In this conversation , the exceptionally talented Mohini Dey talks about it all – she narrates little anecdotes from her childhood , addresses her love for fashion , the choices she had to make in order to get where she is today and much more , that helps us better understand how she does what she does and how she keeps her passion alive .
Read on to know more .
In this conversation , the exceptionally talented Mohini Dey talks about it all – she narrates little anecdotes from her childhood , addresses her love for fashion , the choices she had to make in order to get where she is today and much more , that helps us better understand how she does what she does and how she keeps her passion alive .
Read on to know more .
What is your earliest memory of music ?
It ’ s very stunning but I remember everything from my childhood . Both my parents are musicians – my mom sings and my dad is a bass player . Every time I would come back from school or every time I would wake up , there would always be music playing . So I clearly remember that music was always floating around me . I have these vivid picture memories of my dad practising and after he was done , we would go and eat crab together , because I love crab . These memories are still so fresh in my head , that when I think about it , I feel like I ’ m right there .
How did you end up playing the bass ?
One day my father was practising and he happened to put his headphones around my ears , and I started giving the right tempo . I was only three years old then . That ’ s when it occurred to him that there was no girl bass player in the country and he decided to start teaching me . He started teaching me on a hand made bass . Since we weren ’ t so financially strong then , he cut pieces of wood and took out pick ups from his old bass and made me a smaller bass . I seriously started taking lessons when I was six and by the age of nine , I was already playing .
What was the first song you ever composed ?
The first ever song I composed is a song called Soul . I wrote it almost 5-6 years ago . Though I perform it at my gigs , I haven ’ t released it yet . This is because there are so many musicians that I ended up working with in the past few months and I want them to play on my album . Having these amazing personalities play on my album will make a very huge difference . So I ’ m just waiting for the right moment .
When you create music , is there a specific process that you follow ?
Usually , when I ’ m travelling , I end up composing a lot . This is because while travelling , I listen to a lot of music and ideas just come . So when they do , I pause the music , take my time and just build on the groove or the melody that come to me after listening to a particular song or piece . Usually , the first the thing that comes to my mind is the melody . Then I lay down the chord changes and then the groove . Sometimes the groove comes first too and then I try to come up with the melody and changes over that . So it ’ s just mostly trial and error every time . I also make sure to listen to all kinds of music and not just limit my self to one specific genre , so that all my music doesn ’ t sound alike .
Which songs / artists do you usually like listening to ?
Apart from the songs of all the bands that I ’ m a part of , I like listening to Bruno Mars , George Benson , Al Jarreau , Chaka Khan , Chic Corea , Victor Wooten and many more . But before going to sleep and after waking up , there is one song in particular that I love listening to – it ’ s called Ordinary People by John Legend , but I listen to the George Benson and Al Jarreau version of it . There ’ s another song by them called All I Am , which I absolutely love listening to .
The Score Magazine
Photo Courtesy : Dipit Raz , Dipit Photography highonscore . com
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