His beat, her song

"This is it," says Vasundara Das, proudly waving her hand across the crowded space she calls her studio. Keyboards, a computer, a virtual music kit that can create as many as 50,000 sounds, a restored guitar, speakers and Roberto Narain in the middle of it all.
They call it The Active. Their very own creative space. The brand new third floor studio where Roberto, Vasundara and Arun jam. "We''re free to do anything we want in here," says Vasundara. One day it''s a Spanish composition, another day it''s a French song. Right now, it''s a project called Music is Colour, a 45-minute original composition by Roberto at 180 Proof on November 15.
The trio believe that despite the increasing influence of technology in the world of music, people still want to play live. "In an industry where technology is taking over musicians, we''re trying to reverse the process. We want to use technology to better our skills," explains Roberto.
Therefore, the emphasis of The Active is on playing live, but using technology to do that. "For the first time we will have the concept of visual graphics triggered based on what we play," he explains. All the machines there are interconnected and work through a MIDI — or musical instrument digital interface — that can produce the sounds of the tabla, flute or even the guitar. The sounds are accessed but are played live with the help of drumsticks or even the hand.
It also meant that for this project to take off, Vasundara needed to be in Bangalore. "I was in Mumbai then in Chennai. I then decided that I wanted to be here so I came back to Bangalore to work in the same business that I am in now. It''s important not to be stuck in a rut but to have your own creative outlet," she explains.
The studio was set up in March. "Roberto and I have been friends since college and I have been in touch with him. He used to play in the Christ College band along with his friend Arun. Twenty years later Rob and Arun met and decided to jam again. Today, we''re the core group at The Active."
Work is flexible as far as ideas and projects go and the trio manage themselves. Vasundara who took Flamenco and rhythm classes in Spain is now trying to focus on fusion music. Also, she and Arun have been restoring old guitars, which they find lying in homes or room corners. "Guitars sound better with age and we have someone in Chennai who restores them. This one''s our third," she points to a guitar sitting in the studio corner.
Right now, Vasundara is also thinking of getting into composing music. "You''d be surprised by all we can do in this studio."