Arun Shenoy
Arun Shenoy is a Singapore-based songwriter and record producer of Indian origin. He made his production debut in 2010 with the debut record for American hard rock act, TANADRA. Co-written and also arranged by Arun, the music features TANADRA's powerful vocals on intense guitar-driven music, creating an alternative/hard rock. The Music Video for the lead track on the EP, titled "Danny," shot and directed in Poland by Grupa 13, recently won Ourstage's Hard Rock Music Video contest. TANADRA has also been active on Terrestrial and Internet Radio Stations throughout the US and UK, winning featured spots and Artist of the Month and Year contests.
Later in 2010, Arun also released his solo production debut, titled Sol, featuring music from his elaborate world-fusion project named Rhythm of the Sun. This ambitious project was recorded almost entirely live at various locations across the globe, and features a rainbow coalition of very talented musicians. The music brings together a marvelous range of musical styles - passionate flamenco guitar rhythms, blazing Celtic violins, intricate string arrangements, live vintage keyboards, and Latin percussion, all locked in by a solid rock & roll bass and drum groove. This fusion of eclectic and contemporary musical sensibilities makes for a unique and evocative musical experience.
Arun is currently working with the full length follow up to this EP which will be titled "Rhythm Of the Sun" and slated for release late 2011. He has recently put together a new alternative/ modern rock band SAGE. In addition to his usual role as co-producer, he also wields the guitar on this record. We caught up with Arun to discuss the role Sony Creative Software applications play in creating and producing his music.
Learn more at www.arunshenoy.com
Sony Creative Software: Arun, you've been quietly establishing a musical empire.
Arun Shenoy: Yes I have! I created Arun Shenoy Music Publishing (ASMP), registered in Singapore, where I live. The organization holds all my publishing rights as well as a growing roster of signed artists. And like most modern music companies, we handle all the work ourselves; produce, record, promote, whatever it takes! Soon we'll also launch our own boutique music distribution platform.
A sample project from TANADRA.
SCS: You've got a lot going on. How do our applications fit in the mix?
Arun Shenoy: I've been using ACID Pro exclusively for musical arrangements since I first discovered it, way back in the Spring of 1999 at ProMusicals, a distributor in Chennai, India. In fact it was this first encounter with a digital audio workstation that turned me on to a new way of making music, and, in turn, a new world of musical possibilities. I started exploring and developing an overall vision for my music instead of being limited to just playing the guitar (which was my primary instrument). The highly intuitive ACID Pro application combined full multi-track recording, MIDI sequencing and, of course, precise looping functionality, and that allowed me to own the creative workflow, from songwriting through to mixing and mastering. I was able to transform my abstract musical ideas into reality. I've been using Sony Sample libraries for years, and I've got quite a collection; so many of the loops are so excellent that they go straight to my final performance — you can hear many of them on my music.
Loops also help trigger new ideas in my playing. As I work through a library, I get inspired. Check out the Spanish guitar solo on TANADRA's "Take it Easy," or the various Latin percussion elements on my world music project — I've been digging deep into your Latin libraries! They're great.
I'm currently finalizing an Indian world beat project. It's something I created over a decade ago — I was inspired by your phenomenal World Pop sample library, produced by Bay Area producer Richard Michos. I'm re-producing and remixing the original release, and man, those World Pop samples still sound great.
SCS: Which of our applications have you been using the most?
Arun Shenoy: I'm still a big ACID Pro user. TANADRA, my production debut EP, was arranged and produced exclusively in ACID Pro 7. It contains some really complex sonic arrangements. ACID Pro made those happen.
Then there's my solo album SOL, again produced and arranged exclusively in ACID Pro 7. But I follow a different path on this recording — it's a world beat disk. ACID Pro's ease of use really made it possible for me to bring these sounds together.
I owe a lot to ACID Pro; a long time ago it opened up my mind to a whole new world of musical possibilities and, since then, there has no looking back. My foray into production would never have happened were it not for a chance encounter with ACID Pro and for this, I am eternally grateful.
