The man behind unforgettable flute tunes in songs like ‘Roja jaaneman’ (Roja, 1992), ‘Zara zara mehekta’ (Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein, 2001) and the Bombay theme (Bombay, 1995), Naveen Kumar along with Sony Music is all set for the release of his 4th album ‘Silence Is Bliss’. Featuring collaborations by global artistes such as Grammy Award-winning musician Pt. Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, ace percussionists Sivamani and Taku Hirano, Shillong Chamber Choir, pianist Stephen Devassy, the album promises to be one of his best works.
The music video of the title song, ‘Silence Is Bliss’ has been directed under the guidance of ace director and storytellerSubhashGhai where he got his Whistling Woods International, Film School students Director, Sunny Sharma and student cinematographers, Smita Nirmal and Richard Fernandez to shoot the video.
Adds on Naveen Kumar, “I am extremely happy with how this album sounds and I am sure my fans will agree with the same. Silence is Bliss is a getting together of the best sounds by different artists and I am very thankful for all those who have supported me. Even the video is magnificent and resonates what I want to express through my music”
‘Silence Is Bliss’ comprises of 7 beautiful tracks on which Naveen has played 9 specially designed flutes that have been invented by him. It is also the first time that he has used the famous and ingenious Naveen Flute, which combines the flute tone with the vibration of strings. On one of the tracks, one can also hear him play Western opera on the bansuri.
Naveen Kumar is based in Mumbai and is best known for his collaborations with Academy-Award winning music composer AR Rahman. A prolific recording artist, he has contributed immensely to the Hindi, Tamil and Telugu film industries. Apart from Indian flutes, Naveen is also proficient at playing rare and exotic varieties from across the world. He is the inventor of many unique wind instruments, the most renowned being The Naveen Flute, which combines the flute tune with the vibration of strings.
Naveen has released three albums previously: Flutetronics with Karsh Kale (2013), Café Fluid (2010), and Fluid (2006).
His long association with Rahman has delivered numerous musical gems in the past two decades, some of them being the acclaimed soundtracks for films such as Roja (1992),Bombay (1995),Dil Se (1998),Raanjhanaa (2013) and Highway (2014), among many others. Naveen has also worked with several other famed music directors in Indian cinema, such as Ilayaraja, Pritam, Shankar-Ehsaan- Loy, Sajid-Wajid and Salim Sulaiman. He has also collaborated with the celebrated fusion maestro John McLaughlin on his 2008 album, titled Meeting Of The Mind.
A widely touring international artiste, Naveen has performed at some of the most prestigious venues around the globe. Some of his most memorable concerts include those at Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles; with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London; at Commonwealth Games 2010, in Delhi,; and recently, for The President Of India Shri Pranab Mukherjee.
Besides being an ace musician, he is also a collector of flutes from around the globe. His collection boasts of instruments from countries such as Armenia, Scotland, Switzerland, China, South Africa and USA.
The album will be officially released on Sunday, September13th by Grammy Award winner A R Rahman in Delhi at The Nest- Qurab Golf Course.