A R Rahman The Legend

n 1991, Rahman began his own music recording and mixing studio, attached to backyard of his house, called the Panchathan Record Inn. He initially composed music jingles for advertisements, Indian Television channels and music scores in documentaries, among other projects. In 1992, the first time he got chance to enter in film field, through a Malayalam film named Yodha. Its director Sangeeth Sivan who realise Rahman's talents already. And with this good entry he was approached by film director Mani Ratnam to compose the score and soundtrack for Ratnam's Tamil film Roja. The debut led Rahman to receive the Rajat Kamal award for Best Music Director at the National Film Awards, the first time ever by a first-time film composer. Rahman has since then gone on to win the award three more times (for his scores for Minsaara Kanavu (Electric Dreams, Tamil) in 1997, Lagaan (Tax, Hindi) in 2002, Kannathil Muthamittal (A Peck on the Cheek, Tamil) in 2003, the most ever by any composer.
Roja's score met with high sales and acclaim, in its original and dubbed versions, bringing about an effective transformation in film music at the time, and Rahman followed this with scores for films including, among others, Bombay, Kadhalan, Indira, Minsaara Kanavu, Muthu and Love Birds, which gained him notice. His soundtracks gained him recognition in the Tamil film industry and across the country for his versatality in classical, folk, jazz, reggae, soft rock and other styles in his pieces. Rangeela, directed by Ram Gopal Varma, marked Rahman's debut in Hindi films. Many popular and superhit scores for films including Dil Se and Taal followed. The sales of these albums prompted several film producers to take film music more seriously.
Rahman's work is also unique in the fact that his collaborations with some film directors have always resulted in successful soundtracks. In particular, he has worked with Mani Ratnam on ten films until 2006, all of which have been musical hits. Also notable is his collaboration with the director S. Shankar in the films Gentleman, Kadhalan, Indian, Jeans, Mudhalvan, Nayak, Boys and Sivaji.

A. R. Rahman was born to R. K. Shekhar, a composer, and conductor for Malayalam-language films. His father was a famous music director in Kerala. But he did not get enough opportunities there. His father died when Rahman was nine years old, and his family rented out musical equipment as a source of income. Rahman is an adherent of Sufism. His family converted to Islam from Hinduism in the late 1970s.
          During these early years, Rahman served as a keyboard player and an arranger in bands such as "Roots" and "Nemesis Avenue" with friends including Sivaman, embracing numerous music genres. He played the keyboard and piano, in addition to, among others, the synthesizer, the harmonium and the guitar. His curiosity in the synthesizer in particular increased because, he says, it was the “ideal combination of music and technology".He began early training in music under Master Dhanraj. At the age of 11, he joined, as a keyboardist, the troupe of Ilaiyaraaja,one of many composers to whom musical instruments belonging to Rahman's father were rented to. Rahman later played in the orchestra of M. S. Viswanathan and Ramesh Naidu, accompanied Zakir Hussain, Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan and L. Shankar on world tours and obtained a scholarship to Trinity College of Music in London, where he graduated with a degree in Western classical music.
Once in an interview with Vijay TV's Coffee with Anu, Rahman described P. Susheela as his most favourite singer ever, whom he worked with in the Tamil film Pudhiya Mugam

Mozart of Asia - A.R.Rahman

‘Mozart of Asia,’ musician Allah Rakha Rahman has done everything from classical to reggae and now with Shekar Kapur’s ‘Elizabeth: the Golden Age’ awaiting release, where he pairs up with Hollywood actor Craig Armstrong, he is very excited. “It has been really a wonderful experience working with Craig. We traveled a lot in places like Glasgow…Remotely working with the guys in London,” says Rahman who was in the capital recently.

The singer-composer has his hands full with a lot of films, the latest being Ashutosh Gowarikers ‘Jodha Akbar’ starring Hrithik Roshan and Ashwariya Rai Bachchan. Jodha Akbar is a romantic story about a king falling in love with a princess and ARR has tried to keep the music contemporary so that it satisfies both critics and the music lovers. The music of the film is very much what is required for the film. It has celebration songs and quawallis.. Rahman, who composed the music of Subhash Ghei’s ‘Kisna’ is once again paring up with the director in his latest flick, ‘Yuvraaj’ which is a very challenging project. Practically A.R.R had a tough time composing the first two songs but now as those have been cracked he will be able to wrap it up quickly.

Rahman's instant success is owed to his clever usage of Western instruments to invoke Indian sounds while his peers tried to invoke Western sounds through Indian instruments. His interest in the works of Classical and Romantic period composers, Carnatic composers, early film composers and predecessors K. V. Mahadevan and Vishwanathan-Ramamoorthy of the film industry of Tamil Nadu and others continued through his late teens. He further explored and trained in Carnatic music, Western classical, Hindustani music and the Qawwali style of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, in addition to numerous other styles. His interest and outlook in music is said to stem from his love of experimentation. As a result, his scores have alternated from songs and themes composed covering a variety of genres, with unconventionally-grouped instruments, and different vocal styles being used and combined together in some of his film soundtracks, to more traditional orchestral themes with leitmotif techniques composed in others. Rahman's works often feature a mix of minimalist songs and evocative, thematic pieces, building on his differing chord progressions and rhythms. He has scored with new and varied melodic and percussive sounds from outlandish instruments of different music systems

He is referred to as the ‘Beethoven of the East’. And why not, he brought in Technology-based music to India and now, the great musician plans to start an authentic Indian orchestra. Rahman has put forward his first step and has established the KM Music Conservatory, which will act as a bridge between music, technology and culture. KM Music Conservatory establishment is not projected to cater to the needs of the film industry, though this may be its first objective. The music school is also expected to add a new element to popular Indian music. A.R.Rahman wants this music to acquire a global dimension with the help of a host of world-renowned mentors he has lined up to teach his school with a difference.

KM Music Conservatory is named after Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti in Ajmeer. Also a devotee of the Sufi saint of Nagore, Kandoori Meeran Baba, Rahman is hoping to weave a magic of mysticism and music not only for his Indian following but also for his worldwide fans. Ghulam Mustafa Khan and his sons will “mentor” the department of Hindustani music and Srinivas Krishnan of the Global Rhythms Ensemble will be associated with the institution, which already has 150 enrolments. The vision of KM Music Conservatory is to eliminate every obstacle and provide an exemplary orchestra here in India.