Guitarist Keba Jeremiah needs no introduction to music aficionados. This constant in A.R. Rahman’s albums is sure to have the audience on its feet when he performs live at Mar Ivanios College at 5 p.m. on Friday.
Just back from Rahman’s ‘Intimate Tour’ of the U.S. where they did 18 shows over 30 days, Keba is excited about his gospel concert on Friday. “It carries a message of hope,” he says. Keba knows, for gospel music is what he grew up learning to play.
He is accompanied by 17 others, all of whom have been playing in a New Life Assemblies of God church since 2004. Keba has performed for almost all composers in the Tamil industry and has worked on some successful films in Tamil and Hindi such as Subramaniapuram and Rockstar . However, it is playing in the church on Sundays that gives him the greatest joy, he says.
But it is live shows that send his creative juices flowing. In a studio, Keba says, one works with a few people. “But on stage, we interact with an audience. The energy is matchless.”
Keba, who turned composer with the Tamil film Demonte Colony , has a few more films lined up. Scoring the music for a project is a world apart from working under a composer, he says. “An artist just comes and plays. You don’t understand the passion and responsibilities of a music director unless you become one. There is a lot of hard work involved.”Experiments
A lot of interesting experiments are happening in the Tamil industry, so it is a good time to be there, he says. Keba feels Kadal by A.R. Rahman is his best work till date because the tunes were very appealing. “It is important to remain updated, keep listening to new bands, new acts.” He has been listening to the English band Muse, among others. Keba swears by hard work, and his journey to success is testimony to the fact that it pays.
