Few
personalities
have
really
defined
how
blissful
it
is
to
be
associated
with
music.
Maestro
ilayaraja
is,
without
doubt,
one
amongst
them
when
it
comes
to
the
Indian
Film
Fraternity.
Over
30
years
of
filmdom,
he
has
endeavored
fetching
great
honors
for
Indian
film
music.
Yesterday(June),
this
wizard
celebrated
his
67th
birthday
and
it"s
really
worthwhile
to
know
things
about
him
that
come
down
the
memory
lane.
He
who
had
brought
a
new
whiff
of
air
was
gifted
with
magic
that
could
soothe
one"s
ear.
This
unique
person
is
an
amalgamation
of
folk,
carnatic
and
Western
Music.
He
is
a
gold
medalist
from
the
Trinity
College
of
Music,
London.
He
has
composed
music
for
more
than
4500
songs.
ilayaraja
came
at
a
time
where
there
was
heavy
stagnation
in
the
Tamil
film
industry.
He
entered
the
scenario
in
mid
70s
and
his
compositions
gave
a
fresh
lease
of
air.
The
first
film
for
which
he
composed
the
music
was
for
the
film
was
Annakilli
and
the
sing
was
Annakilli
Unnai
Thedudhe.
The
authentically
folk
song
was
soon
heard
in
every
nook
and
corner
in
Tamil
Nadu.
Even
today,
this
song
is
refreshing
and
nostalgic.
He
stabilized
himself
as
a
music
composer
through
the
film
Kavi
Kuyil(1977).
ilayaraja
has
three
rudiments
in
him.
,
the
first
is
the
folk
music
of
the
Tamils,
such
as
the
labors
and
March
songs.
The
second
is
Carnatic
music
and
the
third
European
classical
music.
There
was
folk
music
earlier
but
ilayaraja
brought
it
in
with
its
soul,
with
its
earthy,
rooty
characteristics.
He
used
authentic
instruments
like
tharai
and
thappattai
(drums).
In
many
films
he
has
demonstrated
his
skill
over
Carnatic
music,
handling
some
difficult
ragas.He
started
learning
western
classical
music
very
speedily
when
he
came
to
Chennai
is
search
of
his
bread.
ilayaraja
in
hid
first
audition
in
1968
played
the
piece
Laura's
theme
from
the
film
Dr.
Zhivago
on
his
harmonium.
,
in
1989
after
dominating
the
film
music
scene
for
a
decade,
he
brought
out
his
first
independent
album
"How
To
Name
It" in
which
he
established
his
mastery
in
fusion
music.
In
cinema,
a
good
music
composer
is
not
necessarily
a
good
music
director.
ilayaraja's
knowledge
of
cinema
is
obvious
in
his
background
scores,
which
add
a
new
dimension
to
it.
He
pays
closer
concentration
to
this
characteristic
as
few
have
done
before.
He
watches
the
film
fully,
grasps
the
basic
thrust
of
the
film
and
adds
appropriate
musical
score
in
the
soundtrack.