Music & Me

  Everything in life is a journey. The destinations and the routes may vary, alongside the purpose of the journey. But the concept is similar. Some journeys are easy, some are not. Some journeys are rich with life experiences. Some, however, are merely happy. Nothing more, nothing less. What makes a journey happy? Is it the ease with which it happens or the elation that comes with the experiences? Sometimes, the answer to this is the company you have in the journey. Be it yourself (for those who love solitude), a loved one (for those who enjoy anything in life when shared with a beloved), or a stranger (for those who love adventure and meeting new people), any journey is often enriched by the company we keep. For me, a journey becomes a hit or a miss based on the company I have. I have undertaken really trying, hard journeys that have seemed easy because of who took it alongside me. I have also had seemingly easy journeys become mundane and arduous because I took them alone at a ti...

  What better way to start than this timeless classic reimagined into a haunting lament of love?! The first time I saw the title of the song, I could only imagine the demure, classical original that has been popular for decades in South Indian weddings. A small part of me cringed, wondering if this was also going to be one of those hackneyed fusion versions that ruined the beauty of the original. But I was in for a surprise! Solo's version of Sita Kalyanam hit me like a breath of fresh air; but it twinged with crispness like the biting cold air of winter mornings that carries a bite of ozone.  It was electrifying, prompting me to do things impulsively, and quickly found a spot in my playlist. It was a long while later that I saw the movie and gathered the context of the song in the story. "Don't love this song so much! You will laugh when you see where it comes in the movie!" A friend warned me.  And no warning could have prepared me for the impact that the song'...

 If things had gone otherwise, this blog would have been named ‘From a Melophile’s Diary’ But prudence prevailed and I shortened the name to what made the most sense. To me, Music and Magic are interchangeable. They fill me with the same sense of wonder. This is a space where music is discussed not just for its notes (or tones – eh, see what I did?) but also for what makes a song/piece of music work. Would it be the lyrics that add meaning and context to the songs? Would it be the silent notes that reach further and deeper than words ever could hope? Would it be the composition of them together that would make or break a work? To me, it is a combination of all three – the music, the words, and the composition of how they are placed together. Only when all three work together do we get that perfect piece that hits just right. In this blog, I am going to explore the pieces of music that appeal to me and it is going to be devoid of any barriers. No limitations in genre, composition, t...