AR Rahman on remixing classic songs
20 January, 2019
Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman is the latest musician to voice his opinion on the ongoing trend of creating remixes. "It [recreating songs] is a shortcut to creativity," the 52-year-old composer told PTI. "When they are doing a movie and they have a release date and don't have something good enough they say, 'Ok I have plan B' and then do this."
Rahman compared the trend with how music is created in the West. "Ideally, for a musical, what they do in the West is they write the songs; the actors do their workshop, they play the music, tweak the screenplay and then it is finally made," he said. "So all that stuff is done before there."
Rahman was speaking on the sidelines of Nexa Music, a platform to encourage aspiring Indian musicians to compose original music and lyrics. Rahman is one of the mentors at the event. The composer also spoke about how the internet has changed how music is composed and received.
"Because of the internet, today there's no wall preventing someone from expressing what they want and put it out," he said. "But in the sea of so many things - mediocrity and greatness - everything is jumbled up. You can't find where the diamond is." The trick is to be "self-aware" and acknowledge that "even one's flaws could be original," he added.
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