Grammy Award-winning singer and pianist, Darlene Koldenhoven who stopped by Indigo Live Music Bar on her visit to the city, takes our rapid fire round. See how she fared!
One unusual place where ideas for songs/compositions come to you?
A: In bed – usually when I am waking up in the morning.
What’s the weirdest instrument you’ve ever played?
A: A kazoo – I had to play it on a commercial I sang on, one time.
Who, according to you, is the most misunderstood musician today? Why?
A: Me! Because, most people know me as a vocalist and most of my albums have been vocal albums. In my last album, it was piano music only and when DJs heard it, they went wow! There was not a breath of vocal in it!
How important do you think theatrics are when it comes to music performances?
A.Depends on the act. In my own act, I don’t have a lot of theatrics; I rely strictly on the quality of the music and singing.
Which was your best performance to date? Why?
A: Two come to mind. First, when I was 19-years-old and I appeared as a soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The other one would probably be Yanni – Live at the Acropolis.
If you could bring one dead musician back to life, who would it be?
A: Maybe Mozart. I would love to talk to him. We could use a little bit more of Mozart in this day and age; I wonder what he would have written if he had all this technology. That would be fun!
What’s the most annoying question you’ve been asked on the red carpet?
A: Not really annoying but I get this question a lot – “What’s it like working with Whoopie Goldberg?” (Because I starred with her in Sister Act. I get that a lot, but it’s not annoying.
You’ve done some vocal work for Pink Floyd. What’s the strangest thing about them?
A: I really didn’t find anything strange; they were really nice to work with. They’d talk to you like you were normal human being and are really cool.
If not for a singer, what would you have picked for your alternate career?
A: I’d be a doctor. Now, I combine my music and do Sonic Therapy to help a lot of people. I have come up with a technique to cure tone deafness – people who cannot match pitch. I can fix that in about 10 seconds! I have also helped cure people with dyslexia, ADD, autism and more all through Sonic Therapy.
One word that best describes Bengaluru audiences and musicians?
A: Beautiful spirit!
— As told to Sneha K Sukumar
