Defining soundscapes in films

Re-recording is an art. Music director Anil Johnson, with loads of ad film experience behind him, has brought life to some of the recent hit films

April 16, 2014 06:41 pm | Updated May 21, 2016 11:41 am IST - kochi:

Anil Johnson says the sound in films should not be noise. Photo: K.K. Mustafah.

Anil Johnson says the sound in films should not be noise. Photo: K.K. Mustafah.

Anil Johnson visited the set of the film Memories to watch Prithviraj at work as the alcoholic police officer Sam Alex. Just to get a feel or “tempo” of the character in order to create the film’s background music.

Details about the film help set the music, the music director says. He emphasises the need for music to complement the story. For that to happen the music director needs to know the script, according to Anil. A luxury very few producers or directors might indulge in given the way the industry functions.

“In the West a music director gets a script with the director’s views in it,” he says. He speaks from the experience of having collaborated with Tarsem Singh and having arranged a score for the ABC series Lost and Italian film Door to Seven Stars .

His filmography in Malayalam with 3 Dots , Memories , Drishyam and Onnum Mindathey might not seem substantial, but he is an ad industry veteran. For the former two films he did the background score and composed music for the latter. The 41-year-old has composed jingles for corporate films and commercials such as Garnier Fructis, Dhathri, Popy, Seematti, Popular Finance, Jos Alukkas, Vythiri Resorts, Vanessa and Valero among others.

Music came to him as a youngster – learning the piano, singing in the choir at the Manjummel church and a radio ad when he was barely 16. The commerce graduate was part of the rock band Wrens and in 2000 also produced Chulli , possibly one of the first Malayalam music albums. The album featured George Peter, Biju Narayanan, Gayathri and Kester. “It was too ahead of its time,” he says.

Malayalam films, as music director, happened late. Not films though. He was keyboard player for music directors like Johnson, Rajamani and Bombay Ravi. The experience he holds close to his heart. From them he also learnt the need for silence and the transition to music from silence.

His eyes tear-up when he speaks of the late Johnson. “He told me to be myself as a musician. ‘Don’t compromise. Try to be yourself while making music.’ He told me my time would come. I wish he was around to listen to my work.”

With Memories things have changed for him, he agrees. Jeethu Joseph turned down a couple of music directors because they did not evince an interest in reading the script.

“I was pleasantly surprised when Anil expressed an interest in seeing the script. He put in a lot of hard work understanding the story and creating music that suited the film,” Jeethu says. A belief that sound/music enhances the film experience led him to Anil.

Anil’s explanation is that it helps him musically interpret the character. He talks about ambient music, camera angles and shots being underlined by music. This is where the sound script comes in. It defines a film’s sound, “it helps in working out the audio effects and the dialogues and making sure there is no clash.” He will also be working on the film’s Tamil version.

His use of live instruments such as violins and the cello, for Memories, has been appreciated. “And it has given violinists more opportunities in film orchestras,” he jokes,

“It has also made youngsters curious about how live instruments work.” Apart from live instruments he makes a strong case for the ‘human element’ in music.

“People want that perfect sound; digital music ensures there is no scope for the slightest imperfection or the human element. What is wrong if there is a scratch in the voice? It is human.”

This self-confessed ‘old school musician’ hopes to follow in the footsteps of his teachers and make songs that would be remembered.

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