Reena Esmail - Sun Sundar Sargam

Joel:

What did you dream about last night? Some people believe that when you dream of a night sky it represents your mind, and all the possibilities open to it, and that a starry night shows your hopes, dreams and aspirations. Like reaching for the stars!

What do you think your dreams are telling you?

This music, called Sun Sundar Sargam by Reena Esmail is inspired by dreams and the idea that sending your dreams out into the world might make them come true. You can imagine the stars link together, taking your dreams with them across the sky.

The lyrics to the music are in Hindi, one of the main languages of India, and translate as,

Listen to the beautiful melody

Weave the dream of achieving your dream

The world will sing your song

Listen to the beautiful melody

If you are quiet, then the echoes will arise.

Do you recognize the instrument that you can hear playing with the choir? It's a string instrument called the sitar, and you'll hear it a lot in Indian music.

Although this piece of music doesn't sound exactly like traditional Indian music, it is based on a traditional Indian Raga called Raag Yaman that came from North India. It's one of the first that people are introduced to when they start to learn Hindustani classical music.

Raga means something that colours your mind with feeling and emotion and can help you feel that the music is happy or sad, or many more emotions. Raag Yaman that this piece is based on, is performed in the evening and can help create a romantic feeling of calm at the end of a busy day.

Reena, tell me about the inspiration for this piece of music.

Reena:

So, when I was a kid, I knew that there was music inside of me and I didn't necessarily know how I would make that music come out into the world, but I just knew it was there.

And so, I think sometimes you look out into the world, and you see something, and you think, wow, I want to be like that. I'm going to follow that direction. I'm going to do that thing. I'm going to follow that path. And then other times you don't see what you want to be in the world, and that means that it's up to you to create it.

And that's what this piece is about, creating what you want to see in the world.

Joel:

Once you decided on the theme of the music, how did you get started?

Reena:

So sometimes I come up with a melody first. Sometimes I come up with some chords first. Sometimes I just ruminate on the words and what they mean to me, and somehow the music starts to flow.

Joel:

Can you tell us a bit more about the sitar and why you chose it for the piece?

Reena:

Oh, I love the sound of the sitar. To me, it sounds like the way I imagine the universe sounds. The sitar has 21 strings sometimes, but you only play on a couple of them and yet all of them vibrate with one another and create this beautiful thing that feels to me almost like the Milky Way.

Here you'll find that the singers and the sitar are in dialogue with one another, and they speak to one another, and they take turns leading and following one another.

When you're listening to this piece, I want you to feel that you can almost reach out and just touch the edge of the universe. I want you to feel that there are really no boundaries, and that, as far as you can see and beyond, is what's possible. When you listen to this piece, I want you to think about that furthest possibility and dream your way into it.

Joel:

What do you think your dreams sound like? Would they be peaceful and quiet, or would they be bold and loud? Would they sound like Reena Esmail’s piece? Have a think. What dream would you send out through the sky and into the world? Maybe it will come true!