tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26952601384874065452024-03-08T21:38:54.466+01:00Raaja Paarvai - A Perspective on RaajaVignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.comBlogger66125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-45004681484112077532015-03-06T18:54:00.002+01:002015-03-07T01:02:15.378+01:00Raaja ReggaeReggae music is characterized by the 'Ska stroke' or the 'Skank' - where in the rhythm is emphasized on every alternating counts of 2 and 4. The off-beat Stacctto is a very distinctly recognizable musical pattern anywhere you hear it and can be easily tagged as a reggae. Or.. is it..? It is Ilaiyaraaja we are talking about here. </br> </br>
His specialty is to absorb the essence of any genre in world music but to apply it in own way. I explained this at length with a lecdem on his Jazz waltz application. This was followed up with the origianl article in <a href="http://solvanam.com/?p=19324">Solvanam</a>. </br> </br>
Reggae is another genre that has a strong influences on Raaja's music. Generally speaking, this genre of music symbolizes carefree, laid back, summer time music which celebrates life. </br> </br>
But in Raaja's reggae you will never get this Jamaican feel.. You will only feel Ilaiyaraaja. </br> </br>
"Vanakkuyile kuyil tharum Isaiye" is a popular song with a reggae arrangement. But the skank in that song is hidden in plain sight due to many factors. Firstly the scale (Raaga) he chose was Lalitha, a distinctly Indian scale with no space to give you a feel of relaxed vacation.. Moreover, Pa Varjya Raagas have their own challenges for composers of light music as they are hindered from using the root chord !. The situation is also intense, where the hero is smitten by the love bug for the first time and is head over heels. And yet, there is no denial it was set in reggae tempo.
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Another blinder of a Reggae from Raaja is the song "Sollividu Velli Nilave" from the movie 'Amaidhi Padai'. I heard this song in the theater when I watched the movie. Those were the days of no cable TV or FM or MP3 or internet revolution. To listen to a song for the first time, getting possessed by it and having no opportunity to listen to it again must rank among the painful torchers. When you get to hear something only once, you tend to make the most of it and listen intently and so I did. I didn't remember much of this song but that guitar strum on the 1st interlude was stuck to my head. Then, I didn't know it was played in a guitar.. I didn't know it was a minor added 9th chord... I didn't know the progression that followed. But the collective sound of that phrase was somehow captured that when I started playing keyboard years later, I could get it straight out of my head the first time. I slept very peacefully that night !
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The song is characterized by the skank pattern from start to finish. And is a great exercise for off beat staccato play for any of you. Just like Vanakkuyile, there is nothing in the situation to suggest that its reggae - Its yet again meant for seriously smitten first love puppies. The minor scale throws all its weight behind and makes the song anything but light.. Another unique, original, contrarian treatment of reggae which Bob Marley would be very proud of.
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Its sung by Mano and Swarnalatha - another enchanting combination who gave very many memorable duets together on the first half of the 90s. There is no excuse for a life like Swarnalatha that is lost too soon. When I hear songs like this, I still refuse to believe she is not there anymore.
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Raaja's intense minor scale songs of that era (such as Adi Poonguyile, Maniye Manikkuyile, Thendral Vanthu theendum podhu etc.,) keep oscillating between the root and relative major constantly and that gives you enough mood swings in the same song. One moment you see one color and seconds later its another. This song is no exception. You feel grey and gloom when the prelude starts (Am added 9th) which turns to lush green on the entry of relative major (C) which turns to red on the minor 4th and a giving you a near death experience of black through the E7th before bringing you back to life through the cool blue of G/ C
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On that note, a Happy Holi friends and of course a Happy weekend !!
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With Love
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Vicky
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</br>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-58507783860337987862014-12-20T01:05:00.000+01:002014-12-20T01:05:05.339+01:00Preludium in F MajorWhen you can write a multi-part score at your will, you know you are in a league of your own.
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The prelude of "Kannil enna Kaarkaalam" is one of my fascinations. Musically, there are so many layers in that song that every time I listen to it, it tells me how little I know and how much more I still need to go to appreciate this giant called Maestro Ilaiyaraaja.
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If you look at each of the track in this multi-part harmony, its so simple. So perhaps its not such a big deal to find such a simple composition in Western classical tradition. But you look closer and you will see that the prelude operates in such a narrow range of notes of the major scale. If a composer is able to pack so many tracks with these notes and is still able to balance each of them and give them their place within the prelude without making a clutter out of it, it shows the mark of his genius.
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And what is certainly a big deal is the seamless transition of ideas.. The composer thinks of a multi-part Western classical prelude for the first 30 seconds and then eases into an indian melody (With strong mohanam notes in the first few lines) set for a tisra nadai tabla rhythm without even you noticing it. Composing with such musical zeal song after song makes this man truly one of a kind!
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This song is one of those comforting type that makes you slow down, take a deep breadth, close your eyes and listen to it. Melodywise the song is nothing special but SPB and Janaki take this to the next level due to only one factor.. The factor misused by every talent show judge nowadays - Singing with Soul, expression, feeling etc etc. Next time you listen to the song please pay attention to the emotion expressed by the singers and you will understand what truly "singing with feel" means.
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The song's visuals for once do justice to music. That's because its picturized song by the master story teller Balu Mahendra. Its such a complete song, that even superstar Rajnikanth is not standing out in a song (like he usually does, even if its a sad song) but let the song be bigger than him. According to me, this song should be in the same league of best of Raaja - Balu Mahendra combinations but somehow didn't attain that cult status, which I hope posts like this will rectify.
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I already mentioned the song is for a sorrow situation, but if you are a composer you know that its difficult to bring out that emotion in a major scale. But if you do handle it right, it sounds so soothing.. Especially that second chord of C#dim in strings ensemble towards the end of the prelude cuts me into two every time. A similar song of companionship that makes an equal impact is Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge over troubled waters".
Finally, Coming back to the prelude, There are 5 or 6 melody parts in it which I can hear and I figured at least 4 out of it. I only have two hands with limited playing capabilities and I was wondering how to go about this. I was considering sequencing this in the keyboard when Vedanth walked by.. I asked him "Hey Ved, do you want to help me with my Friday video..?" His school vacations started from today and he was like "eh.... I was going to watch TV". Then I offered him if he helps me, he gets to watch an extra episode of Topgear (He is an Automobile freak). His eyes lightened up immediately and he sat with me "Show me, what have you got!". I showed him the sheet music I wrote and in less than 10 minutes he was ready.. He is watching his TopGear now while I am typing this.. 1 hour of returns for 10 minutes of effort.. Good bargain, don't you think !!??
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Happy weekend..
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With Love
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Vicky
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PS: Send me a message or drop in a comment if you are interested in the sheet music.
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Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-79402376386874896512014-11-08T00:19:00.000+01:002014-11-09T12:42:21.829+01:00A Dream Come TrueIn the past 100 years of Hindi film music or other regional film music in India there have been very many gifted composers.
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But not many of them have composed original Western Classical instrumental music adopting the rich principles such as counterpoints, be it in film music or in any other sphere of music.
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Maestro Ilaiyaraaja is a true exception and the only composer as far as I know who broke this barrier. Through the instrumental sections in the film songs, he applied original western classical techniques and yet gave it in a presentable form appreciable by the common man.
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Yes, it is an audacious statement I am making. But you listen to this piece once and you will understand what I mean. The contrapuntal structure of this piece is really something special..
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Its is all about the Western classical concept of Resolving..
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Each bar finishes with such an anticipation and incompleteness that its almost like they are waiting to get their salvation through the resolution of next bar. The quality and depth of this 8 bars of music is unparalleled in Indian Film Music history.
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There have been often misinterpreted and inaccurate illustrations of Maestro Ilaiyaraaja's counterpoint applications. Every Maestro fan who knows this term seem to use it freely and tag songs under this category.
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Counterpoint is a technique where by there are two or more independent melodies that are played in parallel. Each melody should be complete on its own right and yet when played together it should still sound seamless.
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The sheet music is available <a href="http://bit.ly/1smDzzV">here</a>.
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As per my limited understanding, the first 8 bars of second interlude of Poonthalir Aada from the movie Paneer Pushpangal is an example of Counterpoint.
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From the structure of those 2 lines, the way it looks so melodious, you can call them an invertible counterpoint.. If you further look closely, it starts around song's key signature of E minor. From here Raaja's ultimate goal is to arrive at E Major for the chorus section.
The progression is: First it traverses on the Em/B domain.. (Suddenly there is an augmented fourth by way of Gm, but thats just his genius). From here the next 4 bars flies over to Am/ E territory.. These two sets are of same pattern (i.e., same pattern of root minor/ Dominant fifth combination) but in that later Am/E combination, he picks that E Major and lands there rather strongly.. i.e., not anymore as a sub-chord of Am but elevating it to the next root .. It is not easy to effortlessly switch emphasize like this at all in each bar.. Not easy at all !!
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However, It is made possible because of the chord resolutions.. The entire melody line is constructed to merely accommodate these chord resolutions.. This is what I mean by the concept of resolution.
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And thats not all. When the Chorus starts at E Major, everyone feels happy and elated purely because Raaja takes his feet of the minor dominion gas pedal. In other words, This chorus section completely owes its existence to those 8 bars preceding it. You simply cannot imagine that chorus starting on its own without such a pre-cursor. Try to sing it, you will feel it immediately.
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And wait, there is still one more problem.. Now I am in E Major where as the Stanza starts in G.. How do I go from E to G is a million dollar question. But Maestro Ilaiyaraaja is musically a very rich man. A million dollars is small change..!
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On the 5/ 6th bar of the chorus (i.e., 13/14th bar of the interlude) the arpeggios still hang on to that E Major..<br/>
On the last bar (i.e., 8th bar of that chorus or the 16th bar of the interlude), The arpeggios simply take a minor return to a melody (that almost gives a Gowri Manohari-ish feel, if you see) Pal of gloom suddenly descends announcing the arrival of Em. The anticipation of that gloom is so palpable in the 15th bar itself that every time I listen to it, it just kills me.. Chord resolutions all over again..
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So with this simple stroke of genius, He steers the ship from E Major back to its home of Em..
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On that Em, the strings take over the same theme of the interlude's beginning for 2 more bars.. And on the next 2 bars, he effortlessly switches from Em to G which he is so good at doing all the time in all the other songs.. i.e., its just the relative major of Em.. and from there he launches the stanza..
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To summarize, the resolution is:
Em/B (With a tinge of augmented 4th by way of Gmin perhaps) --> Am/ E --> E as a fresh start at chorus --> E minor (This is where the puzzle ends)--> G (Em to G is just a relative shift)
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This round trip of 20 bars from Em to G must be the most scenic route ever taken in the history of Indian film music..
For a very long time I wanted to play this instrumental bit and with finally I managed, just about..
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With Love
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Vicky
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Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-47784079925325984842014-10-31T16:45:00.001+01:002014-10-31T16:56:40.669+01:00The Nice Song Who Finished FirstIn its opening chapter of biography of Rahu dravid called "The Nice Guy who Finished First" the author credits the great Indian cricketer of 1970s, Gundappa Viswanath. He says in any other team or if he played at another time, Viswanath would have been a mega star of the game. But just because he played alongside a even bigger star called Sunil Manohar Gavaskar, he never received his due credit.
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Another unlucky peer is Gordon Greenidge who was a great opener, but could never come out of the shadow of another great opener, Desmond Haynes.
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He explains how Rahul Dravid who, for most of his cricketing career played with a bigger icon, Sachin Tendulkar still managed to finish first in his own right.
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There are lots of Ilaiyaraaja songs like the Viswanaths and Greenidges and the Dravids.
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"Nee thaane endhan pon vasantham" is always the second best after "Panivizum malarvanam"...
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A song like "Azhago Azhagu" can never be heard on top of "Andhimazhai Poligirathu"...
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"Ilaiyanila" dominates you and stops "Thogai Ilamayil" from becoming one of the all time great songs.
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"Poove Sempoove" overpowers all the other good songs in that movie (like "Thenmozhi"/ "Enadhu vizhi"/"Kuyilukkoru") and so on and so on...
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Today's song is in the same category.
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Not many people have look beyond "Ilamai enum Poongatru" from the movie "Pagalil Oru Iravu". There is an unbelievable Mohanam in that movie and that is this week's pick.
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From the very first listening, the song "Thaamtha theemtha" has intrigued me.. Everything about the song - Its Rhythm and its jumbled usage of Mohanam, abundant usage of 12th note in a rather classical song etc., are unique and there is no other song till date from the Maestro with all these properties. If I have the authority, I would prescribe this song along with "Geetham Sangeetham" for the class of 'Thaatu varisai' in Carnatic music learning.
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Apart from this, the hero(ine) of the song is of course S Janaki. If you are an aspiring (or even professional singer) out there, you should try this song and emulate her clean execution at the same pitch (F).. It would do you a world of good and that's the same reason why I attempted it in Piano though its far from perfect :-)
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And a while ago, I wrote an article on Ilaiyaraaja's jazz waltz. I deliberately didn't talk about this song in that article, because this is biggest of them all and one of the early works of Raaja. So I wanted to give this song its due focus at a later time.
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Just like Dravid, I want to ensure that this song also finishes first :-)
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So here I am..
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Happy weekend.
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With Love
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Vicky
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<iframe width="640" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/whEXzhKvv3U" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-73868002681622401512014-10-24T18:26:00.001+02:002014-10-24T22:45:43.326+02:00Timeless Music on a Timeless InstrumentThe instrument I am playing here is older than Thyagabrahmam Or Beethoven. Its of the same age as Mozart...
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When it was made, British rule was yet to start in India.
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Pulithevar, the first chieftain in India to resist the British was ruling back home.
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His junior peer Veerapandiya kattabomman was yet to be born and...
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Tipu Sultan was a 6 year old boy...
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"<a href="http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orgel_van_de_Grote_Kerk_in_Nijkerk" target="blank">Orgel van de Grote Kerk in Nijkerk</a>" Or the "Organ of the big church of Nijkerk" is a pipe organ made in the year 1756. Except for the wind mechanism (which was manual back then and has been since made electric) a great deal of its present state is still original and still produces the same divine, pristine sounds.
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The Organ console from where the organist sits and plays, the manuals (Also known as a Keyboard nowadays), The stops and registers are all from the 18th century and are in supreme condition.
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The "GREAT" section of the organ (also known as the "Hoofdwerk" Or the "main section" of the organ) comprises of the large set of pipes that you see towering sometimes all the way to the ceiling of a church.
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The "Swell" section of the work (aka "Rug werk" or the "back work") thats usually visible as an ornamental balcony from the ground floor of the church covers a relatively smaller set pipes.
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"Stops" are mechanical levers that can be pulled to control the wind flow into these registers (A set of pipes) and through this process of Registration (i.e., selecting one or more stops simultaneously) an organist can produce wonderful combination of sounds ranging from the timber of flutes to Brass.
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Not to mention the pedal section of the Organ, where an organist plays with the foot, usually producing those warm, chamber filling, rich Bass effects that grips your heart.
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And there is a mechanism by which its possible to control the manuals that are normally played by hand, by the foot pedal. (i.e., you press the foot pedal and it actually presses the keys on one of the keyboards on top automatically). That's pretty cool !
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So apart from playing with both hands simultaneously, often on multiple keyboards AND playing with foot simultaneously (so basically you are on all fours, literally dancing) AND selecting a complex permutation of stops to pull all the time while playing AND not moving your eye away for one second from the notation in front, playing Organ got to be the most physically and intellectually demanding exercise in the planet.
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This particular organ is rated among the top 3 best organs in Holland and it is still used for professional recordings.
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This is the third time I had an opportunity to play this wonderful organ. But this time, I was also fortunate enough to have a full guided tour behind the scenes to understand how the simple goal of pressing a key with little effort creates music loud enough to fill a complete church hall that is sometimes half as big as a soccer field. So If playing the organ is such a great gift, the jaw dropping mechanical engineering behind the scenes dwarfs all that.
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And for the records, //the pipe organ was the most complex man-made device before the industrial revolution, a distinction it retained until it was displaced by the telephone exchange in the late 19th century//
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All these was weighing in my mind when I was offered the chance of playing something.. Many choices were shadowing before my head inside. But obviously I had to choose a music that's worthy of played on such an instrument.
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Considering the western audience for the day who would appreciate the Indian sounds, I briefly considered 'Anandha Ragam Ketkum Kaalam' Or 'Poova eduthu". Finally I settled for the pentatonic Mohanam of Poovil Vandu.
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So here is Maestro Ilaiyaraaja on an organ as timeless as his music !!
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With Love
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Vicky
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</br></br>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-28995156769013846642014-06-27T18:52:00.000+02:002014-06-27T18:52:05.127+02:00Unique Sound Of Illaiyaraaja<iframe width="640" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/7v8tkfhwZBY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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These are the song that a whole generation grew up with...
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The arrangement of this song is quintessentially Illaiyaraaja.
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For the line 'Poo Pookkum Raa Podhu' the conventional arrangement based on the melody note should have been D , C Gm
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But Raaja reverses this and the original chords are D , Gm C7th.
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and the same melody of the second line goes tangentially as F , Gm Eb
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Transition to the relative major for the charanam is a drool moment..
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From there the switch to the D Major (While the key signature is D Minor) is innovation as good as it comes..
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Finishing line of the Charanam is:
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Poovum = Dm C
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Mullaai = C#dim Dm
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Maari = Gm Dm
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Pogum = Bb A
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This is what I refer to as Chordensity.. A very high density of chords per unit time and still not making it sound cluttered..
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You cannot get this sound anywhere else. This is Illaiyaraaja.
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With Love
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Vicky
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Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-61636881303928362212014-06-06T14:33:00.001+02:002014-06-06T17:08:56.301+02:00Illaiyaraaja meets Madan MohanRaaja is very particular about the difference between two words called <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpnopRbCg3M" target="_blank"><b>Inspiration</b> and <b>Imitation</b></a>. He says, "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3qYSws7ouw" target="_blank">Vaa Venilla</a>" is the imitation of the old MSV song "Vaan meedhile" (Original is Telugu song "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcCanl78qsU" target="_blank">Oh! Taraka</a>") where as his own "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I37h2ECbu3U" target="_blank">Oh Nenjame</a>" (Enakkaga Kaathiru)is an inspiration of the same song. You look at the rhythmic meters of the songs he mentions and you would immediately know what Raaja classifies as one and the other.
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To go on the similar lines, On a fine day Raaja observed Kamal singing "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22QYriWAF-U" target="_blank">one is the loneliest number</a>". Next day during the composing song of his next movie, Raaja remarked "I never knew you could sing so well in such a pitch. Now listen to this, I have done something like that which you are singing as well". That happened to be the "Pa ppa paba pa pa paa" from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZR-3IoaON6g" target="_blank">"Ninaive oru paravai"</a>.
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Likewise be it writing a counterpoint on top of Bach's Bouree or building on top of Schubert's unfinished symphony and travelling along as "Ithayam pogudhe" Ilaiyaraaja is one soul who whenever sees through a kaleidoscope, he gets his own vision super imposed simultaneously to what he sees.
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Madan Mohan is Raaja's favorite too along with other stalwarts such as C.Ramachandra, Khemchand Prakash, Roshan, SD Burman and RD. And he has no problems in accepting giving these stalwarts their <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjZsvgM-28E" target="_blank">due credit</a>.
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MSV's "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcSLkVjupCQ" target="_blank">Malai poludhin mayakkathile</a>" is perhaps Raaja's most favorite song as admitted by himself on many occasions.
Sushela's rendition of "Nenjam marapadhillai" has melted him as he uses this song as an example of why music stands taller than the lyrics in conveying emotions.
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Consequently, when you listen to some Raaja's songs it is easier to see where he drew inspiration from (Not Imitation!)
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If you hear "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxMW7klhq_U" target="_blank">Rasme Ulfat</a>", you can feel "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF2eEIwQb24" target="_blank">Ennulil Engo</a>"
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFr6G5zveS8" target="_blank">Lag ja gale</a> is the source for "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXBdknhOXyY" target="_blank">Ore naal unai naan</a>".
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Both Kamal and SPB can't have enough of the legend how Raaja landed up in "Inji Iduppazhaga" from "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Udu4sbPqlIA" target="_blank">Yeh Dil Diwana hi</a>".
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Those who inspired Raaja in turn helped me expand the horizons of listening boundaries. And it is most fulfilling to borrow ideas from various genius and making an alchemy of sounds.
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Today's blog post is one such attempt. (This is in fact my second such attempt. First one is a collage of <a href="http://raagadevan.blogspot.nl/2009/10/pining.html" target="_blank">Raaja and Shankar-Jaikishan</a>.)
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"<b>Aap Ki Nazron</b>" is the Mona Lisa of Music. Just like the painting, listening to this song make you realize its a master piece at plain sight. But if you look deeper, you keep seeing dimensions..
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It is a streamlined melody under the influence of a diatonic minor that doesn't wander much outside of its boundaries. Yet, its not a run-of-the-mill minor. One step closer and you can feel Darbari Kanada of the Carnatic music world. Go one step deeper and you feel Arabic undercurrents, what with the choice of chosen stringed instruments (Mandolin/ Oud?). The finishing of first interlude, though on the parent scale has harmonies set in a Vakulabaramish influence which accentuates the Arabic feel further.
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The rhythm looks a simple 7/8 and yet you sit down to decipher the first few bars and you get knocked down. The delayed starts peppered over prelude is not for the fainthearted.
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Coming the singer, you can very clearly realize why Lataji is the soul of India. There are so many sangathis in each phrase thats executed in time units of sub seconds.. But it seems like time slows down in front of her.. What is a flash of a second seems to be an eternity when she is singing. Her emphasize is on the soul of the song and not on the technicalities of packing the right notes in the limited time. She keeps the beats at the back of her head and seems to extract that additional millisecond that you cannot find. The result is unbelievable and it feels as if she is sitting inside the time warp, traveling with it and looking at us from a different inertial frame of reference !!
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With such inspirational baggage, I thought why not render the song with a touch of Ilaiyaraaja. I took the melody from Madan Mohan and arranged with Ilayaraaja's school of thoughts.
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Couple of pointers on this:
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Instead of giving a continuous rhythm 7/8, I deleted the 3rd beat in the accompaniment in pallavi..
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Also Chucked the traditional Am-G descent and instead went for the Raaja's stamp of ascent to the relative major (i.e., Am - C). Look at the brightness this immediately brings at 'pyaar ke kaabil mujhe'.
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Cut down on the F as much as I can (Going Am to F directly somehow brings an element of staleness for me which this song doesn't deserve). I choose either F via G or skipped it altogether and went the minor 5th (i.e., Em)
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and so on ..
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At the same time, in the name of experiment I didn't want to compromise on the structure of the song. I have kept the original prelude/ interlude and melody lines as much as I can. Didn't do the third stanza as its same as the first.
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The challenge was to maintain the melodic integrity while doing all this which I have done to the best of my abilities.
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Above all, when the melody "Aap Ki nazron" chimes with Am added 9th, When the chords and bass descend as the melody goes up isn't <b>Ilaiyaraaja</b> meeting <b>Madan Mohan</b>?
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With Love
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Vicky
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<iframe width="640" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/pAt1QgIs1_E" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-7099134609504480382014-04-20T15:36:00.001+02:002014-04-20T15:51:35.008+02:00Abhogi
Varnam is an critical stage in the learning phase of Carnatic classical music. After 'Sree gana natha' in Geethams and 'Rara venu gopala' in swarajathi, entering Varnam is treated as a significant milestone in the learning career. "எத்தன வர்ணம் போட்டுருக்கு?" (how many varnams have you been taught?) is a standard question that the musically inclined grand mother, periyappas, chittappa, mama and mami would always ask, even if you are learning keerthanas. Its like asking a boy who is studying in IIT "whats your mark in +2?". Such is the importance of Varnams. Even Vidhwans start their concerts with a varnam because its ideal for setting the tempo (மேளம் கட்டுறது).
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Its even so critical because that's the dicey phase where the Carnatic learner's dropout rate increases exponentially. After learning what would be equivalent of Rhymes, its in varnams that you are seriously exposed to 3 or 4 pages of notes for one song ! That scares the hell out of many right there.. Its also the first time one is exposed to structured melody of Pallavi, anu pallavi, mukthai swaram, Charanam and the zenith - Chittai swaram! Crooked music teachers will deliberately try to catch you on the act by asking you to 'Sing ChittAA swaram'.. When you boldly start one of the 'ChittAI swaram' they will quickly rap you that they asked for 'taa swaram' and not 'tai swaram'. When the real reason for drop out is to practice a varnam in multiple speeds, Its one of those excuses ("My teacher is harassing me, who cares if its Chitta or chittai?")- which the casual, not so committed blokes would use at home as their reason for quitting.
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In such a tough regimental life of Varnams, the first oasis that you would come across is the Abhogi varnam - "Evvari Bodhana". Thats when you realize that carnatic music can also be understood without complications. You can't help but notice that this raga has a unique 'sound'. The oddity of 4 consecutive swarams intercepted by a big gap and a jump to Dha and then melsthaai Sa. You will run over this sequence like a little puppy exploring a new territory. In the line "Chalendra Sri Venkatesa" when you climb up "dha sa ri saa ri ga ma ri gaa maa ga ga ri sa" and come down as "ri ga ri sa sa dha ri sa sa dha ma dha ma ga ri sa" you will get the same adrenalin rush of going high on a giant wheel and coming down. Your true first feeling of a achievement of having performed something 'nice'. As you progress further with Abhogi, you will also realize its laying out a clever litmus test for you. Because, often you would forget that there is no panchamam in the song and intuitively deliver that otherwise essential note and suddenly it tastes and sounds absolutely jarring with Sivaranjani.. Slip of one note and a world of difference. (I still do this mistake :-( !!) .. Proof that nature and music can be very cruel to you !
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Such is the special place the ragam 'Abhogi' has in my heart and many more who has been introduced to the ragam. Today's song is perhaps the best Abhogi to grace our years in 30 years. One of the those where authenticity stands out.
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Composing a classical song is one. But handling the same raga for a film song and yet capturing the same essence of that raga takes a different skill. For example, Without Panchamam its very difficult arrange a song and to give it a color of light music. (Its because of the lack of fixing the root chord). But in this song, Raaja still arranges the song with his trademark rhythm guitar backing the song beautifully. There are not much options for him.. There is no root chord and thats a big handicap. The best bet you have is the Major 4th and minor second (Note that both of them are relative major-minor) and then perhaps convoluted variants of minor 6th and added minor 9ths by omitting the 5th. But the unrelenting quest to find the common ground pushes this innovator all the way and you get this song. It not only arrests the listener it also provides him the benchmark to identify other Abhogi based songs. This song is the Logarithm table reference for many who try to identify other Abhogi based songs. Such is the influence of this song.
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Using Mukthai swaram-ish idea in one of the interludes is another novelty in this song. The second interlude is composed full of Abogi swarams that are repeated in Veena. And talking of Veena, what to say about the elegance with which its scales the Abhogi back and forth, always landing in Sadjam and alternatively rhyming with its melsthai counterpart. Veenai Parthasarathy (Pacha) would played Veena for most of the Raaja's song must have had a challenging day at office and he clearly emerged as the winner ! Its his Veenai bits which provide the uncluttered happiness visualization in your mind. Combined with the tisra nadai of the tune and the mel kalam in rhythm, this song does surely sound more 'Happy' than Pharrell William's :-)
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When you hear a mature Carnatic composition such as this, you have to accept this man is ambidextrous (Or even multi-dextrous). When it comes to composing song belonging to different schools of music, there is none who can stick to the aesthetics of the domain and delivering. Right from the days of Papanasam sivan to CR Subburaman to KV Mahadevan, composing a out and out carnatic raaga based song in cine music has been hallmark of film music. Illaiyaraja is the last composer still holging this legacy. He is the only one who still produces songs of this highly classical nature. You can be a Ilaiyaraaja lover or hater, but you cannot deny this. Its a fact !
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With Love
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Vicky
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Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-54910579198755581022014-04-13T12:13:00.001+02:002014-04-13T12:15:10.289+02:00The world is yoursCertain themes strike a stronger chord with Maestro. Mother sentiment, devotional and philosophical songs to name a few. Its not that he gives any less of an output for other situations. But he is certainly able to connect more personally with some of these special themes and that comes out very strongly in such songs.
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This song, though very plainly worded is deeply philosophical on one dimension.
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On the other dimension of music, it has equal depth. The song starts off scale. i.e., Original scale is Am, but the "veettukku kadhavirukku part starts in G and then beautifully converges onto Am.
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The slap bass arrangement in the pallavi is another area that only he can manage. Its timing and extempore nature takes very sharp musicians to execute, a trove that he has in abundance.
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The staccato keyboard piece in the first interlude is not everyone's cup of tea.
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Deft handling of both nishadham between the interludes and charanam
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But the icing on the cake is the switch to Charukesi midway of charanam. This is the zen moment of the song :-)
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A rustic song needn't be any less loaded than a classically arranged one and here is the example.
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With Love
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Vicky
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<iframe width="640" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/gOD6o0xcV2I" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-5012423716715118862014-04-05T16:14:00.000+02:002014-04-05T16:41:36.068+02:00Laya RaajaFlutist/ Singer Nepolean a.k.a Arunmozhi sir, rated the song 'Ila nenje vaa' as one of the memorable songs where he played flute. The peculiar thing is, this is one of those rare Raaja song where there is not much work for a melody instrument in the interludes. Its percussion show all the way. And yet, the scope for flute is tremendous yet novel. In between every line in both Pallavi and Charanam there are crisp flute bits that demands an extremely sharp flautist to play.
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The visuals of this song with an young Prashant dancing around the country side is a disaster, however the frames composed for those flute bits prove why Balu Mahendra is such a highly rated camera man in this country. A hunter carrying his booty of two rabbits by the ear, bird's nest, earth worm, Sitting monkey, praying mantises in tandem even a dung-beatle - These are some of the shots that are edited for the flute bits. A complete visual treat. His recent demise, is a great loss to that fresh feel he brings out in his nature photography.
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அங்கே நாரை கூட்டம்
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செம்மீன் தேடுதே.. !
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These are words which anyone who listened this song for just once will remember.
And the way how the 7/8 is handled in this song is damning !!
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3 + 4 = 7
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4 + 3 = 7
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2 + 2 +2 + 1 = 7
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Pardon me for stating the obvious, but there are more ways arrive at this equation in this song, that I haven't understood yet fully !!
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This grip on laya and fire to innovate is the reason why he is E-Laya-Raja !
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A song in Sudha Dhanyasi raga set to Misra Chapu tala sounds like a kriti fit enough to have been composed by any of the saints and gurus of Carnatic classical music.
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But 'Ila nenje vaa' happens to be by Ilaiyaraaja.
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With Love
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Vicky
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<iframe width="640" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/_xsoNorQYgY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-30109045276701295682014-03-29T15:57:00.001+01:002014-04-05T16:35:28.887+02:00Piano at Eastern gate !I've known only two things in life that are free flowing with absolute surety. One is the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Courtallam">Courtallam</a> water falls under whose feet I grow up. Second is Ilaiyaraaja's songs for the way it runs from start to finish without any iota of hesitation at any moment...
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I've always highlighted areas that differentiate this man from other composers, and this is yet another. Of all the 4000+ songs he has composed, you will not see any tentativeness in any of his songs whatsoever. The song is so sure, where its headed.. The pallavi, the interludes, the charanam its all a graceful relay. This post's theme is one such song where this is easily on display.
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The song is a quintessential Mohanam, that pentatonic scale which has captured the imagination of almost all earthen civilizations. Pandits may point out this song doesn't keep coming back to Gandharam as a Mohanam song must, but what they don't have an answer for is the wholesale free traversal of Mohanam's scale upwards and downwards throughout this song. This is unlike any of the traditional Mohanam songs I am exposed to. Try doing this on your own and either it sounds like a beginner's lesson on Mohanam or an overzealous attempt where one can make out that you are trying too much. This song has neither of those problems. Its perfectly camouflaged between sounding simple and yet humbling you if you attempt it. The melody of such high quality that I've not seen many "super-singer" contestant nowadays who could pick this song up and perform at ease. I wonder if anyone else other than Chitra could have managed this.
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It's not just the melody that is challenging but also the preludes and interludes. The situation of the song demands that heroine celebrates her new found freedom. A new lease of life the hero offers her and relieves from the clutches of tight spot that she found herself. And liberation is all this song emanates, especially the preludes and the interludes. Its all 8 beat notes in the string ensemble which throws that momentum at you and gives you the feel of freedom and happiness at once. The Stanza arrangement is such that, its a Voice and Tabla show with innovative beat patterns unique to Raaja.
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Its all plain Sa Ri Ga Pa Dha Sa-s. But when it comes from his Harmonium it has a different color. Have a look !
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With Love
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Vicky
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<iframe width="640" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/R3vchj8YFTM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-76539913457465024902014-02-28T19:19:00.000+01:002014-02-28T19:21:44.626+01:00Harmony in DissonanceThe BGM of Aboorva Sagotharargal is an example of what an out of the box thinker Raaja is.
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Especially the strings ensemble section is heights of imagination. Its a 4 part harmony section. Each subsequent chord used keeps two notes as common from the previous triad and just adds a new note to arrive at the new chord. Hence even if the new note is a dissonant note that doesn't belong in the key signature, it sounds very integral.
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Let me explain!
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First bar = Ab (Which is the relative major of the Flute theme set in Fm)
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Second bar = Bbm (minor second, which is still a good fit)
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Third bar = Gb (From here the entry of alien notes starts. From Bbm if you delete F and add Gb you get Gb major)
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Fourth bar = Ebm (From Gb you delete Db and add Eb, you get Ebm)
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Fifth bar = B | C7th (From Ebm you delete Bb and add B you get B major); The transition of B to C7th is heavenly with two chromatic (B to C as well as Eb to E) <br />
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Sixth bar = Ab | Ab7th
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Seventh bar = Db | Bbm (If you see the progression Ab -> Ab7th -> Db is a classic which is not heard now a days. Its the regular progression of Root + Rooth 7th to Major 4th which sounds so beautiful)
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Eighth bar = Eb7th | Ab
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Ninth bar = Eb.
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Then the flute theme continues in solo violin.
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I tried explaining this in:
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<iframe width="100%" height="166" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/137236625&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true"></iframe>
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With Love
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Vicky
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Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-13614327413894853952014-01-24T14:50:00.000+01:002014-01-24T17:21:50.804+01:00Baby loony tunesFirst listen to Raaja explaning about the melody of 'Paruvame'.
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He is brutally honest about the fact that, if you just hum the tune of the pallavi, it is very uninteresting. Its hallow, short and doesn't leave any emotional impact on the listener whatsoever.
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It is the colors that he adds on top of this tune by way of Chords, Arpeggios, bass track, guitar strums and fillers with instruments like Flute that makes the Raaja song a Raaja song. Composers before and after him are solely focused on the tune. While Raaja's melody based songs are perhaps more challenging to sing in their own right, its songs with such simple tunes that stands tall and apart with his own inimitable orchestration
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For everyone else, the song's tune, especially the opening tune is everything. It needs to be catchy, should give a feel of the situation, should be unique, should be challenging etc., For someone like Raaja who see the matrix falling behind a tune in his mind, the tune is nothing more than a vehicle to carry all is other ideas. He can convey the situation with a bell here, with a flute there.
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This song which I played today falls in the same category. The main melody is of atomic syllables made of short words with break in between such as "oh" followed by "butterfly" etc. If you just sing them alone, you are guaranteed of a weird look from the passerby. But when you play this melody with all its accompaniments, the color behind it is so rich that goosebumps are unavoidable.
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On a light hearted note, I would like to call these tunes as "Baby Loony Tunes" for their unassuming, short and cute demeanor. But don't underestimate them for the final product is always a giant. That is Maestro for you..
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With Love
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Vicky
Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-87282561759559281602014-01-18T20:59:00.002+01:002014-01-18T21:08:09.258+01:00The Man who knew SoundAs I set out recording my weekend video, I noticed an amazing phenomenon in this song.
Ilaiyaraaja takes arranging chords to unimaginable heights in all his songs.
The usual technique of arranging chords is that, composers take the melody and arrange the base chord which has the melody note in it. For example if the melody is F or A or C, they place the F Major chord..
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But Raaja sets the chord such that the melody becomes the added note of a regular chord. This wizardry is well displayed in this video. For example in the prelude humming, the chord doesn't enter as soon as the humming starts (which is the usual way). It enters when the melody anchors on E and it is the root chord of the song which is F Major. Now, F Major chord doesn't have the note E. But together with the melody note the collective sound yields the notes:
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F + A + C + E = F M7th. This gives such a unique sound. You cannot hear this sound in another composer's composition..
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You can keep on extrapolating this phenomenon all over the prelude. The finishing part of the preludes has 8 bars. The melody of first 4 bars is almost similar to the last 4 bars. But the chords for the first four bars is:
Dm| F| Dm| C|
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And the last four bars of prelude humming are out of the world..
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They are: BbM7th|Am7th|Bb6th|F6th.
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As you can see none of them is a regular chord.. And melody note of humming's melody is used as the additional note of the chord as needed to bring about the descent..
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I annotated that in the video. So you can view it.
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Now this is no ordinary arrangement. Its because he knows the humming comes and ends in Sadjam. So he "constructs" the chord such that it gradually descends and settles down in the Sadjam. To make this graceful descend, he first creates an elevation. This is the first half which is heavily leaning on the relative minor and the second half is those 4 chords with such great balance of notes. Such vision is only possibly when you know how the collective sound of 4 notes will sound. I can't marvel them enough and that is why when it comes to composing based on organic thinking and pure concepts of music, none come close to the Maestro.
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With Love
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Vicky
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Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-77628580847206247762013-02-26T23:50:00.000+01:002013-03-05T21:28:54.620+01:00One in an IndianRecently I wrote a tribute to S.Janaki and her rebuttal of Padma Bhushan. The article can be read <a href="http://solvanam.com/?p=24387">here</a>.<br />
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I also recorded this Piano cover for her. <br />
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I wanted to highlight a very unique arrangement in this song which I didn't bring up in the Solvanam article for the fear of digression. Its about arranging a major chord where the melody is actually the 7th note. Therefore the effect it creates is neither the prominence of the root nor the smudged M7th feel. Example: in Pallavi, during the bar of "Kaadhal Sonnan", the melody is A, while the chord is Bb. You feel this pattern all over the interludes and Charanam. (Or for that matter you can extrapolate this concept and make the melody 9th note while playing the plain minor chord in the accompaniment. etc.,)<br />
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Its an inexplicable uniqueness because the herd mentality is to set the chord corresponding to the simultaneous note on melody. <br />
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What is amazing to note is that, melody of first two lines are exactly the same...!<br />
i.e., The line of "Kannan vandhu Paaduginraan Kaalam ellaam" and the line of "Kannil enna kobam endraan Kaadhal Sonnan" share exactly the same melody. But it creates the effect as if the second line has a different melody, somewhat a descending version to the first one. This is due to the chords arranged here. The regular chromatic descent on the first line which is rather common and the unusual landing of 5th note accompanied by the 6th Major chord on the second line which I am highlighting here. You may have come across one of these illusion images where a same circle appear to be going both clockwise and anti clockwise at the same time or a stationary dot appear to be moving etc., . This is the aural version of the same ! <br />
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Come to think of it, this is a regulation minor song. It has the same set of resources for a composer from a tonality perspective as that of a "Chura liya" or a "Didi tera devar deewana" or a "Tujhe dekha to yeh jaana sanam". But its factors like such arrangements among many, which takes any shred of familiarity away and is responsible for making it sound different. <br />
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Another very common mistake people do while playing this song (including cover version of this song by some popular figures in the youtube that I have seen) is to play the Chord of A major where Asus4th should be used. Because equating the Dominant 5th note with the corresponding major (i.e., A major with a root of D) is what 99 out of 100 would do. It is part of the minor scale progression as you have known in the other songs I mentioned above. But using the 5th major is a sacrilege in this song. (A minor, yes. But the A Major, baa ! The moment you use it, that sounds like yet another minor song, and the reason why it has been meticulously avoided.. ) <br />
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This is why Raaja is where he is for me and why I regard any film numbers in India since the 70s as mind numb-ers (based on my limited listening repertoire). They have been neither rich on account of purity in melody which the pre 70-ers can rightfully claim, Nor in arrangement which has assumed a new meaning in the software based music composing scene. <br />
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It would appear, what is taught in one of these workshops of "how to arrange a song" is offered for free if you can listen and understand Raaja. But the fact is, it doesn't matter. Because, even if you are academically aware of this as a "technique" now and try to adopt it in your own song, it would sound out of place !! Because when applied consciously it just doesn't right. To get that sound, that effect, you should be able to do that subconsciously ! <br />
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And God bestows that gift on only a one in a million or should I say one in an Indian...<br />
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With Love<br />
Vicky<br />
Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-79392499026648610242012-10-26T20:48:00.002+02:002012-10-26T21:07:32.386+02:00Nayagan 25 yearsThis week the epic movie <b>Nayagan </b>celebrated its 25th anniversary.
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First I heard <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/arts/cinema/of-course-velu-nayakan-doesnt-dance/article4008896.ece">this </a>from the horse's mouth.
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Then I saw this wonderful art by one <b>Mr. Shrihari Sankaran</b>. Beautiful depiction.. Credit to him..
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And then I saw the video by AlexXpandian.. I am a big fan of this guy.
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Then on a impulse went and played this. No practice, no preparation.. Just inspiration. Played the song the way I have known in my head.. In the audio , the song starts with Raaja's humming version which abruptly ends and starts with the Kamal version. So I played it the same way.
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What has inspired you, need not be deliberated nor practiced. You can always play it straight from your heart..
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With Love
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Vicky Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-40125392538821923522012-08-10T12:49:00.001+02:002012-08-11T00:08:53.824+02:00Father To SonIn a recent speech, <a href="http://youtu.be/B7ddjTaS6Ow?t=5m" target="_blank">Karthik Raaja remarked</a> that he once composed a tune that expressed a Mother - Son relationship in the script. Raaja saw the movie and told Karthik that, "Your tune is very good. But it is more suitable for lovers rather than the parental love". When Karthik asked "How can you differentiate tunes based on relationships?" Raaja simply replied: "You will learn by experience". Karthik went on to conclude that, his father is the only composer capable of expressing abstract concepts like distinguishing various emotional relationships through music.
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In a bid to understand this phenomenon and attain nirvana, I went looking for Raaja's BGMs that expressed human relationships. I choose a few of my personal favorites which are well narrated by the eminent directors of the industry and well executed by best in class actors.. Top of the bill is the Father - Son chemistry between Sivaji and Kamal in Thevar Magan. From a background score point of view, Raaja doesn't enter this scene until half of the conversation. With just the noise of ambient rain filling the background, He leaves the scene untouched so that the viewers can take in the powerful performances of two all time great actors of Indian Cinema. When Kamal repeatedly says I am leaving and walks away, the BGM enters the arena with some tensely packed tremolos that quickly transcends to the emotional "Potri Paadadi" theme. With both the Gandharams lending the shades of Kaapi, this tune truly melts the listener's heart and brings out the culture, heritage, the father-son relationship and a few droplets negotiating the corner of your eye.
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To understand the greatness of all technicians involved in this scene, you only need to compare it with the dubbed version of <a href="http://youtu.be/PNMxe4TJb74?t=4m53s" target="_blank">Virasat</a>, where a dual between Sitar and string ensemble is needlessly played in the background for pretty much the whole duration of the scene. While the Sitar sounds seriously devotional and evokes no sign of sentiment, the combined sounds of these tracks and the unnecessary thundering sound effects of rain unfortunately diminishes the performance of a great actor like Amrish Puri. It is a lesson that educates how important the timing of back ground score is in a scene.
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To understand Karthik Raaja's revelation a bit more, I went back to another classic from Thalapathi. This scene can be treated as an imaginary sequence in Mahabharatham should Kunthi ever met Karnan accidentally and felt the undercurrents of their connection. Once again Raaja's respect for silence and the extra ordinary intelligence of fusing his musical idea with the natural ambiance of the scene is displayed here. (See my earlier post: <a href="http://raagadevan.blogspot.com/2008/10/art-of-compsing.html" target="_blank">Art of Composing</a>) When the train passes by and culminates in the Chinna thayaval song, Once again its the support from two Gandharams and the shades of Kaapi that mellows you out. Several other unique combinations such as scene's backdrop (A Temple with its natural sights and sounds), the juxtaposition of protagonists from Jai shankar's point of view and biggest striking aspect of it all, a silent sequence with no dialogues whatsoever - leaves indelible prints of Mani Ratnam, Santosh Sivan, Rajini-SriVidhya and Maestro Ilaiyaraaja in the viewer's heart. Cinema is nothing but a team work.
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Having looked at some parental love, I wanted to venture into the domain of hero-heroine love :-) Almost 99% of movies made so far in India bank upon this subject. Still finding the best of all was not difficult for me. Rajini is no doubt a super star known for his star value and unique style which tends towards antics for many. But what is not widely known and appreciated is how good an actor he is. Especially in the hands of best directors, he is really a diamond. A scene which I have always remembered completely in my mind even though I saw it only once originally, is one such scene.
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Directed by Mahindran, arguably the best director in Tamil film industry who inspired a generation of story tellers, the movie Johnny is rather unorthodox for its times. I consider the Raaja - Mahindran combination as the most aesthetic/ technical and commercial success stories of Tamil cinema. The respect that Mahindran has for Raaja is enormous as acknowledged by <a href="http://youtu.be/iXJb61psO_I" target="_blank">none other than himself</a>. The back ground theme of Johnny is still regarded as a milestone in the film music for taking the art of story telling through music to a new level. A Conman, a soft spoken female singer who shies away from public life, a women who is always greedy for something better even if its husband and an eccentric, parsimonious barber is not an usual combination of characters you will see in movies. Possibly inspired by the Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantasia_para_un_Gentilhombre">Fantasia para un gentilhombre</a> Raaja shines in this theme with his own novel arrangement. With no shades of imitation, he arranges one set where the melody is just initiated and backed up with <a class="htrack" title="Pizzicato" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Johnny/Pizzicato.mp3">Pizzicato</a>, another set where it explodes with some brilliant <a class="htrack" title="String Ensemble" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Johnny/StringsEnsemble.mp3">String Ensemble</a>, a third set with a <a class="htrack" title="Melancholic" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Johnny/Melancholic.mp3">Melancholic</a> arrangement and the best of all a <a class="htrack" title="Counterpoint" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Johnny/Counterpoint.mp3">Counterpoint</a> arrangement which also happens to be my favorite.
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While the basic theme looks like this:
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You can see that the Pizzicato arrangement, full of crotchets is more of lending a rhythmic support to the main melody.
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<img src="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Johnny/Johny_Pizzicato.PNG" alt="Johny_Pizzicato"/>
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The highlight as I mentioned is the counterpoint arrangement between Flute and Guitar which truly establishes the originality of Ilaiyaraaja.
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<img src="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Johnny/Johnny_CounterPoint.png" alt="Johnny_CounterPoint"/>
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It shows either you can get a random idea and deliberately improvise/ develop that in different forms. This is not composing. Given the right tools and time any motivated musician can take a shot at this method and a lucky few get successful.
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Or you can conceive a melody/ many counter melodies that co-exists together right from their genesis. It is composed that way and it stays like that for ever, with no further improvisations. And this is where Ilaiyaraaja's genius is unparalleled. In the above score, You can see that the two tracks are congenital twins and yet from a melodic point of view they stand on their own when played alone. Such music cannot be cooked. It has to happen !
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Going back to expressing relationships, you can see how this theme is traditionally western classical while the tonality of the two parental love themes discussed earlier took support from a dual gandharam based Indian influence. I can easily point out completely contradicting cases where Raaja has used Kaapi themes for Love situations and western classical themes for parental love. So what did Raaja mean to Karthik? I think, no one is qualified to make that derivation but himself. So I decided not to waste my time and do the next best thing.. Which is to initiate the next generation to some good music.
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With Love
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Vicky
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Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-71146462022822161982012-06-24T00:48:00.001+02:002012-08-05T17:47:05.402+02:00LifeLife can be defined biologically by those who understand its science. We call them the Doctors.
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It can be (self) realized by those who walk the path. We call them the Philosophers.
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But it can be <b>expressed</b> only as an art by those who interpret it. We call them Artists.
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The movie Geetanjali is all about the concept of life and it is difficult to imagine this movie without Raaja's interpretation of Life through music.
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First comes the <a href="http://youtu.be/6X2WLTGMj60?t=1m36s" target="_blank">intro song </a>where the hero is playing life hard as if there is no tomorrow. Then comes the <a href="http://youtu.be/AHNs-5_I03Q" target="_blank">title sequence</a> where that happens to be true. As the music unfolds, you realize its a different interpretation of the same melodic theme. Here is an artist of true class, expressing absolute worth of a human life in its good times and its struggle for existence.
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Former, where Life is celebrated intensely with Sindhu Bhairavi
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Latter, where Life is hanging on the strands of Sindhu Bhairavi..
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With Love
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VickyVignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-71635948089456831482012-02-18T01:39:00.001+01:002012-08-05T17:46:56.983+02:00Raaja's Jazz WaltzA recent article I wrote/ recorded is published in Solvanam. You can read it <a href="http://solvanam.com/?p=19324"> here.</a>
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Videos I made for this article are here:
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I linked about 17 odd songs of Raaja in the article.. A sample of what I attempted to say is here:
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Couple of my personal jazz waltz favorites which I also linked in the article is given below for your listening/ learning experience.
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<b>Coltrane</b> the King:
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Composer who dreamed of massive orchestration in films and executed them with panache..<br>
The great <b>Burt Bacharach</b>:<br>
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(Don't miss his <a href="http://youtu.be/VILWkqlQLWk" target="_blank">Raindrops keep falling </a>from the same movie. It can lift you regardless of how gloomy a day you may have had)
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Showman thy name is <b>Sammy Davis Jr</b>: <br>
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I first time I heard this song was on a local French radio while driving along coastal route with the early morning son beating down the lovely pink granite rocks of a postcard village called Perros-Guirec. A new place with arresting scenery that I am seeing for the first time resonating with the lyrics of a new song I was listening for the first time - "<b>Golden Brown , texture like sun</b>" .. Its a moment that will stay with me forever.. <br>
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Sunday Driver of relatively unknown <b>Limp Twins </b>fare high in my list too.. <br>
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As usual, my apologies for non-tamil friends. I made it a point to recorded the video in English so that you can appreciate this as well. I promise that you can expect the English version of the post soon..
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With Love
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VickyVignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-43760015448219363282010-12-06T00:12:00.009+01:002010-12-06T13:03:52.119+01:00Waltzing AwayContinuing a bit on my previous post.. <br />
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All of Raaja's evergreen and ever greatest hits have one thing in common. i.e., besides their mass appeal they are worth in gold from the eyes of an instrumentalist. The singers, as blessed souls as always, invariably take away the lion's share of a song's success. For instance a "Ilaiyanila Pozhigiradhu" or a "Mandram vantha Thendralukku" are "SPB hits" first of all. "Mohan hits" perhaps takes away the second best honor. But they never will be classified under: "Chandrasekhar hits" (the lead guitarist of Ilaiyanila) or "Frank Dubier Hits" - the Trumpeter of Mandram Vandha.. (for that matter we don't even know for a fact who played the trumpet in this song. Frank is an educated guess at best. Speaks for the level of appreciation we tend to show on the people behind the scenes.) <br />
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Usually the instrument tracks behind such songs are so challenging, that it takes some effort to play them. Take "Poove Sempoove" for example. For the abilities of Padma shri & Padma Bhushan KJ Y, this song is a piece of cake. But look at the instrument tracks in the song. Be it the Gowrimanohari dished out in Hindustani arrangement in the first interlude or the most unorthodox jugalbandhi of Tabla Vs Drums in the second BGM, the instrumentalists need to be on high alert here. One count that you miss and the whole BGM is gone.. !<br />
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Speaking further of the second interlude, If an orchestra is playing it live on stage, you can judge their quality just by this interlude. Its the toughest test for a team not on the scale of individual brilliance of artists, but how well they fare collectively. The constant tracks formed by the bass and hi-hat are quite convoluted in itself. Ironically that's the only reprieve which the keyboardists and the percussionists can latch on to and find out when to start and when to finish their bit. And speed of this interlude is an element to factor in as well. Ask the strings ensemble towards the end and they will vouch for that certainly. Its like a tight rope walk on top of a moat with hungry crocodiles waiting to gobble you if you fall.. But still, the appreciation at our level stops with "some serious sounding" music that matched the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQXmGk4x-bo#t=03m01s" target="_blank">visual tension and turmoil</a> the Hero is going through on screen. <br />
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Take the innocuous sounding guitar during the prelude for instance. It demonstrates nothing but Raaja's ingenious creativity. D6th Added 9th followed by G6th followed by E minor 7th. Killer arpeggios which is actually a melodic track in itself as opposed to a straight forward side track that such strumming usually is.. The way how the distinct variation from D to G to E comes out despite G6th and Em7th being exactly the same set of notes underlines what improvisation is (i.e., the base arpeggio and the chord transition are perhaps decided upfront and how these two should compliment each other w.r.t right inversions etc., are chosen on the fly based on the most efficient finger traversal). Sada sir who played these arpeggios effortlessly has certainly done a noteworthy job here, but the question is have we noted it before ..? :-) <br />
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(Headphones recommended for the below video)<br />
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The problem with these musical phrases are that, half of the time they are so nuanced and its unfair to expect a listener to appreciate this. But even those who can, usually does not look beyond how it 'sounds'. The fact though remains that, its indeed a big deal to record such songs of rich content as a team in a live environment. Even if one musician fails, the whole recording has to be repeated. (Remember SPB's famous trivia that it took them <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8l_ezoU8Lc#t=04m36s" target="_blank">16 takes</a> to record Ilaiyanila due to the guitarist and the results are here to be seen today 25 years since). I was told that the unbelievably orchestrated song of "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlL2FoREH0M" target="_blank">Idhu oru Nila kaalam</a>" was completed on the first take. And this may not have been the only such wonder.. So next time when you listen to a "nice sounding" instrumental bit from a "popular song", I hope you will try to visualize what it takes to record such complex musical collaborations and give these unsung heroes their credit..<br />
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With Love<br />
VickyVignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-45946933404200743912010-10-18T02:25:00.057+02:002010-12-06T00:36:26.315+01:00HumungousaurThis is a word that I learn from my son.. !!<br />
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Its apparently a fictitious character in Ben10 Alien Force (another fictitious Mega Cartoon series to begin with.. ! But much more imaginative than our Saas Bahu Mega Soaps, I must admit !). If you ask my son about <a href="http://ben10.wikia.com/wiki/Humongousaur" target="_blank">Humungousaur</a>, he has no difficulties in explaining about what it is.. Its basically the bench mark for anything big.. Nothing can be bigger.. When needed a Humungousaur can grow tall and become even bigger.. It can never be defeated except by (what else) an '<a href="http://ben10.wikia.com/wiki/Ultimate_Humungousaur" target="_blank">Ultimate Humungousaur</a>' !! <br />
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Its that simple.. <br />
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As imaginative it may sound, the term actually does make sense in real life when applied to the pillars of Raaja's orchestra. While Pyramids of Giza or Great wall of China are known to every one, surprisingly these names are not household names except for the people in the music industry. <br />
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Viji Manuel,<br />
Purushotaman,<br />
Sadanandam<br />
Napoleon<br />
VS Narasimhan<br />
Shashi<br />
Vasanth<br />
Noel Grant<br />
Tabla masters Kannaya and Prasad<br />
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The list goes on... <br />
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They are musicians with unlimited talent and are highly regarded in the Indian film music circuit. Thanks to few friends who are in touch with them, I get to know a bit on how they go about their business in real life. And if anything is to go by, one thing is certain. These people are not just musicians.. They are:<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Humungousaurs</b></span><br />
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If at all there is only one force which does injustice to these giants, its the recording and sound reproduction technologies of late 70s and 80s. Its such a shame that we never got to feel the full potential of "what would have been....!!" of what we listen to in most of Raaja's songs. I have been in touch with many of the friends in the Raaja community.. Listening to his songs in good quality is the holy grail (me included) for all of us. Though I have garnered quite a bit of high quality tracks in the past, I miss (and still do) the quality tracks of certain songs where these Jambavaans' talent is showcased. <br />
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Motivated by two other Humungousaurs, I finally decided to do something about it.<br />
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One is, Dr. Doraisamy. HOD of my department (ECE) in my college life.. He always used to reinforce the faith in we the Engineers using an interesting analogy!! Teaching the "Electronic Devices and Circuits" from the book authored by Milman and Halkias (the book I still fear the most in my life.. !!), he used to ask: "someone from vocational education can fix a motor if it goes kaput, while you engineers cannot. Does that make him better than you..?" Having made us feel worthless he would go on to give the answer of the question we didn't ask in the first place: "No.. Theoretical science is the mother of all inventions. Without it, there will be nothing.. So without you there was no motor to begin with !!"; While you are wondering, "What is he trying to say..!!??!! Does he imply that you too will end up fixing fans and mixies in your life if you don't pay attention to me..?" he would have completed explaining how the high pass filters work !!<br />
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The second one is "<a href="http://audacity.sourceforge.net/" target="_blank">Audacity</a>", the open source freeware which has been a GOD to me since I started using it a couple of years back. Although I mainly use it for music clipping, I recently managed to unearth (some of) its hidden features. Last couple of months, I have been putting my select list of songs through its High pass filters, Low pass filters, Amplification, Bass Boosting, Equalization, Leveling, Repairing, phasing and practically every other option available under its "Effect..".<br />
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This weekend I cut my first home made CD with the sole intention of celebrating these genius for my personal listening and learning. <br />
<img SRC="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/humungousaur.bmp"><br />
I managed to work on about 75 songs.. The songs are of two categories. The first 43 songs or so in this CD are more acoustic.. A few samples are here on display..The remaining 30 odd are electronic beat oriented songs (Like the Rojapoo Adivandhadhu that used a bit more than just the acoustic rhythm kits but still those that are not looped and played live during its recording). I still need to do some minor rework on these. <br />
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I am not a sound engineer and I wouldn't say these versions enhance one's listening pleasure.. My aim is that next time I sit in the keyboard, I expect to have it a bit easy in decoding these songs thanks to those Audacity effects and educating myself a bit of sound mixing and post processing along the way.. Now I can say with certainty that these tracks sound many a times better than the originals of the same that I have. <br />
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Having felt like <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otYUsfzaRtw" target="_blank">Tinu Aanand in Aditya 365</a>, finally I am ready to unveil my fruit of labor of last few weeks...These remastered tracks are the Ultimate Humungousaurs :-PP<br />
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(As part of my processing I had to jackup the amplitude in some cases to bring up the hidden sounds up and then suppress the remaining tracks.. Consequentially, If you are using headphones, then keep the volume levels low. It might get too close to your ears for comfort!)<br />
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I am able to appreciate the <a class="htrack" title="Kannan Vandhu.mp3" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Kannan Vandhu.mp3">rim shots of Puru Sir </a>while Sada sir is mesmerizing in his re-defining-the-clean-guitar- playing solo..<br />
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I am able to listen to the <a class="htrack" title="Geetha Sangeetha" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Geetha Sangeetha.mp3">Thani Aavartanam </a>of Puru sir in his drum kit much more clearly.<br />
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And how the hell did Viji Manuel managed to bend, pluck and slide his bass guitar (Yes.. he is also the Baap of all bassees from what I learn) all at the same time in that <a class="htrack" title="Darling Darling" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Darling Darling.mp3">"tttt...toooon" </a>(at the 17th second, before "I Love you".) and then falling back with an unimaginable grace (at 00:22) better than the injured <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greg_Louganis">Greg Louganis</a> from his dive board ! Any traces of inspiration from Boney M's "Sunny" which Raaja was forced to take in to account is absolved with this jaw dropping stunt of Viji Manuel.. <br />
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And the <a class="htrack" title="Nee Meeda Naaku" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Nee Meeda Naaku.mp3">three different Cymbal Rides </a>of Puru sir for the first three "Yaa Yaa Yaa " (in the ending of the pallavi, please please don't miss it..) are nectar to my ears now.. So is the crystal clear keyboard bends on the DX7 by Viji .. The foot pedal of Puru sir is so controlled and warm.. slap bass of Shashi sir starting the lines "Kiji Gaadi..".. crispy strokes<br />
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The <a class="htrack" title="Ada Machamulla" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Ada Machamulla.mp3">half beat challenge</a> that gives nightmare for all guitarists in this pallavi.. One time its the Tom at the 2nd maatra of first aksharam and its a single Chaapu in mridangam for the next.. It is impossible to have this kind of live arrangements anymore.. <br />
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And <a class="htrack" title="Jilibili" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Jilibili.mp3">Majestic </a>is the word for this team work.. !! Scintillating guitars (both rhythm and lead), Puru sir's authority on the drums and Viji the emperor in the keyboard (on your right ear).. What a transformation of the folkish tune that we have known to in "Oru Kili" (Don't miss the crisp Tom at the end of this clip at 1:03.. Philips..!! Fill-ins cannot be with more Sense and Simplicity..!!)<br />
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<a class="htrack" title="Kanavarisu.mp3" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Kanavarisu.mp3">Vasanth Sir </a>with his flamboyance in this bass guitar Gem.. <br />
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Sada sir in his elements.. <a class="htrack" title="Tik Tik Tik Theme" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Tik Tik Tik Theme.mp3">Wamping-oo wamping</a>.. and Major 7ths galore in this captivating BGM..<br />
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And so is this bend exposing the <a class="htrack" title="Manaku Dosti" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Manaku Dosti.mp3"> Sri Ragam</a>. Ri2 is bent so beautifully to reach Ga2 (just) and then back to Ri2. The signature Ri2Ga2Ri2 Sa of Sri.. The lead guitar pieces in the interludes exemplify Fusion.. What playing !!<br />
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About the talk of all this Techno music providing the high for the urban youth, அட போங்கப்பா நம்ம ஆளு இந்த பிலிமயெல்லாம் <a class="htrack" title="Paruva Kaalangalin" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Paruva Kaalangalin.mp3">ஒரு முப்பது வருஷத்துக்கு முன்னாடியே </a>காட்டிட்டாரு.. <br />
(This has been mastered by Raaja some 30 years ago using manual playing..!!)<br />
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And if that is not enough, <a class="htrack" title="Vaa Vaa Pakkam Vaa" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Vaa Vaa Pakkam Vaa.mp3">feel the drum's bass pedal (Dhak Dhak)</a> in your heart here together with the rocking side bass.. Disco.. eh !!<br />
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And if there is one song where <a class="htrack" title="Vaan Meedhile" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Vaan Meedhile.mp3">Tom Tom is exemplified </a>its here. Its not the symbols that provides the groove but the Toms.. what an idea.. <br />
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And how about some <a class="htrack" title="Kangal Rendum.mp3" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Kangal Rendum.mp3">flam para diddles on Misra chappu </a> (found after the Tabla in this interlude..) I still wonder the bass pattern set by Viji sir for such running rhythm in odd signature. I could never visualize that additional bifurcation on the running bass pattern of the pallavi lines until it was enhanced. I still can't get enough of these new extra notes.. <br />
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And how can you explain such a intensely westernized disco and yet an <a class="htrack" title="Endrendum Aanandame" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Endrendum Aanandame.mp3">integral Sarasaangi</a>.. Love the way how VS Narasimhan sir takes off with his solo.. <br />
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I reworked this track just to feel the <a class="htrack" title="Malare Malare.mp3" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Malare Malare.mp3">warmth of that Snare </a>at (00:08-00:09) of Puru sir.. Followed by inimitable clean guitar leads of Sada sir.. <br />
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Rediscovering the <a class="htrack" title="Oh Premi" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Oh Premi.mp3">Oh Premi </a>!! Didn't know this song is as free flowing as these with all the hidden tracks (what with those wamping etc.,) coming to the fore. <br />
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How the hell was that <a class="htrack" title="Aala Asaththum" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Aala Asaththum.mp3">bass tone </a>achieved in the beginning of pallavi.. It really sounds Baaasss!! Viji Manuel in Keyboard with funky modes not to be missed in this whole song, especially the 2nd interlude.. <br />
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And to calm down I fall back to some <a class="htrack" title="Jiske Sahaare" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Jiske Sahaare.mp3">Major high </a>!!<br />
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Finally <a class="htrack" title="Hey I Love You.mp3" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534//Hey I Love You.mp3">goose bumps </a>is the only explanation I have for this.. (one of my most satisfying result !)<br />
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I am feeling a bit like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassim#Cassim" target="_blank">Caasim </a>to have lost within these treasures with one exception.. I intentionally forgot the password to get out of the cave and come to the real life.. <br />
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<script type="text/javascript" src="http://mediaplayer.yahoo.com/js"></script>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-72985639926906683272010-07-15T01:45:00.011+02:002010-07-15T11:16:46.669+02:00Point Blank!!Sometime ago, fellow Raaja affinicado Harikrishna sent me his video of Nenjathai Killathe's Title score. It was the dialog between lead guitar and the bass from the original score which he had played flamboyantly in his keyboard and sent me. <br /><br />The <a class="htrack" title="Nenjathai Killathe Title" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Nenjathai/NenjathaiKillathe-Title.mp3">title track</a> has everything that Ilaiyaraaja stands for. <br /><br /><b>Surprise:</b><br />Every time you listen to Raaja, you will end up discovering something new. For a long time I have looked closely to see if there are any 'Sankeernam' like applications (i.e., 9/8 time signature) from Raaja but to no avail. When I went back to hearing this score, I was treated with a sweet surprise. It's first 4 bars are set to a 9/8 time signature. Even though its occurrence is short, the deliberate placing of Church bells that fall at the first count of all the first 4 beat cycles, conform to a "1234 12 123" rhythm cycle (there by conforming to a Sankeerna Eka meter). <br /><br /><b>Innovation: </b><br />The full length rhythm of this title score is conceived with the idea of a natural jogging rhythm. The initial 9 count oddity augurs well with a feel of uneven rhythm a jogger may follow. As we all know, Raaja chose this idea to signify the romance between the hero and the heroine which develops during their early morning jogs. The song "Paruvame" remains as one of the most adorable song in Tamil and Telugu Cinema to date. But not many are aware that this score already paves the way for it. <br /><br /><b>Structure:</b><br />A classical humming evoking the fresh feel of dawn... What starts as a Sankeerna meter, becomes a regular 6/8 from the 5th bar... This jogging rhythm of "12 12 12" forms the base for a complimenting swing waltz played in an acoustic brush kit... With those days' 80s technology, you hear harmonic recorder embellishments and a bamboo flute played in Indian style responding to it in short but a powerful manner... Controlled strumming of a guitar together with a solid Bass track forms the backbone through out... And both of them break free with a chit chat of their own which is the further focus of this blog post... A complete string ensemble that concludes the affair in a grand style. The whole score is incredibly well structured. No inexplicable wandering of the melody... No waste notes... Its by no means a simple piece. But it sounds simple!<br /><br />Lets now look a bit closely at that dual between both the guitars...<br /><br />What is a counterpoint is a question nagging many of us. I view this bit as a good uncomplicated example of a basic counterpoint . I base my view on the following qualities: You can see two independent melody line that are in harmony but follow different rhythmic structure. They overlap each other and yet co-exist beautifully in the end. <br /><br />Please refer the sheet music to feel this:<br /><img src="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Nenjathai/NenjaththaiKilladhe4.png" alt="NenjaththaiKilladhe4.png" /><br /><br />Please note the crucial areas where both the tracks overlap and the occurrences of dotted notations that differentiate each track's timing being different. (You can also download the sheet music <a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Nenjathai/NenjaththaiKilladhe.pdf" _blank">here</a>. Comments and reviews of the sheet music are welcome.)<br /><br />(Headphones recommended!)<br /><object width="500" height="405"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Fod8wDOiCyU&hl=en_US&fs=1?border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Fod8wDOiCyU&hl=en_US&fs=1?border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="405"></embed></object><br /><br />Imagine composing all these are for a time when we are fervently searching for our seats in the dark much to the chagrin of the voice behind: "சாவுகிராக்கி ..!! சீக்ரமா குந்துப்பா!!" ("You irritant.. ! don't hide me and get settled fast!!")<br /><br />With Love<br />Vicky<br /><br /><script>var YMPParams = { autoadvance:false }; </script><br /><script type="text/javascript" src="http://mediaplayer.yahoo.com/js"></script>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-86041240019844790442010-06-02T00:12:00.007+02:002010-07-15T10:59:10.360+02:00AraajagamJust a small gift to the readers on the occasion of Raaja's B'day.... <br /><br />From the conception of this song to the final product on Tape, It would have probably taken Raaja and his team a couple of hours. It has taken me a few weeks... <br /><br />Intro:<br /><object width="500" height="405"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ai08Q_quMhA&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ai08Q_quMhA&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="405"></embed></object><br /><br />Song (Pattu Inge - Poovizhi Vaasalile):<br /><object width="500" height="405"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MEOj2EUjlLI&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MEOj2EUjlLI&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="405"></embed></object><br /><br />Now you know why the title of this blog post is 'Araajagam' (அராஜகம் is a Tamil word - that can be translated as "Audacious"). <br /><br />Its not a co-incidence that 'Raaja' is a sub-string of that!<br /><br />With Love<br />VickyVignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-27332653301625170822010-04-26T21:42:00.010+02:002010-04-28T09:47:33.038+02:00Everytime the first loveJust heard the song "Aaro paadunnu Dhoore" from the new Sathyan Anthikad's movie - "Kadha Thodarunnu". Its one of those songs that you hear for the first time and fall flat. <br /><br />Sathyan has the knack of getting at least one special song out of Raaja for his every movie. Be it the "Koda Manjin" (Kochu Kochu Santhoshangal) or Melleyonnu (Manassinakkare) or "Swasthin Thaalam" (Achuvinte Amma) or "Aatrinkarai" (Rasathanthiram) or "Mandhara Poo" (Vinodayathra) etc., etc., the impact of first time listening of such songs drains you out. You feel fresh as if someone just pressed your 'restart' button.<br /><br />This song is a free flowing waterfall. As a listener you can clearly differentiate that, this is one song that is not "Manufactured". This was the basic trait of all music directors until the Ilaiyaraaja era. i.e., their specialty is not the creative spark they come up with for each song. Its their ability to finish what was started without going astray. In my personal view, I do not see any modern day composer who is showcasing this ability to build solid syncopation every 2 lines in each songs.. <br /><br />And thankfully Raaja on his 67th year, still has this gift of Spontaneity.. <br /><br />Such as the unexpected lengthy syllable of "Aathmaavil" of second line which starts a half beat earlier than the corresponding "Yaaro" of first, tells you that such tunes just come out that way when he places his fingers in the harmonium.. The rest of the Pallavi toes the cue from there to start ahead of each beat cycle. Chithra and Hariharan flaunting their experience through out the song.. For instance, effortlessly doing some tricky ascending kaarvais at the syllable "ill" (of Aathmaavil... Try oscillating your throat with your tongue attached to the roof and you would know !). <br /><br />Looks like Raaja is going deeper into genre of free flowing jazz.. His penchant in recent movies to retain the guitar bends with minimal strings ensemble and some predominant 7th and diminished chords in the background, continues in this one two.. But again there is no wandering business.. the song is like a horse on blinders that follows a shifting reference between C# and its relative minor A# but all the time playing around with the same set of notes, the integrity of the song never once in question. <br /><br />You can clearly feel this from phrases like <a class="htrack" title=Aaro Paadunnu" href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/11/9/2180534/Aaro_Padunnu.mp3">this</a>.<br /><br />(The whole song can be heard at <a href="http://www.musicindiaonline.com/album/15-Malayalam_Soundtracks/33698-Kadha_Thudarunnu__2010_/#/album/15-Malayalam_Soundtracks/33698-Kadha_Thudarunnu__2010_/" target="_blank">Music India online</a>. I hope its legal..?)<br /><br />Look at the chordensity at "Mazha - Villume Kondu Puthindhoru Vedhana nee" (Sorry for my poor malayalam lyrics). It goes around as F sus4, GbM7th, Eb6th, Fm and returning to A#m I suppose. That second chord of GbM7th is as unorthodox an application possible at that place (If you look closely it almost brings in the feel of Amruthavarshini in a shifted scale of Gb.) And yet it fits more than any normal chord you imagined..And when you thought its all over, then comes the unexpected coda in the form of Twinkle Twinkle. It sums up the overall experiencing of this song...<br /><br />Both the Gandharams that act like the conjoined twins is the defining face of the song. Beautifully invoking a pensive and pining thought as you listen.. It would have by now triggered the debate among the internet intelligentsia if its a Pahaadi or a Maand. But this is one song where we should leave all such aspects behind (including the ones I blabbered above) and enjoy it for what it is for a moment. <br /><br />An echoed voice that comes floating from somewhere in the ether, smothers you all around, takes you down the memory lane and brings few flashbacks in front of your eyes and finally puts you to sleep with lot of peace at heart.. <br /><br />Listeners to Raaja are the luckiest because whenever such songs come, they experience the first love all over again.. <br /><br />With Love<br />Vicky<br /><br /><script>var YMPParams = { autoadvance:false }; </script><br /><script type="text/javascript" src="http://mediaplayer.yahoo.com/js"></script>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2695260138487406545.post-38806598508858201392010-04-01T22:45:00.009+02:002010-04-01T23:30:04.363+02:00Sound Of SilenceI wanted to post this article in March itself (to keep up my personal target of at least one post a month).. Because actually this article was written in March and hence technically I still met my target.. Posting it on April 1st is not to play a poor fools day joke! But, because it is part My latest article in <a href="http://solvanam.com/?p=7377" target="_blank">Solvanam</a>. So I decided to mention it here only after that. <br /><br />The article is in Tamil. (It always feels nice to write in Tamil..) But non-Tamil readers please excuse me.. I will try to update this post with an English translation as soon as I can.. <br /><br />Basically I attempted playing the song in question to highlight the beauty of silence in this song. Though I did elaborate about it in the article, the best way to connect to my thoughts is through the video I guess.. Where ever there is silence in the original song, I tried to play it a bit spontaneous and not necessarily always sticking to the timing .. I thought the inherent feel of the song is best felt that way. Else I just played the melody with a mix of regular arpeggios and original bass track occasionally. <br /><br />As always, your opinion matter to me the most. So Good/Bad or Ugly I am curious to know what you think of it. I also notated the <a href="http://solvanam.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/enna-satham.pdf" target="_blank">sheet music</a> for the song, in case you are interested. And of course corrections are welcome !<br /><br />Enjoy the Sindhu Bhairavi in D Minor.. <br /><br />With Love<br />Vicky<br /><br />(Headphones recommended)<br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/kDMe37b2qWE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/kDMe37b2qWE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>Vignesh Subramanianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13757037426192623732noreply@blogger.com11