Rahman’s recording and mixing
Not just Rahman, about all music composers use loops or samples which they buy from distributers like Sony or Apple. Its like instead of calling a performer like a guitarist to perform for his/her song a composer buys his recorded piece and uses it. These pieces are royalty free its like the guitarist sells it to Sony on an agreement and Sony distributes it through out the world. That is why you find same sound effects in two different songs of Rahman some times. Loops are not necessary to be only a single note. It can be chords or even a piece or a scratch.
How many of you have noticed this in Rahman songs especially those who are musicians. All his songs irrespective of the mood has a constant ‘pads’ or ’strings’ backing. The chords played with the pads and strings is also not conventional. They are the 7ths, 11ths or Diminished chords. They give the song a ‘feeling’, a ’soul’. Quite Technical
A classic example is the song “Thirupachi Arivalaa” from Taj Mahal. Check out the pads in the songs. Another is “Aye Udi Udi” from Saathiya. Remove the pads these songs become soul-less and very plain.
The only other person who uses this same method is Harris Jayaraj. And for sure he learned it from Rahman .Wonder if more music directors should do the same.
A R Rahman started learning indian classical and carnatic classical in 1992. Since almost all his songs are Raga based just wanted to clarify that he learned classical before or after 1992.
How does he compose a new tune. Does he play it in his piano or does he write the swaram or how does he go about conceiving a song out of nowhere and create a master piece.
Its a fact that no softwares in the world can create a tune. The people who learned music will laugh their stomachs out if someone tells them that Tere Bina or any song is a product of a software. Now what can a software do. What does Rahman do in his studio with all those softwares. Why does he always updates his software. It is very simple. Just a brief concept.
1. Rahman records a songs over a period of 10-15 days. A singer sings one song perhaps innumberable time till Rahman gives a handsup. Once that signal has been got the singer realizes that his job is done . Now rahman sits over his singing and edits the bad parts and couples all the best parts and after another day of hardwork the singers work is ready. The singer never sang that song continously but his best parts are selected and sampled .
2. Rahman then records music or what you call as BGM. After that he mixes it with the vocal part. Then suddenly he may realize that both of them don’t gel well in frequency. And then freqeuncy division modulation takes place. Its a huge process friends which very well packs the music and vocal part.
3. Let us take an example of Shreya Ghosal. Rahman needs Shreya Ghosal to sing in track 15 ie the Highest. But Shreya can sing only till 11. So wat can Rahman do. Let her sing in track 8 -9 in which she is comfortable and then simply phase modulates the vocal to appear as if she sang in track 15. This is a very costly process and risky too so Rahman has done it only 5-6 times.
So A R Rahman is a genius , not a technician. He uses softwares but doesn’t use to “produce” tunes. Instead he use them so effectively to “edit” tunes. And that is why perhaps he is the best. He uses Technology but his originality is maintained in each song.
A software has no brains. It will do what you tell it to do. So if anyone program his software to sing “Sa Re Ga Ma Pa” then yes, you are right. Software can produce tunes. And everyone is pretty sure Rahman uses custom made softwares. The bottomline is Softwares Do Not Produce Tunes
