by Moviebuzz/Sify
Chennai, Mar 13: A R Rahman’s current passion to create an authentic Indian orchestra has come true. As a first step towards it, he has established the KM Music Conservatory as a bridge between music, technology and culture. The maestro formally launched the conservatory on Wednesday evening in Chennai
The conservatory will help techno-savvy sound-engineers to learn the basics of composing and spend time with instruments hands-on and musicians to learn the importance of technology and the basics of sound recording. And thus, create that unique “Indian orchestral sound or symphony” as Rahman likes to call it.
Says Rahman: “We want our Hindustani and Carnatic musicians to be able to read Western notations and adapt to playing with other musicians so that they can learn to play with ten other sitarists at the same time. That’s the sound we’ve never heard before”
He also said that the school which is currently situated in his studio will now shift to a three-acre campus with a concert hall, recording studio, state-of-the-art classrooms and accommodation for students which will be full-fledged in two years time. Says Rahman: “I am doing just two films a year, so I guess I should have all the time for the music school”.
The conservatory will offer three important courses- preparatory course for beginners, foundation course for students pursuing music as profession A two-year diploma course is offered after completing the foundation course. Says Rahman: “We are yet to finalize the fee structure but Indian students will be charged a concessional rate”.
Adds Rahman: “We are a country of 1.4 billion people and we don’t have our own national symphony orchestra. I have been having a burning desire to have something like that of our own. Our source of entertainment has always been monopolised by films but there’s a different kind of entertainment too- Orchestral music which is on the other side of art. If we educate our people, we could get that into the mainstream”
As the founder Principal of KM Conservatory, Rahman has pulled all strings and created an advisory panel consisting of a repertoire of veteran musicians, both Indian and Western. The conservatory received about 250 applications since the announcement on his birthday. He says: “We’re just putting everything we have into it. God willing, we will have our own campus in two years time. I have a place in mind that is about three to five acres, a quiet kind of environment where there will be music and not car horns” he says. Apart from visiting faculty from all around the world and guidance from veteran musicians, the students will have special classes from Rahman himself.
Vendy Paar (Violin), Pushkar (Conductor), T Selvakumar (MD, KM conservatory), L.Subramaniam (Violin maestro), Ghulam Mustafa Khan( Hindustani vocalist) Lendis Lav (Musician from Czechoslovakia), Srinivas and Murtaza Khan were present at the function.
For more information visit www.arrahman.com or www.audiomedia.in