The 10 Best Music Institute in India 2020

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N O W L E DEducation.

G E RInnovation.

E V I ESuccess W VOL - 11 NOVEMBER- 2020

ISSUE - 02

WHISTLING WOODS INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF MUSIC

THE 10 BEST INSTITUTES IN INDIA, 2020

EDITOR’S NOTE

PLAY ON….

M

usic is meditation. Music is the universal language. Music is the best expression of feelings and thoughts.

Music has the power to magnify or enhance emotions, soothe, heal, and speak more than plain words. When words fail, music takes over. It makes us happy, it brings us tears, it makes us dance, it makes us hum, it gives peace, it brings memories and creates memories.

Music showed us that The World is Flat, long before Thomas Friedman wrote the book.

In India, different genres of music have always played a magnanimous role in defining varied cultures and emotions. Known for classical and folk music predominantly since the pre-historic era, Indian music genres have always been a matter of curiosity for the

Western music world. But it was not until the 1960s that the Western world began using Indian musical instruments and started exploring Indian music. Indian musicians, on the other hand, have always experimented with music and musical instruments used across the world. Today, there is an amalgamation of all kinds of music by musicians all over the globe. Fusion music, which none could have imagined or approved a century ago, is today widely appreciated. Music has indeed transcended all barriers. And this vast field has much more to give.

Music is also known to have healing powers on humans, animals and plants. Music therapies for human beings and animals are practised by many alternative healing therapists.

The healing power of music has been explained beautifully by William Shakespeare in the opening line of his play, Twelfth Night, where the Duke of Illyria, Orsino tells his servants and musicians – “If music be the food of love, then play on…” Orsino was apparently lovesick being rejected repeatedly

by Countess Olivia.

best-selling pop songs by Samantha Fox in the 1980s.

Unlike in other fields, musicians always consider themselves as learners despite the degrees they achieve, including our very own Lata Didi (Mangeshkar) who till date describes herself as a student of music.

From the Gurukul system to modern institutes, education in music has come a long way in India with the teachers always striving to give the best to their students.

Celebrating the essence of music in India, we at The Knowledge Review, have highlighted few institutions that have carved a niche for themselves, in our latest edition - 10 Best Music Institutes in India.

So, if music be the food of the soul then play on….

Have a soulful reading! T R

The metaphor went on to become the most often sung opera by several singers and later one of the

Sumita Sarkar sumita@theknowledgereview.com

Cover Story

WHISTLING WOODS 08 INTERNATIONAL, SCHOOL OF MUSIC Sculpting Exemplary Artists

Articles

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Music Updates

Trends

Musical Powers

Changing Tides of the Indian Music Industry

Crazy New Genres

Music Education for Children

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The Audiophile's School of Sound Engineering Producing Creatively Independent Sound Wizards

AAFT School of Music blend of passion and brilliance with innovation

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Trill Route Music

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Urban Raga Instilling Interest in Indian and Western music

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Academy Where your Musical Journey Begins

NOVEMBER, 2020

People behind this edition

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Editor-in-Chief Sumita Sarkar

Managing Editor Abhishaj Shjeev Contributing Editor Sneha Sinha

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THE 10 BEST T R

INSTITUTES IN INDIA, 2020

Name of the Institution

URL

Brief

AAFT - School of Music

https://aaft.com/ schoolofnearts/

A creative and innovative music school where budding artists can discover themselves

Music Institute of Chromatics

www.chromaticsindia.com

Providing formal but personalised training in western music

SoulFul Musik Academy

https://soulfulmusik academy.com/

Training students to understand and play/sing any song/tune by listening to it and also to compose own tunes

Suresh Wadkar's Ajivasan Music Academy

https://www.ajivasan.com/

Educating and spreading Hindustani music, culture and art across the world

The Audiophile's School of Sound Engineering

https://www.tase.org.in/

Providing affordable and quality courses in audio engineering

The Music Gurukul

http://themusicgurukul.com/

Imparting quality music education in a relaxed but very sincere environment

Trill Route Music Academy & Online Music Lessons

https://www.trillroute musicacademy.com/

Teaching varied forms of music by qualied and competent teachers

Urban Raga Music School

https://www.urbanraga.com/

Creating awareness and interest in Indian and Western music among all age groups

Vocalite Singing Classes

https://vocalitesingingclass. wixsite.com/vocalite

Not just rendering knowledge in music but also giving students a chance to sing in front of audience

Whistling Woods International School of Music

https://www.whistlingwoods. net/admissions/school-music/

Creating leaders and professionals in the eld of music production and composition

THE 10 BEST T R

INSTITUTES IN INDIA, 2020

T

We endeavour to train the students in a way that makes them employable and industry-ready.

Subhash Ghai

Founder & Chairman

he year 2006 marked the establishment of Whistling Woods International (WWI), one of the largest and best media institutes in India.

WWI is Asia’s premier Film, Communication and Creative Arts Institute founded by one of India’s leading filmmakers, Mr. Subhash Ghai. It offers programmes that vary in duration from one year to four years catering to all major verticals of the media and entertainment industry.

As WWI grew, it launched the School of Music in 2015 with a vision to create a state-of-the-art institute that sets new standards of world-class education in the field of music production & composition.

Its mission is to benchmark quality, inspire innovation, encourage creativity and mould professional yet artistic talents. It offers a three-year degree programme in Music Production & Composition.

The programme is unique, as it brings together the best practices of Indian music, western music, film culture and production technology with real-life opportunities to arrange, compose, perform, and produce music for industry standard projects. The graduates transition smoothly from being students to industry-ready professionals.

The faculty are all active working professionals and bring years of experience into the classrooms and studios. The ratio of faculty to students is favourable to individual mentoring and building positive relations and solidarity within the school.

The vast network of WWI ensures that students will have ongoing support and resources available to them during their programme and as alumni well after graduation.

A Walk through the Campus Located within Filmcity, Mumbai, WWI’s

Whistling Woods International is a platform for self-expression and selfrealisation.

Meghna Ghai Puri President

5.5-acre campus comprises of high-end facilities that contribute towards nurturing the students’ professional and personal development. These amenities include – classrooms, auditorium, workshop rooms and studios – that are acoustically treated with projection and audio systems, acting/dancing/music/ yoga studios, gymnasium, fashion – pattern making and cutting room, grooming and draping room, apparel construction room, VFX lab, edit labs, Dolby Digital film surround mix studio, cybercafé, and ATM amongst others.

In addition to this, the campus also comprises of advanced technical infrastructure which includes, a 250seater auditorium with 4K 3D projection and Auro 11.1 sound, WWI JIO VR Lab, Sony Media Technology Centre, Red HD Digital Cinematography Cameras, 48 Track

Recording Studio and Foxconn Media Lab to name a few.

The institute offers cutting-edge academia catering to various competencies including Filmmaking, Media & Communication, Animation & Game Design, Music, Fashion Design, Visual Communication Design and Event Management. All the programmes are accredited by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS).

Staying Ahead of the Curve Indian music is popular across the globe. The unique programme at WWI School of Music features in-depth training in North and South Indian Music, Western Classical and Popular Music and exposure to some of the great musical cultures of the world.

The students learn skills to be able to analyse any given piece of music and

create musical compositions from a wide range of possible styles and traditions. The students learn to be able to freely create from brief references to fully realised finished productions.

Besides, a state-of-the-art campus and facilities, a favourable student to faculty ratio, a small tight community culture, opportunities for working on exciting projects, meeting iconic industry personalities and highly skilled dedicated faculty make WWI School of Music unique.

Walking an Extra Mile Over the past 14 years, WWI has proactively prepared a niche for its alumni in several key media industry areas. WWI music graduates are working as music directors, composers/arrangers, engineers, singers, instrumentalists, DJ’s, lyricists

A BRILLIANT COMPOSER AND LEADER

WWI launched its School of Music under the leadership of its HOD, Dr. Sangeeta Shankar.

Dr. Sangeeta is a world-renowned violinist, highly acclaimed in the world of Indian classical and world music. She is the daughter and disciple of Padmabhushan Dr. Smt. N. Rajam. Having performed all around the globe, she is a brilliant composer and has various releases to her credit, including participation in a Grammy-nominated album.

A PhD and a gold medalist from BHU, she is a visionary educator and has immensely contributed to various educational projects.

She is also the founder and managing director of the record label, Legendary Legacy Promotions Pvt. Ltd. It has been her vision to ensure an all-round solid training in music for aspiring students, to hone their skills and to make them capable of easily adapting to different musical genres.

Her futuristic vision is that in today’s times, everyone creates music with the latest available technology. If aspiring, young music composers are well-trained and strongly rooted in the fundamentals of music, reading and writing the language of music, then they would be in a much better position to tackle the challenges that come their way musically and also be able to produce and deliver a higher quality of music.

It is with this vision that she has envisioned the syllabus and training at WWI School of Music, making it a unique programme. Since 2009, she has been educating students to become composers, music directors, and producers at Whistling Woods International

We create professionals that think out of the box, for a world where ideas have intrinsic value.

Rahul Puri, Head Academics

and play a host of other music-related roles. The institute provides opportunities to students via its deep connections throughout the industry. The faculty members are always looking for ways to promote the students. The faculty believes that the graduates are the most effective ambassadors and goes the extra mile to ensure that students are well prepared to be industry-ready professionals.

Also, the campus is frequented by professionals from the industry for guest lectures, masterclasses, workshops, and practical sessions. The students have a unique opportunity to interact and impress their future employers while still learning from them. The calibre of WWI School of Music students ensures meaningful association with the industry.

A key major affiliation has been WWI’s partnership with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Asia's oldest institute for professional social work education, to offer degree and diploma programmes in film, communication and creative arts, ensuring that

the best film and media education is offered to its students. WWI started India’s first applied arts degree programme in Filmmaking, Acting, Screenwriting & Music – launched in association with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences.

Some Glorious Affiliations and Recognitions WWI has partnered with several global film, media and technology giants to set up four technology and innovation labs on campus: a) Sony Media Technology Centre – 2010 b) Red Education Platform – 2015 c) Foxconn Media Lab – 2016 d) WWI Jio VR Lab – 2018 In 2010, WWI was accepted as a full member of CILECT (Centre International de Liaison des Ecoles de Cinéma et de Télévision) – the world’s premier association of film and creative arts institutions. Moreover, central and state governments consult with WWI management for strategies on film, media, and entertainment education.

Secondly, The Hollywood Reporter has rated Whistling Woods International as one of the Ten Best Film Schools in the world. It has also been rated among the ‘Top Institutes of Influence’ globally, in 2015 by Forbes India.

Besides, the institute was also awarded Excellence in Creative & Performing Arts at the 6th FICCI Higher Education Excellence Awards 2019. Additionally, WWI School of Filmmaking, Department of Screenwriting, HOD, Anjum Rajabali has received the CILECT Teaching Award 2019 for his work at WWI for the past 14 years.

Creating Leaders and Professionals is the Aim The vision of WWI School of Music has and will always be to create leaders and professionals in the field of music production and composition. It will continue to align itself with reputed institutes and organisations like CILECT, Google, Reliance, TISS, etc. and further its evolution by pushing the envelope of educational advancement through new programmes and their dissemination to the students. Its goal

No education will bring you as much joy as one that is also your hobby and passion.

Ravi Gupta

Dean

is to provide vocational training in music to students of smaller towns and cities all over the country and thanks to its partner, TISS, this will also continue to grow steadily. The aim is to take WWI School of Music to new heights and set new standards for world-class education in the field of music production and composition. T R www.whistlingwoods.net

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THE 10 BEST T R

INSTITUTES IN INDIA, 2020

AAFT

School of Music Blend of Passion and Brilliance with Innovation

A

sian Academy of Film and Television (AAFT) - School of Music is a leading foundation for advanced and creative learning which believes in setting the bar high with luminous system of holistic education. It was founded in 1993 in Delhi NCR to provide professional training in the field of music.

Our Vision Our vision is to become the world’s most creative and innovative music school where budding artists can discover themselves. Our vision of setting new standards for the best music academy in India requires diving deep into the dynamics of the music industry. We look forward to build strong global communities of music artists united together to promote intellectual diversity through artistic expressions in this field.

Our Mission The mission of our school is to inculcate and nurture students’ natural inclination towards music through intensive training as well as resurgence of debilitating classical sense embedded in the art of music.

We intend to instill and encourage unity in the global music community by entwining creative ideas and

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industry insights to inspire, inform and empower today's youth to become leaders of tomorrow, thereby, giving platform to future musicians for building outstanding repute.

Infrastructure and Academic Programs The campus has research centers which are manned by the top Indian and International experts who interact with the students on a regular basis and share their valuable experience. We also have in-house community radio, film club, research center, news agency and production studio for imparting practical exposure to the students. It is the right place to gear up with world class competitive edge.

We offer varied degree and diploma courses at the bachelor’s and master’s level along with short-term programs and certifications. These courses provide skill enhancement for every candidate ranging from Indian to Western music - Vocal Music, Instrumental Music, Music Production, History of Music, Applied theory of music, etc.

and inbound workshops aimed at solving real-time problems. Students also get to learn by participating in cultural fests, symposiums, club activities, case studies, camps, community services, etc. He promotes the facilitation of practical training modules so that the students can get the latest scoop on music productions and the industry.

Students can connect with guest performers, hosts, artist-in-residence, etc. through star-studded events throughout the year. More practical apprehension with sound understanding of foundation theories trigger a new awareness of positive attitude, group behavior skills, interpersonal relationships and team performance skills which play a crucial role for the comprehensive development of the young talents.

Following is the list of courses that we currently offer: Bachelor’s degree courses [4 years] • Bachelor of Performing Arts (Music) + Diploma in Music Production Bachelor’s degree courses [3 years]

Constant engagement of students in live projects, summer trainings, fullterm optional/ compulsory internships, on-the-job trainings, study tours, skill enhancement events

• BA in Indian classical vocal • BA in instrumental (Indian classical/Western) • BA in music for Film and TV NOVEMBER | 2020

Dr Sandeep Marwah President AAFT

is to nurture talent and build employability of the students through industry-oriented training. He has been globally propagating the objective of AAFT School of Music which is to craft a learning hub that motivates and guides aspirants looking forward for building career in the disciplines of Music Production, Sound Design, Indian Classical Music, Instrumental, DJing and more.

Career Options

Master’s degree courses [2 years] • Master of Performing Arts (Music) + PG Diploma in Music Production • MA in Indian Classical vocal • MA in instrumental (Indian classical / Western) • MA in music for Film and TV Diploma and PG diploma courses [1 year] • Diploma/PG Diploma in Music Production • Diploma in Instrumental (Classical / Western) • Diploma in Sound Design • Diploma in Dance • Diploma in classical vocal + instrument • Diploma in western vocal + instrument • Diploma in Music for Film and TV Short term courses [3 months] • Advanced Disc Jockey (DJ) - Every Genre • Music Production • Sound Designing • Music Business

NOVEMBER | 2020

• Music Composition • Voice Over/Dubbing Personality Behind the Success Dr. Sandeep Marwah, who is the Founder-President of AAFT, has been a key player in the establishment and growth of the School of Music. He is a renowned Indian film producer, director and educator who is prominently known for his contribution in media and cultural exchange across the globe.

He has been acknowledged with more than 500 international, national and state awards along with recently achieved Dada Saheb Phalke Film Foundation Award 2018. He is also the Chancellor of AAFT University which is India’s first dedicated Film, Media and Arts University.

He has always encouraged a learning environment which is full of excitement, thrill and challenges.

This has helped the group to successfully train over 17,000 students till date. His persistent efforts, knowledge-sharing and zeal have helped the group to grow and become a prominent name in the field of media and arts education since its inception in 1993. His vision

One can look for lucrative job roles in government, private and freelancing sectors. Along with the traditional roles of music composer, director, singer, lyricist, etc., one can also look forward to modern roles like music doctor/therapist and serve other people through their knowledge and art.

Singing, playing instruments, recording and sound mixing for some are hobbies, while for some others it is their passion. We, at AAFT, believe to nurture such talent and transform their skills into employable assets. One can find global opportunities in this field with the right training. Freelancing in music has opened doors to unlimited work, money and fame.

Different job roles include • Music Producer • Mixing and Mastering Engineer • Music Director (Film/Album Projects) • Music Arranger (Film/Album Projects) • Stage Performer - Singer • Stage Performer - Instrumental • Live Sound Engineer

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• Studio recording artist (Film/Album Projects) • DJ • Ghost Producer • Voiceover/Dubbing artist (Project Based) • Music Programmer • Recordist • Foley Artist • Music Educator • Music Therapist • Radio artist • Sound Designer

individual student to a professional through practical labs, extra-curricular activities and major competitive events. We have students from more than 120 countries enrolling as a part of our institution, a large percentage being from Europe, Middle East, Far East and the Pacific Rim regions, and from our neighboring countries. This provides students a global community of learning and a platform for cultural exchange.

Being Different

At AAFT School of Music, we focus on delivering industry-oriented training through practical activities.

Our creative pedagogy includes knowledge of reading music sheets/language, performing both alone and with other musicians, hearing and identifying notes, understanding rhythms, performing technically, grasping music theory

We, at AAFT School of Music, lay equal emphasis on both theoretical knowledge and practical orientation.

We have developed a healthy and disciplined environment that ensures quality education through an industry-driven course curriculum, and an overall transformation of

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concepts, conceptualizing music, playing by ear and improvise, expressing emotion, problem solving attitude, listening while singing/playing, multi-tasking nature, concentration and meditation and so on.

Achievements and Collaborations Students at AAFT School of Music play a vital role in serving the society through own radio station, Radio Noida 107.4 FM, which is a Community Radio broadcasting with the objective to inform, educate and entertain the listeners through engaging programs relevant to the educational, social, cultural and developmental needs. T R

NOVEMBER | 2020

CHANGING TID

of the

IND

Mus

Indust

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NOVEMBER | 2020

Music Updates

I

n the early 1990s, India was not a country one would think to be of any import when it came to establishing a market for global music. India was just not a major music consumer in the world. But that too is changing rapidly!

DES

Recently, India surpassed US to become the second-largest smartphone market in the world with more than 450 million mobile phone users. With rise in smart phones and technology, elevation of music production, consumption and distribution went hand-in-hand.

To satisfy the needs of its 1.3 billion music listeners, many streaming services, a countless variety of smart devices, concerts, and music shows are emerging and establishing themselves as Titans in the music Industry. Three of India's largest streaming services are run by local telecom and internet companies.

DIAN

The Indian Music Industry was valued at around Rs 15 billion in 2019, and that value is expected to rise up to Rs 20 billion in the year 2022.

sic

With such exciting ďŹ gures, India is sure to be the battleground of the global streaming industry in the years to come.

The Indian Music Industry consists of three main subIndustries; namely 1. Live Industry - The live industry mainly works when artists and musicians go along with their crews on tours to perform live for their audiences around the globe.

According to the Indian Music Convention, the total revenues of live business can be put around $280 million.

Live music is still the cash cow of the industry. The key players in the touring industry are - artists and mangers, booking agents, promoters, tour managers and technicians.

This expansive crew goes on tours festivals, and tours to meet and perform for their thousands of fans.

try

2. Recording Industry - The recording industry is a subsection of the music industry that deals speciďŹ cally with the production(i.e. recording) and subsequent promotions and distributon of music. Streaming revenue is a part of recording revenue. In 2018, it went up 22.3%, with streaming accounting for 69% of all recording revenues.

3. Publishing Industry - The publishing industry is still in its nascent form. Having started as recently as 2012 by

NOVEMBER | 2020

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the Music Copyright Act of India, it assigned copyrights to film producers insted of the actual lyricists.

apparently sees a growth in popularity, with a 9.6% increase from last year.

Royalties to songwriters and composers made up less than 1% of the total industry’s revenue, or $4 million.

Distributing your music online could not be easier. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

As there is an economic outlook on the many changes mentioned above , there has also been distinct strides in the artistic and stylistic ends of things.

4. Technology is rapidly changing music promotion YouTube has been around for a long time, and has quitely supplanted itself as the king of video content. Their latest additions to their platform include live-streaming. The artists now have the ability to stream their performances to a live audience of thousands and sometimes millions without the need of a stadium and in real-time. This allows for an artist to connect to their fans on a personable level.

Everything from what we listen to and how we listen to it are transposed by new electronic media forms and musical artforms such as Rap and electronic dance music (EDM).

With the advent of new technology and social media, sharing and listening to your favourite tracks is entirely effortless.

Some of the biggest trends of the music industry as of 2020 are : 1. Songs keep getting shorter – the average length of the top 40 songs of the year 2019 was three minutes and seven seconds. That is a whole 30 seconds shorter than the year before. This is largely a byproduct of streaming and discovery through playlists. Consequently, traditional pop song structure is being thrown out the window so that your chances are not reduced in a deck of 52 other artists.

This and many more small and big changes are taking place in the music industry.

With all the new and old possibilities and opportunities, one thing is certain: Now, is the best time to be a musician.

India is ready to be the next music superpower! T R -Aditya Umale

2. The death of genres – Genres are an easy way to classify the music into different categories according to their style of music , composition, and other such ingredients. But recently, new genres and subgenres are emerging almost daily, so much so that some artists are being granted their own genre.

As you can guess, it gets very tedious to keep track of your music preferences. You might consider letting go of the whole genre game entirely. Besides, up-comers like YUNGBLUD, and Machine Gun Kelly – after having famously decried the whole notion of genres and refused to put their music in any box– are leading to redefine the whole game.

People often care more about culture than genre. Expect more stylistic boundries to be broken.

3. Physical sales are down for the music industry According to Nielsen’s 2019 Mid Year Report, streaming now accounts for 78% of music consumption. Vinyl

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NOVEMBER | 2020

THE 10 BEST T R

INSTITUTES IN INDIA, 2020

The Audiophile’s School of Sound Engineering Producing Creatively Independent Sound Wizards

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performer is known for entertaining the audience but in the absence of a sound or audio engineer, the quality of sound would not have been as soothing as it is to the listener. Recording music would not have been so perfect in the absence of audio engineering.

Bringing perfection into the song and enhancing the quality of musical instruments for accurately portraying the song being played is the art of the audio engineer. As it is said that having an ear for music is the prerequisite for anyone in the field of music, the sound engineers precisely do that to produce and reproduce performances.

Lot of creativity and attention to minute details go into audio engineering by controlling microphones, sound levels, and outputs. Besides well-trained ears, knowledge of acoustics to produce the best quality of sound is very essential for audio engineers. Creativity and continuous research on audio experiments are part of their routine work.

There may be a pool of talent aspiring to be an audio engineer but few can

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actually afford some of the lucrative courses. Noting this, The Audiophile’s School of Sound Engineering (TASE) was started to educate audio engineering aspirants.

engineers and independent music producers. TASE encourages students to become creative independent.

Mervin T Thomas, Founder of TASE, noticed that many students wanted to take up advanced courses which were expensive. He incepted TASE along with Co-Founder Neeraj Kashyap in Kilpauk, Chennai, to provide the quality courses with affordable fees.

Mervin is an Audio Engineer and teacher who designs the curriculum while Neeraj with an experience of 10-15 years in international educational institutes like Singapore ensures growth for the school.

The Inception, Vision and Mission TASE is an educational institution that was started solely with the vision and mission of providing quality education in the field of audio engineering and music production while at the same time keeping it affordable. Quality here means striving for international standards of learning and education.

Hence all the study methodology and practical approach is from a western perspective, which is a bridge to the Indian music industry.

More emphasis is on practical training, encouraging students to become recording engineers, mixing

Brains Behind the Success

After graduation Mervin travelled to Hollywood, Los Angeles to pursue higher education in Audio Engineering at Musicians Institute – College of Contemporary Music, Los Angeles. Back in India he worked with sound engineering schools.

Career Options Students have quite a number of options starting from recording engineer, mixing engineer, mastering engineer, post-production engineer, re-recording engineer, sound editor, foley editor, music director, music producer. Someone who has composition background can also major in composition. This field is very vast. For example, if you take NOVEMBER | 2020

specialised subjects. We have very small student-faculty ratio which is very 5:1 per class/batch, which is not the usual case,” informs Mervin. He adds that TASE has world class infrastructure and the studio is acoustically treated in a very nice way.

“We have treated it like a full-fledged studio and not like a temporary studio for teaching. Our studio also functions as a real time studio where independent artists, musicians, composers walk in and out of it and students are subject to these real time sessions as part of their class and credits. So, they learn real time other than their classes,” says Mervin.

Survival During the Covid-19 Pandemic Mervin T Thomas

Neeraj Kashyap Co-founder

Founder

the subject audio engineering, it has various aspects. You can become a theorist, you can become a pro-audio guy who is into marketing and sales.

If you have a coding background you can go into video game design, audio, etc.

believe 100 percent placement is possible. But as of now all our students are working. The first batch of students just passed out. All of them are doing good work. One of our students is already assigned music producer and independent artist with a record label.

Compulsory Internship Programme Uniqueness We have 100 percent internship placements based on the field that the student chooses at the end of the programme. For example, if a student decides to be a music producer, we will place him with a music producer for internship so that he can learn the art of music production. The student will be working under him for few months.

This is a skill-based labour. I do not NOVEMBER | 2020

First and the foremost thing that makes TASE stand apart from other audio engineering institutes is the faculty. “We have world class faculty.

They all work in the music industry with AR Rahman, Yuvan Shankar Raja and other artists in and around the city. I can say that we have the best faculty team on board when. We have specialised faculty for

These times are very tough, but we have not yet given up, says Mervin.

Most of the schools have started taking online lessons but TASE is only taking theory classes because they believe that students are paying for the experience, and they do not want to cut short on that experience. “TASE is an experience. Hence, all our core subjects are put on hold. We are planning to start practical lessons in November or December. Theory can be managed online. Some of our music production and music programming subjects where it is not required to be present at the studio, are being conducted online but all our core subjects like recording, mixing, where one on one experience with the environment and faculty is needed have not yet started. We are waiting for things to calm down. We do not have a big threat because we are taking only five students per batch.

So, we are actually following social distancing.

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Future Plan Every year we look forward to introduce one new programme. This year also we were planning to start one but due to the pandemic we could not do so. But we started a complete online programme which is a Certificate programme of three months. Our benchmark programme is the one-year Diploma which is full-

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time. Our part time programme which is fully online is a certification in music production.

We are looking to expand nationally and internationally. We are looking at brands to associate with us. We already have lot of brand collaboration across the world. They support us in terms of equipment and software.

They support our students in terms of

equipment and software. Our students fetch 50 percent discount on almost any software they want to buy. We are looking for expansion specifically in South East Asia and the Asian market in general. T R

NOVEMBER | 2020

CRAZY NEW

GENRES 28

NOVEMBER | 2020

Trends

W

e all have had this moment at some point or the other in our lives when we were having a relatively bad day, but somehow a random upbeat song playing in the background rescued our soul from lethargy and brought a big grin on our faces.

That is what music can do.

It does not matter who you are, what nationality, what race, what ethnicity, everyone can enjoy music. It is the great equaliser.

There are many different genres of music you can subscribe to. There is hip-hop, jazz, classical, classical-light, electronic dance music, reggae, and many more. So many options!

However, this has seldom stopped musicians to venture unexplored territories and come up with something new.

They are artists, explorers, innovators, visionaries and not the crowd to stop at a few thousand genres. But don’t you worry, I am here to get you catchup on some exciting, brilliant but mostly weird new genres in the music world.

Here is a list of five new musical genres:-

Merck Records, Warp Records, and Ghostly International.

3. Folktronica This is a genre that blends electronic and folk or acoustic music. Artists who are popular for their work in this genre are the UK artists Bibio, Alt-J, Animal Collective, The Books and Caribou.

4. Cloud Rap Cloud Rap refers to a form of hip hop whose distinguishing features include spaced-out dreamlike beats and abstracted, sometimes deliberately absurd, lyrics that make little to no sense.

5. Hypnagonic Pop The definition of hypnagogic means the state one is in just before falling asleep. But the actual definition bears little resemblance to its application with the genre of hypnagogic pop. In this context, hypnagogic pop refers to psychedelic music that evokes cultural memory and nostalgia for the popular entertainment of the past.

Some popular hypnagogic pop bands include Neon Indian, Pocahaunted, Homeshake and Peaking Lights. T R - Aditya Umale

1. Lowercase Lowercase is an extreme form of ambient minimalism where very quiet, usually unheard sounds are amplified to extreme levels. Minimal artist Steven Roden popularised this movement with an album titled ‘Forms of Paper’!

To describe Lowercase, Roden says “It bears a certain sense of quiet and humility; it does not demand attention, it must be discovered..... It is the opposite of capital letters – loud things which draw attention to themselves.”

2. Glitch hop This subgenre of hip hop that emerged around the year 1997 from the early works of ‘push-button objects.’ In 2001, the genre gained popularity thanks to labels like

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‘Music is the language of the spirit. It opens the secret of life bringing peace, abolishing strife.’

-Kahlil Gibran

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THE 10 BEST T R

INSTITUTES IN INDIA, 2020

Trill Route Music Academy Where your Musical Journey Begins

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t is said of music that without it, life would be a mistake.

Thankfully, most lives have music in some form or the other, be it prepared or inadvertent. The mistake that invariably creeps in, in most cases is that music of the kind which could enrich our lives in a myriad of ways is either not taught the right way or not made available the right way for learning. And when it does, it’s available only to a select few at exorbitant costs with little in the name of standards and pre-set curriculums.

A situation that has existed in India and to an extent, most parts of the world for ages in the name of education and career in music is all set to change.

Bringing humongous changes in the way music is taught, learnt, imbibed, and propagated is one institution that has taken upon itself the task of changing the very paradigm right from the grass-root. The Trill Route Music Academy.

It all started in 2016 at Bengaluru with Co-founders and Directors, Varun Raj and Aarabhy Surendran. The founders were professionally touring musicians even before starting the academy and were students of music from the age of seven. Although infotech and aerospace engineering

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was their dissertation, music was always parallelly pursued predominantly from a very young age.

Accolades, adulation and accreditations were coming their way.

They then seriously thought of taking up music as a career despite the “unsafe” tag it carried when compared to the likes of engineering, medicines and commerce.

But then music is music like food is food, a necessity. If food could be an industry with its own qualificationbased education and career, why not music they surmised. Aiding their efforts to bring a semblance of “industry” with its own standards, educational content and qualifications, and well-defined job profiles is the fact that communication, of which music is an important, important part is going through the roof, when it comes to the quantum of content requirements and variations, formats and genres, ways of communication in terms of gadgets, technology of recording and mixing and so on.

Exhibiting Excellence The Trill Route Music Academy is then the solution that by its very thought shall bring change sure to benefit not just music lovers but

also allied industries and sectors while providing employment and opportunities to sizable numbers who remain qualified and capable. A look at the Academy’s USPs: - An inspiring ambience that promotes the right learning environment which include: • Acoustically engineered classrooms to help develop required sound quality, • In-house recording studio for students to explore and create their own music • Well-equipped recital space and classrooms with professional grade instruments and sound systems.

- A well-thought mix of short and long-term programs in subjects as varied as Western Contemporary Guitar, Keyboard, Piano, Ukulele, Drums, Violin, Western Vocals, Hindustani Vocals and, - Professional courses in Music Production.

- Curriculum highlights • Course content based on contemporary styles to develop usable skills for modern performing musicians with a strong focus on composition, improvisation and production for those aspiring to become independent musicians for NOVEMBER | 2020

as far away as Dubai, US, and Australia.

Varun Raj

The Root Notes

Co-founder & Directors

Aarabhy Surendran Co-founder & Directors

sectors as varied as commercial movies, ad films, teaching, performing artists or even providing transcribing and other services for industries with audio divisions like gaming & radio •Seamless balance of technical work, music theory, repertoire, ear training, guided music listening and most importantly creativity.

• Students are certified on the basis of recitals and ensemble evaluations.

• Student Assessment Program (S.A.P), a Trill Route exclusive that’s far removed from the traditional system of evaluation.

Here evaluations done at strategic intervals consist of one-on-one faculty reviews, peer reviews and student recitals which lead to further fine tuning, and development in music and learning.

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• DISCOVERY, a yearly event where the student-pool works for over 300 hours in ensemble preparation thus helping students step into the shoes of professional musicians.

• Proactive hosting of events, workshops, masterclasses, and discussions to strengthen the local student community of musicians.

What started as a Guitar-only school delivering quality education at affordable prices, saw a surge in demand. This led to their opening up to teaching varied forms of music in all their complexities at the hands of qualified and competent teachers and gurus who came with the same mind set. Demand for this form of teaching has seen them extend their footprint all over India and even beyond to places

An idea develops into an edifice because someone cared to add the steel. At Trill Route Academy that steel was imparted by duo Co-founders and Directors, Varun Raj and Aarabhy Sudrendran who cut their teeth in the field for close to two decades. In their long and cherished career, Varun rose to fame with his band - “The Down Troddence” and is famous as a prolific session artist with over 20 films and 50 independent works under his name as also a Laney Amplification endorsee.

He was awarded the “Best Guitarist of the Year” by Rolling Stones alongside 8 awards under Critic’s Choice & Popular Choice for the Album. This paved the way for international recognition for their own composition

by Chris Adler of Lamb of God & Alex Skolnick of the Testament. He is also known for past collaborations with Motherjane and an upcoming project “Floe”.

Aarabhy too remains a respected musician with innings as long as Varun’s which saw her perform and judge known cultural festivals in India like the BITS Goa Cultural Festival, JIPMER Cultural Festival Pondicherry, Anna University Cultural Festival Chennai, TAPMI Manipal Brand Scan Cultural Festival Bangalore to name some. She has in the past collaborated with the likes of Baiju Dharmajan Syndicate and was a featured artist with The Down Troddence. She was awarded the Best Guitarist by The Hindu, Chennai Live with past endorsements including IRET Guitar Enhancements.

With founders so accomplished, it was just a question of time before the

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academy too would show its mettle.

It started with a quality certification, the coveted ISO 9001:2015 followed by an international affiliation for examinations with the RSL Awards of the UK for Western Contemporary Music Examinations & Certifications.

Its community engagement initiatives have seen collaboration with accomplished musicians from Spain, U.S, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand besides those in India.

Expanding Horizons The Covid-19 pandemic did prove a

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dampener on the institute’s plans to develop and expand its activities. That said, they have learnt from it and are in the process of harnessing technology to further strengthen the existing online infrastructure for music education and services. Their Learning Management System is undergoing extensive restructuring and streamlining to cater to the increasing demand.

Curriculum development and assistive learning aids, their core focus areas shall be scaled up in the near future.

These besides, the institute is also

looking to create more platforms to increase community engagement through online and offline resources.

In the end, it all boils down to a thought which in the case of Trill Route Academy is: “Our students and the musical community that we help build, are like the music we make. They embody our commitment to our art & uphold our musical image in their own way. We love our people and are constantly inspired by their stories.” T R

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Music Educ a tion for M usic has been proven to have a powerful eect on the brain. Studies show that music can help many aspects of the brain. It also shows that music stimulates more parts of the brain than any other human activity. It can be said that music has healing powers and helps develop the brain.

Music is an important subject in school. Many schools have started eliminating this subject. The importance has been lost somewhere over the years and schools need to be reminded of it.

Music can give life changing lessons to the children. School days are the period that the children are groomed. Those years should be utilized fully and eďŹƒciently.

Music education for kids at a very young age can prove to be healthy. In some schools music is a part of their regular curriculum. Schools strive to mandate standard for them to gain necessary skills to obtain their choice of career. There are various beneďŹ ts of music education that schools should consider.

Brain Development Children engaging in music

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Children

leads to an improvement in their brain development. It is said that children who study art can learn to think creatively. This kind of thinking makes them learn to solve problems by thinking out of the box. It also makes children realize the number of answers that each problem might have.

Language Capabilities Students with musical training at early ages develop the part of the brain related to language and reasoning.

Children would have larger vocabulary and enhanced comprehension skills with musical training. In young children, the ability to learn words, pronounce them correctly and process NOVEMBER | 2020

Musical Powers

artistic ability tends to build the imagination capabilities of the children.

Teamwork

new sounds is made easier with music education.

or playing a particular instrument. The children learn to set aside time for practice. They tend to rise to the challenge of learning things with discipline.

Improved Memory

Stress Buster

Memorisation is a must in music learning. Students need to have the habit of memorising when it comes to singing or playing an instrument. There are notes, words, sounds, tunes, etc. that students should be able to memorise. The memory power becomes strong when they are acquainted with music education.

With all the academic stress, it becomes difficult for the children to find time to reduce their stress. Music is one of the key stress busters. By learning to play music or sing, the students find a way to relax and fight stress. Soothing music is helpful for relaxation.

Teaches Discipline Music teaches children to develop time management skills and discipline.

Music requires practice, be it singing NOVEMBER | 2020

Imagination Abilities

Music is always seen as a way of expressing individuality, however it is also teaches teamwork. Bands and orchestras need students to work in groups. There should be proper coordination and understanding among the team to deliver a worthy music piece. The tendency of working as a team remains as they are already practicing it.

Even after schooling and college, music remains to be a major part of peoples’ lives. Music has intangible powers of healing and development.

Indulging children into music at a young age can help them get through life in an easier manner. T R

Music in the early years of childhood fosters a positive attitude towards learning. It builds the curiosity and imagination power. It is said that

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THE 10 BEST T R

INSTITUTES IN INDIA, 2020

Urban Raga Instilling Interest in Indian and Western music

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he field of music has undergone a sea change over the decades. With the satellite boom and now the Internet boom, we are exposed to music in different parts of the world. While many genres of music kept emerging, the Indian classical music thrived despite various influences. It is not just being pursued in the country but abroad as well where many music enthusiasts are taking lessons from Indian maestros.

However, it has not been an easy task for the keepers of Hindustani Classical Music to stay afloat in a world and particularly in a generation, that is so influenced by everything Western, music not being an exception.

One such influencer is Bidyut Chakrabarty, Founder Director of Urban Raga, Music Educator and Pianist, who has been instilling interest in Indian and Western music.

The institute located in Bengaluru has quite some repute among keen learners and respect from fellow music afficionados. Chakrabarty has also created a niche for himself in the global education market.

History, Mission and Vision of Urban Raga Music School Urban Raga, Performing Arts and Learning Centre was founded in 2008 with the sole aim of creating awareness and interest of Indian and Western music which is

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We aim to teach music through a combination of online and at the centre. We are backed up by highly qualified teachers and quality Online Class materials videos tailored to suit interests of all age group.

very much prevalent in this modern culture.

The school has three centres in Bengaluru and is known to be most well reputed for its musical education in the region. It has students of all age groups and from all walks of life.

Expert Instruction What makes the school more unique and innovative is its involvement and integration with the system and syllabus of the Urban Raga School of Music, Bengaluru.

Urban Raga Performing Arts and Learning Centre expects the active support of all like-minded people to come forward to make our effort a

reality in the interest of preserving meaningful music for the future generation.

It teaches a range of musical subjects from, keyboard, piano, guitar, western vocal, Indian instruments, Indian vocal and much more.

Online Presence for Global Education The institute works with only the best, degreed music instructors, many of whom play for music bands and orchestras or perform with traditional groups. Background checks are conducted for all teachers.

Instructors teach students of all ages and skill levels from raw beginners to experienced piano players who want to take their performance to a higher level.

The Campus and the Academic Programs Urban Raga, Performing Arts and Learning Centre has its own state-of-the-art facility with all modern instruments at various locations within Bengaluru. It gave us great pleasure in introducing both Western and Indian music, helping people to pursue their quest in the field of music. Urban Raga is committed towards spreading the joy of music in a fun and fulfilling way by spreading its music school in Bangalore.

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advanced concepts, including some necessary for exploring nonwestern music, where student will learn the basics of Indian Classical Music Understanding Basic Music Theory is a more complete course, including introductory information on notation, basic and some advanced music theory concepts, and some of the physics underlying the concepts

The music program includes Sound Reasoning course for adults who have little training in music and would like to get more out of listening to music The Basic Elements of Music is an introduction, suitable for nonmusicians, to some of the basic concepts and terms used to discuss music Reading Music is a basic-level course on common music notation Special Subjects in Music Theory is an introduction to some more

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Kidsmuzik – Basic program for children (age 5 to 8 years). Music is fun for a beginner’s first class at Urban Raga as our teaching techniques are customized to suit the child’s need

Audition is must. Performed in group classes.

Drums and Tabla - One of our most popular and enjoyable subject is percussion.

Standing Apart What makes the school more unique and innovative is its involvement and integration with the system and syllabus. The Urban Raga School of Music expects the active support of all like-minded people to come forward to make our effort a reality in the interest of preserving meaningful music for the future generation.

Teaching all Age Groups

Regular course – Junior/grade musicians (Age: 9 years and above) Popular choices at this stage include Piano, keyboard, guitar and violin. The syllabus is based international curriculum.

For piano, keyboard or strings, one can start at the age of four years. For guitar, drums or vocal, one can start at the age of 7-8 years. For most other instruments one can start around the age of nine or so.

Theory of music – Theory class is also important as it helps in understanding music better. It is very important for students who want to pursue higher grades

About 20% students are adults. The criteria are a little different as adults move at their own pace.

Adults know the importance of practicing, so they are not going to hear the speech that the teachers normally reserve for some children.

Vocal/Choir - includes Hindustani/Carnatic/Western classical.

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Group Lessons There are group classes and ensembles for students who already play an instrument to a certain degree. Group lessons do not work well for beginners because the teacher has to divide his/her time to focus on one student at a time while the others sit and wait.

Private classes i.e. one to one for those who wish to learn independently are conducted. But it depends on the availability of music teacher and time.

course, students can start their own band, music production center., become teacher, work in performing arts and learning center. The certification program will help them take it to next level if they wish to further study music abroad.

About the Founder-Director

Why Urban Raga?

Bidyut Chakrabarty is a musician (piano, keyboard and tabla player), music educator and founder and director of Urban Raga. He received training in music at a very young age in vocal, tabla and piano and performed at several functions, stage shows, concerts as well TV shows. He is associated with many cultural activities and organized several campus, social and cultural events to promote music and arts.

The number one reason to consider studying music at The Urban Raga is the instructors who are patient, experienced teachers, inspiring, motivating mentors, professional performers and musicians who love to play music.

Private Lessons

students to perform in concerts are other reasons. Urban Raga is also a part of Western Classical Music forum for Teachers and many cultural activities, workshops, concerts are organized.

Other Highlights

Career Prospects After successful completion of the

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Besides, the environment, friendly and encouraging 'exam atmosphere' which is fun filled as well as professional. International certification, tie-up with Royal School of Music London and Trinity School of Music London, proper structured music lessons, giving chance to

International Certification, Course Collaboration with Associate Board of Royal School of Music London (ABRSM), LCM and Rock School of Music London.

Future Prospects Urban Raga is now Online Music Education destination across the globe.

The aim is to teach music through a combination of classes online and at the center with highly qualified teachers and quality online class materials, videos tailored to suit interests of all age groups. T R

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