![]() ![]() And of course I heard all the contemporary music I could – the 1960s was a very exciting time’. ‘At first, I developed a kind of 12-tone technique that was heavily influenced by Webern, even though I was more attracted by Berg’s lyricism and the energy and fantasy of works such as Schoenberg’s Erwartung and Pierrot lunaire. However I did from infancy hear a wonderful kaleidoscope of sound and music – from the Arabic songs and Hebrew prayers of my Iraqi-Jewish grandparents, to the endless variety of folk music, festivals and prayers of the greatly varied ethnic and religious communities in Bombay, the calls of street vendors, hideously amplified Bollywood songs in every street, the baffling number of languages and dialects spoken everywhere – the list is endless and all these things, more than any formal training I have had, are what I think of as my musical psyche’.Īs a student in London, he deliberately ignored his heritage in his attempts to acquire a European technique and discipline. ‘I do not come from a musical background, and despite being in India I was never trained in Indian classical music, something I regret deeply. After being taught by nuns and Jesuits, he attended The Cathedral, an Anglo-Scottish foundation in Bombay which he calls a ‘Boxwallah’s Eton’, vividly described by his fellow pupil and near contemporary Salman Rushdie in Midnight’s Children. His general education in India was entirely Western, apart from having to study Hindi and Marathi in school, and some Hebrew at home. English is his mother tongue, though he is bilingual in Hindi and retains a smattering of Arabic. With his childhood in Bombay and ancestral roots in the ancient Jewish community in Baghdad and a long creative life in London, he has experienced a wider diversity of cultural, religious and musical tradition than most of us will ever know. Webern is a model but the Elias voice is there. He was 13 when he first came to England and was in his early twenties when I got to know him through his teacher and mentor Elisabeth Lutyens at the time he had just written La chevelure (1967), a setting of Baudelaire for solo voice and orchestral ensemble. “But in 2020, all our gigs were canceled.Brian Elias was born in Bombay (modern Mumbai) in 1948. “We launched the band before the pandemic,” Elias said. Elias also continues playing in Stranger, along with Dayton radio personality Jeff Stevens, who is lead vocalist. ![]() In addition to Elias and Hoeting, guitarist Thad Bissett and bass player Sean Kelley joined Seconds to Surrender. ![]() “We auditioned a lot of people and found some great guitar players, but we needed someone who understood guitar effects.” “The band evolved with different members coming in and out,” Elias said. He and Stranger drummer Rob Hoeting founded “Seconds to Surrender,” a cover band that plays songs from The Police and Irish rock band, U2. Now that he has retired from full time work, Elias has time to focus more on his music. He also sings lead vocals and plays bass. With Stranger, Elias plays the keyboard and the rhythm guitar, after teaching himself in college. “We quickly started to feel like rock stars.” “We started like any band playing small venues and then festivals,” Elias said. “During that time I met musicians that ended up playing with me in Stranger when we started that band about 26 years ago.” “I also played in two other bands,” Elias said. Throughout his time in college, Elias continued playing in bands – his first was Chantz – and developed enduring friendships through music. “I got the chemistry degree but then went to Pepperdine University in California for law school.” “I wanted to make the world a better place,” Elias said. But by his junior year, Elias had become interested in studying law. Explore ROBIN’S JOURNEY: Two brain surgeries reveal strength of human spiritĪfter Elias graduated in 1981, he headed to college at Miami University in Oxford, choosing to major in chemistry with the hope of one day becoming a doctor. The band stayed together for about a year but disbanded once their lead guitarist graduated high school. “They had a massive sound system and a lot of our friends from Stebbins came out to see us. ![]() They ended up earning a second place in the contest. “We pulled together the band to compete in that.”Įlias played the keyboard and sang lead in Mirage and the group created a tape with a few songs. “What got us started is there was a contest on a local station, and it was held at a place called The Bus Stop in Dayton,” Elias said. At the time, local radio stations did a lot to promote up and coming local bands. When he was a junior in high school, Elias started playing in his first garage band – Mirage. ![]()
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