Keys to good music
G. JAYAKUMAR
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Keyboard music programmer Sooraj Balan has worked with many famous music directors.
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SCALING HEIGHTS: Sooraj Balan on the keyboard. Photo: MAHESG HARILAL
Today, keyboard music programming has become an integral part of film music. Music director Ravindran was perhaps the first to go in for this method of composing music in the film `Kanmadham' in Malayalam. And the keyboard music programmer who worked with him for the film was Sooraj Balan, also known as Kannan in music circles.
Since then Kannan has worked as keyboard artiste under music directors like Ramesh Narayan, Ilayaraja, M.G. Radhakrishnan, M.K. Arjunan, Mohan Sithara, Bernie Ignatius, Alphonse, Ousepachan, Jassie Gift, Alex Paul, Kaithapuram Viswanathan, Jerry Amaldev and so on. His track record includes films such as `Mayilpeelikavu,' `Kottaramveetile Apootan,' `Akashaganga,' `Meghamalhar,' `Swapnakoodu,' `Nandanam,' `Nammal,' `Mizhi Randilum.' He also coordinated music with rhythm programmer Benny for the Rajasenan film `Nakshatrakannula Rajakumarikkundoru rajakumaran.'
Hard work
Keyboard programming is painstaking work, says Kannan. He takes at least three days to programme music for a song. It calls for a lot of patience and concentration. But all this hard work is not given due credit, says Kannan. "It is orchestration that breathes life into a song. Otherwise, all the songs will be similar and monotonous. It is how you treat a song. You have to bring out its inherent beauty. It should be pleasing to the ear, not very loud. It should blend with the song. Members of the orchestration team deserve recognition."
His father Kalavoor Balan, being a musician, Kannan started learning Carnatic music and singing from an early age under Mayithara Padmanabhan Bhagavathar. He learnt Carnatic music for about 10 years and then he began learning the harmonium and the violin. He learned Western notations under Kalabhavan Augustine and Kuttiachan. Subsequently, he found that the keyboard was his forte. He started by playing the keyboard for singers in ganamelas and has accompanied all the leading playback singers.
The five years that he worked with the Kochi-based troupe `13 AD' changed his outlook. It helped him look beyond Carnatic music towards Hindustani and Western styles of music. Although he still loves Carnatic music, he prefers Hindustani for its `feel.' In Carnatic music his favourite raga is Mayamalava Goula.
Among the music directors he has worked with, he picks out Ravindran and Ramesh Narayan for the way they treated him as an artiste. "Ravindran master's death is a loss. He was very caring and understood the artiste," Kannan says. He also admires Ilayaraja's melody and Mohan Sithara's folk tunes.
Technological advances
"Today even background music and orchestration are available readymade in Chennai. But I am not interested in that. I programme manually and then play the keyboard. I have to know the scenes beforehand. And for which you should have an idea of different kinds of music, not just your own. It has to be contextual."
At present ,Kannan is engaged in composing Onam melodies in Mayamalava Goula raga. He is also composing the music for an album, a fusion of Oriental and Western music. He is the keyboard artiste for M.G. Radhakrishnan in the forthcoming film `Ananthabhadram' and for Ramesh Narayan in Soorya Krishnamoorthy's latest programme `Bible' to be staged in London.
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