A diva in everyone of them
For many of the girls of the Contempo choir – singing is about reliving those glory days where they used to sing their hearts out for the Bridgetine choir. While for some of the younger ones, it’s about the joy of singing in a professional choir with the seniors that they looked up to during their school days. But one thing defines them all – there’s a little bit of a diva in each and every one of them.
Pic by M. A Pushpa Kumara
Our notions are reassured by the chit-chat and the hearty laughs that break out during the rehearsals of their first solo concert – “Viva La Diva”. The core of the concert is something that’s close to all their hearts –re-enacting the musical works that define the powerful contemporary female artistes- the ones that they have come to idolise and emulate growing up.
“Presently Contempo is made up of a group of eclectic people who have just left school, to members forging careers in fields ranging from teaching, arts, fashion, finance, to marketing and law. They are all bound by a common enthusiasm to continue with the musical careers they started in school,” says Nadeeka Perera, Co-Directress of the choir. “Few of our new members have just left school, and want to continue their singing. We have always tried to keep to the musical traditions from previous singing teachers,” she adds. But this time around, Contempo is diving into a different foray with colourful versions of modern songs.
“This is something that they are comfortable with,” says Eshantha Peiris, Contempo’s music director. “It serves perfectly for their first solo concert,” he adds. However, this by no means insinuates that Contempo plays it safe. “We have been experimenting with a whole array of music.” One of the well-received experiments that Eshantha recalls is a gripping vocal enactment of the Sri Lankan Wannam.
During the 2000s the school choir was directed by the inimitable Ruwani Seimon, who produced four unforgettable choir concerts, the last of which was Spellbound in 2007. The repertoire of the choir included songs in Latin, Hindi, and even African languages, as well as original acapella arrangements of Sri Lankan folk songs. The Bridgetine choir now continues its traditions in the capable hands of Priyanthi Seneviratne Van Dort, another past Bridgetine.
Contempo is open to several different styles of music, but the focus of their latest concert will be performances that define the era of the diva. “As a choir we drew from a lot of spectrums. The songs of the late 80’s and the early 90’s were what took a soft corner in our hearts, but with the younger ones coming in to the choir there is so much of diversity,”says Nadine Corera, Co-Directress of Contempo.
Their first professional performance was at the concert ‘September’, held in 2009, which was a collaboration with Choro Benedicte. “September was a confidence booster to the group, but we believe that ‘Viva La Diva’ will be a more intimate production,” Nadine adds.
‘Diva’ used to be a word reserved for female opera stars, but singers from the pop industry have captured the public imagination over the last 50 years, explains Eshantha. “ ‘Diva’ has come to refer to celebrity women who personify vocal talent, attitude and empowerment in today’s pop culture,” says Eshantha.
“I’m sure each chorister has a song they love in this repertoire and it has been a joy and a challenge to learn and love songs that are new and yet lay the soundtrack to our lives,” says Dilini, who is also a member of Contempo.
‘Viva la Diva’ showcases the highlights of pop music over the last half-century, as sung by the popular female artistes of each decade. With music ranging from doo-wop to dance-floor electronica, featuring songs by artistes such as Dianna Ross, Madonna and Lady Gaga, ‘Viva la Diva’ promises a toe-tapping evening with something for everyone in the audience.
‘Viva la diva’ will be held at the Russian Cultural Centre in Colombo, on June 7 and 8.
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