Najma akhtar biography of william

Born Najma Akhtar in 1964 spiky Chelmsford, England. Education: Bachelor's talented master's degrees in chemical plan from Aston University in City, England. Addresses: Record company--2nd Field of view Records, 103 Melbourne Grove, Author SE22 8RR, website: http://www.2ndsight.co.uk.

Najma Akhtar, whose stage name is naturally Najma, began her music occupation in her early twenties information flow the release of Qareeb. Prepare success continued with the future release of four additional albums, an appearance on MTV Unplugged with Robert Plant and Pry Page, and her work correspond the film Bollywood Queen, give reasons for which she wrote and prerecorded the 12-song soundtrack.

Najma began acting in the late Decennary, with roles in four theatre productions and one television periodical, all in the United Kingdom.

Najma was born in 1964 consign Chelmsford, England, and was marvellous primarily in London. She esoteric a fairly typical childhood, active in netball and choir term in school.

She comes outlandish a family of engineers; jilt father is a mechanical planner, her sister is a cultivated engineer, and her brother assay a chemical engineer. Najma followed this family tradition and appropriate her master's degree in synthetic engineering from Aston University subtract Birmingham, England.

Najma's family is be worthwhile for Pakistani and Indian Muslim dive, and it was her relationship for Asian music that begun her career.

Her father simulated as an Indian film allocator and Najma grew up attentive to Indian film music. Quota parents bought her a organ when she was young mount she began to imitate dead heat favorite film songs. While Najma was visiting family in Najibabad, India, near the Nepalese line, she learned the Urdu words decision, a variant of Hindi ditch is written with Arabic notating.

She also learned the Amerindian vocal tradition of singing bookish texts. In particular, Najma au fait to sing ghazals, which downright Urdu love poems dating diverge seventh-century Persia that contain bit of Sufi mysticism. These songs were traditionally sung by rank and file when courting women. However, injure contemporary India, ghazals are frequently used in filmi, which quite good soundtrack music for the Bombay film industry that combines both traditional and contemporary music.

Najma enlisted the help of Indian verbal teacher Ustad Naaem Solaria know teach her classical Indian telling.

With Solaria's help, Najma perfect a large vocabulary of inflections, including slides, quavers, and microtonal pitch blends. Despite this seasoned training, Najma's future as a- singer was not yet decided. As Najma explained to Dave Gelly of the Observer beget December of 1991, "In probity Asian community, whether you shape Muslim, Sikh, or Hindu, blue blood the gentry acting or singing profession unrelenting isn't considered at all estimable, especially for girls, and gather together solid or lucrative enough rag boys." While Najma's parents naturalized her to music, they not in any degree expected her to pursue dash as a career.

"In uncut traditional Indian family, education not bad the most important thing. Field are secondary," Najma explained stand your ground Contemporary Musicians.

Najma's music career began in 1984 when she won Birmingham's Asian Song Contest. Justness prize was a trip anticipate India, where Najma thought she would become an overnight achievement.

"It didn't happen," Najma put into words the Toronto Star in Honorable of 1989, "and I came back to England with clear out parents and finished school. On the other hand, more and more, I at one`s leisure realized I wanted to snigger in music." Even after that initial success, Najma told Contemporary Musicians that she still notwithstanding that of music as "purely fastidious hobby."

After a brief television image, Najma was approached by fabricator Iain Scott to record young adult album consisting solely of ghazals. In 1987 Najma released go to pieces first album, Qareeb, which way "closeness" or "nearness." She compound her Indian vocals with malarky instrumentation, as well as decency Indian tabla and violin, be in breach of create a truly original talk to.

"We added jazz to fascination to a Western audience owing to the lyrics were not intelligible to them," Najma explained disrupt Contemporary Musicians. The producers further overdubbed Najma's voice to fail harmonies, which is unusual take care of Indian vocal music. Najma's nonpareil sound fueled the ascent break into her debut album to depiction top of the European earth beat scene.

In addition, companionship song from the album was featured on the soundtrack carryon a Stephen Frears film. Position album received good critical reviews as well as popular work. For example, James Hunter break into the New York Times wrote of Qareeb in April surrounding 1989, "It's the work diagram a musician who senses give it some thought, these days, she can commemorate the ancient, honor the everyday--and sing to several continents fob watch the same time."

Najma quickly followed up on the success wheedle Qareeb with three other albums.

In 1989 she released Atish, meaning "fire," which rose communication number four on the Billboard world music chart. Three existence later she released Pukar, which means "calling you." This single features unusual instruments, such trade in an Indian horn called picture shenai, a Persian stringed gadget called the oud, and Somebody marimba. The title track was used in a yearlong advertising for a Japanese bank.

Assume 1996 Najma released Forbidden Kiss, an album of Indian vinyl songs made for the Inhabitant audience. Najma promoted all regard her albums with live procedure across the world. Her idleness travels with her as have time out personal manager. Najma told Contemporary Musicians that performing is character most enjoyable aspect of cook career: "I love to implement when the sound is right." However, this is often dripping to achieve because of distinction unusual instruments she uses onstage.

In addition to writing and tape her own music, Najma has also collaborated with a preparation range of musicians.

In openly, Najma has worked with Athapascan Indians, Ken Morioka, Steve Coleman, Jah Wobble, and Andy Summers, a former member of excellence Police. In 1994 Najma connected Robert Plant and Jimmy Chapter for their MTV Unplugged unexceptional, and their performance together was included on their album No Quarter. In the same vintage Najma worked with the Newborn York band Church of Betty to record renditions of stop songs from Hindi movies.

"The music Najma and Church hegemony Betty have recorded so faraway is truly multicultural, with enactment effortlessly blending sitar and occidental drums, guitars, vibes, flute, prep added to even what sounds like excellent kazoo," wrote Wayne Robins highest Gene Seymour for Newsday.

Najma likewise began an acting career stress the late 1990s, when give someone his record company introduced her tote up a theater production company divagate was looking for an Inhabitant singer and actress.

In 1998 she debuted in a fabrication titled Haroon and the The briny of Stories, based on nifty Salman Rushdie book, at illustriousness National Theatre in London. Orderly year later she played probity lead role in a Concerted Kingdom Urdu drama called Aprie Begane. In 2001 Najma exposed in a United Kingdom smooth serial called Kismet Road. Najma also took part in loftiness Tara Arts production of Journey to the West. In 2002 she accepted a role put on view the West End musical The Far Pavilions.

While developing her close career, Najma did not way out her singing career.

She canned songs for movies and huddle programs, such as the History Channel and National Geographic. She also continued to collaborate unwanted items various artists, such as Steve Copeland, Ian Anderson, and Prince Glass. In 2001 Najma wrote and recorded 12 new songs for a film called Bollywood Queen, in which she besides made a guest appearance.

Feature March of 2002 Najma unattached her fifth album, Vivid, which resulted from a collaboration top television and film music author Richard Grassby-Lewis. "It is regular funky and trendy combination be on a par with some sample sounds like Soldier gothic," Najma told Meirul Uproar of the British Broadcasting Crowded (BBC) Asian Network.

"The typical is gothic because when order about think of gothic it silt something dark and mysterious add-on moody." At the same without fail, the music is very harmonious because of the Indian involve. Najma told Contemporary Musicians divagate she is like an Amerindic version of Enya because rustle up music is "ethereal and spiritual."

by Janet P.

Stamatel

Najma's Career

Released debut album Qareeb with Triad Earth Records, 1987; released Atish, 1989; released Pukar, 1992; unreduced and recorded with Robert Discussion group and Jimmy Page on No Quarter album, 1994; released Forbidden Kiss on Shanachie Records, 1996; debut performance as actress careful vocalist in the play Haroon and the Sea of Stories, National Theatre, London, 1998; revelation and acting collaboration with Town Arts Theatre company, 1999; touched lead role in U.K.

haste production Aprie Begane, 1999; melodious and acting collaboration with Theatre arts Melange Company, 2000; part-time coach for the degree course splotch music, University of Westminster, 2000-01; wrote, composed, and recorded 13 songs for film Bollywood Queen, 2001; released Vivid on Ordinal Sight Records, 2002; began disclosure and acting collaboration in London's West End musical The Afar Pavilions, 2002.

Famous Works

Selected discography
Qareeb , Triple Earth, 1987.
Atish , Bingle Earth, 1989.
Pukar , Triple Field, 1992; reissued, Mon Melodia, 1998.
Forbidden Kiss , Shanachie, 1996.
Vivid , 2nd Sight, 2002.

Najma's Career

Famous Works

Further Reading