Sivamani may mark 60th birthday with new album

Drumming maestro A. Sivamani says he has lots of original tracks with him and might just compile them and release an album on his 60th birthday on December 1.

The percussionist has worked on various Hindi films like "Taal", "Roja", "Rang De Basanti", and collaborated with a lot of artistes including Zakir Hussain, A.R. Rahman and Hariharan. After the launch of his first solo album "Mahaleela" over a decade ago, he might unveil another one later this year.

"I am just working on singles. I might compile them because I have lots of tracks with me. Maybe I will launch it on my birthday," Sivamani told IANS in a telephonic interview.

"It will be on my beautiful journey, my travel and soulful music," added the artiste, who received the Padma Shri -- India's fourth highest civilian honour -- this year.

Talking about his 60th birthday, he shared: "I always celebrate my birthday at an orphanage in Mumbai. I will be playing special music for them with my colleagues."

For him, every performance, whether it is in Mumbai, Madurai, Dubai, Moscow or New York, is a different one.

"Every stage is different for me," he shared. For instance, Sivamani, who has been long associated with HARMAN, a premium audio and connected technologies company, recently performed at the HARMAN Live Arena, PALM Expo 2019 in Mumbai.

The show was more like a tribute to the legendary composer R.D. Burman. It was his take on some of the classic tunes of Burman.

"It was my dream to play with R.D. Burman," shared the frequent collaborator of Rahman.

Among his various projects, Sivamani said he is working with Rahman on more songs.

"I don't know which movie, but there are some tracks and concerts also," said Sivamani, who made his debut as a feature film music composer with the Tamil movie "Arima Nambi" in 2015.

"It's great working with him (Rahman). He is a genius. We grew up together. My son studied in Rahman's KM Music Conservatory first and now he is working with A.R. as an engineer and programmer," said the proud father.

Sivamani began his music career when he was just 11 years old, and he wants his next generation to continue the legacy.

"This is the only job that I focussed on. I live for music and die for music. My next generation will carry on the music," he concluded.

(Natalia Ningthoujam can be contacted at natalia.n@ians.in)

--IANS

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