They’re established artists in their own right. But, a professional rapport aside, their partners in crime are often their partners in business! On World Music Day today; we get chatty with eminent siblings-musicians who’ve made a mark — as a team or even otherwise. With inspiration and competition under the same roof, how does one learn to sync? We delve deeper...
Matthew Harris and Nathan Lee Harris, brothers of Galeej Gurus fame, can’t really remember a time when they weren’t around each other. “Being twins, we were together — the same class, college... There’s brotherly love, but when it comes to music, the focus is on creating good music and only that. Being on the same page helps as it makes us more aware of each other’s opinions,” begins Matthew, the bass guitarist of the band.
Speaking of ways they sort out creative differences, Matthew adds, “We find a common ground, and spend time together while creating music — rehearsing, writing and practicing music — nothing personal.” Vouching by how having having similar interests works. “We share the same love for the same kind of music. Of course, we argue a lot. But, eventually we have grown to respect each others opinions. Not many people get to see twins performing together in the same band, so we have developed a unique identity.”
Guitarists cum brothers Gaurav Vaz and Geeth Vaz may not have collaborated a lot together, but Geeth attributes a lot of his learning to Gaurav. “We have different bands to look into. Gaurav manages Raghu Dixit and I manage Lagori now. But, my main inspiration to take to the guitar came from Gaurav. He’s given me a great deal of insight and we have performed a couple of temporary English acts together in the past,” opines Geeth.
While there’s incomparable comfort that comes with performing with a sibling, the need to enrich a vision is the driving force, believes musician Sanjeev Thomas, founder of Rainbow Bridge, most known for his work as a lead guitarist for Oscar-winning composer, A.R Rahman in the past. He says, “Music is a gift. It is a medium of intense expression and creativity. Regardless of whether you’re siblings or not, music should ideally not be treated as a competition of skill or knowledge, rather be an amalgamation only to enrich a vision. Most of the time in music, everything is personal. Yet to be professional is to understand your role and play it well.” He often performs with his brothers Dilip and Rajeev. Dilip, too believes that a musician should adhere to the situation he is put into, while blending seamlessly. “One of the biggest things I’ve learnt from performing with my brother is to truly understand my own vision and blend the influences of the band in the best ways possible.”
