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| Thursday, 10 June 2004 |
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Growth of western classical music in Sri Lanka by Gwen Herat
Not a very encouraging subject to write upon neither doth one feel elated about its status compared to its growth to classical oriental music. In the past decade, people by virtue of patriotism and in search of a Sri Lanka identity, did shift towards Sinhala folk and classical music in prefernce to Sinhala and Hindi pop, especially the youth. I find music lovers more appreciative of singers like Amaradeva or Nanda Malini than they were 10 years ago. Abroad, Ravi Shankar has so popularised the sitar into concert music that it fired the imagination of cello cirtuoso, Rohan de Saram, to accommodate drumming in some of his concerts, mainly solo. While some of our talented musicians made waves abroad, the local ones after a couple of performances, faded into oblivion. To think of maestros like the late Rohan Joseph de saram or Earle de Fonseka, one feels sad that no one could fill their void. And a survey into the growth of western classical music in Sri Lanka, leaves us poorer. It remains same as when I first played my scales or as a ten-year-old watched in awe the racing fingers of Malinee Jayasinghe Pieris on the keyboard on a rare occasion my mother took me to see her play. We are still there.... almost, if not for the fact that in the past decade or two, Sri Lanka was provided with an arabesque orchestral and classical music played into packed houses by visiting orchestral groups.
Never to miss a classical concert, the local audiences would grab the tickets no sooner they are out and if this is not an indication to their passion about great composers, what else would it be? Is it not their ardour that draws them to such occasions just like when a ballet ensemble visits Sri Lanka. The ideology of it, stirring up, waking up to these few instances, could be frustrating too. Except for the few exceptional musicians that emerge from the Trinity and Royal Colleges of music, this art remains static even in the face of expansion of its potential. A concert pianist is almost every girl's dream as much as becoming a ballerina. The fate of these two arts are almost the same. It is an ongoing process but really not taking off the ground. We do have some of the best in the world when it comes to classical music. Malini Jayasinghe-Pieris from Washington DC, brothers Rohan and Druvi de Saram from England, Rohan de Silva from the Carnegie, New York to mention but a few. At home, there is the very talented almost a virtuoso in the making, violinist, Ananda Dabare, Brigette Halpe and her two performing daughters who are known as the Von Trap family. The many and varied young musicians who played under Rohan Joseph; where do they go from here? The other notable crop of very talented pianists include Sujeewa Hapugalla, Soundari David and Ashan Pieris. Kamalini Samarakone is also a professional pianist, playing mainly for chamber and choral ensembles that is fairly popular among youth choirs for sacred events. There is also Neluka Seneviratne who plays both the piano and the violin with a classical touch that makes us believe of the availability of the abundance of youth talent, very often tucked away on the shelves. There are but a few performers that make Sri Lanka proud. The ones whose talents come to a stop the moment they qualify are the losers. We have very few concert ensembles and with the exit of Rohan Joseph de Saram, the music scene has come to a standstill. However, the feeder institutions like the Institute of Western Music and Speech, Royal and Trinity Colleges of Music who conducts their examinations, Wendy Whatmore Academy and the professionals who privately teach students, never allow this fine art to die. It is with fond memories that I recollect the wonderful contribution made by the late Lylie Godridge who assembled a thousand voice choir that I presented some years ago. (Incidentally, they were all school children who helped us to help the street children of Colombo). There are more people interested in classical music than ever before in Sri Lanka. It may have begun with a marginal interest but with orchestral ensembles, ballet groups arriving in our country which the media gives high profile publicity, could have stirred up interest. Classical music aired on television and radio, along with plenty of recorded material in the form of tapes, CDs are the other contributing factors. All great composers' works are at reach of anyone. The highly successful emergence of radio programmes such as the Classical FM in the United Kingdom sometimes transmitted to us, is yet another source. Next, students and lovers of music can also have access to this subject through books that largely cater to great composers from around the world. And classical music has its other elements of joy such as companionship to individuals. It is a stimulating source of enjoyment and delight. Classical music is a great relief for people under stress or for the mentally burdened and many experts believe that musicology should be lively and not with obscure technicality which is a tonic for the human mind. And if you wish to take my word for it, I listen to one hour of classical music daily when all others have gone to bed at night. ###### Brussels Lace
Another interesting feature of this sale will be the beautiful fabrics that will be available for the needleworker and the crafter. Fine European linen, cross stitch fabric, handkerchief lawn and pretty prints will also be on sale at bargain prices. There will also be other needlework aids like lace, buttons and ribbon. A long-standing exponent of beautiful, aesthetic and one-of-a-kind home linen items, Andrea has always kept her prices at a very reasonable level. This enables persons to collect many items at a price they would normally pay for just one item at certain other places. Brussels Lace adorning doilies, table runners, dressing table sets, cushion covers, pillow cases and other home beautiful items, embellished with exquisite hand embroidery in techniques like satin stitch and shadow work will be exhibited. The items created are utilising quality European made raw materials, created locally. Quality Italian linen, lace from France and Holland and other quality implements are used in these items. |
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Produced by Lake House |
An exhibition and sale of exquisite Brussels lace and hand embroidered
home beautiful items created by Andrea Boekel will be held on Saturday,
June 19, at No. 16, Kinross Avenue, Colombo 4, from 9.00 a.m.
