Interview at Audio India

Jo has been conducting interviews with music bloggers at Audio India. Check out mine here when you get a chance!

Jotheyali

Pity that hailing from Bangalore, I haven't done a Kannada song till now... Growing up, Kannada was the second language I learnt and having lived in Bangalore all my life, Kannada holds a special place for me :)
I've finally managed to do a Kannada number now with Jo - Jotheyali. This is a HUGE hit from the 80's and till today, any important function in the city like Rajyotsava day, and this is the song that blares out through loudspeakers. The late Shankar Nag who was the hero in this film still has a huge dedicated fan following and almost every Kannadiga adores him.
I've always loved this song, and long after I got a karaoke track for it (thanks to Madhu), requested Jo to do it thinking his voice would suit the song. I think he has done a great job of it, taking care to get the pronunciations right. Let us know what you think of this one!
(The tune was recycled by Raja recently in a song in the Hindi movie Cheeni Kum-like all the other songs in the movie- called Jaane do na. Hope to record that sometime as well...)

Here goes- Jotheyali- dedicated to all the Kannadigas out there! How I miss home...

Song: Jotheyali
Film: Geetha
Music: Ilaiyaraja
Lyrics: Udayashankar
Singers: SPB, S. Janaki

This version mixed by: Joseph Thomas

BlogSwara 5 released!!

BlogSwara has released its fifth volume online!!
This time, I had the fortune of singing two songs:

azhaiththadhu yaaro: Thanks to Vijay S, got to sing a classical based melody again, after kaaththirundhen last year. Raga based songs always hold a special place for me and I so totally enjoyed singing this beautiful number, azhaiththadhu. Thank you, thank you, Vijay S!
Its not too often that you come across people with good orchestration skills plus a good understanding of ragas. Vijay Narayanan has been really supportive in these respects!
I don't have to say much about Jo- a voice that can make almost anything sound good!
Thank you, team- it was great working with you guys!
Here's a small fun video made by Vijay Narayanan - on his experience with the orchestration.




Listen to the song here!

khoye khoye: My first venture into such a genre and it was truly very exciting! Thank you Anup, for trusting I could pull it off! Used to singing classical/ melody based songs usually, this was a very refreshing change for me indeed!
Ajay Chandran's lyrics were what added life to this song- thank you, Ajay!
Many thanks to Nandu and Sam who have been extremely supportive and worked tirelessly to bring the right sound.

Listen to the song here!

I hope you enjoy listening to all songs of BlogSwara V5 as much as we enjoyed making them!

Kannathil Muththamittaal

This is one of the best movies I've ever seen. Such a beautifully made movie with such remarkable performances... The music too was hugely supportive. Although veLLai pookkaL and Sundari stuck on to me instantly, oru dheivam thandha poove and vidai kodu engaL naade took some time to grow on me. (Now of course I'm in love with these songs too!)

Oru dheivam.... started beautifully and had lovely lyrics but I somehow wasn't able to digest the musical 'digressions' in the charanams. (It amazes me how Rahman can do that though!) But as with many a Rahman song, on repeated listening I started to immensely enjoy it.
Chinmayee, needless to say, had done a fantastic job...and here is my version. I can say this has been one of the most difficult songs I've attempted. (Even thaththithOm in one stretch was easier!!) This song needed great levels of breath control and I've tried my best.
Thanks to Jo for lending his voice for this song. Please also listen to his version of the same song! (with my supporting vocals) .

Song: oru dheivam thandha poove
Movie: kannaththil muththamittaal
Music: A.R.Rahman
Lyrics: Vairamuththu
Singers: Chinamyee, Jayachandran




Thanks in advance for ur feedback :)

Elangaathu veesudhey with Jo

Elangaathu veesudhey was a very different kind of melody- a haunting tune. One of my favourites in recent times.
I consider myself to be "lyrically challenged" - when I listen to a song the tune sits in my brain bang on, but the lyrics just refuse to! It takes some extra effort for me to absorb the meaning of songs. Blame it on my incompetence in Tamil/ Hindi (the two languages most familiar to me and in which I most frequently sing)or my subconscious resistance to take in the lyrics. I don't know. But somehow, one particular line in this song caught my attention and I found to be really beautiful- and it felt so good to be able to appreciate it:
"vaLaiyaadha moongilil rAgam vaLanchi Odudhae"
-translates to: (how is it that) music meanders through the flute that is rigid/ linear...
I remember when I said this to a friend, in response she said something like "logic is so far removed from poetry and it is precisely this that makes poetry beautiful!". Reminds me of "kavidhaikku poi azhagu" :)
Joseph Thomas needs no introduction in the audiobloggers' circuit here. Its been a long pending idea to do a duet with him and here it is, finally. Was a pleasure singing this with the very talented Jo. Hope you all enjoy this!
Again recorded this with a not-so-good mic. How I miss my Shure SM 57!! :( (Some software issues are preventing me from using it) But thanks to Jo for his efforts in mixing.

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

Song: elangaathu veesudhey
Film: Pithamagan
Music: Ilaiyaraja
Lyrics: Pazhani Bharati
Singers: Sriram Parthasarathy and Shreya Ghoshal