Prayaas - music album release

Wish you a very happy festival of lights!

Welcome to the Diwali music release of my first album titled Prayaas. The album comprises six purely instrumental music pieces composed and rendered on FruityLoops software. Each of these short compositions was made long back in 2005-06 during my halcyon days at Rourkela. For close to six years they lay hidden in an old hard disk. Not any longer. There isn't any general theme to the album except that each piece took some serious effort from a novice musician whose knowledge of music is next to null. Hence the name "Prayaas" that loosely translates to "a try". Each track is very different from the others in terms of the image it invokes in the mind. I hope at least a tune or two strikes a chord with you!

Here are the tracks:

1. Village trail - 3:32 - download mp3

2. Just rock it - 2:12 - download mp3

3. Dark waters - 1:15 - download mp3

4. Spooky old fortress - 2:31 - download mp3

5. Arabian beauty - 2:25 - download mp3

6. DJ Lapresh - 0:58 - download mp3

Any feedback from the audience is most welcome :)

It's time to "celebrate" Diwali

Here's wishing you a very Happy Diwali.

Food for thought on the festival of lights (and crackers).

"Forced child labour is a grim reality at Sivakasi, the capital of the cracker industry in India. A documentary film released by a human rights organisation shows children employed in match and cracker making around Sivakasi. Children between the age group of four to fifteen years toil for upto ten hours a day. They work in extremely hazardous conditions with no fire fighting safeguards. Activists say established brands outsource their work to the unorganised sector in remote villages. According to estimates, at least 2000 children are being exploited this way for a paltry sum of Rs 10 to 40 a day... Local people blame it on poverty and alcoholism that drive parents to send their children for work. Mainstram companies say they've no control over this... It seems there's still a long way to go and till then the sound and sparkle of fireworks may carry the labour of a child"

[Quoted from http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20070031780&ch=11/5/2007%209:46:00%20PM]

Here's the news report from NDTV:

One can pontificate about celebrating a "green" and socially responsible Diwali by refraining from crackers. We could possibly succeed - to some extent - in reducing the decibel levels and the levels of sulphur dioxide and suspended particulate matter as compared to a normal Indian Diwali. The only problem is that these poor children get paid even less because of the drop in sales of fireworks. They eat even less than their usual meagre amounts. Their tormentors treat them ever more badly. All this while we in the cities feel good about how we are helping eradicate child labour.

Anyway, let's celebrate the festival of lights, the victory over evil, and uplifting of spiritual darkness. It's an individual's choice, how he/she defines "celebrate". Wish you happiness on Diwali and after.