Nitin Sawhney
Encyclopedia
Nitin Sawhney is an India
n-British
musician, producer
and composer
. His critically acclaimed work combines Asian and other worldwide influences with elements of jazz
and electronica
and often explores themes such as multiculturalism, politics and spirituality
. Sawhney is also active in the promotion of arts and cultural matters
, and is a patron of numerous film festival
s, venues, and educational institutions.
. As a child Sawhney studied piano, classical and flamenco guitar, sitar and tabla. He attended Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School
. After leaving, he studied law at Liverpool University
for a short time.
It was during this period that Sawhney met up with an old school friend, acid-jazz keyboard-player James Taylor. Sawhney then toured as part of The James Taylor Quartet
. This experience led to him forming his own band, The Jazztones. He also joined forces with tabla
player and DJ/producer Talvin Singh
to form the Tihai Trio.
After dropping out of university, Sawhney took up a position with a firm of accountants called Day Smith and Hunter in Maidstone, Kent. He trained to become a chartered accountant but found that his music was proving too much of a distraction and quit after about two years. Sawhney moved to London, where he met Sanjeev Bhaskar
; together they created the comedy team The Secret Asians. The pair were given a show on BBC Radio
, which eventually grew into the award-winning BBC TV sketch show Goodness Gracious Me. Refocusing on music, Sawhney's solo career began in 1993, when he released his debut album, Spirit Dance on his own label.
, was his breakthrough, earning a Mercury Prize
nomination and winning the South Bank Show's award for Popular Music. Subsequently, Richard Branson
's V2 Records
signed Sawhney to a six-album deal, and released Prophesy in 2001. The album went on to win a MOBO Award, an EMMA
and the BBC Radio 3
World Music Award. In 2004 Sawhney issued two remix collections, All Mixed Up and FabricLive.15, released worldwide by London nightclub Fabric
and featuring samples of Gipsy Kings
' Nicolas Reyes
vocals. Sawhney’s album, Philtre, released in May 2005, was awarded the BBC Radio 3
Culture Crossing Award.
2007 saw the release of In the Mind Of… Nitin Sawhney, the first release in District 6's new compilation series.
’s Second Generation saw him nominated for the Ivor Novello Award
for Film and TV Composition. He has also scored ads for the likes of Nike
and Sephora
. In 2006, Sawhney composed a new symphony to accompany Franz Osten
's 1929 silent film, A Throw of Dice
, which premiered with the London Symphony Orchestra
at the Barbican
, London. More recent works include scores for Oscar-nominated director Mira Nair
's adaptation of Jhumpa Lahiri
's, The Namesake
, as well as Natural Fantasia for the BBC
.
This work for film and television has led to recognition within the classical world as well. In 2001, Sawhney composed "Neural Circuits" for the Britten Sinfonia, a collaboration that has continued in the years since. In 2002, he worked with Akram Khan
and Anish Kapoor
, scoring the music to Khan’s choreographed work Kaash
, which toured worldwide between 2002–2003. In 2004, Sawhney was commissioned by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
to compose a new piece for their Harmony Project. His most recent scores include the new adaptation of Mahabharata
by Olivier-award winning writer Stephen Clarke, Simon McBurney
's A Disappearing Number
for Complicite
, and first-time theatrical director Jonathan Holmes
' Fallujah
.
Sawhney produced the music for the Ninja Theory
video games Heavenly Sword
and Enslaved: Odyssey to the West (both starring Andy Serkis
) and will also score Fifth Beatle
, a major studio film currently in production.
, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Jeff Beck
, Julian Lloyd Webber
, Tina Grace and Paul McCartney
(for McCartney's The Fireman project). He also collaborated with Paul McCartney
on a song called "My Soul", which appeared on Sawhney's London Undersound
album and on various Robert Miles
projects such as Miles Gurtu
and Organik
. His own work has been remixed by 4hero, Talvin Singh
, MJ Cole
and Quantic
. He produced several songs on Cheb Mami
's album Dellali. Last year he co-produced the second album from songwriter Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly
entitled Searching for the Hows and Whys
released through Atlantic Records
. During 2006-2007, Nitin Sawhney wrote the music for Akram Khan
and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's dance piece "Zero Degrees"; Antony Gormley
created the set.
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
as a patron of the British Government's Access-to-Music programme, and he is also patron of the Raindance East Film Festival and the British Independent Film Awards
. Sawhney appears regularly as an arts and current affairs commentator on topical discussion and news programs such as the BBC
's Newsnight
, Newsnight Review, and HardTalk
. He has also written for UK national broadsheet newspapers: The Guardian
, The Telegraph
, The Independent
, and The Observer
.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n-British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
musician, producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
. His critically acclaimed work combines Asian and other worldwide influences with elements of jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
and electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
and often explores themes such as multiculturalism, politics and spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
. Sawhney is also active in the promotion of arts and cultural matters
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
, and is a patron of numerous film festival
Film festival
A film festival is an organised, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theaters or screening venues, usually in a single locality. More and more often film festivals show part of their films to the public by adding outdoor movie screenings...
s, venues, and educational institutions.
Early years
Nitin Sawhney was raised in Rochester, Kent, EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. As a child Sawhney studied piano, classical and flamenco guitar, sitar and tabla. He attended Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School
Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School
Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School is a boys' grammar school in Rochester, Kent, often known as Rochester Math or The Math. It was founded by the 17th-century politician Sir Joseph Williamson, who left £5,000 to set up the school and another in Thetford in Norfolk...
. After leaving, he studied law at Liverpool University
University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool is a teaching and research university in the city of Liverpool, England. It is a member of the Russell Group of large research-intensive universities and the N8 Group for research collaboration. Founded in 1881 , it is also one of the six original "red brick" civic...
for a short time.
It was during this period that Sawhney met up with an old school friend, acid-jazz keyboard-player James Taylor. Sawhney then toured as part of The James Taylor Quartet
James Taylor Quartet
The James Taylor Quartet are a British four-piece jazz funk band who have become renowned for their live performances. They were formed by Hammond organ player James Taylor following the break-up of his former band The Prisoners in the wake of Stiff Records' bankruptcy...
. This experience led to him forming his own band, The Jazztones. He also joined forces with tabla
Tabla
The tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical music and in popular and devotional music of the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a pair of hand drums of contrasting sizes and timbres...
player and DJ/producer Talvin Singh
Talvin Singh
Talvin Singh Matharoo , is a producer and composer and tabla player, known for creating an innovative fusion of Indian classical music and drum and bass...
to form the Tihai Trio.
After dropping out of university, Sawhney took up a position with a firm of accountants called Day Smith and Hunter in Maidstone, Kent. He trained to become a chartered accountant but found that his music was proving too much of a distraction and quit after about two years. Sawhney moved to London, where he met Sanjeev Bhaskar
Sanjeev Bhaskar
Sanjeev Bhaskar, OBE is a British Indian comedian, actor and broadcaster, best known for his work in the BBC Two comedy series Goodness Gracious Me and as host of The Kumars at No. 42...
; together they created the comedy team The Secret Asians. The pair were given a show on BBC Radio
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
, which eventually grew into the award-winning BBC TV sketch show Goodness Gracious Me. Refocusing on music, Sawhney's solo career began in 1993, when he released his debut album, Spirit Dance on his own label.
Solo career
Sawhney has released eight studio albums to date. His final album for Outcaste records, 1999's Beyond SkinBeyond Skin
Beyond Skin is an album by Nitin Sawhney. It was released on the Outcaste label in 1999. The album focuses largely on the theme of Nuclear Weapons; Sawhney states in the booklet that the album "has a timespan that runs backwards", beginning at Broken Skin with the India-Pakistan nuclear situation...
, was his breakthrough, earning a Mercury Prize
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize and currently known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established by the British Phonographic Industry and British...
nomination and winning the South Bank Show's award for Popular Music. Subsequently, Richard Branson
Richard Branson
Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson is an English business magnate, best known for his Virgin Group of more than 400 companies....
's V2 Records
V2 Records
V2 Records is a record label that is owned by Universal Music Group as of October 2007. The label was founded in 1996 by Richard Branson, five years after he sold Virgin Records to EMI....
signed Sawhney to a six-album deal, and released Prophesy in 2001. The album went on to win a MOBO Award, an EMMA
EMMA
EMMA is an Organization which raises awareness of discrimination through media campaigns, social networking, and the EMMA Awards....
and the BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
World Music Award. In 2004 Sawhney issued two remix collections, All Mixed Up and FabricLive.15, released worldwide by London nightclub Fabric
Fabric (club)
Fabric is a nightclub in London, United Kingdom. It was voted number 1 in DJ Magazine's "Top 100 Clubs in the World" poll in 2007 and number 2 in 2008, 2009 and 2010...
and featuring samples of Gipsy Kings
Gipsy Kings
The Gipsy Kings are a group of musicians from Arles and Montpellier, who perform in Spanish with an Andalucían accent. Although group members were born in France, their parents were mostly gitanos, Spanish Romani people who fled Catalonia during the 1930s Spanish Civil War. Chico Bouchikhi is of...
' Nicolas Reyes
Nicolas Reyes
Nicolas Reyes is the lead singer of the musical group the Gipsy Kings. He sings in various styles which mainly include traditional and popular versions of flamenco and Latino-American dance music rumba. With his hoarse and passionate voice he is one of most prominent flamenco singers...
vocals. Sawhney’s album, Philtre, released in May 2005, was awarded the BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
Culture Crossing Award.
2007 saw the release of In the Mind Of… Nitin Sawhney, the first release in District 6's new compilation series.
Scores
In recent years Sawhney has been commissioned to write the scores for a number of different projects. He has established himself as an in-demand composer for film and television. His music for Channel 4Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
’s Second Generation saw him nominated for the Ivor Novello Award
Ivor Novello Awards
The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Cardiff born entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They are presented annually in London by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and were first introduced in 1955.Nicknamed The Ivors, the awards take place...
for Film and TV Composition. He has also scored ads for the likes of Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
and Sephora
Sephora
Sephora is a chain of cosmetics stores founded in France in 1970 and acquired by Paris-based conglomerate LVMH in 1997. The Sephora chain includes more than 750 stores in 17 countries...
. In 2006, Sawhney composed a new symphony to accompany Franz Osten
Franz Osten
Franz Osten was a German filmmaker who along with Niranjan Pal was among the first retainers of Bombay Talkies. Osten partnered with Pal on a number of India's earliest blockbuster films like Achhut Kanya and Jeevan Naiya.-Early life:He was born as Franz Ostermayr in Munich on 23 December 1876...
's 1929 silent film, A Throw of Dice
A Throw of Dice
A Throw of Dice is a 1929 silent film by German-born director, Franz Osten, based on an episode from the Indian epic The Mahabharata....
, which premiered with the London Symphony Orchestra
London Symphony Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
at the Barbican
Barbican
A barbican, from medieval Latin barbecana, signifying the "outer fortification of a city or castle," with cognates in the Romance languages A barbican, from medieval Latin barbecana, signifying the "outer fortification of a city or castle," with cognates in the Romance languages A barbican, from...
, London. More recent works include scores for Oscar-nominated director Mira Nair
Mira Nair
Mira Nair is an Indian film director and producer based in New York. Her production company is Mirabai Films.She was educated at Delhi University and Harvard University. Her debut feature film, Salaam Bombay! , won the Golden Camera award at the Cannes Film Festival and also earned the nomination...
's adaptation of Jhumpa Lahiri
Jhumpa Lahiri
Jhumpa Lahiri is a Bengali American author. Lahiri's debut short story collection, Interpreter of Maladies , won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and her first novel, The Namesake , was adapted into the popular film of the same name. She was born Nilanjana Sudeshna, which she says are both...
's, The Namesake
The Namesake
The Namesake is the second book by author Jhumpa Lahiri. It was originally a novella published in The New Yorker and was later expanded to a full length novel. It explores many of the same emotional and cultural themes as her Pulitzer Prize-winning short story collection Interpreter of Maladies...
, as well as Natural Fantasia for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
.
This work for film and television has led to recognition within the classical world as well. In 2001, Sawhney composed "Neural Circuits" for the Britten Sinfonia, a collaboration that has continued in the years since. In 2002, he worked with Akram Khan
Akram Khan (dancer)
Akram Khan, MBE is a dancer whose background is rooted in his classical kathak training and contemporary dance.-Career:Khan was born in London into a family of Bangladeshi origin. He began dancing and trained in the classical Indian dance form of Kathak at the age of seven. He studied with Sri...
and Anish Kapoor
Anish Kapoor
Anish Kapoor CBE RA is a British sculptor of Indian birth. Born in Mumbai , Kapoor has lived and worked in London since the early 1970s when he moved to study art, first at the Hornsey College of Art and later at the Chelsea School of Art and Design.He represented Britain in the XLIV Venice...
, scoring the music to Khan’s choreographed work Kaash
Kaash
Kaash is an Indian Bollywood domestic drama film directed by Mahesh Bhatt, released on 4 September 1987. The film stars Jackie Shroff and Dimple Kapadia as a married couple, Ritesh and Pooja, who face a serious crisis after bankruptcy and marriage breakdown...
, which toured worldwide between 2002–2003. In 2004, Sawhney was commissioned by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra is a British orchestra based in Birmingham, England. The Orchestra's current chief executive, appointed in 1999, is Stephen Maddock...
to compose a new piece for their Harmony Project. His most recent scores include the new adaptation of Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
by Olivier-award winning writer Stephen Clarke, Simon McBurney
Simon McBurney
Simon Montagu McBurney, OBE is an English actor, writer and director. He is the founder and artistic director of Théâtre de Complicité in England, now called Complicite.-Early life:...
's A Disappearing Number
A Disappearing Number
A Disappearing Number is a 2007 play co-written and devised by the Théâtre de Complicité company and directed and conceived by English playwright Simon McBurney. It was inspired by the collaboration during the 1910s between two of the most remarkable pure mathematicians of the twentieth century,...
for Complicite
Complicite
The British theatre company Complicite was founded in 1983 by Simon McBurney, Annabel Arden, and Marcello Magni. Its original name was Théâtre de Complicité. "The Company's inimitable style of visual and devised theatre [has] an emphasis on strong, corporeal, poetic and surrealist image supporting...
, and first-time theatrical director Jonathan Holmes
Jonathan Holmes
Jonathan Holmes is a British-born Australian television journalist and producer who has been, since 2008, the presenter of the ABC1 weekly programme Media Watch....
' Fallujah
Fallujah
Fallujah is a city in the Iraqi province of Al Anbar, located roughly west of Baghdad on the Euphrates. Fallujah dates from Babylonian times and was host to important Jewish academies for many centuries....
.
Sawhney produced the music for the Ninja Theory
Ninja Theory
Ninja Theory, Ltd. is a video game developer based in Cambridge, England. Originally founded as Just Add Monsters in March 2000, the company was purchased by former Argonaut Games CEO Jez San in November 2004...
video games Heavenly Sword
Heavenly Sword
Heavenly Sword is a video game developed by Ninja Theory exclusively for the PlayStation 3 console and published by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe...
and Enslaved: Odyssey to the West (both starring Andy Serkis
Andy Serkis
Andrew Clement G. "Andy" Serkis is an English actor, director and author. He is popularly known for playing Gollum in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, for which he earned several award nominations, including the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in The Two Towers...
) and will also score Fifth Beatle
Fifth Beatle
The Fifth Beatle is an informal title that various commentators in the press and entertainment industry have applied to persons who were at one point a member of The Beatles, or who had a strong association with the "Fab Four" during the group's existence...
, a major studio film currently in production.
Collaborations and remixes
Sawhney has remixed a wide variety of artists over the years, including Sting, Natacha AtlasNatacha Atlas
Natacha Atlas is a Belgian singer known for her fusion of Arabic and Western electronic music, particularly hip-hop. She once termed her music "cha'abi moderne" . Her music has been influenced by many styles including Arabic, hip hop, drum 'n' bass and reggae.Atlas began her career as part of...
, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Jeff Beck
Jeff Beck
Geoffrey Arnold "Jeff" Beck is an English rock guitarist. He is one of three noted guitarists to have played with The Yardbirds...
, Julian Lloyd Webber
Julian Lloyd Webber
Julian Lloyd Webber is a British solo cellist who has been described as the "doyen of British cellists".-Early life:Julian Lloyd Webber is the second son of the composer William Lloyd Webber and his wife Jean Johnstone . He is the younger brother of the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber...
, Tina Grace and Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
(for McCartney's The Fireman project). He also collaborated with Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
on a song called "My Soul", which appeared on Sawhney's London Undersound
London Undersound
Nitin Sawhney's eighth studio album London Undersound released on , by Cooking Vinyl.It includes collaborations with Paul McCartney, Natty, Imogen Heap, Reena Bhardwaj, Ojos de Brujo, Anoushka Shankar, Tina Grace, Faheem Mazhar, Aruba Red, and Roxanne Tataei.-Reception:Reviewed by the BBC's Chris...
album and on various Robert Miles
Robert Miles
Robert Miles is an Italian record producer, composer, musician and DJ in electronica and alternative music.-Biography:...
projects such as Miles Gurtu
Miles Gurtu
Miles_Gurtu is the fourth album by Robert Miles, the second he independently recorded and produced. Created with Indian jazz percussionist Trilok Gurtu, the result was a mix of their very disparate styles.-Overview:...
and Organik
Organik
Organik is the third album by Robert Miles, released in 2001. The first he independently recorded and produced after quitting his record company, it marked a complete departure from the style of his first two albums.-Overview:...
. His own work has been remixed by 4hero, Talvin Singh
Talvin Singh
Talvin Singh Matharoo , is a producer and composer and tabla player, known for creating an innovative fusion of Indian classical music and drum and bass...
, MJ Cole
M. J. Cole
M. J. Cole is an English house and UK garage producer and remixer.-Career:Born in London, England, in his youth, Cole learned to play the oboe and piano, and attended the Royal College of Music...
and Quantic
Will Holland
William Holland is a musician, DJ and record producer from Bewdley, Worcestershire. He is based in Colombia.He records under various guises, notably, Quantic, The Quantic Soul Orchestra, and The Limp Twins. His music draws upon elements of salsa, bossa nova, soul, funk and jazz. Holland plays...
. He produced several songs on Cheb Mami
Cheb Mami
Ahmed Khelifati Mohamed better known by his stage name Cheb Mami , is an Algerian-born raï singer...
's album Dellali. Last year he co-produced the second album from songwriter Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly
Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly
Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly is the stage name of English artist Sam Duckworth and his band. He is sometimes referred to as Get Cape, Cape, GCWCF and Slam Dunkworth . According to Duckworth, his stage name comes from a ZX Spectrum magazine...
entitled Searching for the Hows and Whys
Searching for the Hows and Whys
Searching for the Hows and Whys is the second album by Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. It was released on 10 March 2008. The record was co-produced by Sam Duckworth and Nitin Sawhney...
released through Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
. During 2006-2007, Nitin Sawhney wrote the music for Akram Khan
Akram Khan (dancer)
Akram Khan, MBE is a dancer whose background is rooted in his classical kathak training and contemporary dance.-Career:Khan was born in London into a family of Bangladeshi origin. He began dancing and trained in the classical Indian dance form of Kathak at the age of seven. He studied with Sri...
and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's dance piece "Zero Degrees"; Antony Gormley
Antony Gormley
Antony Mark David Gormley OBE RA is a British sculptor. His best known works include the Angel of the North, a public sculpture in the North of England, commissioned in 1995 and erected in February 1998, Another Place on Crosby Beach near Liverpool, and Event Horizon, a multi-part site...
created the set.
Awards
1998- EMMA AwardEMMAEMMA is an Organization which raises awareness of discrimination through media campaigns, social networking, and the EMMA Awards....
for Displacing The Priest
2000
- Asian Pop Award for Best Mainstream Fusion Act for Beyond Skin
- Technics Mercury Music Prize Nomination for album of the year for Beyond Skin
- South Bank Award for Popular Music for Beyond Skin
2001
- BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Asia Award for Music for Prophesy - MOBO Award for Prophesy
- Boundary Crossing Award, BBC Radio 3BBC Radio 3BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
Music Awards for Prophesy
2002
- Media Personality of the Year nomination, RIMA Awards
- EMMA AwardEMMAEMMA is an Organization which raises awareness of discrimination through media campaigns, social networking, and the EMMA Awards....
for Prophesy - Muso AwardMuso AwardsThe Muso Awards is a charity music award ceremony held in London, England, that began in September 2002. The awards are voted "by musicians, for musicians", and the ceremony features live performances by a variety of artists...
for Prophesy
2003
- Commission for Racial EqualityCommission for Racial EqualityThe Commission for Racial Equality was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom which aimed to tackle racial discrimination and promote racial equality. Its work has been merged into the new Equality and Human Rights Commission.-History:...
Award
2004
- Ivor Novello AwardIvor Novello AwardsThe Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Cardiff born entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They are presented annually in London by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and were first introduced in 1955.Nicknamed The Ivors, the awards take place...
Nomination for Best Film ScoreFilm scoreA film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...
for TV
2005
- Boundary Crossing Award, BBC Radio 3BBC Radio 3BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
Music Awards for Philtre
2006
- Honorary Graduate Degree from South Bank UniversityLondon South Bank UniversityLondon South Bank University is a university in south London. With over 25,000 students and 1,700 staff, it is based in the London Borough of Southwark, near the South Bank of the River Thames, from which it takes its name...
, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
2007
- Honorary DegreeHonorary degreeAn honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
of Doctor of MusicDoctor of MusicThe Doctor of Music degree , like other doctorates, is an academic degree of the highest level. The D.Mus. is intended for musicians and composers who wish to combine the highest attainments in their area of specialization with doctoral-level academic study in music...
from the University of KentUniversity of KentThe University of Kent, previously the University of Kent at Canterbury, is a public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom...
2008
- Companionship From the Liverpool Institute for Performing ArtsLiverpool Institute for Performing ArtsThe Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts is, despite its young age, one of the United Kingdom's leading institutions for the performing arts. The university is situated in the English city of Liverpool...
in recognition of his contribution to the world of art and entertainment. - UK Asian Music AwardsUK Asian Music AwardsThe UK Asian Music Awards, also known by the abbreviation UK AMA, is an award show that is held annually in the United Kingdom since 2002. It is presented by B4U Music since 2008...
- "Commitment to Scene"
2009
- UK Asian Music AwardsUK Asian Music AwardsThe UK Asian Music Awards, also known by the abbreviation UK AMA, is an award show that is held annually in the United Kingdom since 2002. It is presented by B4U Music since 2008...
- "Best Alternative Act"
Additional information
Much of Sawhney's attention remains focused on the areas of education and community building, accepting the role of Artist in Residence for no less than five separate performing arts organisations across Great Britain and Asia. Sawhney joined Sir George MartinGeorge Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
as a patron of the British Government's Access-to-Music programme, and he is also patron of the Raindance East Film Festival and the British Independent Film Awards
British Independent Film Awards
The Moët British Independent Film Awards is an annual award ceremony celebrating achievement in independently funded British film and cinema. Nominations and jury are announced at the beginning of November with the award ceremony taking place in late November or early December.-History:The British...
. Sawhney appears regularly as an arts and current affairs commentator on topical discussion and news programs such as the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Newsnight
Newsnight
Newsnight is a BBC Television current affairs programme noted for its in-depth analysis and often robust cross-examination of senior politicians. Jeremy Paxman has been its main presenter for over two decades....
, Newsnight Review, and HardTalk
HARDtalk
Hardtalk is a flagship BBC television programme, consisting of in-depth half-hour one-on-one interviews.It is broadcast four days a week on BBC World News and the BBC News channel. Launched in 1997, much of its worldwide fame is due to its global reach via BBC World...
. He has also written for UK national broadsheet newspapers: The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, The Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, and The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
.
Albums
- Spirit Dance (1994) World Circuit
- Migration (1995) Outcaste Records
- Displacing the Priest (1996) Outcaste Records
- Beyond SkinBeyond SkinBeyond Skin is an album by Nitin Sawhney. It was released on the Outcaste label in 1999. The album focuses largely on the theme of Nuclear Weapons; Sawhney states in the booklet that the album "has a timespan that runs backwards", beginning at Broken Skin with the India-Pakistan nuclear situation...
(1999) Outcaste Records - Prophesy (2001) V2/BMG
- Human (2003) V2
- Philtre (2005) V2
- London UndersoundLondon UndersoundNitin Sawhney's eighth studio album London Undersound released on , by Cooking Vinyl.It includes collaborations with Paul McCartney, Natty, Imogen Heap, Reena Bhardwaj, Ojos de Brujo, Anoushka Shankar, Tina Grace, Faheem Mazhar, Aruba Red, and Roxanne Tataei.-Reception:Reviewed by the BBC's Chris...
(2008) Cooking Vinyl - Last Days of Meaning (2011)
Compilations
- Introducing Nitin Sawhney (1999) Outcaste
- FabricLive.15 (2004) FabricFabric (club)Fabric is a nightclub in London, United Kingdom. It was voted number 1 in DJ Magazine's "Top 100 Clubs in the World" poll in 2007 and number 2 in 2008, 2009 and 2010...
- All Mixed Up (2004) V2
- In the Mind of... (2007) District 6
Scores
1995
1998
1999
2001
2002
2003
2004
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2005
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
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External links
- Official Nitin Sawhney Website
- Official Nitin Sawhney Myspace page
- BBC: Nitin Sawhney
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rewDyf1KRWcPerformance of Songbird (Koyal) by Julian Lloyd WebberJulian Lloyd WebberJulian Lloyd Webber is a British solo cellist who has been described as the "doyen of British cellists".-Early life:Julian Lloyd Webber is the second son of the composer William Lloyd Webber and his wife Jean Johnstone . He is the younger brother of the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber...
] - Interview with Graham Brown-Martin for Trace Magazine
- Indepth interview with Nitin Sawhney by Ashanti OMkar
- Interview with Nitin Sawhney from the German site www.theinder.net
- Article about the track "My Soul"
- Nitin Sawhney writes score for Human Planet series