Magic night with Oscar winner
ONE of India’s most well known film composers, described by Time magazine as the “Mozart of Madras,” will be playing a free twilight show at Parramatta Park on January 16. A.R. Rahman will be sharing some of the music from his cinematic and theatrical career as part of the 2009 Sydney Festival in what will be a spectacular show. Rahman is one of the world’s top-selling recording artists, with more than 100 million records sold worldwide. He is perhaps most famously known as a two-time Oscar winner for his work as composer and songwriter on the film Slumdog Millionaire. His first soundtrack for the film Roja was also a hit, and was listed in Time magazine’s 10 best soundtracks of all time in 2005. It is Rahman’s ability to take music from a range of genres and fuse them together that has led to his improv-style of composing. Known for layering instrumentation and fusing traditional instruments with more modern, electronic sounds, Rahman is celebrated within the music industry and amongst his fans for his innovation, love of experimentation and his ability to fuse all of these elements together to produce beautiful and coherent soundtracks. Rahman also plays the keyboard, piano, harmonium and guitar, but is especially interested in the synthesizer because, he says, it is “the ideal combination of music and technology.” Australian film director Baz Luhrmann is a fan of Rahman’s work. “The more of AR’s music I encountered the more I was to be amazed at the sheer diversity of styles: from swinging brass bands to triumphant anthems; from joyous pop to West End musicals,” Luhrmann said in an interview last year. “Whatever the style, A.R. Rahman’s music always possesses a profound sense of humanity and spirit, qualities that inspire me the most.” With an entourage of more than 40 musicians and Bollywood dancers on stage, his performance in Parramatta Park promises to be a magical night filled with colour, dancing and the rhythms and melodies of contemporary India. Parramatta Park will be closed to cars on the night so leave the car at home, and a range of food and drinks will be available from early afternoon until the end of the evening. For further information about the event and transport, visit sydneyfestival.org.au/rahman closer to the date. http://northern-district-times.whereilive.com.au/lifestyle/story/magic-night-with-oscar-winner/ -- regards, Vithur
