THE EKTAAR STORY
Ektaar was born out of a widely held perception that the Bangladeshi music industry was failing to promote quality; as a result music produced locally could not compete with music from the region or the rest of the world. The company was founded on the conviction that with appropriate artist selection, state-of-the-art production and strategic promotion, it could place Bangladeshi music on the listening charts of music lovers globally.
Chairman
Sadruddin Khan (Bobby)
Sadruddin Khan, Ektaar’s Chairperson, is a director of the A.K.Khan group of industries, one of Bangladesh’s foremost business houses for the last half-century.
CEO and Managing Director
Feisal Siddiqi (Bogey)
Feisal Siddiqi (Bogey), the company’s Managing Director, besides being the CEO of several other companies of the Sidko group and a teacher of Finance at the Institute of Business Administration, University of Dhaka, is also a guitarist and vocalist actively involved in music since the early 70s. For the last two decades he has been playing and recording music with Renaissance, one of Bangladesh’s primo bands. He has written and composed a good number of songs and has helped put together many productions by other artists. He founded the Bangladesh Band Music Association, BAMBA (1988) that kicked off with a series of well-designed concerts featuring the member bands of the association. In March 2002, together with Akku Chowdhury and the Muktijoddha Museum, he conceived of and coordinated a tribute concert to George Harrison under the banner CONCERT IN BANGLADESH, a few months after the artist’s demise. Feisal’s expertise of rock-funk-jazz today has made him the key person for collaboration in western music performances in Bangladesh.
OBJECTIVES
Ektaar’s primary objective is to promote, preserve and develop quality Bangla music and thereby galvanize musical creativity in the country. As a music label, Ektaar prioritises musical talents arising out of Bangladesh for production - singers, songwriters, instrumentalists, composers etc. - old or new, individuals or groups are encouraged and supported by the company.
Ektaar’s production process: Ektaar’s involvement in each production begins with the selection of artists, conceptualisation of the music to be produced and ends with marketing the product. Selection of artists is through auditions and/or demo-recordings of original materials. Each artist has the choice of working with Ektaar’s music directors, composers, musicians, singers, songwriters, as well as recording technicians. The company has its own graphic designers and video-makers whose visual artistry match the quality of the music produced.
In order to reach retailing points all over Bangladesh, Ektaar markets its products through professional distributors and wholesalers. It undertakes promotional activities (e.g., public launching ceremony, posters, advertisements, music videos) to stimulate healthy sales. Its networks with media companies ensure the artist’s continued presence in audio-visual media even after the product is made available in the local market.
While the production of Bangladeshi music remains Ektaar’s primary objective, the company intends to expand globally.Ektaar recently (2004) signed an agreement with Virgin Music Limited (India) whereby it can access Virgin’s master copies of recordings by Indian artists and reproduce them for sale in Bangladesh, in the form of cassettes, CDs, VCDs and DVDs, under a joint Ektaar-Virgin label. Similarly Virgin can also market Ektaar products in India.
• We beleive is treating all our artists with the respect and sensitively that artists deserve.
• Ektaar will distribute globally through a tie-up with SAREGAMA, who are well represented in target market segments.
• Artists signed to the label will be encouraged to musically with one another to the maximum extent possible, drawing on each others strenghts and creating a musical synergy never experienced before in Bangladeshi music.
• Ektaar will strive to be closely involved in all aspects of the artists' career, providing continuous support (not just intermittent activity at the time of album release). Ektaar musicians will get maximum exposure through regular performances through indoor and outdoor concerts, ascoustic and unplugged shows as well as shows in small venues held both internationally.
• Ektaar beleives in the highest quality recorded output and will strive to bringing togather the best songsters, Lyricists, music directors (producers), arrangers, sound engineers, players of different instruments, singers etc. in different combinations to create music that provides pleasure to the listeners for years to come.
• Ektaar's doors are open to all creative musicians, as we are committed to nurturing talent to full realization.
• Ektaar is fully committed to raising industry standards to international levels through foreign collaborations and transfer of technical expertise in all aspects of the creation of the final product.
• Ektaar beleives in the sanctity of the artist's work and creations (whether local or foreign) and inherently opposes any kind of piracy in the music industry.
• Ektaar beleives that Bangla music has in the past reached heights of excellence comparable to any music in the world. We are committed to reviving that standard and adding to it through complementary modernization, not wholesale imitation and westernization. In this quest, Ektaar is obiously not biased towards any one type of Bangla Music.
Ektaar’s production process: Ektaar’s involvement in each production begins with the selection of artists, conceptualisation of the music to be produced and ends with marketing the product. Selection of artists is through auditions and/or demo-recordings of original materials. Each artist has the choice of working with Ektaar’s music directors, composers, musicians, singers, songwriters, as well as recording technicians. The company has its own graphic designers and video-makers whose visual artistry match the quality of the music produced.
In order to reach retailing points all over Bangladesh, Ektaar markets its products through professional distributors and wholesalers. It undertakes promotional activities (e.g., public launching ceremony, posters, advertisements, music videos) to stimulate healthy sales. Its networks with media companies ensure the artist’s continued presence in audio-visual media even after the product is made available in the local market.
While the production of Bangladeshi music remains Ektaar’s primary objective, the company intends to expand globally.Ektaar recently (2004) signed an agreement with Virgin Music Limited (India) whereby it can access Virgin’s master copies of recordings by Indian artists and reproduce them for sale in Bangladesh, in the form of cassettes, CDs, VCDs and DVDs, under a joint Ektaar-Virgin label. Similarly Virgin can also market Ektaar products in India.
OUR OFFER
• The Artist will generate royalties on their sales, for as long as their musical sells, instead of one-time payments.• We beleive is treating all our artists with the respect and sensitively that artists deserve.
• Ektaar will distribute globally through a tie-up with SAREGAMA, who are well represented in target market segments.
• Artists signed to the label will be encouraged to musically with one another to the maximum extent possible, drawing on each others strenghts and creating a musical synergy never experienced before in Bangladeshi music.
• Ektaar will strive to be closely involved in all aspects of the artists' career, providing continuous support (not just intermittent activity at the time of album release). Ektaar musicians will get maximum exposure through regular performances through indoor and outdoor concerts, ascoustic and unplugged shows as well as shows in small venues held both internationally.
• Ektaar beleives in the highest quality recorded output and will strive to bringing togather the best songsters, Lyricists, music directors (producers), arrangers, sound engineers, players of different instruments, singers etc. in different combinations to create music that provides pleasure to the listeners for years to come.
• Ektaar's doors are open to all creative musicians, as we are committed to nurturing talent to full realization.
• Ektaar is fully committed to raising industry standards to international levels through foreign collaborations and transfer of technical expertise in all aspects of the creation of the final product.
• Ektaar beleives in the sanctity of the artist's work and creations (whether local or foreign) and inherently opposes any kind of piracy in the music industry.
• Ektaar beleives that Bangla music has in the past reached heights of excellence comparable to any music in the world. We are committed to reviving that standard and adding to it through complementary modernization, not wholesale imitation and westernization. In this quest, Ektaar is obiously not biased towards any one type of Bangla Music.