This blog is about the entrants in the year 1960, to the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ceylon, Colombo. The email address for communications is, 1960batch@gmail.com. Please BOOKMARK this page for easier access later.Photo is the entrance porch of the old General Hospital, Colombo, still in existence. Please use the search box below to look for your requirement.
Saturday, January 23, 2016
Sri Lankan Sinhala Music
Mr Gerald Wickremasinghe’s article runs true from a ‘westerner’s( English educated) view point. On from 1930s only.
Sri Lankan Sinhala Music as existed
prior is vast, old, and not well recorded or categorised, with the
paucity of print and recordings in those times.
jksw
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18th October 1998 |
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Dancing to our own tune
By Gerald Wickramasuriya
In 1931 The Donoughmore Constitution gave Sri Lanka a great
share of responsibility for running her own affairs. It also gave the country
Universal Franchise including votes for women, given to British women only
three years earlier.
This
really meant that power was transferred to the Sri Lankan upper class.
Upto
this time people belonging to this class had looked down on Sinhala music as
music of the servants. But partial self-government gave that class a new
sense of national pride and they started groping for their identity.
About 1933 Rabindranath Tagore came to Ceylon and gave a
series of recitals. This sharpened the interest of the ruling class in
Oriental Music.
This also led to the forming of Sri Pali Vidyalaya in Horana
by Wilmot Perera, a wealthy land owner. Sri Pali was dedicated to the
development of Oriental Music and Culture.
Also about this time Mr. Justin Pieris returned to Sri Lanka
after finishing his school and University education in England. He changed
his name to Devar Suriya Sena. He was also a western trained singer and
musician.
Coming from the upper class himself, he was caught up in this
new interest in Oriental Culture, and going round the island doing research
he re-discovered a large number of Sinhala traditional melodies, rhythms and
songs of various types. He refined these and performed them not only in Sri
Lanka but all over the world including over the BBC.
In the mid-thirties a new group of entertainers consisting of
Saranagupta Amarasinghe who had just returned from Tagore's Shanthi Niketan.
Miviam Pieris - daughter of Sir Paul Pieris and Joyce Bleakely a daugther of
the then British Director of Education started giving performances
islandwide. This group was called the Sarasavi Players.
Saranagupta
handled the music and vocals. Miriam the Kandyan Dancing and Joyce the Indian
dancing. Miriam Pieris now Ms. P.R.de Saram - mother of the internationally
famous Rohan de Saram the first Sri Lankan women to don the 'Ves' and perform
Kandyan dancing in public.
Upto
that time Kandyan dancing was an exclusive area for men only.
In 1938 I saw a picture in the newspaper of one Ananda
Samarakoon and his wife Chandra who had just returned after doing a course at
Shanthi Niketan.
I
was myself interested in Oriental music, so I wrote to him asking whether I
could study under him. By and by I found myself in a small house in the
by-lanes of Dehiwela with a small group of students learning from Samarakoon.
He
was then almost unknown but even at that time he had ideas of great
achievements. I make the claim that I was one of the first pupils of Samarakoon.
'This
is going to be a big concern one day,' he told his pupils. He was full of
ideas for creating a new kind of Sinhala music. I think he was the first to
introduce the Sitar and the Esraj into Sinhala music.
Upto
that time what passed for Sinhala music was just a collection of Hindi tunes
with Sinhala words superimposed on them. And the favourite instruments at the
time were the Sarapina, Violin and Tabla.
Ananda Samarakoon wrote his own lyrics, composed his own tunes
and sang them himself. He liberated Sinhala music from the clutches of Hindi
music and demonstrated to our musicians that Sri Lankans can create their own
music.
Following on Ananda Samarakoon, Sunil Shantha although he was
a graduate of the Bhathkanda University in Indian Classical Music won
popularity by composing and singing light songs based on the Samarakoon
model. There was also a touch of Country and Western music. In fact an American Fulbright Scholar Anne Sheran told me
that the closeness of Sunil Shantha's songs to the American Country idiom was
amazing.
1. Ase Madura - by Samarakoon.
2. Olu Pipila - by Sunil Shantha.
To
show the similarity, Sunil Shantha was followed by Somapala and Chithra
and later by C. T. Fernando. I claim that all these singers belong to the
same school started by Samarakoon. But each one made his own variation.
Shantha
me re yame....
Peenamuko Kalugange.....
which
belong to the same school.
Of
course Amaradeva later graduated from Bhathkanda and created his own style
and school of light songs (Sarala Gee) which examples are followed by Nanda
Malini, Sanath Nanda Siri and others.
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Thanks to the net, we are able to track back on our singers.
In the 1950s we remember Devar Suryasena’s vibrant voice in ‘ Weera malen rong geniyanna’
It was well sung, the record submitted now not doing justice to
his rendition.
The tune is Hindi, said to be sung by
S D. Burman.
The Sinhala word sounds follow tht in Hindi closely, which was the
desired style of lyrics then. Perhaps, Karunatne Abeysekera led the revolution
in the 1950s in film songs not aping Hindi words without loss.
Though the record is said to be from 1930, there is a doubt on
that.
Mohideen Baig is said to have recorded the first Sinhala song ‘
karuna Muhude..’ Needs confirmation.
Feedback is welcome.
Shall send Burman’s rendition soon.
jksw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dT1gVBofX-U
World War II RAF Veteran from Ceylon - Captain C.K. Pathy turns 100
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Amazing
character!
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Captain
C.K. Pathy (aka Chelliah Kanagasabapathy) from Uduvil, a village in northern
Sri Lanka, served in the British Royal Air Force (RAF) as a pilot during WWII.
He
flew Bristol Beaufighters.
Paderewski and Hoover
Farouk Sikkander's posting on faceebook
True story.
A young,18 year old student was struggling to pay his fees.He was an orphan,and not knowing where to turn for money,he came up with a bright idea.A friend and he decided to host a musical concert on campus to raise money for their education.
They reached out to the great pianist Ignacy.J.Paderewski.His manager demanded a guaranteed fee of $2,000 for the piano recital.A deal was struck.And the boys began to work to make the concert a success.
The big day arrived.Paderewski performed at Stanford.But unfortunately,they had not managed to sell enough tickets.The total collection was only $1,600.Disappointed they went to Paderewski and explained their plight.They gave him the entire $1,600,plus a cheque for the balance of $400.They promised to honour the cheque soonest possible.
"No" said Paderewski ."This is not acceptable".He tore up the cheque ,returned the $1600 and told the boys"Here's the $1600 .Please deduct whatever expenses you have incurred.Keep the money you need for your fees.And just give me whatever is left".The boys were surprised,and thanked him profusely.
It was a small act of kindness.But it clearly marked out Paderewski as a great human being.Why should he help two he did not know?We all come across situations like these in our lives.
And most of us only think"If I help them,what would happen to me?"
The truly great people think,"If I don't help them,what will happen to them.They don't do it expecting something in return.They do it because they feel it's the right thing to do.
Paderewski later went on to become the Prime Minister of Poland.He was great leader,but unfortunately when the World War began ,Poland was ravaged.There were over 1.5 million people starving in his country,and no money to feed them.
Paderewski did not know where to turn for help.He reached out to the US Food and Relief Administration for help.
The head was a man called Herbert Hoover--who later went on to become the US President.Hoover agree to help and quickly shipped tons of food grains to feed the starving Polish people.A calamity was averted
Paderwski was relieved.He decided to go across to meet Hoover and personally thank him.When Paderewski began to thank Hoover for his noble gesture,Hoover.quickly interjected and said,"You may not remember this ,but several years ago,you helped two young students go through college in the US.I was one of them."
The world is a wonderful place.What goes round usually comes around.
Friday, January 22, 2016
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