Arjun Chandy

Arjun Chandy in studio

Arjun Chandy is an Indo-American singer, arranger, studio vocalist and vocal group coach from Dallas, Texas.^[1] He is trained in Carnatic, Hindustani and Western music that he studied and performed for over twenty years throughout the United States, India and Singapore.

Career

Chandy hails from a family of artists of all kinds, whether it be professional singers and musicians within Carnatic and Hindustani art forms, or scholars in the world of cinema.^[1] His infant years were spent heavily immersed in Indian classical music. During his school days, he learned to read music and studied music theory, joining the school choir.^[1] According to him, it helped to understand western classical music. When Chandy was 14, he started singing for a quartet in middle school.^[1] He attended the renowned University of North Texas music school, where he studied choral music and jazz studies.

At the age of 15, after getting involved in the world of jazz, he started working professionally, conducting and arranging music for groups in United States. Later, he became a part of The Vocal Majority in the U.S., an international award-winning vocal group.^[1] Arjun Chandy was roped in the formation of "NAFS- The Band"^[2] when A. R. Rahman called him to Chennai at the end of 2013. Chandy is presently the band's director and conductor.^[3] He spent a year post 2013 to train the band.^[4][5] While working the States, he also was a frequent guest professor, coach, and lecturer at many universities and music school. He credits his desire to teach from his grandmother who taught Carnatic music for many years, and his father, who is a professor of Finance.

In an interview with Seychelles News Agency, Chandy was quoted saying, "Rahman always wanted to put together a vocal band of sorts, because he loves vocal groups and harmonies, not necessarily a capella but just the sound of a group singing, even if it's a large choir, if there's vocal harmony, he's a big fan of jazz and all these things."^[3]

Year	Title	Song(s)	Media(s)	Role(s)	Co-artist(s)	Reference(s)
2013	Global Rhythm: Blueprints from Across the World	N/A	Concert	Singer, Dialect	N/A	[6]
2014	Lingaa	N/A	Film soundtrack	Backing vocals	N/A	[7]
2015	Tamasha	"Tu Koi Aur Hai"	Film soundtrack	Singer	A. R. Rahman, Alma Ferovic	[8]
		N/A		Choir conductor	Madras Musical Association Choir	[9]
	Muhammad: The Messenger of God	N/A	Film soundtrack	Choir supervision Backing vocals	Adam Creig	[10]
2016	24	"24 Carat"	Film soundtrack	Singer	N/A	[11]
	Mohenjo Daro	"Whispers of the Heart"	Film soundtrack	Singer	-	[12]
		"Whispers of the Mind"

References

1. "Music, a numbers game". The Hindu. 2015-08-20. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
2. "A R Rahman launches the first video of his new band NAFS". The Hindu. 2015-08-12. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2015-10-14.
3. Amla, Hajira (2000-01-01). "Seychelles: Too Jazzy for Indian Audiences? A.R. Rahman's Vocal Group Nafs Performs At Seychelles India Day Musical Gala". Seychelles News Agency (Victoria). Retrieved 2015-10-13.
4. "A. R. Rahman - The Official Site". www.arrahman.com. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
5. "AR Rahman's Band NAFS First Video Out | Soundbox". www.soundbox.co.in. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
6. "The University of Vermont Symphony Orchestra conducted by Yutaka Kono and Srinivas Krishnan, Marsh Professor-at-large" (PDF). The University of Vermont Symphony Orchestra. www.uvm.edu. April 10, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
7. "Lingaa (tracklist) - A. R. Rahman - The Official Site". www.arrahman.com. Retrieved 2015-10-14.
8. "Tamasha (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by A. R. Rahman on iTunes". iTunes. Retrieved 2015-10-14.
9. "A. R. Rahman - The Official Site". www.arrahman.com. Retrieved 2015-10-29.
10. "Muhammad (SAL) — Original Soundtrack - A. R. Rahman (Official website)". www.arrahman.com. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
11. "EROSNOW - Music Album:24 Songs & Soundtrack - Musician: A.R. Rahman". www.erosnow.com. Retrieved 2016-05-17.
12. "Music Review: Mohenjo Daro". filmfare.com. Retrieved 2016-12-01.