AmAzInG fAcTs AbOuT STEPHEN....

THE BELOW ARE SOME QUESTIONS ASKED TO STEPHEN AND HIS ANSWERS FOR IT DURING AN INTERVIEW CONDUCTED BY A FM STATION (Radio Mango 91.9) IN KERALA ON 15/02/0

•  If Stephen is going to give a Oscar for A.R Rahman which song will    you prefer?             
  

           VANDE MATARAM...

• Why you are not coming to te field of music direction...?
  

          Actually i really will do it in future and i have got high confidence for doing it...

• Someone that you are inspired of...?
  

          Adnan Sami

 

• Number of keyboards at Stephen's home?
  

          12

• Maximum number of keyboards used in a single show?
  

          6

• You love someone?
  

          ya...

• Nickname?
  

          (Actually i know the answer for that but i am not publishing it in this                             post...hi..hi..)

• Something which you want always on your dining table?
  

          Pickle....

• Mohanlal or Mamooty
  

          Sorry i cant answer that one..

• One favourite movie which you like to watch?
  

          Patana Pravesham...

• Your looks resembles M.S Dhoni...?
  

        Actually a lot of people commented the same... even Dhoni said the same to                me once when             we met for a function in Chennai,that we both look                         alike...

• Are you conscious about your body..?
  

          Yes,but usually i dont get time for all those...

• Will you get angry?
  

          Ofcourse i will get angry,but will control it seeing the environment....

• What about your cooking skills..?
  

          Well,I cook omlete,noodles,tea....

• What qualities you want in your life partner...?
  

           She should have a lot of Patience....

 

StEpHeNs ShOw in CHENNAI

The Shakti Foundation presents the 18th annual fundraiser ‘Ghananjani’, a fusion music concert.

Artistes Zakir Hussain (tabla); U. Shrinivas (mandolin); Sivamani (percussion); Dominique Di Piazza (bass guitar); and Stephen Devassy (keyboard) will take part. The event will be held at 6.15 p.m. on February 21 at the Music Academy. Parking is available at St. Ebbas too. The proceeds will be used to purchase two ventilators and a dialysis machine for the rural underprivileged.

Donor passes are available at The Shakti Foundation, 9, Manikeswari Road, Kilpauk. For details and bookings, call 26611213 / 99529-88499.

The ReX BAnD

Taking their name from the King of kings, Jesus, the band fuses together a host of music styles including elements of Indian classical and folk music as well as other popular sounds of the younger generation to evolve its own style of contemporary Christian music

The Band
Over 25 professionals active in various fields with a distinctive talent in music dare to call themselves The Rex Band in honor of the King of Kings, Jesus Christ. Experiencing the joy of liberating Christian Music themselves, the band came together with a commitment to take this gift of quality Contemporary Christian Music and it's message to the new generation.

The Music
With musicians from such varied backgrounds like Indian classical or western classical to rock, pop and rap, the band has evolved a unique style over the past ten years. A rich mix of various streams of music and its trademark fusion tracks. Not surprisingly, The Rex Band has opened up new and ethnic elements in Contemporary Christian Music in India.

The Roots
Evolving out if a life-changing encounter with Jesus through the Jesus Youth movement, the band members are comfortable in using styles of the younger generation to reach out to today's urbanized youth through music albums, stage shows and encounter programs. The band members get together regularly for practice and to deepen themselves in the Word of God.

The Ministry
Beside the mega 3 hour shows, the band also considers its Retreats for musicians, Music skill development programs for budding talents and life encounter programs as vital elements of its call. The band strongly believes that the music becomes relevant only when its quality and message brings about a genuine change of heart.

The Shows
The typical 3-hour Rex Band show is a mega extravaganza with psychedelic lights and powerful sound including music, presentations, choreography and theater performances by Living Vision, a premier Christian theater initiative. It works in tandem with the band to present the message of Jesus in a powerful and attractive way. Right across India, The Rex Band has performed over 500 shows opening up the hearts of young people to a new life in Christ.
Realizing that quality contemporary Christian music is scarce in the Indian music scenario, the band has endeavored to reach out music lovers through it's 11 albums in various languages. Roses in Winter, the latest album showcases the trademark sounds of the band from popular music to experimental fusion music.

CHETANA MUSICAL ACADEMY,THRISSUR-KERALA

Its from this place that stephen learned his basic lessons of piano from Fr. Thomas Chakkalamattath CMI

from here he met FRANCO a well known singer in south. They combined and created a band called BAND SEVEN which is the first Indipop band from India.... and from there STEPHEN kept on advancing....

Composer A.R. Rahman on the Sounds of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ and Being M.I.A.’s Idol

In India, fans love A.R. Rahman almost as we love David Archuleta — and he's reportedly sold a few more albums: 100 million records and 200 million cassettes. A huge pop star in South Asia, he's famous for scoring Indian classics like Roja and Lagaan (among the dozens of other films) — and he's recently begun to cross over into Hollywood with Elizabeth: The Golden Age and Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Bombay Dreams. We spoke with him about his Slumdog Millionaire score — which Fox Searchlight is pushing for an Oscar — and his collaboration with M.I.A.
How’d you hook up with Danny Boyle?

I literally had to leave another film to do this. When Danny met me, he said, “I’ve heard a lot of your stuff’ and he talked about it. That’s about the first time I’ve heard a compliment from a Western director, apart from Andrew Webber. He’s a good human being.
Was it different working with him than a Bollywood director?

Usually, it’s very different. Danny used my stuff in a very different way. I really loved the film, so I would compose pieces to fit the images, so I would do a lot of templates. With this, there’s not many cues in the film. Usually a big film has 130 cues. This had just seventeen or eighteen: the end credits, beginning credits, that stuff.
What were you going for?

A lot of things. I had to do stuff from modern India, eighties Hindi film soundtracks, mixing modern India and the old India.
What did Boyle suggest?

He wanted something very pulse-y. He said he hated sentiment, hated cello. No cellos! He said, “Never put a cello in my film” — he was funny. I worked fast, like him. It took two months of planning, two weeks of completing. Usually it takes six months with the musical films I’m doing in India.
The soundtrack really drives the film. That seems like something Boyle has in common with Bollywood. Do you think so?

What’s good about [Boyle] is that he likes how Indian films mix music. You push it and it comes out. We wanted it edgy, upfront. He said every piece of music was going to be a piece by itself. Normally some directors suppress music — they always want the effects to be loud and the music to be softer. Danny wanted it loud.
And you worked with M.I.A. on a new track.

We met before but never worked before. M.I.A., she’s a real powerhouse. Somebody played me her CD and I thought, Who’s this girl? She came here and knew all my work, had followed my work for ages. I said "Cut the crap," this "my idol" crap. You have to teach me. We started working in India, then we e-mailed the track back and forth. She did the vocals in England. I did the rest in India.
How does the film’s Mumbai compare to the real thing?

For me, it’s not about India at all. It’s about human emotion, how we suppress so much and it all comes out. It’s a human film, not about India at all. The soundtrack isn’t about India or Indian culture. The story could happen anywhere: China, Brazil, anywhere. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire is on in every damn country.