Kala Korner

By Dee Cee

An exhilarating evening

A full house at the BMICH greeted Pradeep Ratnayake as he delicately strummed the first chords of the Jayamangala Gathas to start Pradeepanjalee XII on July 15. There were no backstage banners or pennants on either side as we often see at shows. The only stage décor was the performer and the members of his orchestra who kept changing from item to item. It was simple and attractive.

Both Pradeep and Torana Music Box chief Sarath Kotelawela would have kept their fingers crossed not knowing what the response would be to the concert. It was an open invitation where the audience was going to be accommodated on a first come first served basis. They came in their numbers and filled the hall - both upstairs and downstairs. And the response was amazing. There was pin drop silence during the performance and loud applause for each item. They proved that they appreciate top quality music not necessarily what is in vogue under numerous jargon. (Sorry I am the old school type and am not used to the terminology).

Pradeep proved that he is not one who caters exclusively to the Lionel Wendt types. He should be happy about it. He deserves the accolades for collecting such a distinguished gathering of musicians for the evening. They were all at their best making it a most memorable evening in front of an audience most of whom obviously met them for the first time.

Having been to several Pradeepanjalee concerts, I just enjoy them more and more. I don't know the intricacies of music but Pradeep makes it so exciting and stimulating. That Sunday was exceptional. The mix of new and old numbers made it pretty interesting. He brought in a new dimension in the opening number 'Standing together' with the voices of Kolitha Bhanu Dissanayake, Madhavi Shilpadhipathi and Arunanthy Aruran mixing perfectly to the strains of his sitar.

Each item had its own appeal and many of the performers stood out. Lakshman Joseph de Saram is always a delight on the violin. Big burly Jananatha is simply amazing on the tammattama. Both Ravibandu and Nesan are experts playing their own brand of drums. And of course, Harsha on the piano is a master. The way the two young tabla players (one was Upula Madhushanka and I couldn't get the name of the other) responded to Pradeep was a treat.

The new CD

Pradeep Ratnayake

Pradeep's concert marked the launch of his latest CD, 'Sithijaya' and a tie-up with a recording company, Torana Music Box. 'Sithijaya' has been described as a continuation of Pradeep's signature style of fusing many worlds of music together, drawing inspiraion from Indian classical music, Western Classical, Jazz and the popular.

His knack of making use of Sri Lankan folk melodies is very much in evidence. The 'Esala Perahera' and 'Niyara Dige' are just two numbers where popular folk melodies have been cleverly blended. As claimed, the CD is a new dimension of Sri Lankan sitar music where the East and the West, the folk, jazz, pop and the classical meet.

It was nice to find fans rushing to purchase the CD - yet another encouraging sign that they want quality music. Incidentally, for Pandit Amaradeva and Visharada Nanda Malini to be the 'People's Choice' in the field of music at the recent SLIM/Nielson People's Awards is further proof of what music lovers prefer.

Pradeep is well on the way to create a music that is distinctively Sri Lankan. He has broken new ground in attracting a new audience which augurs well for him as well as the future of music in our country. Good luck, Pradeep. Keep going!