Hi Dasun, You were talking about having written something on Kehna hi kya? I would love to read that.
Padmini On 1/28/08, Dasun Abeysekera <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Aesthetic Judgment (Taste) > > I don't have to tell you that ARR's taste is of the highest possible kind > compared with composers of all time. I mean how many composers the > world-over has ever had the privilege of being compared to the ideal of > Mozart, let alone being called one? Not even the kings of melody of the West > – Richard Rogers (of The Sound of Music (59) fame) Sir Francis Lai (Love > Story (1970)), Maurice Jarr (Dr. Zhivago (1965)), or even Ennio Morricone, > who have written some of the most soulful and moving music I have ever > heard, have been told they are like Mozart, at least not to my knowledge. > Most music lovers, and all great minds, Leo Tolstoy and Albert Einstein > among them, have acknowledged unanimously that Mozart's music is the most > perfect and the most universal imagined, no, let me use the word conjured, > by any human being; because imagination, to many, could still mean there's > some conscious involvement in that process of creation; perhaps, it is still > a conscious process, but it is a far superior sense of consciousness that, > by average human standards, it cannot be called one. If anybody here has > seen the Oscar-winning movie Amadeus (84) by Milos Forman, you can see why > it is so: Mozart's music, to use a phrase Einstein once used, seems like > have simply been 'plucked out of the universe'; the great scientist who > adored Mozart and used to play his Sonatas on his little violin when he > wanted a break from his scientific pursuits, says that compared to Mozart, > Beethoven's music feels 'too personal, almost naked.' Tolstoy, in his > polemical book 'What is Art?' destroys the kind of conscious creativity that > he believes Beethoven and the followers of the Romantic movement that he > charted, Richard Wagner, for example, brought about to Europe, overthrowing > the musical dominance of the spontaneous and universal music of Mozart. > > In essence, Mozart's music and its perfection are not a result of > conscious processing, they come from a superior sense of natural harmony and > an extremely rare capability of letting go of one's self and connecting with > the universal spirit and listening to it in all its infinite beauty. There > cannot be a more fitting description of ARR's music and how he has conjured > his magical output over the years; and it is no accident that the West would > offer up their ideal for comparison with the best the East has offered to > date. That sort of taste, a sincere kinship with the natural harmony and > beauty of the universe, with God, if you will, years in an industry cannot > fade away or dilute, and, if anything, I can confidently say that ARR's > taste has, over the years, been refined like fine old wine, and I have not > witnessed an instance where his aesthetic judgment, given the proper > opportunities, has faltered beyond identification. In his choice of movies, > directors, and lyrics, there maybe exceptions, but I will address these in a > later category. > > It is difficult to pin down one or two works from the 92-96 period in > which, like Rano said, beauty oozed out of every single phrase that he > weaved, but I will pick two of my favorite songs 'Kannalane' from Bombay > (95) and 'Uyirum Neeye' from Pavitra (94) in which I think ARR achieves the > highest form of perfection. Sometime back, I analyzed the beauty of the song > Uyirum Neeye from a conceptual viewpoint, so if anybody is interested, let > me know and I will send it to you or post it on the forum. Kannalane (or > Kehna Hai Kya), I hear, has entered the music textbooks in certain parts of > the world (Canada, if I recall correctly)! Yes, these are songs of superior > beauty that they have that universal appeal that Tolstoy hailed as the > finest ingredient of the greatest of art. > > What about now? What are the ARR compositions within the past 5 years > which evoke the same feelings in me? Piya Ho from Water (2005) and Do Kadam > from Meenaxi (2004) for sure are my favorites from this period with Tere > Bina from Guru not too far off. When I refer to the perfection of these > songs, I mean that I don't feel that I need to remove any part, any phrase, > any instrument, sound or note, everything is in the right place at the right > time! If anybody felt differently about these songs, I would be curious to > know which parts destroy the perfection of these songs. I can write an essay > on the song Do Kadam and will do soon so that I can back up my feelings just > like I did with Uyirum Neeye. Do Kadam is so personal for me that I don't > want to hold it up as universal! This song symbolizes what ARR and I share > in silence without speaking a single word with each-other, but by connecting > to the same universal spirit that we both trust wholeheartedly and by whose > mysterious ways we are awed day in and day out. The highest taste, as > Immanuel Kant defines it, is always subjective, but universal, and it will > always flow from God and only God; Not only is ARR connected with Him, he > can articulate His beauty with such ease and finesse that it brings many a > tear to my eye thinking how much of my faith I owe to ARR; Even as I share > this very personal story with you, I can feel a warm tear roll down my > cheek. Now if that's not beauty, I don't know what is. > > > ------------------------------ > Helping your favorite cause is as easy as instant messaging. You IM, we > give. Learn > more.<http://im.live.com/Messenger/IM/Home/?source=text_hotmail_join> > > >
