Best Melodies of A.R.Rahman. Review on Rhythm Songs

Rhythm album is very close to my heart because it was released when I joined my college REC, Trichy. I heard the songs for the first time when I was traveling in my car to reach the college. And almost for one month I would have heard all these songs repeatedly. And even now whenever I listen to this album, it takes me to the past to those great days in my college. I can say Rhythm album is the theme music of my first year college life. All of them would have had the same feelings when you hear some albums, it takes you to the period of your life during which you heard this album many times and all those happened during that time. As I have finished my college and I am nostalgic about those college days this album suddenly struck my mind.

Rhythm is a music album made on five elements of nature one song on each element i.e., Fire, Water, Sky, Land, Wind. Vasanth is a Tamil director who gives lot of importance to the songs in his movies and extracts the best from any music director even though he is bad in directing movies. He has good taste in music. And when for the first A.R.Rahman combines with him, the expectations were sky high, and the output was more than what expected. Vairamuthu and A.R.Rahman are at their best in this album. Literally the script of the movie requires no songs at all and none of these songs are situational. Vasanth could have directed a music video on this album instead of wasting so much of money in making a movie that is in no way related to the songs. But I admit that all the five songs are soul-stirring melodies.

I should laud A.R.Rahman for

Choice of Instruments for each element

Element: Wind, Hindi Version: “Paigham” from Lakeer

Instrument: Flute, Strings

The song starts with sound of wind blowing Unni’s and Kavitha’s voice are as fresh and soothing as a pleasant wind in the sea shore. The tune is purely classical. The soft beats in the background westernize the classical tune. The main instrument of the song is flute, what else can sound the wind better than this wind instrument. The usage of flute is as usual haunting, especially when it combines with the vocal at the end of each line. The auxiliary instrument used is strings with which the song starts. The starting string piece is too good.

Element: Water, No Hindi Version

Instrument: Solo Violin, Thavil

The song starts with the sound of flowing water. I was amazed by his choice of instrument Thavil, a traditional Tamil instrument for this song. Because the rhythm of flowing water in a river stream, water falling in a water falls perfectly matches with the sound and rhythm of Thavil. The solo violin perfectly matches the sound of stagnant water in a lake, pond and the way the Solo violin used i.e., the fast twists in the tune of Solo Violin follows the irregular path a water stream takes to flow. Unni menon also has done a good job.

Element: Sky, No Hindi Version

Instrument: Violin in Groups (Orchestration)

Again the choice of violin orchestration for the sky is apt in the sense, it sounds perfectly the group of clouds passing in the sky. Bearing her Tamil pronunciation Sadhana Sargam excels in this song. The tune shifts from a high tempo starting to a much slower tempo in the middle with Hindustani music as the base. Off course the use of tabla is good and takes care of the Hindustani feel of the song. The solo part of Sadhana sounds pleasant to our ears like sound of sky in the early morning.

Element: Land, Hindi Version “Nachalae” from Lakeer Instrument:Strings, Electro stuff

The music actually sounds the patience of the land. The soft electro stuff, usage of strings, a solo violin in the middle being subtle and slow tempo sounds the patience. Shankar Mahadevan is a good choice and has done his job well. But I hate his appearance physically onscreen for this song. “Ohya aiyae” bit is not that good and fitting. The land is a difficult element and that is why they have selected the characteristic of land to create its sound. It doesn’t have any sound at all but yet they have managed well to deliver the nature of the natural element.

Element: Fire Hindi Version

Instrument: Percussions

The voice of Vasundra Das is the great advantage of this seductive melody. Especially the way she sings “Ayyo Pathikichu” pull us into the fire. But I don’t feel Sukhwinder’s voice fitting in this song. He has spoiled the sound. Mostly Fire refers to sex. And hence to sound for fire, the song sounds for sex. The bass flute and bass flute adds used in the interlude fuel to the fire. The percussions rock in this song. Again Percussion is a right choice to sound fire.

I should laud Vairamuthu for his highly innovative lyrics in each and every song.

In this song he has compared Air to Love. In “Nathiyae” song he has compared Woman with a river. In “Thaniyae” song he has narrated the love story of a young man and compares the patience of that young man waiting for his lady love to the patience of the land. In “Ayyo Pathikichu” the lyrics is more seductive than the music. The best lines in this song “ Thee thaan mudhal vinyanam, Kadhal thaan mudhal meinyanam” means “Fire is the first Science, Love is the first Conscience”. In ‘Kala kala vena” song he has compared shy and fate. All the songs have some excellent poetic lines. I don’t think that I can do full justice to the lyrics if translated so better I don’t do it. But just for a sample and to test my translation skill here is a piece of my favourite lines from the song “Kaatrae en vaasal”

“Kaatrae en vaasal vandhai

solli chendrai”

Translation

Oh Wind, You came to my doorsteps

you said and went

Is my translation okay?