Magical Interludes

I like to listen to music, primarily Old Hindi songs, Arijit Singh, Rabbi Shergill, A R Rahman, Amit Trivedi, Tamil music too, Harris Jayaraj, K S Chitra and some old songs. I used to listen to them on the go, with the help of earphones.

After a while when I started feeling that I actually wasn't listening to them, just hearing them. I used to think about everything except the song playing in my ears. I ditched the habit. I then needed another instrument because I simply have to listen to music to refresh myself. I dusted the Creative speakers which were sparingly used and connected them to the computer. 

I started listening to music as I used to years ago. When I was listening to music on the go, I actually wasn't listening to the songs. I was hearing them no doubt, but not listening to them.

When I started listening to music the old school way, with the help of speakers and a woofer I actually started listening to it, not simply hearing it. It also helps that the speakers are loud enough for me to sing along yet not let my voice undermine that of the artist.

I observed something about great songs and great music composers. A couple of seconds in those particular songs are what make them magical, moments of magic, if I may say so.

Sometimes it is the combination of instruments, the singers voice when he just lets go, the powerful lyrics in that stanza or a single instrument playing for a few seconds and then all of them playing together to reach a crescendo. 

Those seconds could be called a finale, moments of magic, cascading notes etc etc.

I prefer to call those seconds of a song, magical interludes.

A R Rahman's songs have them in abundance. Those few seconds I feel are what add to A R Rahman's magic. The few seconds in Chinna Chinna Aasai where Rahman's sings. In Ishq Bina from Taal all surrounding sounds disappear and a lone violin starts playing, followed by Sonu Nigam's voice

Amit Trivedi's songs have them too, in Zinda unplugged wherein again all the surrounding sounds wane and disappear and Amit Trivedi sings "Hawa se jo maanga hissa mera, toh badle mein hawaa ne saans di". At the end of this stanza, Amit Trivedi lets himself go and it is a moment of magic listening to his voice reach a peak and all the other instruments start playing in sync immediately after that .

Hard to forget "Kabira" from Yeh Jawani Hain Diwani sung by Arijit Singh, when he sings "Teri manzilon ko chuke bata, tera raasta, tere guzre dinon se jaga tera vaasta". The lyrics....

All great songs have such magical interludes. They are what make that song immortal and a masterpiece. They are the reason those songs feel new even when we listen to them after a long time

Those interludes do not seem to belong to a genre, time frame or age, they seem to belong to the composer who thought about them.

Start making a list of your magical interludes and start adding those songs to your playlist. :-)