R D Burman and His Orchestration Improvisations: Vocal Experiments

Guest article by Ashok M Vaishnav

(We are celebrating 2025 as the year of RD Burman. He was acknowledged for his improvisations in sounds. Our guest author Ashok M Vaishnav has already covered his instrumental improvisations in percussion, string and blow (or wind) instruments. An important part of RD Burman’s orchestral improvisations was his novel vocal experiments. Ashok ji explains that these usages were different from the widely used chorus accompaniments by the Golden or Vintage Era music directors like Anil Biswas, Naushad, Salil Chowdhury and Shankar-Jaikishan. These do not refer to RD Burman’s gruff, baritone voice either, putting in words like “Monica, My Darling!”.

This would be the fourth and the last article by Ashok ji in the present series. He has been a regular contributor to SOY. Earlier he had anchored a series on Arrangers and Musicians. Thus, he was eminently suitable for writing this series on RD Burman. Ashok ji is a retired engineer based out of Ahmedabad and is now a freelance management trainer. Thank you, Ashok ji, for this excellent article as your concluding piece in this series on RD Burman’s orchestral improvisations. – AK)

While working for the present series, I observed that R D Burman has extensively used sonic effects of vocals in the orchestration of the music. These vocal usages were different than the very widely used chorus accompaniments that Anil Biswas, Salil Chowdhury, Shankar Jaikishan and other music directors of late 40s and 50 have so extensively and innovatively used in their work.

This is also not about what we now recognised as his ‘signature’ – gruff, baritone – singing style or heavy breath sounds of Mera naam hai Shabnam (Kati Patang, 1970) or Monica or Monica My Darling in Piya tu ab to aa ja (Caravan, 1971) or singing Mere Jivan Saathi, with varying modulations or other lyrical dialogues or odd sounds  in the titles of Mere Jivan Sathi (1972).

Nor these are his theatrics in Bengali songs like Jaye re jaye bela or Aage ami jodi jantam. When he so tried he could create quite melodious composition as can be heard in this audio clip. However these are also not about his original Bengali versions – Jete jete patho helo deri (Lyrics: Gouriprasnna Majumdar)- of Hindi film songs – Tere bina zindagi se koi shiqwa nahi (Aandhi, 1975).

This is also not about his experimental cameo performance in Bhoot Bangla (1965) in Main bhookha hun, along with Mehmood and Suresh.

https://youtu.be/rm265jzPgmg?si=KH3a67pRKOlM2Xf9

This is about several of the sonic experiments that he boldly conceived and converted them into his signature style.

2. Pyar karta ja – Bhoot Bangla (1965) – Manna Dey, chorus – Lyrics: Hasrat Jaipuri – Music: R D Burman

The echo effect was created by posting 4 or 5 support singers at different distances from the microphone.

https://youtu.be/UNoAnkbCmnc?si=LAWvAU88bOCCDjKA

R D Burman by now seemed to have attained the knack to create new vocal experiments and using them differently in different situations

3. Kya jaanu sajan hoti hai kya gham ki sham – Baharon Ke Sapne (1967) – Lata Mangeshkar – Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri – Music: R D Burman

R D Burman has used recording on two tracks and then mixed these tracks as the counter melody to create the haunting, supernatural effect.

https://youtu.be/SGc2SbJlD4Y?si=Y0O5jft3wbxxuaDb

4. Koi aaya aane bhi de – Kala Sona (1975) – Asha Bhosle – Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

The first track presents Asha Bhosle as playback voice for Helen, and the second track presents Asha Bhosle as playback voice for Paravin Babi.

https://youtu.be/m2aGZ_F3dYs?si=F1RqLNfkgmTOMwFa

5. Katra katra milti hai – Ijazat (1987) – Asha Bhosle – Lyrics: Gulzar – Music: R D Burman

Here the two tracks have been used to create the effects of mixing of the flashback and present moments.

https://youtu.be/PZzK3CVzLKo?si=Lshz5puCusUYet_-

Now, instead of running the song in two different tracks, R VD Burman has the singers simultaneously sing in different scales.

6. Jaane jaan dhundhata phir rah hun tujhe – Jawani Diwani (1972) – Kishore Kumar, Asha Bhosle – Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri – Music: R D Burman

R D Burman has Asha Bhosle and Kishore Kumar sing at different scales, in the counter melody style, (0.51 to 1.10, 2.39 – 2.46 etc.) to create the effect of the two people singing at different distances.

https://youtu.be/V3tB5Wu2ifg?si=AYhFS4aCT41bY5iV

7. R D Burman, as can be expected, had penchant to play with eponymous Pancham beat into vocal Pappa or Tarara, as can be seen @ 2.34 to 2.47 in the title music of Raja Jani (1973).

https://youtu.be/asIlW6pvkB4?si=2gh57TMcCJXoAhkN

8. R D Burman has gone on to innovatively extend that usage in the main, duet, song, Jab andhera hota hai, @ 2.50 to 3.24, to create the harmony. It would be interesting to note how Pancham beat is improvised by deep bass trumpet stroke @ 0.03/0.04 and 0.09/0.10.

9. R D has very innovatively intertwined Pappa notes in the background song Dekh samay ka shaukh kabootar udata hai (Bada Kabootar, 1973 – Bhupinder) @ 0.26 to 0.31. Here, too, he has not rested with simple rendition, but has added a slightly higher scale chorus, as counter melody.

https://youtu.be/46hf66lbI2o?si=hxtINTNfnvrorE–

Onomatopoeia is a literary technique that uses a word to portray a sound. Examples of onomatopoeic terms include “pop,” “crack,” and “splat.” Utilizing onomatopoeia to musically describe the noises that people or animals create is also possible. R D Burman has extensively created gurgle, clap, zap, and pitter-patter, either by using some instrument or by using the actual human sound. Here are some of those several experiments:

10. Jeena kya aji pyaar bina – Dhan Daulat (1980)

Bass scale chorus comes in as rhythm support (0.39 to 0.46) while playing as countermelody hai hui sounds @ 1.19 to 1.23.

11. Babu entry – Gargling by Annete Pinto – Satte Pe Satta (1981)

12. Bheeni bheeni bhor – Dil Padoshi Hai (1987)

Animal sounds of insects or that of a cock (till 0.34) with notes of swar mandal creating the mood of the early glow of the morning.

13. Reshmi zulfein nashili aankhen – Indrajeet (1991)

Different types of oral sounds, till 1.09, have been used to create special effects of abandon gay of the drunken youngsters.

14. Preetam aan milo – Angoor (1981) – Sapan Chakraborty – Lyrics: Gulzar – Music: R D Burman

Cricket Sounds, dog barking, the bellowing curtains, a frog sound, the rolling wheels of a carriage and wind sound add to haunting, mood of the lonely late night,

This song also is an illustration of R D Burman’s use of ‘out-of-the-box’ singers to create a very different mood.

For the records, R D Burman has used the voice of Sapan Chakraborty for many other songs too, with songs like Mere saath chale na saya (Kitaab, 1977) and Golamal hai bhai (Golmal, 1979) becoming well-known.

Aside:

Use of so called non-regular singers is not all that a new practice, though used quite sparingly in Hindi films. In fact, it should an interesting subject for an independent article.

S D Burman also similarly had used voice of Jagmohan Baxi (better known as “Jagmohan’ of Sapan (Sengupta) Jagmohan (Baxi) music directors duo) in Dekho mane nahi roothi haseena (Taxi Driver, 1954 – along with Asha Bhosle – Lyrics: Sahir Ludhianvi).

15. Aao jhoome gaayein – Paraya Dhan (1971)

This song has Kishore Kumar singing in background to Balraj Sahni and Asha Bhosle as playback to on-screen singing by Hema Malini. Thus, entire Kishore Kumar part of the song is used as Onomatopoeia in the song.

https://youtu.be/N31cPiovmxE?si=bUUogsSaVzBqi4x5

The song also has used another of RD Burman’s oft-used vocal experiment (@ 0.09 to 0.14 in the prelude, 1.14 to 1.26 in mukhada, 2.27 to 2.49 in the interlude and 3.36 to 4.02 in the fade-out (postlude) – that of using La La Laa.

The presence of as many as seven clips @ YT channel, Adbhut Pancham Foundation, La La La Laa in different forms is present in some 80-90 songs that are quite pleasing to watch and hear.

I have picked up a few representative ones here:

16. Main chali, main chali deko pyar ki gali – Padosan (1968)

La la laa is used predominantly as prelude.

https://youtu.be/szFxM9KBNMA?si=asjEYGSlLgP266wr

17. Dulhan maike chali – Manoranjan (1974)

The ‘Working Girls’ are using La la Laa as an instrument to make the mockery of their arrest by the ‘cop’.

https://youtu.be/AOfFh0e6DvQ?si=9xD4GsrAX6i_DxKe

18. Hum tum aur ye nasha – Shaukeen (1982)

La La is used as vocal prelude along with the piano notes.

Incidentally, R D Burman has boldly used Sapan Chakraborty along with Chirashree Bhattacharya as playback voices in the song.

https://youtu.be/L2CPitqVZkY?si=ugUFDMVsBMwZNAS_

Adbhut Pancham Foundation also has one more clip, Hmmm R.D. Burman, which enlists as many 28 songs where R D Burman has used humming as a distinct vocal instrumentals score.

Here are two from these too:

19. Tum meri zindagi mein – Bombay To Goa (1972)

Soft humming @ 0.23 to 0.25 blends with the prelude to create the beginning of the song.

20. Raat banun main – Mangalsutra (1981)

Humming is used to indicate the presence of the husband to the waiting wife.

https://youtu.be/zxY_LktISew?si=QMNIwDk-czpYasc9

As we end this series, it would not be out-of-place to record that R D Burman is many a times credited as a bridge between the old-art and new-science school of music composition. Many of his experiments seem to have led to the use of electronics – as instruments, as recording aid and as music arrangement tool. R D Burman’s music, in the final analysis, does remain a blend of influence of Indian folk and classical styles with bold experiments of western music. He has left the legacy of a unique music composition style ……….

Credits and Disclaimers:

1. The song links have been given and embedded from the YouTube only for the listening pleasure of music lovers. This blog claims no copyright over these songs, which vests with the respective copyright holders.

2. The photograph is taken from the internet, duly recognizing the full copyrights for the same to the either original creator or the site where they were originally displayed.