Chennai, Mar 9 (Reporter) Renowned composer and Music maestro Ilaiyaraaja, fondly known as Isaignani, premiered his first symphony, Valiant, in London,m on Sunday. The grand event took place at the prestigious Eventim Apollo theatre, featuring a performance by the world famous Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The symphony began at 12:30 AM IST, with thousands of music enthusiasts in attendance. For a long time, Ilaiyaraaja had been working on a symphony and had previously announced his plans to unveil it soon. True to his word, the grand premiere took place today in London. The performance saw hundreds of musicians playing his compositions in perfect harmony, leaving the audience in awe. With this achievement, Ilaiyaraaja joins the ranks of legendary symphonic composers like Mozart, Beethoven, and Tchaikovsky. His symphony cements his place in the global classical music arena. Having composed music for over 1,000 films and more than 15,000 songs, Ilaiyaraaja has left an indelible mark on the Indian music world. His compositions have transcended linguistic barriers, enriching Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and even Hindi cinema. Apart from composing, he has penned lyrics and sung numerous songs. Recognizing his immense contribution to music, the Union Government honored him with several awards and nominated him as a Rajya Sabha Member. Ilaiyaraaja travelled to London on March 6 for this event. Several prominent political leaders, actors, film personalities and people from various walks of life including Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, BJP Tamil Nadu President K. Annamalai, Leader of the Opposition and AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami, Union Minister L. Murugan, VCK Leader and Lok Sabha MP Thirumavalavan called on Ilayaraja at his residence and wished him all success inhis maiden symphony venture. They also hailed his contributions to the music world and showered rich encomiums n him. Film stars Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan and Sivakarthikeyan, besides lyricist Vairamuthu and several playback singers too extended their hearty congratulations to the maestro...////...