitomizes the rock-star look with costumes styled by Binal Shah. Says, the sizzling debutant, “I had lots of fun. I could really be myself, the way I am on-stage. It’s a team effort and Soham’s vision that came through. I was glad to be a part of it.” And on asking her about her experience filming it, she enthuses, “The sets were buzzing with energy. I got to jump around and really enjoyed the entire experience!!!” Looks like Shruti seems to be hitting all the right notes!!!!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Merchants of sound...................
Brothers Salim-Sulaiman are the latest Indian music act to go global
A song about saving the Bengal tiger, composed in a studio in Juhu, Mumbai and layered in New York with voices of American children, is Indian music’s latest claim to global recognition. Salim and Sulaiman Merchant’s. We like being small, a number composed for the popular American show Wonder Pets, an animated series about saving animals worldwide, has been nominated for the Daytime Emmy Awards in the Outstanding Original Song category.
“The production team of the show approached composers from different countries. For the episode on the camel, someone from the UAE was asked to compose.When it came to the Bengal tigers, the team approached us,” says Sulaiman Merchant, the elder of the two.
For over a decade now, the Merchants have been making their own brand of music for the film industry– either striking background scores or peppy soundtracks with a distinct Indian touch for films like Fashion, Dor, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and Chak De! India. The number that goes to the Emmys has a strong backing of Indian instruments such as the tabla, sitar, santoor and the flute and is composed in the operatic style. “Indian sounds find their way into our compositions quite often. But it is heartfelt, not forced and depends on the script,” says Salim.
The brothers have been making music together for 25 years now. While Salim used to play with his church choir in school and then in his college band, he never got into a rock band. Sulaiman has been there, pounding drums for a band in college. “We used to practice in the basements and garages of our building.We did one show and then broke up,” says Sulaiman.
They come from a musical background. Father Sadruddin Merchant worked in the Tamil music industry as a music composer. They also studied Indian classical music at Trinity College of Music in Mumbai. Salim trained in classical harmonium and plays the keyboards and the piano. Sulaiman focusses on percussions like the tabla and the drums.
Their musical inclination took them through the usual routes.”We started working when Salim was 16 and I was 19. Advertising was very big at that time and we would be doing jingles every day.We never took the whole profession thing very seriously because we were having too much fun. And as one thing led to another, we began working with Magnasound on their artistes,” says Sulaiman, who has worked with artists likeVoodoo Rapper, Stylebhai,Shweta Shetty and Sagarika. Salim adds, “Even now, when we are at the studio, it’s hardly work. It’s a fun environment and music just flows.”
Films started with the background score for Hameshaa in 1997, which they bagged by chance. “We were working on a jingle when Sanjay Gupta, who was working in the film editing room in the same studio, heard it. He came to us and offered us the film,” says Sulaiman.
Since then, they have done background scores for films such as Dhoom:2, Dostana and Singh Is Kingg. The one that got them noticed was a film by Ram GopalVarma. “There have been a lot of turning points in our career. But Bhoot certainly would be the highlight when it comes to background scoring. It brought us to the fore. People recognised how a background score could change the film,” says Salim.
The big project they are working on now is the background score for Kites. Forthcoming projects include background scores for Love Aaj Kal, Wanted and London Dreams. They are also composing soundtracks for Soham Shah’s film Luck, Yash Raj Films’ Pyaar Impossible and Rocket Singh and Dharma Productions’ Qurbaan and Kootchie Kootchie Hota Hai. “There are about 11 films we are working on this year,” says Sulaiman.
Their musical influences range from Seal, Sting and Michael Jackson to Ustad Zakir Hussain and Ustad Sultan Khan. They have drawn influences from Hans Zimmer and JohnWilliams when it comes to background scoring. “Script is the first thing to keep in mind while composing.We have never tried to put a love song or an “item number” into a film where it’s not required.We also make songs that we would like to hear. Our cars are always playing our music and if we cannot enjoy our own songs, how can we expect our fans to enjoy them?” says Salim.
While Aaja Nachle had classical Indian sounds, Fashion had orchestral pieces heavy on the santoor. In Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, they filtered Shah Rukh Khan’s character through the qawwali-based Haule haule. “We could have gone with the techno stuff for Rab Ne…and it would have worked great with clubs but it would have been out of context for the character of Suri, who worked at the Punjab Power House,” says Salim.
After collaborating for almost 25 years, the duo still blend their individual styles without any friction. “It is because we are always ready to experiment with a certain style or a particular sound. When we sit together to work on a track, it’s almost like we are connected by some divine force,” says Sulaiman.
Salim often performs on the stage with the Tabla Beat Science - a group that comprises Ustad Zakir Hussain and American musician Bill Laswell. The brothers get together for gigs occasionally and are now thinking ahead.”We are getting a band together and will soon start doing concerts and live gigs with our songs,” he says. From clobbering drums in a garage in Mumbai, that’s a long way.
A song about saving the Bengal tiger, composed in a studio in Juhu, Mumbai and layered in New York with voices of American children, is Indian music’s latest claim to global recognition. Salim and Sulaiman Merchant’s. We like being small, a number composed for the popular American show Wonder Pets, an animated series about saving animals worldwide, has been nominated for the Daytime Emmy Awards in the Outstanding Original Song category.
“The production team of the show approached composers from different countries. For the episode on the camel, someone from the UAE was asked to compose.When it came to the Bengal tigers, the team approached us,” says Sulaiman Merchant, the elder of the two.
For over a decade now, the Merchants have been making their own brand of music for the film industry– either striking background scores or peppy soundtracks with a distinct Indian touch for films like Fashion, Dor, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and Chak De! India. The number that goes to the Emmys has a strong backing of Indian instruments such as the tabla, sitar, santoor and the flute and is composed in the operatic style. “Indian sounds find their way into our compositions quite often. But it is heartfelt, not forced and depends on the script,” says Salim.
The brothers have been making music together for 25 years now. While Salim used to play with his church choir in school and then in his college band, he never got into a rock band. Sulaiman has been there, pounding drums for a band in college. “We used to practice in the basements and garages of our building.We did one show and then broke up,” says Sulaiman.
They come from a musical background. Father Sadruddin Merchant worked in the Tamil music industry as a music composer. They also studied Indian classical music at Trinity College of Music in Mumbai. Salim trained in classical harmonium and plays the keyboards and the piano. Sulaiman focusses on percussions like the tabla and the drums.
Their musical inclination took them through the usual routes.”We started working when Salim was 16 and I was 19. Advertising was very big at that time and we would be doing jingles every day.We never took the whole profession thing very seriously because we were having too much fun. And as one thing led to another, we began working with Magnasound on their artistes,” says Sulaiman, who has worked with artists likeVoodoo Rapper, Stylebhai,Shweta Shetty and Sagarika. Salim adds, “Even now, when we are at the studio, it’s hardly work. It’s a fun environment and music just flows.”
Films started with the background score for Hameshaa in 1997, which they bagged by chance. “We were working on a jingle when Sanjay Gupta, who was working in the film editing room in the same studio, heard it. He came to us and offered us the film,” says Sulaiman.
Since then, they have done background scores for films such as Dhoom:2, Dostana and Singh Is Kingg. The one that got them noticed was a film by Ram GopalVarma. “There have been a lot of turning points in our career. But Bhoot certainly would be the highlight when it comes to background scoring. It brought us to the fore. People recognised how a background score could change the film,” says Salim.
The big project they are working on now is the background score for Kites. Forthcoming projects include background scores for Love Aaj Kal, Wanted and London Dreams. They are also composing soundtracks for Soham Shah’s film Luck, Yash Raj Films’ Pyaar Impossible and Rocket Singh and Dharma Productions’ Qurbaan and Kootchie Kootchie Hota Hai. “There are about 11 films we are working on this year,” says Sulaiman.
Their musical influences range from Seal, Sting and Michael Jackson to Ustad Zakir Hussain and Ustad Sultan Khan. They have drawn influences from Hans Zimmer and JohnWilliams when it comes to background scoring. “Script is the first thing to keep in mind while composing.We have never tried to put a love song or an “item number” into a film where it’s not required.We also make songs that we would like to hear. Our cars are always playing our music and if we cannot enjoy our own songs, how can we expect our fans to enjoy them?” says Salim.
While Aaja Nachle had classical Indian sounds, Fashion had orchestral pieces heavy on the santoor. In Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, they filtered Shah Rukh Khan’s character through the qawwali-based Haule haule. “We could have gone with the techno stuff for Rab Ne…and it would have worked great with clubs but it would have been out of context for the character of Suri, who worked at the Punjab Power House,” says Salim.
After collaborating for almost 25 years, the duo still blend their individual styles without any friction. “It is because we are always ready to experiment with a certain style or a particular sound. When we sit together to work on a track, it’s almost like we are connected by some divine force,” says Sulaiman.
Salim often performs on the stage with the Tabla Beat Science - a group that comprises Ustad Zakir Hussain and American musician Bill Laswell. The brothers get together for gigs occasionally and are now thinking ahead.”We are getting a band together and will soon start doing concerts and live gigs with our songs,” he says. From clobbering drums in a garage in Mumbai, that’s a long way.
Rahman invited to be Oscar voting member
India's musical genius A.R Rahman has yet another Hollywood honour bestowed on him.
The music-director who won accolades and myriad awards for Slumdog Millionaire has now been invited by the The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to be its voting member.
The Academy, which also gives the Oscar awards, issued invitations to 'artists and executives who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures.'
What this means is that if he accepts the offer, Rahman will be among the members who decide the Academy Award in the Best Music category, as well the Best Motion Picture category.
This year 134 invitations have been sent out as opposed to 166 that are sent every year. The reason given is that 'several branch committees endorsed fewer candidates than were proposed to them.'
A number of Oscar nominees of 2009 like Viola Davis (Doubt), Taraji P. Henson (Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married) have been invited to join the Academy this year along with A. R Rahman.
As expected, Slumdog Millionaire features in a big way in the list of invitees. Apart from A.R Rahman, director Danny Boyle, cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle, film editor Chris Dickens, and producer Christian Colson have also been invited.
The final list of members is compiled after the invitees have accepted the offer.
The music-director who won accolades and myriad awards for Slumdog Millionaire has now been invited by the The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to be its voting member.
The Academy, which also gives the Oscar awards, issued invitations to 'artists and executives who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures.'
What this means is that if he accepts the offer, Rahman will be among the members who decide the Academy Award in the Best Music category, as well the Best Motion Picture category.
This year 134 invitations have been sent out as opposed to 166 that are sent every year. The reason given is that 'several branch committees endorsed fewer candidates than were proposed to them.'
A number of Oscar nominees of 2009 like Viola Davis (Doubt), Taraji P. Henson (Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married) have been invited to join the Academy this year along with A. R Rahman.
As expected, Slumdog Millionaire features in a big way in the list of invitees. Apart from A.R Rahman, director Danny Boyle, cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle, film editor Chris Dickens, and producer Christian Colson have also been invited.
The final list of members is compiled after the invitees have accepted the offer.
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