Among the sectors that the Covid-19 pandemic has hit, the music industry has a special place as it has been completely pulverized. Live shows have come to a grinding halt, reducing incomes of performers to near-zero levels.

Such a depressing atmosphere is naturally very demotivating for budding artists. What is needed now is a push in the right direction – like an energy booster. That is where audio hardware company, Calcutta’s very own Sonodyne, comes in with an initiative called “Elevate”, wherein it will produce 10 songs by independent artists and have them mixed and mastered by professionals.

“This is a distraught time for the music community. Musicians don’t make money from recorded music anymore because streaming returns are pathetic. Revenue comes from playing studio sessions and gigs, which have completely stopped. Till the end of year, there seems to be no hope,” says Anindya Mukherjee, director of Sonodyne, a familiar name among music lovers of a time when listening to records and cassettes on hi-fidelity systems was the only way to enjoy songs.

Deeply moved on seeing musicians selling off instruments amid deep depression and even suicide, the company decided to step in and help out the independent music community. “It’s about keeping musicians’ spirits alive and invigorating them to do more. Musicians who participate will also get an opportunity to be heard by esteemed people and have a produced track,” he continues.

Elevate has an open call for submission of tracks till June 28, 2021, which will then be sent to an esteemed jury of four judges, comprising Nakul Kamte, Ehsaan Noorani, Raghu Dixit and Niladri Kumar. The selected tracks will be further polished by the country’s top-level sound engineers – Vijay Benegal, Sunny MR, Sayan Ghosh and Pramod Chandorkar – who will work with the artists to give the songs the best possible shape.

“Above all, I’m looking for good song writing and also, decent production, because if the recording is not clear, there’s nothing much that even the engineers will be able to do to save it,” says Ehsaan Noorani. “This initiative aims to improve the quality of music being produced.”

The initiative comes at a time when the influx of technology has changed how the industry works. Artists opt to do everything by themselves now – from song writing and mixing, mastering to marketing. Also, production can be done at home with some knowledge of sound engineering. But this does not always produce good results as mixing and mastering is a craft that requires the touch of trained professionals.

“It takes quite a bit of investment to fully produce and promote a song. This opportunity will not only ensure a good audio production for the song, but also be a chance to learn from these learned folks,” says Itanagar-based singer-songwriter Takar Nabam.

While he is looking for an opportunity to connect, Calcutta-based artist Sourjyo Sinha of the band Whale in the Pond finds this as an outlet to let his compositions see the light of day. “The pandemic and subsequent lockdown is severely demotivating. This feels like a way for me to send my song idea across and not have to worry about the mixing and mastering side of things,” he says.

For Zeeshan Nabi, guitarist of Kashmiri band Ramooz, this is an outlet for finding recognition in a wider world. “Artists who are tied to some label still have some support, but indie artists don’t have that. It is very difficult to crack the industry by yourself. We make music to express ourselves, and if the avenues of doing this keep diminishing, how are we supposed to survive?”

This is one thought that a lot of artists across India, for whom this initiative is open, will relate to. Getting the word out in an industry where one has to compete for the attention of really distracted people is an uphill task. But Elevate (http://sonodyne.com/elevate) might just lend an edge to those selected.

The best part is that Sonodyne will let the artist decide what to do with the track once it has been mixed and mastered completely. Though it has tied up with music distribution platform Songdew, which can push these songs with professional zest, an artist can opt to go solo too.

In a nutshell, it is a complete package for those who believe they have talent and are willing to go through a gruelling screening process. The only catch – your song has to be original.