In an exciting piece of news for music enthusiasts, Veteran composer Ilaiyaraaja has accepted the request of AR Rahman to compose something for Firdaus, an all-woman orchestra founded by him.
AR Rahman also shared a picture of himself with Ilaiyaraaj on Sunday at the studio of Firdaus in Dubai. The announcement has created a buzz among the fans of two legends.
The picture was shared by Rahman on his official Twitter account with the caption, “Such a pleasure welcoming the Maestro @ilaiyaraaja to our Firdaus Studio… Hope he makes something amazing for our @FirdausOrch to play in the future.”
Here is the link to the post-
Responding to this, Ilaiyaraaj wrote, “Request accepted. Will start composing soon.” Firdaus studios, in a response to the announcement by Ilaiyaraaja, said that they can’t wait and anything is possible.
Ilaiyaraaja is a renowned lyricist and singer in the Tamil film industry. He is also considered the most prominent Indian music composer and is credited for bringing Western musical sensibilities to the South Indian film industry.
To date, Ilaiyaraaja has composed more than 7,000 songs and has performed in more than 20,000 live concerts. The legendary composer has also been awarded five National Film Awards, three for best music direction and two for best background score.
He bagged the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2012 for his experimental and creative endeavours in the music field. The award is the highest Indian honour offered to artists. Ilaiyaraaja has also been awarded the Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan awards in 2010 and 2018 respectively.
Firdaus includes women from different parts of the globe and is known for performing both classical pieces and fusion music. Another thing that sets Firdaus apart from other orchestras is that it utilizes conventional eastern instruments like the Sitar, Darbuka and Buzuq alongside Western instruments.
