JOIN USHaving sung with several of Bangalore’s finest choirs like the Christine Colaco’s Children’s Choir, Rhythm ‘N’ Groove and Glorious, she will soon be seen in a charity concert by the CSI Hospital. Rahael talked about her passion for music, her experiences as an artiste in Manhattan and her future plans.
Where did she get her musical inspiration from? “I come from a musical family. My influences have always been Western Classical,” she says. “My parents understood that and encouraged me to go for lessons as a kid,” she adds. Having started her training from the young age of six, did she find it difficult to balance her studies? “No. I was just into music. Studies were just something that I had to do on the side,” she says laughing.
Rahael, who finished her course from The American Musical and Dramatic Academy last
year and has been in New York since, narrates her experiences.
“The competition there is obviously very fierce. There is so much talent that if you make it to the stage, you are very lucky,” she says.
Recently, she played the role of ‘Belle’ in Eastlight Theatre’s production of Beauty and the Beast. She has also performed with the Peoria Area Civic Chorale. “My focus right now is to do as much as possible and get as many musical experiences as I can,” she says.
So does she see herself ever coming back to Bangalore? “Yes. In a few years, I do want to come back and teach music here,” she says. “I feel that the City lacks teachers who have a lot of experience in terms of singing, technique, performance as well as professionalism,” she adds. About her musical interests, she says, “I like almost everything, from classical, jazz to Broadway and gospel.” “I can’t sing heavy metal songs though,” she adds.
With a background in Western music, does she find it difficult to perform for the audience here? “Not really. Last time, I performed a lot of numbers from the Broadway musicals like Cats and The Phantom of the Opera, which people are aware of,’’ she says. “And also a lot of numbers that people hadn’t heard,” she adds.
“People in Bangalore appreciate good music. So they always give a good response during concerts,” she says. About the upcoming concert, she says that there will be a lot of jazz and pop songs.
“I pick my music based on the songs I like, not the artistes. I would be singing music from Michael Jackson, Evanescence, Eva Cassidy, Celine Dion, Snow Patrol and Beyoncé,” she says.