Henry Caldera
Henry Caldera (August 191937–October 11, 2006 (aged 69)) was a Sri Lankan Singer/Songwriter/Musician.
Caldera was born on August 191937. He went completely blind at 14 and attended Seeduwa Deaf and Blind school. Caldera became a radio artist in 1968 and had his first hit song with Thara Petia in 1972. He released a four song album in 1977.During his lifetime he released three audio cassettes and two CD's. Most of the songs that he sang were Solos. Most of his songs are children's songs and many are based on true experiences. Caldera sang for his own children and as well as for his grand children.
In 1979 the then Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Ranasinghe Premadasa, donated a house for Caldera to live in. In the year 1993 he was felicitated with a Kala Bhushan award (the second highest award granted by the state for performing artists). During his lifetime he was felicitated by several universities (student bodies)and non governmental organisations in appreciation of his service to folk music.
Here are some of the songs which placed top place in Sri Lankan music.
1. Thara Patiya - (Song for Chindren) 2. Penuna Suwa Dasun - (Song about love and being not told by his partner that 'I LOVE YOU') 3. Midule Sudu Weli Thalaye 4. Eeye Udaye 5. Lanka Mage Lanka 6. Mokada Nago (Duet) 7. Pemin Bandennai 8. Oba Pewa Hasarella 9. Sisila Sendaewe 10. Kana Widina Wele 11. Mal Natu Weni 12. Andannepa Amme 13. Samanala Siripa 14. Melowa Thibena 15. Suhadiniye 16. Kanda Udin (Duet) 17. Mage somi sanda 18. Deva Meniyane 19. Nahawa rasa kiri powa 20. Hinaweyan sudu saman male 21. Gayakayanani 22. Mawage malagama 23. Malli (Duet) 24. Sanahase sihil nille (Duet) 25. Budu Piye
Caldera firmly believed that art is art and nothing could buy an artist and held on to that till he breathed his last breath.
Caldera had four children with his wife who was also blind. He was diagnosed with cancer in 2004 and died on 11 October 2006.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Champa Kalhari
Champa Kalhari
Born - 21/03/1974 in Colombo
Job Titles- Actor,Singer,Radio Announcer,Television presenter
Family - Father: A Prominent Musician
Education- Visaka Vidyalaya, Colombo
Champa Kalhari Jayasekara stepped into the music world in 1981 in a SLBC programme called "Lama Pitiya" at the age of 8 years. after that she was invited to several programmes. she got through the selection test conducted by Radio ceylon in 1980. Mr. Shanthi Dissanayake came to her house after she sang the song "Sri Lanka Ma Prriyadara Jaya Bhoomi" by Latha Mangeshkar and offered her a chance to enter Lama Pitiya program.
She became popular because she sang Hindi Songs. Her first cassette was called "Sathire". The road she travelled in was not a bed of roses but a bush of thorns. She has released more than fifteen cassettes and most of them are Hindi Songs.
Her dream was to be a doctor, that was not fulfilled. However she is happy that she is a singer.
She is one of the talented and popular singers in Sri Lanka. She also performed as a Play back female singer in sinhala movies. She resides in Piliyandala and presently she is in abroad. She produced a singhala audio disc comprising 16 songs. She studied music in India. She has been enjoying fame and popularity since she was a tiny tot. Her melodious voice, and her talent to sing Hindi songs has brought her a lot of fans young and old. Champa Kalhari, the young lady with the tinkling voice! Having conquered the music world, it made her to move on to test the business arena.
She launched her business shortly. Since she knew music, she thought of engaging in a business to make cassettes and distribution of the same.
Some time back she sang Sinhalese songs in Hindi. She wanted to do something new. therefore with the permission of veterans Gunadasa Kapuge, Dayaratne Ranatunga and Sanath Nandasiri she sang their songs in Hindi. She is really grateful to them for giving permission and helping her achieve her goal.
Champa in addition to singing she is an actress and an announcer. It was by coincidence that she was entered the teledrama world. She has acted about thirteen teledramas. She thinks the announcing offer came since she sings Hindi songs. She was the announcer for the program Hindi Top Ten aired by Sri FM on Sundays. In the future, if she gets good programs she will continue announcing. She loves her fans very much and it was very difficult her to leave her fans when she was leaving.
Her Comments about her Original Cassette and Compact disk "Sanda Sarasi" " Releasing this cassette took a lot of time an effort because I had to devote a lot of time to select some good songs and the songs are on a new theme."
She spends her leisure time traveling distant places.
Click following links for her songs
At the age of 12 she sang the song "Sri Lanka" which was originally sung by Veteran Female Singer Latha Mangeskar almost similarly. You can watch this song by visiting
Song : Sri Lanka Ma Priyadara Jayaboomi
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgEuI0QBRwg&feature=related
Song : Adare Nam Pothe
http://www.infolanka.com/miyuru_gee/art/champa_kalhari.html
Song : Jeewitheta Aruna Udavei
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9mwTm1Z4_M
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Born - 21/03/1974 in Colombo
Job Titles- Actor,Singer,Radio Announcer,Television presenter
Family - Father: A Prominent Musician
Education- Visaka Vidyalaya, Colombo
Champa Kalhari Jayasekara stepped into the music world in 1981 in a SLBC programme called "Lama Pitiya" at the age of 8 years. after that she was invited to several programmes. she got through the selection test conducted by Radio ceylon in 1980. Mr. Shanthi Dissanayake came to her house after she sang the song "Sri Lanka Ma Prriyadara Jaya Bhoomi" by Latha Mangeshkar and offered her a chance to enter Lama Pitiya program.
She became popular because she sang Hindi Songs. Her first cassette was called "Sathire". The road she travelled in was not a bed of roses but a bush of thorns. She has released more than fifteen cassettes and most of them are Hindi Songs.
Her dream was to be a doctor, that was not fulfilled. However she is happy that she is a singer.
She is one of the talented and popular singers in Sri Lanka. She also performed as a Play back female singer in sinhala movies. She resides in Piliyandala and presently she is in abroad. She produced a singhala audio disc comprising 16 songs. She studied music in India. She has been enjoying fame and popularity since she was a tiny tot. Her melodious voice, and her talent to sing Hindi songs has brought her a lot of fans young and old. Champa Kalhari, the young lady with the tinkling voice! Having conquered the music world, it made her to move on to test the business arena.
She launched her business shortly. Since she knew music, she thought of engaging in a business to make cassettes and distribution of the same.
Some time back she sang Sinhalese songs in Hindi. She wanted to do something new. therefore with the permission of veterans Gunadasa Kapuge, Dayaratne Ranatunga and Sanath Nandasiri she sang their songs in Hindi. She is really grateful to them for giving permission and helping her achieve her goal.
Champa in addition to singing she is an actress and an announcer. It was by coincidence that she was entered the teledrama world. She has acted about thirteen teledramas. She thinks the announcing offer came since she sings Hindi songs. She was the announcer for the program Hindi Top Ten aired by Sri FM on Sundays. In the future, if she gets good programs she will continue announcing. She loves her fans very much and it was very difficult her to leave her fans when she was leaving.
Her Comments about her Original Cassette and Compact disk "Sanda Sarasi" " Releasing this cassette took a lot of time an effort because I had to devote a lot of time to select some good songs and the songs are on a new theme."
She spends her leisure time traveling distant places.
Click following links for her songs
At the age of 12 she sang the song "Sri Lanka" which was originally sung by Veteran Female Singer Latha Mangeskar almost similarly. You can watch this song by visiting
Song : Sri Lanka Ma Priyadara Jayaboomi
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgEuI0QBRwg&feature=related
Song : Adare Nam Pothe
http://www.infolanka.com/miyuru_gee/art/champa_kalhari.html
Song : Jeewitheta Aruna Udavei
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9mwTm1Z4_M
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Desmond de Silva
Desmond de Silva
Desmond de Silva(ෙඩස්මන්ඩ් ද සිල්වා) is a Sri Lankan singer and entertainer, noted for his youthful voice that has changed little over four decades of performing, and regarded as the "King of Baila." Born in Matara in southern Sri Lanka, De Silva is now resident in Great Britain and has performed to packed concert halls across the world.
1960s in Ceylon
"Des," as he is known to his fans, launched his career in popular music in Colombo in 1963, he was the lead vocalist of the Fire-Flies. His music was featured widely on Radio Ceylon and subsequently the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation, the oldest radio station in South Asia. Des has also performed with leading Sri Lankan pop groups - "Spitfires," "Gabo and the Breakaways," and the "Jetliners." He sang a song titled 'Oba Nisa' with Mignonne Fernando and the Jetliners - it was hailed as a musical masterpiece at an international song festival. In 1976 he decided to form his own band, ' Desmond and the Clan.' They performed in various countries in South-East Asia, including the Maldives. In 1984 Desmond de Silva decided to go solo.
International song contests
Desmond de Silva has represented Sri Lanka at the 5th Olympiad of Songs in Athens, Greece in 1979 and at the Yamaha Festival of Song in Tokyo, Japan.
Forty Year in Showbiz
He has celebrated 40 years in show business, selling millions of CDs around the world. De Silva is known for his popular renditions of Sri Lankan 'baila' music, which is a style whose origins are in Portuguese and Spanish music. He has had a string of baila hits including: 'Polkatu Hande,' ' Yaman Bando,' 'Chuda Manike,' 'Mamma No,' 'Miss Sri Lanka,' 'Hai Hui baby Achchi,' 'Rajasangabo' 'Komali Pane,' as well as popular recordings of anonymous baila songs. He is also known for a whole range of 'Party Time' non-stop baila music sold around the world.
Desmond de Silva now resides in London and has performed with London based backing group Foreign Affairs at many a concert in the United Kingdom.
Championing the cause of Autism
De Silva has championed the cause of autism and Asperger syndrome: he created history in August 2005 by being the first Sri Lankan musician to appeal on behalf of autistic children and people with autism in Sri Lanka, urging Sri Lankans to 'speak up for those who cannot speak up for themselves.' De Silva received a standing ovation.
De Silva told thousands at the BMICH in Colombo: ' Autism is a neuro-developmental disorder affecting so many around the world. Autism is not mental illness, these children and adults think differently. Albert Einstein they say was autistic. How many in the audience know that there are 38,000 autistic people in Sri Lanka? So we as entertainers, urge you all to 'speak up for those who cannot speak up for themselves.' Lets spread awareness of autism, particularly when numbers of autistic children are rising and we urge our government to also provide public services – who knows we may even produce Albert Einsteins if we provide education, health, specialist speech therapy for autistic children in our lovely island....'
Desmond de Silva launched the first ever Concert for Autism for Sri Lanka in Sydney, Australia on 31 March 2006.
He remains one of Sri Lanka's popular entertainers and is in heavy demand in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, India and other places.
Quotes on Desmond de Silva
' Desmond de Silva is one of Sri Lanka's leading musicians - he has popularized Sri Lankan baila music all over the world and has appeared as far afield as Los Angeles, New York, Melbourne, London, Auckland, Dubai, Bahrain, New Delhi and Singapore.'
WORLD MUSIC CENTRAL
' Yes... they all came in droves to hear and see their hero back in high action at the sold out concert at BMICH. The older fans to savour the event and listen to their favourite songs, while the young eager to enjoy, maybe for the first time, Desmond Live in Concert - a concert with an unexpected difference. It was also a night for the elite in the music world, theatre, fashion and society - sure they were not going to miss out on this extravaganza and Desmond's acclaimed showmanship....'
THE SUNDAY OBSERVER SRI LANKA
' Desmond has a heart of gold, he is reaching out to people with autism and the Autism Awareness Campaign Sri Lanka are grateful to the 'King of Baila' for raising awareness about the condition. Desmond de Silva is making a difference.He has enthralled audiences all over the world. His CDs have sold millions all over the globe.Desmond was touched to hear about the plight of 38,000 autistic children in Sri Lanka - only a handful are being helped in schools and parents, carers and autists have to struggle to access public services in health, education specialist speech therapy and respite care on the island.'
AUTISM AWARENESS CAMPAIGN SRI LANKA
'Mr de Silva, who has been performing for over 40 years, is expected to perform some of his top hits.The artist has performed to sell-out crowds all over the world and will be performing for the first time at The Warbler, Baisan International Hotel in Bahrain.An accomplished singer of English songs, he began his musical journey in 1963 with the band, Fireflies.The singer has also worked with SriMirage, the band currently performing at The Warbler, and today's show will mark their reunion.....'
GULF DAILY NEWS BAHRAIN
Desmond de Silva(ෙඩස්මන්ඩ් ද සිල්වා) is a Sri Lankan singer and entertainer, noted for his youthful voice that has changed little over four decades of performing, and regarded as the "King of Baila." Born in Matara in southern Sri Lanka, De Silva is now resident in Great Britain and has performed to packed concert halls across the world.
1960s in Ceylon
"Des," as he is known to his fans, launched his career in popular music in Colombo in 1963, he was the lead vocalist of the Fire-Flies. His music was featured widely on Radio Ceylon and subsequently the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation, the oldest radio station in South Asia. Des has also performed with leading Sri Lankan pop groups - "Spitfires," "Gabo and the Breakaways," and the "Jetliners." He sang a song titled 'Oba Nisa' with Mignonne Fernando and the Jetliners - it was hailed as a musical masterpiece at an international song festival. In 1976 he decided to form his own band, ' Desmond and the Clan.' They performed in various countries in South-East Asia, including the Maldives. In 1984 Desmond de Silva decided to go solo.
International song contests
Desmond de Silva has represented Sri Lanka at the 5th Olympiad of Songs in Athens, Greece in 1979 and at the Yamaha Festival of Song in Tokyo, Japan.
Forty Year in Showbiz
He has celebrated 40 years in show business, selling millions of CDs around the world. De Silva is known for his popular renditions of Sri Lankan 'baila' music, which is a style whose origins are in Portuguese and Spanish music. He has had a string of baila hits including: 'Polkatu Hande,' ' Yaman Bando,' 'Chuda Manike,' 'Mamma No,' 'Miss Sri Lanka,' 'Hai Hui baby Achchi,' 'Rajasangabo' 'Komali Pane,' as well as popular recordings of anonymous baila songs. He is also known for a whole range of 'Party Time' non-stop baila music sold around the world.
Desmond de Silva now resides in London and has performed with London based backing group Foreign Affairs at many a concert in the United Kingdom.
Championing the cause of Autism
De Silva has championed the cause of autism and Asperger syndrome: he created history in August 2005 by being the first Sri Lankan musician to appeal on behalf of autistic children and people with autism in Sri Lanka, urging Sri Lankans to 'speak up for those who cannot speak up for themselves.' De Silva received a standing ovation.
De Silva told thousands at the BMICH in Colombo: ' Autism is a neuro-developmental disorder affecting so many around the world. Autism is not mental illness, these children and adults think differently. Albert Einstein they say was autistic. How many in the audience know that there are 38,000 autistic people in Sri Lanka? So we as entertainers, urge you all to 'speak up for those who cannot speak up for themselves.' Lets spread awareness of autism, particularly when numbers of autistic children are rising and we urge our government to also provide public services – who knows we may even produce Albert Einsteins if we provide education, health, specialist speech therapy for autistic children in our lovely island....'
Desmond de Silva launched the first ever Concert for Autism for Sri Lanka in Sydney, Australia on 31 March 2006.
He remains one of Sri Lanka's popular entertainers and is in heavy demand in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, India and other places.
Quotes on Desmond de Silva
' Desmond de Silva is one of Sri Lanka's leading musicians - he has popularized Sri Lankan baila music all over the world and has appeared as far afield as Los Angeles, New York, Melbourne, London, Auckland, Dubai, Bahrain, New Delhi and Singapore.'
WORLD MUSIC CENTRAL
' Yes... they all came in droves to hear and see their hero back in high action at the sold out concert at BMICH. The older fans to savour the event and listen to their favourite songs, while the young eager to enjoy, maybe for the first time, Desmond Live in Concert - a concert with an unexpected difference. It was also a night for the elite in the music world, theatre, fashion and society - sure they were not going to miss out on this extravaganza and Desmond's acclaimed showmanship....'
THE SUNDAY OBSERVER SRI LANKA
' Desmond has a heart of gold, he is reaching out to people with autism and the Autism Awareness Campaign Sri Lanka are grateful to the 'King of Baila' for raising awareness about the condition. Desmond de Silva is making a difference.He has enthralled audiences all over the world. His CDs have sold millions all over the globe.Desmond was touched to hear about the plight of 38,000 autistic children in Sri Lanka - only a handful are being helped in schools and parents, carers and autists have to struggle to access public services in health, education specialist speech therapy and respite care on the island.'
AUTISM AWARENESS CAMPAIGN SRI LANKA
'Mr de Silva, who has been performing for over 40 years, is expected to perform some of his top hits.The artist has performed to sell-out crowds all over the world and will be performing for the first time at The Warbler, Baisan International Hotel in Bahrain.An accomplished singer of English songs, he began his musical journey in 1963 with the band, Fireflies.The singer has also worked with SriMirage, the band currently performing at The Warbler, and today's show will mark their reunion.....'
GULF DAILY NEWS BAHRAIN
Edward Jayakody
Edward Jayakody
Edward Jayakody (born April 6, 1952 in Kegalle, Sri Lanka) is a Sri Lankan musician, singer and composer. Jayakody had directed the music for hundreds of Sinhala films and television serials; he has also composed many songs for children's programming ("Koppara Koppara").
Jayakody won the Swarna Sanka Award in 1987 for Best Male Singer for the film Gedara Budun Amma. He won Best Music Director in 1979 and 1980 for the plays Nidane and Aparadaya Saha Danduwama.
Life and career
Early life
Jayakody was born Jayakody Arachchige Don Edward Timothy Jayakody, the sixth child of Don Raphial Jayakody and Victoria Jayakody on April 6, 1952 in Hettimulla, Kegalle, Sri Lanka. His family was Catholic. Jayakody received his early education at Bandaranaike Junior School, and received his secondary education at St. Mary's College of Kegalle. He joined the church choir while attending Bandaranaike and learned music while at St. Mary's, under teacher H. Samarapala.
Work in music
During the period from 1968 to 1976, Jayakody participated in the Maliban Guwan Thotilla and in amateur music programmes. He entered the Government College of Music in 1976 (presently the Faculty of Aesthetic Education of Kelaniya University) and during that time took part in music programmes conducted by popular musicians. At that time he started releasing cassettes and his career took off.
He was the music teacher at Nalanda College Colombo in mid 1980s.
Jayakody's album Deduna Palama was released on April 6, 2003.
Personal life
Jayakody married singer Charitha Priyadarshani in 1991, and has a son Chandeepa Sharanath and a daughter Sharanya Rasodi.
Edward Jayakody (born April 6, 1952 in Kegalle, Sri Lanka) is a Sri Lankan musician, singer and composer. Jayakody had directed the music for hundreds of Sinhala films and television serials; he has also composed many songs for children's programming ("Koppara Koppara").
Jayakody won the Swarna Sanka Award in 1987 for Best Male Singer for the film Gedara Budun Amma. He won Best Music Director in 1979 and 1980 for the plays Nidane and Aparadaya Saha Danduwama.
Life and career
Early life
Jayakody was born Jayakody Arachchige Don Edward Timothy Jayakody, the sixth child of Don Raphial Jayakody and Victoria Jayakody on April 6, 1952 in Hettimulla, Kegalle, Sri Lanka. His family was Catholic. Jayakody received his early education at Bandaranaike Junior School, and received his secondary education at St. Mary's College of Kegalle. He joined the church choir while attending Bandaranaike and learned music while at St. Mary's, under teacher H. Samarapala.
Work in music
During the period from 1968 to 1976, Jayakody participated in the Maliban Guwan Thotilla and in amateur music programmes. He entered the Government College of Music in 1976 (presently the Faculty of Aesthetic Education of Kelaniya University) and during that time took part in music programmes conducted by popular musicians. At that time he started releasing cassettes and his career took off.
He was the music teacher at Nalanda College Colombo in mid 1980s.
Jayakody's album Deduna Palama was released on April 6, 2003.
Personal life
Jayakody married singer Charitha Priyadarshani in 1991, and has a son Chandeepa Sharanath and a daughter Sharanya Rasodi.
Jagath Wickramasinghe
Jagath Wickramasinghe
Jagath Wickramasinghe (born 1966) is a Sri Lankan musician. His best known songs include "Saagara Tharangaa," "Mage Nango," "Pemvantayin Se," and "Obe Sina Langa." He is currently one of the three judges on Sirasa Superstar.
Wickramasinghe initially pursued a career as an engineer, but later decided to become a musician like his parents. His career took off after his songs were played on stations owned by the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation.
Wickramasinghe signed on as a judge on Sirasa Superstar in 2005 motivated by the chance to help musicians achieve success.
Jagath Wickramasinghe (born 1966) is a Sri Lankan musician. His best known songs include "Saagara Tharangaa," "Mage Nango," "Pemvantayin Se," and "Obe Sina Langa." He is currently one of the three judges on Sirasa Superstar.
Wickramasinghe initially pursued a career as an engineer, but later decided to become a musician like his parents. His career took off after his songs were played on stations owned by the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation.
Wickramasinghe signed on as a judge on Sirasa Superstar in 2005 motivated by the chance to help musicians achieve success.
Nimal Mendis
Nimal Mendis
The distinguished Sri Lanka born singer/songwriter Nimal Mendis
Background information
Born - March 29, 1934 (1934-03-29) (age 75)
Origin - Colombo, Sri Lanka
Genres - Rock, pop, piano rock, Sri Lankan music
Occupations - Singer-songwriter, musician
Instruments - Vocals,Piano,Keyboards,Guitar
Years - active 1958 - Present
Labels - Decca, Media Eye Music
Associated acts - Mary Marshall sang 'Kiss Kiss Kiss' on Columbia Records in 1958, Singing 'Feel Like A Clown' - Raja and Rani - with Sandra Edema on BBC TV'S 'Top of the Pops' programme in 1968
Website - http://www.mediaeyeproductions.com
Nimal Mendis is a Sri Lankan singer and songwriter. He is one of a handful of Sri Lankan musicians to make it to the BBC television programme Top of the Pops in 1968.
Mendis was discovered by Radio Ceylon, the oldest radio station in South Asia, in the late 1950s. The radio station dominated the airwaves in South Asia in the 1950s and 1960s—the station backed his songs from the start, including "Kandyan Express", turning them into hits in South Asia. People from all over the Indian sub-continent wrote in to Radio Ceylon requesting his songs.
Mendis had been involved with music from his childhood, and has lived for many years in London travelling often to Sri Lanka. He lived in Uxbridge with his wife Ranjani. Currently he has moved to Sri Lanka and started working on a Sri Lankan film.
Mendis was so moved by the devastation of the 2004 tsunami that he composed a Tsunami song to aid the victims. British Parliamentarians commended his composition in a motion in the House of Commons. The British Parliamentarian, Linda Perham MP sponsored early day motion 638.
His Tsunami song has been recorded in Australia, Canada, the United States, Germany, Sri Lanka, and in the United Kingdom.
Early years: 1950s–1960s
Nimal has 22 songs published in Britain and has written music for films in Sri Lanka. "Kiss Kiss Kiss" was Nimal's first song that was recorded in Britain and sung by Mary Marshall on the Columbia label. "Kandyan Express", "Cherry Blossom Tree", "Oh My Lover", "Butterfly in the Rain", "Champagne Blues", and "Goodnight Kisses "' were number-one hits in Sri Lanka in the late fifties.
"Kandyan Dance", an instrumental, was his second piece in the West. Recorded by
Friedel Berlipp and his Orchestra in Germany it went on to be number two on Radio Luxembourg. It was also released in the United States. Black Pearls & Green Diamonds has eight of Nimal's songs on an LP for Decca by One Two and Three, a folk group in Britain.
Mendis appeared on the popular BBC television music programme Top of the Pops with his singing partner Sandra Edema in 1968 as guest artists with his song "Feel like a Clown". They were also featured with the song on Beat Club in Germany that year. Eugene Wright bass player with the original Dave Brubeck Quartet arranged and recorded five of Nimal's songs only with him playing bass. He also arranged and produced one other song "Singing Fish" with electric guitar, bass, and piano. They were sung by Sandra Edema.
1970s
In the seventies he recorded a number of songs in London. Many of these songs were of a spiritual nature. He made a twenty-minute audio documentary on the Way of the Cross called The Passion Report. Another audio documentary called Ferryman was about the tea estate worker and the farmer in Sri Lanka. It traces their history from the British colonial period. He also wrote Bread of Life for the Eucharistic Congress in Sri Lanka.
Mendis has written several memorable songs for Sri Lankan films. Nimal wrote the song "Master Sir" in Sri Lanka for a film, Kalu Diya Dhahara (A column of black water). "Master Sir" is about colonial Sri Lanka; the words tell a story about the dignity of labour, a story not about wages but about social justice. The song was recorded both in English (by Mendis and Sandra Edema) and Sinhala (by Neville Fernando,with lyrics by Karunaratne Abeysekera) and has remained a hit in Sri Lanka for over thirty years.
His composition "Ganga Addara" ("By the Banks of the River"), written by Augustus Vinayagaratnam, and sung by Vijaya Kumaranatunga) for the film (Directed by Sumitra Peiris) of the same name, is also a very popular song in Sri Lanka. "Ran Tikiri Sina" was written for the same film, and was also a hit. Indeed, all the songs he wrote for Sinhala films have been popular with the public in Sri Lanka.
1980s
In the eighties, Mendis went into the production of documentary films with Ranjani his wife and Paulmarie their son. Paulmarie, deft with computers and editing visuals, assisted them. He was only seven years old when he accompanied his parents filming in the war zones of the North and East of Sri Lanka. Mendis also did a stage show It's What I Am with Sri Lankan musicians; the highlight was the song "July '83", a song on the riots of that year. He also made two audio cassettes, one for Air Lanka A Taste of Paradise and the other for the Ceylon Tourist Board Pilgrim Places of Sri Lanka.
"Ran Tikiri Sina" and "Ganga Addara" lyrics were written by Augustus Vinayagaratnam, music provided by Nimal Mendis.
1990s
In the nineties they formed their own enterprise, Mediaeye. In the new millennium they have brought out an audio documentary War is my Country tracing the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka up to 1994. This CD contains archive material over a period of seventeen years with narration, interviews with political and other personalities, songs, and poems. Three of the political personalities have since been assassinated.
Current work
Currently they have relocated to the United Kingdom. Together with son Paulmarie they are compiling the songs, audio documentaries, and film material on CD and DVD. New songs too are being written, such as "Tsunami Sri Lanka", "Earth Mother Crying" (on the environment), "The Dawn of Compassion", and the "Hail Mary" in song. They have also formed Mediaeye Music, the publishing arm of Mediaeye Productions founded in 1990.
Fans formed a Nimal Mendis Group on Facebook in 2008.
Charity work
Mendis has thrown his weight behind the important Autism Awareness Campaign UK and the UK Autism Foundation.Mendis has backed the call of British musicians for better public services in education, health, specialist speech therapy, and respite care for all people with autism and Asperger syndrome. Mendis released 'Open Every Door,' a song for autism in May 2007 in the UK and dedicated it to the work of the UK Autism Foundation. The song for autism was personally presented to Prime Minister Tony Blair on April 25, 2007 and to the leading British parliamentarian Lee Scott (UK Politician).
Television documentaries
Dawn of Terror, their first documentary, was filmed on the ethnic conflict, and could be called an anti-war film. It was made for the Centre for Society and Religion in Sri Lanka. The film, although made on VHS, was taken for distribution by Concord Video and film in the UK
Shattered Pearl on women affected by the war in Sri Lanka and the "right to life" was made for Channel 4 television in London. It was a major film by Sri Lankans on British TV at the time. It has been shown in many parts of the world.
Three Women Speak Out was made for "Article 19" in Britain on freedom of opinion and expression, and they edited Z for Zero Concern on homeless children in London for the Children's Society.
Water Water Everywhere, filmed in Bangladesh, is on women and water-management, made for CAFOD.
Blessed Are the Poor compares poverty in Britain and South India and the positive effort people make to change their lives. This documentary was made for the Methodist International.
They have also been researchers for three major British TV productions. Three of their documentaries were at the Monticatini Film Festival in Italy: Shattered Pearl, Seyllan to Paradise, and Stop Killing Start Singing (which was based on three songs). It was the first time that Sinhala songs were featured as a documentary.
Quotations about Nimal Mendis
"A crusader for creative and original song writing, using the Sri Lankan folk idiom, Nimal Mendis was successful in influencing many a young lyricist and music composer in acknowledging the wealth in Sri Lankan folk music and adapting it with western overtones, to bring about a new identity in music..." (Mahes Perera, writing in the Sunday Observer Sri Lanka).Source: Sunday Observer Colombo Sri Lank
The distinguished Sri Lanka born singer/songwriter Nimal Mendis
Background information
Born - March 29, 1934 (1934-03-29) (age 75)
Origin - Colombo, Sri Lanka
Genres - Rock, pop, piano rock, Sri Lankan music
Occupations - Singer-songwriter, musician
Instruments - Vocals,Piano,Keyboards,Guitar
Years - active 1958 - Present
Labels - Decca, Media Eye Music
Associated acts - Mary Marshall sang 'Kiss Kiss Kiss' on Columbia Records in 1958, Singing 'Feel Like A Clown' - Raja and Rani - with Sandra Edema on BBC TV'S 'Top of the Pops' programme in 1968
Website - http://www.mediaeyeproductions.com
Nimal Mendis is a Sri Lankan singer and songwriter. He is one of a handful of Sri Lankan musicians to make it to the BBC television programme Top of the Pops in 1968.
Mendis was discovered by Radio Ceylon, the oldest radio station in South Asia, in the late 1950s. The radio station dominated the airwaves in South Asia in the 1950s and 1960s—the station backed his songs from the start, including "Kandyan Express", turning them into hits in South Asia. People from all over the Indian sub-continent wrote in to Radio Ceylon requesting his songs.
Mendis had been involved with music from his childhood, and has lived for many years in London travelling often to Sri Lanka. He lived in Uxbridge with his wife Ranjani. Currently he has moved to Sri Lanka and started working on a Sri Lankan film.
Mendis was so moved by the devastation of the 2004 tsunami that he composed a Tsunami song to aid the victims. British Parliamentarians commended his composition in a motion in the House of Commons. The British Parliamentarian, Linda Perham MP sponsored early day motion 638.
His Tsunami song has been recorded in Australia, Canada, the United States, Germany, Sri Lanka, and in the United Kingdom.
Early years: 1950s–1960s
Nimal has 22 songs published in Britain and has written music for films in Sri Lanka. "Kiss Kiss Kiss" was Nimal's first song that was recorded in Britain and sung by Mary Marshall on the Columbia label. "Kandyan Express", "Cherry Blossom Tree", "Oh My Lover", "Butterfly in the Rain", "Champagne Blues", and "Goodnight Kisses "' were number-one hits in Sri Lanka in the late fifties.
"Kandyan Dance", an instrumental, was his second piece in the West. Recorded by
Friedel Berlipp and his Orchestra in Germany it went on to be number two on Radio Luxembourg. It was also released in the United States. Black Pearls & Green Diamonds has eight of Nimal's songs on an LP for Decca by One Two and Three, a folk group in Britain.
Mendis appeared on the popular BBC television music programme Top of the Pops with his singing partner Sandra Edema in 1968 as guest artists with his song "Feel like a Clown". They were also featured with the song on Beat Club in Germany that year. Eugene Wright bass player with the original Dave Brubeck Quartet arranged and recorded five of Nimal's songs only with him playing bass. He also arranged and produced one other song "Singing Fish" with electric guitar, bass, and piano. They were sung by Sandra Edema.
1970s
In the seventies he recorded a number of songs in London. Many of these songs were of a spiritual nature. He made a twenty-minute audio documentary on the Way of the Cross called The Passion Report. Another audio documentary called Ferryman was about the tea estate worker and the farmer in Sri Lanka. It traces their history from the British colonial period. He also wrote Bread of Life for the Eucharistic Congress in Sri Lanka.
Mendis has written several memorable songs for Sri Lankan films. Nimal wrote the song "Master Sir" in Sri Lanka for a film, Kalu Diya Dhahara (A column of black water). "Master Sir" is about colonial Sri Lanka; the words tell a story about the dignity of labour, a story not about wages but about social justice. The song was recorded both in English (by Mendis and Sandra Edema) and Sinhala (by Neville Fernando,with lyrics by Karunaratne Abeysekera) and has remained a hit in Sri Lanka for over thirty years.
His composition "Ganga Addara" ("By the Banks of the River"), written by Augustus Vinayagaratnam, and sung by Vijaya Kumaranatunga) for the film (Directed by Sumitra Peiris) of the same name, is also a very popular song in Sri Lanka. "Ran Tikiri Sina" was written for the same film, and was also a hit. Indeed, all the songs he wrote for Sinhala films have been popular with the public in Sri Lanka.
1980s
In the eighties, Mendis went into the production of documentary films with Ranjani his wife and Paulmarie their son. Paulmarie, deft with computers and editing visuals, assisted them. He was only seven years old when he accompanied his parents filming in the war zones of the North and East of Sri Lanka. Mendis also did a stage show It's What I Am with Sri Lankan musicians; the highlight was the song "July '83", a song on the riots of that year. He also made two audio cassettes, one for Air Lanka A Taste of Paradise and the other for the Ceylon Tourist Board Pilgrim Places of Sri Lanka.
"Ran Tikiri Sina" and "Ganga Addara" lyrics were written by Augustus Vinayagaratnam, music provided by Nimal Mendis.
1990s
In the nineties they formed their own enterprise, Mediaeye. In the new millennium they have brought out an audio documentary War is my Country tracing the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka up to 1994. This CD contains archive material over a period of seventeen years with narration, interviews with political and other personalities, songs, and poems. Three of the political personalities have since been assassinated.
Current work
Currently they have relocated to the United Kingdom. Together with son Paulmarie they are compiling the songs, audio documentaries, and film material on CD and DVD. New songs too are being written, such as "Tsunami Sri Lanka", "Earth Mother Crying" (on the environment), "The Dawn of Compassion", and the "Hail Mary" in song. They have also formed Mediaeye Music, the publishing arm of Mediaeye Productions founded in 1990.
Fans formed a Nimal Mendis Group on Facebook in 2008.
Charity work
Mendis has thrown his weight behind the important Autism Awareness Campaign UK and the UK Autism Foundation.Mendis has backed the call of British musicians for better public services in education, health, specialist speech therapy, and respite care for all people with autism and Asperger syndrome. Mendis released 'Open Every Door,' a song for autism in May 2007 in the UK and dedicated it to the work of the UK Autism Foundation. The song for autism was personally presented to Prime Minister Tony Blair on April 25, 2007 and to the leading British parliamentarian Lee Scott (UK Politician).
Television documentaries
Dawn of Terror, their first documentary, was filmed on the ethnic conflict, and could be called an anti-war film. It was made for the Centre for Society and Religion in Sri Lanka. The film, although made on VHS, was taken for distribution by Concord Video and film in the UK
Shattered Pearl on women affected by the war in Sri Lanka and the "right to life" was made for Channel 4 television in London. It was a major film by Sri Lankans on British TV at the time. It has been shown in many parts of the world.
Three Women Speak Out was made for "Article 19" in Britain on freedom of opinion and expression, and they edited Z for Zero Concern on homeless children in London for the Children's Society.
Water Water Everywhere, filmed in Bangladesh, is on women and water-management, made for CAFOD.
Blessed Are the Poor compares poverty in Britain and South India and the positive effort people make to change their lives. This documentary was made for the Methodist International.
They have also been researchers for three major British TV productions. Three of their documentaries were at the Monticatini Film Festival in Italy: Shattered Pearl, Seyllan to Paradise, and Stop Killing Start Singing (which was based on three songs). It was the first time that Sinhala songs were featured as a documentary.
Quotations about Nimal Mendis
"A crusader for creative and original song writing, using the Sri Lankan folk idiom, Nimal Mendis was successful in influencing many a young lyricist and music composer in acknowledging the wealth in Sri Lankan folk music and adapting it with western overtones, to bring about a new identity in music..." (Mahes Perera, writing in the Sunday Observer Sri Lanka).Source: Sunday Observer Colombo Sri Lank
Premasiri Khemadasa
Premasiri Khemadasa
Also known as Khemadasa Master
Born January 25, 1937(1937-01-25)
Origin - Sri Lanka
Died - October 24, 2008 (aged 71)
Genres - Sri Lankan music
Occupations - Music Director,Composer
Premasiri Khemadasa (also Khemadasa) (January 25, 1937 – October 24, 2008) also known as "Khemadasa Master" is one of the most influential composers in Sri Lankan music. Exploring the various styles of music around the world Khemadasa endeavored to develop a unique style of music. He combined Sinhala folk tunes, Hindustani music, Western music and many other streams of music in his compositions while adapting them to fit contemporary music.
Biography
Early life
Khemadasa grew up in Talpitiya, Wadduwa and attended St. John's College Panadura and Sri Sumangala College. As a teenager, he became a gifted flautist.
Khemadasa was asked to come to the Radio Ceylon for an interview on the day he was scheduled to take his Senior School Certificate examination. He finished the examination much ahead of time and travelled to the audition. He passed the audition and became a member of Radio Ceylon.[1]
As a composer
Khemadasa's debut as a film composer came with Sirisena Wimalaweera's Roddie Kella. With his score for Bambaru Ewith he introduced a style of music unacquainted to Sri Lankan cinema. He then began collaborating with acclaimed director Lester James Peries handling the music for films like Golu Hadawatha and Nidhanaya. Critics praised his film scores and he was honorally dubbed "Khemadasa master." Khemadasa's signature in film music is molded by the use of elements from Classical Western music and other sources to heighten the emotion suggested by the picture. Some of his compositions are influenced by Western composers of opera such as Giuseppe Verdi and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Lately Premasiri Khemadasa has given his contribution to films such as Agnidahaya and very recently to Ammavarune, the last film by Lester James Peiris who has announced his retirement.
Other scores written by the master for films such as Hansawilak,Thunweniyamaya, Paradige, Yasa Isuru widened his acclaim in the field of cinema. He has also composed music for films produced outside Sri Lanka (Thousand Flowers).
Dr. Khemadasa's contribution to teledramas also brought outstanding masterpieces to the public. His collaboration with director Jayantha Chandrasiri has turned out remarkable products whereas the themes he created for Chandrasiri's television series Dandubasnamanaya have shown unprecedented power of mesmerization. A repertoire of scores written for teledramas including Chandrasiri's Weda hamine, Sathara denek senpathiyo, Akala sandhya, Dharmasena Pathiraja's Gangulen egodata, Ella langa walawwa, Pura sakmana and Bandula Vithanage's Asalwesiyo bestowed the public with unforgettable musical experiences. Also, he has contributed to the teledrama Sadisi tharanaya by Devinda koongahage, which is most probably his last contribution for a teledrama.
He also contributed to stage dramas such as Jayantha Chandrasiri's Mora, Ath, and Dharmasiri Bandaranayake's Makarakshaya & Dhawala bheeshana.
Furthermore, he has composed symphonies like Muhuda, Mage kale mavni and Sinhala Avurudda. His cantata named Pirinivan Mangalya, probably the only Buddhist cantata ever composed, was based on the passing away of the Lord Buddha and it was played at his funeral by the students of the Khemadasa Foundation.
The presence of operatic and harmonic vocals in his music is explained by his vast knowledge of opera and harmony. In his lifetime he made many experiments with techniques of singing and playing, which include the use of asymmetric patterns of beats, revolutionary harmonies and novel techniques of playing musical instruments such as the sitar.
Khemadasa is the only known Sri Lankan musician who practised and created opera. He has a large group of students many of whom were derived from rural milieus and trained for performing in his operas. His famous operas include Manasawila, Doramandalawa and Sondura Varnadasi. Recently he created the opera, Agni (opera) about early civilization. His operas, being written in Sinhalese, form what can be recognized as Sinhalese opera. Khemadasa and his pupils have conducted shows in several countries. After a layoff following a kidney transplant he returned to the field of music, even in his 70s, trying to secure the future of Sri Lankan music. At the time of the maestro's demise on 24th of October 2008, he was 71 years old.
Died 24 October 2008 in a private hospital in Colombo. The funeral was held on the 27th of October.
Filmography
Music director
Year - Film - Other notes
1965 - Sapatha Soya - first solo direction
1966 - Sanasuma Kothanada?
Sithala Wathura
Kapatikama one song (Latha's "Kurulu Ran") and background music
1967 - Rana Giraw
Manamalayo
1968 - Golu Hadawatha - won Sarasavi and Radio Ceylon Magazine awards
Vanasara
Bicycle Hora
1970 - Narilatha - won Sarasavi award
1971 - Seeye Nottuwa
1972 - Nidhanaya
1976 - Janaka Saha Manhu
1978 - Bambaru Awith
1980 - Hansa Wilak
1982 - Kaliyugaya
1983 - Yuganthaya - won OCIC and Sarasavi awards
1987 - Maldeniye Simion - won OCIC award
1990 - Sandakada Pahana - won Sarasavi award
Siri Medura - won Sarasavi, OCIC and Swarna Sankha awards
1993 - Meeharaka - won Swarna Sankha award
1994 - Lokuduwa
1999 - Julietge Bhoomikava - won OCIC and President’s award
2002 - Agnidahaya
Mathu Yam Dawasa
2005 - Guerilla Marketing
2006 - Ammawarune - last film of Lester James Peries
Also known as Khemadasa Master
Born January 25, 1937(1937-01-25)
Origin - Sri Lanka
Died - October 24, 2008 (aged 71)
Genres - Sri Lankan music
Occupations - Music Director,Composer
Premasiri Khemadasa (also Khemadasa) (January 25, 1937 – October 24, 2008) also known as "Khemadasa Master" is one of the most influential composers in Sri Lankan music. Exploring the various styles of music around the world Khemadasa endeavored to develop a unique style of music. He combined Sinhala folk tunes, Hindustani music, Western music and many other streams of music in his compositions while adapting them to fit contemporary music.
Biography
Early life
Khemadasa grew up in Talpitiya, Wadduwa and attended St. John's College Panadura and Sri Sumangala College. As a teenager, he became a gifted flautist.
Khemadasa was asked to come to the Radio Ceylon for an interview on the day he was scheduled to take his Senior School Certificate examination. He finished the examination much ahead of time and travelled to the audition. He passed the audition and became a member of Radio Ceylon.[1]
As a composer
Khemadasa's debut as a film composer came with Sirisena Wimalaweera's Roddie Kella. With his score for Bambaru Ewith he introduced a style of music unacquainted to Sri Lankan cinema. He then began collaborating with acclaimed director Lester James Peries handling the music for films like Golu Hadawatha and Nidhanaya. Critics praised his film scores and he was honorally dubbed "Khemadasa master." Khemadasa's signature in film music is molded by the use of elements from Classical Western music and other sources to heighten the emotion suggested by the picture. Some of his compositions are influenced by Western composers of opera such as Giuseppe Verdi and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Lately Premasiri Khemadasa has given his contribution to films such as Agnidahaya and very recently to Ammavarune, the last film by Lester James Peiris who has announced his retirement.
Other scores written by the master for films such as Hansawilak,Thunweniyamaya, Paradige, Yasa Isuru widened his acclaim in the field of cinema. He has also composed music for films produced outside Sri Lanka (Thousand Flowers).
Dr. Khemadasa's contribution to teledramas also brought outstanding masterpieces to the public. His collaboration with director Jayantha Chandrasiri has turned out remarkable products whereas the themes he created for Chandrasiri's television series Dandubasnamanaya have shown unprecedented power of mesmerization. A repertoire of scores written for teledramas including Chandrasiri's Weda hamine, Sathara denek senpathiyo, Akala sandhya, Dharmasena Pathiraja's Gangulen egodata, Ella langa walawwa, Pura sakmana and Bandula Vithanage's Asalwesiyo bestowed the public with unforgettable musical experiences. Also, he has contributed to the teledrama Sadisi tharanaya by Devinda koongahage, which is most probably his last contribution for a teledrama.
He also contributed to stage dramas such as Jayantha Chandrasiri's Mora, Ath, and Dharmasiri Bandaranayake's Makarakshaya & Dhawala bheeshana.
Furthermore, he has composed symphonies like Muhuda, Mage kale mavni and Sinhala Avurudda. His cantata named Pirinivan Mangalya, probably the only Buddhist cantata ever composed, was based on the passing away of the Lord Buddha and it was played at his funeral by the students of the Khemadasa Foundation.
The presence of operatic and harmonic vocals in his music is explained by his vast knowledge of opera and harmony. In his lifetime he made many experiments with techniques of singing and playing, which include the use of asymmetric patterns of beats, revolutionary harmonies and novel techniques of playing musical instruments such as the sitar.
Khemadasa is the only known Sri Lankan musician who practised and created opera. He has a large group of students many of whom were derived from rural milieus and trained for performing in his operas. His famous operas include Manasawila, Doramandalawa and Sondura Varnadasi. Recently he created the opera, Agni (opera) about early civilization. His operas, being written in Sinhalese, form what can be recognized as Sinhalese opera. Khemadasa and his pupils have conducted shows in several countries. After a layoff following a kidney transplant he returned to the field of music, even in his 70s, trying to secure the future of Sri Lankan music. At the time of the maestro's demise on 24th of October 2008, he was 71 years old.
Died 24 October 2008 in a private hospital in Colombo. The funeral was held on the 27th of October.
Filmography
Music director
Year - Film - Other notes
1965 - Sapatha Soya - first solo direction
1966 - Sanasuma Kothanada?
Sithala Wathura
Kapatikama one song (Latha's "Kurulu Ran") and background music
1967 - Rana Giraw
Manamalayo
1968 - Golu Hadawatha - won Sarasavi and Radio Ceylon Magazine awards
Vanasara
Bicycle Hora
1970 - Narilatha - won Sarasavi award
1971 - Seeye Nottuwa
1972 - Nidhanaya
1976 - Janaka Saha Manhu
1978 - Bambaru Awith
1980 - Hansa Wilak
1982 - Kaliyugaya
1983 - Yuganthaya - won OCIC and Sarasavi awards
1987 - Maldeniye Simion - won OCIC award
1990 - Sandakada Pahana - won Sarasavi award
Siri Medura - won Sarasavi, OCIC and Swarna Sankha awards
1993 - Meeharaka - won Swarna Sankha award
1994 - Lokuduwa
1999 - Julietge Bhoomikava - won OCIC and President’s award
2002 - Agnidahaya
Mathu Yam Dawasa
2005 - Guerilla Marketing
2006 - Ammawarune - last film of Lester James Peries
Bathiya and Santhush
Bathiya and Santhush
Bathiya & Santhush
Origin - Colombo,Sri Lanka
Genres - Sri Lankan music, Pop,R&B
Years - active 1998 - present
Labels - SonyBMG[1] / Universal Records[2]/M-Entertainment [1]
Associated acts - Ashanthi,Nirosha Virajini,Randhir,Umaria and Umara Hariharan
Website - www.bnsmusic.com
Bathiya & Santhush (BNS) are one of the biggest names in the Sri Lankan music industry who were pop/rap duo comprising of Bathiya Jayakody and Santhush Weeraman, who met while at Mary Anne David's school for singing in Colombo (training mainly under the categories of classical and show tunes). Since the inception in 1998, they have released six albums and had seven Sri Lankan number one singles. Bathiya & Santhush are one of the biggest musical acts to hit the Sri Lankan musical scene since the 1990s, mixing Sinhalese, Tamil and English lyrics in their originals, bringing out their contemporary style and revolutionising the music industry in Sri Lanka.
In 2008 BNS marked the end of their most successful concert series after over 150 performances "Neththara Live". This was replaced with a brand new concert series named "Shaheena" after their 2008 No. 1 single and the same titled promotional album for Lux.
Awards and accomplishments
First Sri Lankan artists to secure a Music Publishing Contract under "UNIVERSAL MUSIC"
Silver Award Winners at the "Azia Dauzey" Music Festival in Kazakhstan 2001 / Shanghai Music Festival 2001
Composers & Performers of the Official Sri Lankan Cricket Anthem BCCSL.
Bronze Award Winners at the Shanghai Music Festival 2001
Winners of the TYOP Award for the contribution to Culture & Arts 2002
Winner of the Golden Clef Award for the best fusion band in 2002
Runner-up the 4th Pop Music Festival in Zernjanin Serbia 2003
Winners of the "Male Icon - 2006" award (Award ceremony was held on 14 June, 2007 at the Colombo Hilton)
Runner up at the first Music Video Awards held in Sri Lanka - Derana Music VDU Awards - Runner Up award for Res Wihidena Samanaliyak
First Sri Lankan artists to release a song with Indian collaboration. BNS released a track called "Yaalpaanamen" featuring eminent Indian singer Hariharan (of colonial cousins) in June 2009
Trivia
Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (September 2007)
BnS Recording Studio is known as "Saregama Studio", and is also used by many popular pop/rap and hip hop artistes in Sri Lanka.
Santhush Weeraman was educated at Royal College Colombo and his brother Dushyanth is also a Musician.
Bathiya Jayakody was educated at Ananda College Colombo.
Discography
Albums
Vasanthaye ~ A New Beginning (1998)
Life ~ Sahasraye Manusathkule (2000)
Tharunyaye ~ The 3rd Album (2002)
Neththara ~ Project 4 (2005)
Hiripodha Wessa Chithrapatiye Geetha Samaga Hit Songs (2006)
Res Vihidena Samanaliyak (Valentine's Day Promotional Album) (2007)
Ayubowan (Namaste) (2007)
Sri Lanka Cricket Anthem (Limited Edition)
Shaheena (Promotional Album Distributed with LUX brand products - 2008)
Lanka Matha (Limited Edition)
The Dancing Star movie sound track - 2008
DVDs
Bathiya & Santhush - Vol 1
Bathiya & Santhush - Vol 2
Nethara Final Concert
Singles
"Shaheena" (2008)
"Pethu Pem Pethum" {2008}
"Neththara" (2005)
"Kiri Kodu" (2005)
"Unmadanie" (2002)
"Ran Kurahan Mala (Na Na Ne)" (2002)
"Tharunyaye" (2002)
"Ayubowan" (2000)
"Manusathkule" (2000)
"Ae" (2000)
"Life" (2000)
"Siri Sangabodhi Maligawedi" (2000)
"Vasanthaye" (1998)
Bathiya & Santhush
Origin - Colombo,Sri Lanka
Genres - Sri Lankan music, Pop,R&B
Years - active 1998 - present
Labels - SonyBMG[1] / Universal Records[2]/M-Entertainment [1]
Associated acts - Ashanthi,Nirosha Virajini,Randhir,Umaria and Umara Hariharan
Website - www.bnsmusic.com
Bathiya & Santhush (BNS) are one of the biggest names in the Sri Lankan music industry who were pop/rap duo comprising of Bathiya Jayakody and Santhush Weeraman, who met while at Mary Anne David's school for singing in Colombo (training mainly under the categories of classical and show tunes). Since the inception in 1998, they have released six albums and had seven Sri Lankan number one singles. Bathiya & Santhush are one of the biggest musical acts to hit the Sri Lankan musical scene since the 1990s, mixing Sinhalese, Tamil and English lyrics in their originals, bringing out their contemporary style and revolutionising the music industry in Sri Lanka.
In 2008 BNS marked the end of their most successful concert series after over 150 performances "Neththara Live". This was replaced with a brand new concert series named "Shaheena" after their 2008 No. 1 single and the same titled promotional album for Lux.
Awards and accomplishments
First Sri Lankan artists to secure a Music Publishing Contract under "UNIVERSAL MUSIC"
Silver Award Winners at the "Azia Dauzey" Music Festival in Kazakhstan 2001 / Shanghai Music Festival 2001
Composers & Performers of the Official Sri Lankan Cricket Anthem BCCSL.
Bronze Award Winners at the Shanghai Music Festival 2001
Winners of the TYOP Award for the contribution to Culture & Arts 2002
Winner of the Golden Clef Award for the best fusion band in 2002
Runner-up the 4th Pop Music Festival in Zernjanin Serbia 2003
Winners of the "Male Icon - 2006" award (Award ceremony was held on 14 June, 2007 at the Colombo Hilton)
Runner up at the first Music Video Awards held in Sri Lanka - Derana Music VDU Awards - Runner Up award for Res Wihidena Samanaliyak
First Sri Lankan artists to release a song with Indian collaboration. BNS released a track called "Yaalpaanamen" featuring eminent Indian singer Hariharan (of colonial cousins) in June 2009
Trivia
Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (September 2007)
BnS Recording Studio is known as "Saregama Studio", and is also used by many popular pop/rap and hip hop artistes in Sri Lanka.
Santhush Weeraman was educated at Royal College Colombo and his brother Dushyanth is also a Musician.
Bathiya Jayakody was educated at Ananda College Colombo.
Discography
Albums
Vasanthaye ~ A New Beginning (1998)
Life ~ Sahasraye Manusathkule (2000)
Tharunyaye ~ The 3rd Album (2002)
Neththara ~ Project 4 (2005)
Hiripodha Wessa Chithrapatiye Geetha Samaga Hit Songs (2006)
Res Vihidena Samanaliyak (Valentine's Day Promotional Album) (2007)
Ayubowan (Namaste) (2007)
Sri Lanka Cricket Anthem (Limited Edition)
Shaheena (Promotional Album Distributed with LUX brand products - 2008)
Lanka Matha (Limited Edition)
The Dancing Star movie sound track - 2008
DVDs
Bathiya & Santhush - Vol 1
Bathiya & Santhush - Vol 2
Nethara Final Concert
Singles
"Shaheena" (2008)
"Pethu Pem Pethum" {2008}
"Neththara" (2005)
"Kiri Kodu" (2005)
"Unmadanie" (2002)
"Ran Kurahan Mala (Na Na Ne)" (2002)
"Tharunyaye" (2002)
"Ayubowan" (2000)
"Manusathkule" (2000)
"Ae" (2000)
"Life" (2000)
"Siri Sangabodhi Maligawedi" (2000)
"Vasanthaye" (1998)
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Gunadasa Kapuge
Gunadasa Kapuge
Gunadasa Kapuge (August 7, 1945 – April 3, 2003) was a Sri Lankan musician.
Kapuge was born on August 7, 1945 either in the village of Miriswatte in the Galle District or in the tiny village of Thanabaddegama in Elpitiya. He was the second of eight children. He went to school until grade five at Karandeniya Central and later at Dharmasoka College in Ambalangoda, where he initially studied science before switching to music. In 1963, he left Haywood college of music, where he was studying at that time, to follow a degree course in India. In the late 1960s, Kapuge joined the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation.
Kapuge released his first song "Daesa Nilupul Thema" in 1973, which became an instant hit. After, Kapuge was selected as a Grade "A" vocalist by the Radio Ceylon and started his three decade long music career. The First Stage Drama for which he provided back-ground music was "Thuranga Sanniya" by Sugathapala De Silva. Since then he provided background music for the highly popular musical "Tharawo Igilethi" by Lucien Bulathsinhala and several other popular dramas. His first movie back-ground music gig was for the Stanley Perera's "Sandha." He married Prema Withanage in 1978. In 1980, Kapuge released his first music cassette titled "Dhampatin Laa Sandha" with Malini Bulathsinhala. He released several cassettes during the 1980s, most of them selling very well. Among them were, Seethala Sandha Eliye (1981), Unmadha Sithuwam (1983), Mawathe Giithaya (1985), and Piya Satahan (1990).
Kapuge staged a one-man musical show titled "Kampana" during the 1990s and also released a cassette and CD with the same title. He died on April 3, 2003, at the age of 58, at the Colombo National Hospital, after sustaining critical injuries in a fall from the shuttle bus at Bandaranaike International Airport. He had been returning from a show in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. There was a delay in taking him to the hospital which lead to a national inquiry.
Gunadasa Kapuge (August 7, 1945 – April 3, 2003) was a Sri Lankan musician.
Kapuge was born on August 7, 1945 either in the village of Miriswatte in the Galle District or in the tiny village of Thanabaddegama in Elpitiya. He was the second of eight children. He went to school until grade five at Karandeniya Central and later at Dharmasoka College in Ambalangoda, where he initially studied science before switching to music. In 1963, he left Haywood college of music, where he was studying at that time, to follow a degree course in India. In the late 1960s, Kapuge joined the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation.
Kapuge released his first song "Daesa Nilupul Thema" in 1973, which became an instant hit. After, Kapuge was selected as a Grade "A" vocalist by the Radio Ceylon and started his three decade long music career. The First Stage Drama for which he provided back-ground music was "Thuranga Sanniya" by Sugathapala De Silva. Since then he provided background music for the highly popular musical "Tharawo Igilethi" by Lucien Bulathsinhala and several other popular dramas. His first movie back-ground music gig was for the Stanley Perera's "Sandha." He married Prema Withanage in 1978. In 1980, Kapuge released his first music cassette titled "Dhampatin Laa Sandha" with Malini Bulathsinhala. He released several cassettes during the 1980s, most of them selling very well. Among them were, Seethala Sandha Eliye (1981), Unmadha Sithuwam (1983), Mawathe Giithaya (1985), and Piya Satahan (1990).
Kapuge staged a one-man musical show titled "Kampana" during the 1990s and also released a cassette and CD with the same title. He died on April 3, 2003, at the age of 58, at the Colombo National Hospital, after sustaining critical injuries in a fall from the shuttle bus at Bandaranaike International Airport. He had been returning from a show in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. There was a delay in taking him to the hospital which lead to a national inquiry.
Sanath Nandasiri
Sanath Nandasiri
Sanath Nandasiri (born February 15, 1942 in Gothatuwa, Sri Lanka) is a critically acclaimed Sri Lankan classical musician.
Nandasiri has received several awards for his compositions; he composed the music to Sandamalige Kathawa, the first TV serial on Rupavahini.
Life and career
Early life and education
Nandasiri was born to businessman William Perera and Amalin Katugampola. He attended two schools concurrently as an adolescent (Gothatuwa Maha Vidyalaya and St. Matthew’s College, Dematagoda, where he studied English).
Nandasiri first appeared on Sinhala Radio at the age of 13 in 1955. He began studying the tabla instrument under D.R. Peiris soon after. In 1960 Nandasiri travelled to India to continue his studies at Bhatkande. His teachers at the academy included Ustad Ahmed Jan Thirakwa, G.N. Nattu, Ustad Mokshut Ali, Pandit Hari Shankar Misra and Ustad Rahimmuddeen Khan Daga.
While in India, Nandasiri composed several songs that appeared on Lucknow radio. He returned to Sri Lanka in 1974 and joined the staff of University of Kelaniya as a lecturer. Nandasiri served as the head of music at the university from 1988 to 1992.
Nandasiri took the Part I examination in vocal music and obtained first class at the "Nipun" examination in 1992 becoming the first Sri Lankan to achieve this task. He serves as Dean of the Music Faculty at the University of the Visual Arts and Performing Arts.All through out his career Sri Lanka's leading Planter Dinal Hilary samerenayake was acting as his mentor.
Personal life
Nandasiri married singer Malkanthi Peiris in 1971. They collaborated on songs before and after their marriage. Nandasiri's daughter Anuradha was born on February 14, 1974.
Anuradha, also a musician, currently back in Sri Lanka with her husband Nirosha Bandara.
Sanath Nandasiri (born February 15, 1942 in Gothatuwa, Sri Lanka) is a critically acclaimed Sri Lankan classical musician.
Nandasiri has received several awards for his compositions; he composed the music to Sandamalige Kathawa, the first TV serial on Rupavahini.
Life and career
Early life and education
Nandasiri was born to businessman William Perera and Amalin Katugampola. He attended two schools concurrently as an adolescent (Gothatuwa Maha Vidyalaya and St. Matthew’s College, Dematagoda, where he studied English).
Nandasiri first appeared on Sinhala Radio at the age of 13 in 1955. He began studying the tabla instrument under D.R. Peiris soon after. In 1960 Nandasiri travelled to India to continue his studies at Bhatkande. His teachers at the academy included Ustad Ahmed Jan Thirakwa, G.N. Nattu, Ustad Mokshut Ali, Pandit Hari Shankar Misra and Ustad Rahimmuddeen Khan Daga.
While in India, Nandasiri composed several songs that appeared on Lucknow radio. He returned to Sri Lanka in 1974 and joined the staff of University of Kelaniya as a lecturer. Nandasiri served as the head of music at the university from 1988 to 1992.
Nandasiri took the Part I examination in vocal music and obtained first class at the "Nipun" examination in 1992 becoming the first Sri Lankan to achieve this task. He serves as Dean of the Music Faculty at the University of the Visual Arts and Performing Arts.All through out his career Sri Lanka's leading Planter Dinal Hilary samerenayake was acting as his mentor.
Personal life
Nandasiri married singer Malkanthi Peiris in 1971. They collaborated on songs before and after their marriage. Nandasiri's daughter Anuradha was born on February 14, 1974.
Anuradha, also a musician, currently back in Sri Lanka with her husband Nirosha Bandara.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Victor Ratnayake
Victor Ratnayake
Background information
Birth name Victor Ratnayake
Born February 18, 1942 (1942-02-18) (age 67)
Origin Sri Lanka
Genres Sri Lankan music
Occupations Singer-Songwriter,
Years active 1973 – Present
Victor Ratnayake (born February 18, 1942) is a popular Sri Lankan musician. He was the first Sri Lankan musician to hold a live one man concert; His concert known as "SA" was first performed in 1973, and was an instant success. Ratnayake credits his success to his "fitting blend of Western music with Ragadari classical music." His songs deal with diverse themes that vary from love, to patriotism and Buddhism.
Matara Achchi is the first film he composed music for and it's Sandakada Pahana song sung by Sunil Edirisinghe is still very popular among Sinhala music fans. Ratnayake also has composed music for films like Siribo Aiya, Podi Malli, Sarungale, Hulawali and Athuru Mithuru.
Life and career
Early life
Young Victor RatnayakeRatnayake was born in a small village near Kadugannawa. His father, Rathnayake Veda Mahaththaya, was an apothecary and sang "noorthi gee," a type of Sinhala folk songs. Victor got his first instrument at the age of nine when his father presented him a harmonium for his birthday. He studied singing and various instruments under musician Cyril Perera at the M.G.P. Institute in Mulgampola in his teens. In 1963, he began attending the State Music College, now known as the Institute of Aesthetic Studies. He wrote his first song, an ode to Lord Buddha, in 1964; it received play on radio stations run by the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation.
In 1966, Ratnayke joined the Ministry of Education as a music instructor, and was assigned to a post at Eththalapitiya Maha Vidyalaya in Bandarawela. He would later look back to his days as a teacher in his song "Sihil Sulang Ralle," which described the beauty of his surroundings that he noted as he travelled on the train to the school. The lyrics were penned by Sena Weerasekera on Ratnayake's recollections.
Sa
By 1973, Ratnayake was a trained musician and noted that there were no one man concerts. The closest was "Shravanaradhana" a joint concert by Amaradeva and Nanda Malini. On the urging of his friends Premakirthi de Alwis, Sunil Ariyaratne, K.D.K Dharmawardena, R.R. Samarakoon, Chintana Jayasena and Bandara K. Wijetunga, Victor decided to attempt such an event. The first Sa concert was held on July 20, 1973, at the Lumbini Theatre, Havelock Town. It is widely considered a turning point in Sri Lankan music.
The name "Sa" came from the root or tonic note sa or ‘C’ in the Indian music scale and was suggested by Chintana Jayasena. Jayasena pointed to the fact that no Sri Lankan drama, film or work of art bore a name of just one syllable at the time and believed that it would bring luck.
"Sa" was highly popular, and Ratnayke's gained many fans following its inception. One female fan wrote "Do you know that I treasure 49 hairs of yours?" in a fan letter, expressing how many times she has seen Ratnayake's show. Critics described the show as "exquisite insanity" and a "melodic lunacy" because of the fervor shown by Ratnayke's fans, who would sometimes attack auditoriums where he was playing when they couldn't get in.
Ratnayake's style was influenced by musicians like Sunil Shantha, Ananda Samarakone and C. T. Fernando who he considered "pioneers in the music field" for their use of "classical Ragadari and Hindustani music" as their starting point.
Recent Events
Ratnayake continues to be a popular musician in the 2000s; He recently threw the 1500th concert of "Sa." His latest album Detolaga Sinaha was released in 2006.
Background information
Birth name Victor Ratnayake
Born February 18, 1942 (1942-02-18) (age 67)
Origin Sri Lanka
Genres Sri Lankan music
Occupations Singer-Songwriter,
Years active 1973 – Present
Victor Ratnayake (born February 18, 1942) is a popular Sri Lankan musician. He was the first Sri Lankan musician to hold a live one man concert; His concert known as "SA" was first performed in 1973, and was an instant success. Ratnayake credits his success to his "fitting blend of Western music with Ragadari classical music." His songs deal with diverse themes that vary from love, to patriotism and Buddhism.
Matara Achchi is the first film he composed music for and it's Sandakada Pahana song sung by Sunil Edirisinghe is still very popular among Sinhala music fans. Ratnayake also has composed music for films like Siribo Aiya, Podi Malli, Sarungale, Hulawali and Athuru Mithuru.
Life and career
Early life
Young Victor RatnayakeRatnayake was born in a small village near Kadugannawa. His father, Rathnayake Veda Mahaththaya, was an apothecary and sang "noorthi gee," a type of Sinhala folk songs. Victor got his first instrument at the age of nine when his father presented him a harmonium for his birthday. He studied singing and various instruments under musician Cyril Perera at the M.G.P. Institute in Mulgampola in his teens. In 1963, he began attending the State Music College, now known as the Institute of Aesthetic Studies. He wrote his first song, an ode to Lord Buddha, in 1964; it received play on radio stations run by the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation.
In 1966, Ratnayke joined the Ministry of Education as a music instructor, and was assigned to a post at Eththalapitiya Maha Vidyalaya in Bandarawela. He would later look back to his days as a teacher in his song "Sihil Sulang Ralle," which described the beauty of his surroundings that he noted as he travelled on the train to the school. The lyrics were penned by Sena Weerasekera on Ratnayake's recollections.
Sa
By 1973, Ratnayake was a trained musician and noted that there were no one man concerts. The closest was "Shravanaradhana" a joint concert by Amaradeva and Nanda Malini. On the urging of his friends Premakirthi de Alwis, Sunil Ariyaratne, K.D.K Dharmawardena, R.R. Samarakoon, Chintana Jayasena and Bandara K. Wijetunga, Victor decided to attempt such an event. The first Sa concert was held on July 20, 1973, at the Lumbini Theatre, Havelock Town. It is widely considered a turning point in Sri Lankan music.
The name "Sa" came from the root or tonic note sa or ‘C’ in the Indian music scale and was suggested by Chintana Jayasena. Jayasena pointed to the fact that no Sri Lankan drama, film or work of art bore a name of just one syllable at the time and believed that it would bring luck.
"Sa" was highly popular, and Ratnayke's gained many fans following its inception. One female fan wrote "Do you know that I treasure 49 hairs of yours?" in a fan letter, expressing how many times she has seen Ratnayake's show. Critics described the show as "exquisite insanity" and a "melodic lunacy" because of the fervor shown by Ratnayke's fans, who would sometimes attack auditoriums where he was playing when they couldn't get in.
Ratnayake's style was influenced by musicians like Sunil Shantha, Ananda Samarakone and C. T. Fernando who he considered "pioneers in the music field" for their use of "classical Ragadari and Hindustani music" as their starting point.
Recent Events
Ratnayake continues to be a popular musician in the 2000s; He recently threw the 1500th concert of "Sa." His latest album Detolaga Sinaha was released in 2006.
Sunil Santha
Sunil Santha
Background information
Birth name Baddaliyanage Don Joseph John
Born April 14, 1915
Origin Sri Lanka
Died April 11, 1981 (aged 65)
Genres Sri Lankan music
Occupations Singer-Songwriter,
Years active 1945–1981
Sunil Santha (1915-1981) was a renowned and influential Sri Lankan singer. He was pivotal in the development of Sinhala music in the late 1940s and early 1950s. He composed the soundtrack to Lester James Peries' Rekava in 1956.
Life and career
Early life (1915–1945)
Santha was born Baddaliyanage Don Joseph John on April 14, 1915 in Dehiyagatha, Jaela to a catholic family. His parents died when he was young, and Santha was raised by members of his maternal family. His uncle M.J. Perera was a musician and taught Santha to play the harmonium at a young age.
Santha passed the school leaving certificate examination with the highest marks in his class as a young adult and was awarded the Weeraratne award. In 1933 he completed the Teachers Final Examination and began work as a teacher at the Mt. Calvary School. While tenured there, Santha led the school to three consecutive victories at the Southern Schools Music Competition. In 1939 he passed the Intermediate Gandarva Examination and received a certificate in physical training. He also learned to play the piano and guitar at that time.
In 1940 Santha gave up teaching and travelled to Shantiniketan to study music. The following year Santha enrolled at the University of Bathkanda and worked to get his Visharadha Degree in 1944. He then adopted the name "Sunil Santha."
Radio Ceylon (1946–1952)
On March 2, 1946 Santha held a recital for the Kumaratunga Commemoration ceremony and was asked to record for Radio Ceylon. Over the next seven years, he would have several popular songs including "Olu Pipila" (the first song he recorded), "Handapane", "Ho Ga Rella Negay", "Bowitiya Dan Palukan Vare", "Suwada Rosa Mal Nela", "Kokilayange", and "Mihikathanalawala." Santha stressed his Sinhala heritage in his songs opting to sing in Sinhala rather than English and not copy Hindustani and Tamil songs of India. An occasional songwriter himself, Santha sang songs written by lyricists like Huberth Dissanayake, Munidasa Cumaratunga, Raipiel Tennakoon, Father Marcelline Jayakody, and Arisen Ahubudu.
In 1952 Santha was banned from Radio Ceylon after refusing to audition for Indian musician Ratanjankar, whom the corporation had brought from South India to oversee the direction of music on their stations. That year he married school teacher Bernadet Leelawathi Jayasekara.
Later life
Santha experienced monetary problems after being kicked off Radio Ceylon. He tried his hands at various trades like photography and selling clothes over the next few years.
In 1953 Santha started a small school at the Maradana Newton building. He vowed to teach 10 pupils for free. Santha's friend Albert Perera (later known as W.D. Amaradeva) joined the school as a teacher. In 1955 journalist D.B. Dhanapala started a campaign to expose Santha's plight and raised some money through his column on Lankadeepa.
In 1967 Director General Mr. Neville Jayaweera asked Santha to come back to the national radio service. Santha worked with Amaradeva and H.W. Rupasinghe to develop music and audition new artists.
Santha moved into his uncle's house in 1970. In 1977 a record titled Sunil Gee was produced.
Shantha died on April 11, 1981 from a heart attack shortly after his son Jagath drowned in a swimming pool. Critical Assessment of his works
Background information
Birth name Baddaliyanage Don Joseph John
Born April 14, 1915
Origin Sri Lanka
Died April 11, 1981 (aged 65)
Genres Sri Lankan music
Occupations Singer-Songwriter,
Years active 1945–1981
Sunil Santha (1915-1981) was a renowned and influential Sri Lankan singer. He was pivotal in the development of Sinhala music in the late 1940s and early 1950s. He composed the soundtrack to Lester James Peries' Rekava in 1956.
Life and career
Early life (1915–1945)
Santha was born Baddaliyanage Don Joseph John on April 14, 1915 in Dehiyagatha, Jaela to a catholic family. His parents died when he was young, and Santha was raised by members of his maternal family. His uncle M.J. Perera was a musician and taught Santha to play the harmonium at a young age.
Santha passed the school leaving certificate examination with the highest marks in his class as a young adult and was awarded the Weeraratne award. In 1933 he completed the Teachers Final Examination and began work as a teacher at the Mt. Calvary School. While tenured there, Santha led the school to three consecutive victories at the Southern Schools Music Competition. In 1939 he passed the Intermediate Gandarva Examination and received a certificate in physical training. He also learned to play the piano and guitar at that time.
In 1940 Santha gave up teaching and travelled to Shantiniketan to study music. The following year Santha enrolled at the University of Bathkanda and worked to get his Visharadha Degree in 1944. He then adopted the name "Sunil Santha."
Radio Ceylon (1946–1952)
On March 2, 1946 Santha held a recital for the Kumaratunga Commemoration ceremony and was asked to record for Radio Ceylon. Over the next seven years, he would have several popular songs including "Olu Pipila" (the first song he recorded), "Handapane", "Ho Ga Rella Negay", "Bowitiya Dan Palukan Vare", "Suwada Rosa Mal Nela", "Kokilayange", and "Mihikathanalawala." Santha stressed his Sinhala heritage in his songs opting to sing in Sinhala rather than English and not copy Hindustani and Tamil songs of India. An occasional songwriter himself, Santha sang songs written by lyricists like Huberth Dissanayake, Munidasa Cumaratunga, Raipiel Tennakoon, Father Marcelline Jayakody, and Arisen Ahubudu.
In 1952 Santha was banned from Radio Ceylon after refusing to audition for Indian musician Ratanjankar, whom the corporation had brought from South India to oversee the direction of music on their stations. That year he married school teacher Bernadet Leelawathi Jayasekara.
Later life
Santha experienced monetary problems after being kicked off Radio Ceylon. He tried his hands at various trades like photography and selling clothes over the next few years.
In 1953 Santha started a small school at the Maradana Newton building. He vowed to teach 10 pupils for free. Santha's friend Albert Perera (later known as W.D. Amaradeva) joined the school as a teacher. In 1955 journalist D.B. Dhanapala started a campaign to expose Santha's plight and raised some money through his column on Lankadeepa.
In 1967 Director General Mr. Neville Jayaweera asked Santha to come back to the national radio service. Santha worked with Amaradeva and H.W. Rupasinghe to develop music and audition new artists.
Santha moved into his uncle's house in 1970. In 1977 a record titled Sunil Gee was produced.
Shantha died on April 11, 1981 from a heart attack shortly after his son Jagath drowned in a swimming pool. Critical Assessment of his works
Ananda Samarakoon
Ananda Samarakoon
Birth name Ananda Samarakoon
Born January 13, 1911
Origin Sri Lanka
Died April 5, 1962
Genres Sri Lankan music
Occupations Singer-Songwriter
Years active 1940 – 1962
Ananda Samarakoon (1911 – 1962) was a Sri Lankan composer and musician. He composed the Sri Lankan national anthem "Sri Lanka Matha" and is considered the father of artistic Sinhala music, and founder of the modern geeta sahitya.
Life and career
Early life
Samarakoon was born George Wilfred Alwis to a Christian family in Padukka,in Ceylon, on January 13, 1911 in Sri Lanka. In 1936,He had his primary and secondary education at Christian College ,Kotte,presently known as Sri Jayawardenapura M.V.Kotte.His Sinhala Guru was Pandit D.C.P. Gamalathge.Later he served his Alma mater as a teacher of Music and Art. Samarakone left for Santiniketan in India to study art and music. After six months he abandoned his studies and returned to Sri Lanka, and changed his name to Ananda Samarakone, embracing Buddhism[1].
He was very much influenced by Rabindranath Tagore while in India and his fascination and the desire to imitate the great Indian musician would go on to take him in the direction of creating a musical tradition for the Sri Lankan people.
Composer
In 1937, the popular music of Sri Lanka consisted of songs derived from the North Indian Ragadhari music. These songs lyrics often contained meaningless phrases with little or no literary merit. Samarakone set out to create a form of a music that can be classified as Sri Lanka's own and came out with the song Endada Menike (1940) that paved the foundation for the artistic Sinhala music.
The love themed song unfolds in the form of a dialogue between a young village boy and a girl. It, poetic and beautifully rustic, became a success and Samarakone followed it with a string of successful songs in the early to mid 1940s, the period considered his golden age. Among his best known works are:
Podimal Etano
Vilay Malak Pipila
Poson Pohoda
Asay madura
Sunila Guvanay
Punchi Suda
nilvala Gangay
Sumano
Pudamu Kusum
Siri Saru Saara Ketay
Painter
In 1945 Samarakoon's only son died at the age of five and the grieving Samarakoon left Sri Lanka for India where he pursued a painting career and held eleven art exhibitions there. Though his painting were critically acclaimed, he returned to music in 1951 back in Sri Lanka.
During Samarakoon's stay in India, one of his early compositions, Namo Namo Mata (composed in 1940, recorded in 1946) was nominated as the national anthem and was officially adopted by the State as the Sri Lankan national anthem in 1952. Critics attacked Namo Namo Mata, particularly the "Gana" significance of the introductory words (Namo Namo Matha) which designate disease and ill luck. Samarakone was not a believer in "Gana", and the criticism caused him to write numerous articles counter attacking his critics to defend his composition. However, without his consent, the introductory words were changed to "Sri Lanka Mathaa" so that the "Gana" significance now would designate victory and prosperity.
Death
On April 5, 1962, at the age of fifty one, Samarakoon committed suicide by taking an overdose of sleeping tablets.
Samarakoon's legacy lives on in his music and in the musical style he created.
Birth name Ananda Samarakoon
Born January 13, 1911
Origin Sri Lanka
Died April 5, 1962
Genres Sri Lankan music
Occupations Singer-Songwriter
Years active 1940 – 1962
Ananda Samarakoon (1911 – 1962) was a Sri Lankan composer and musician. He composed the Sri Lankan national anthem "Sri Lanka Matha" and is considered the father of artistic Sinhala music, and founder of the modern geeta sahitya.
Life and career
Early life
Samarakoon was born George Wilfred Alwis to a Christian family in Padukka,in Ceylon, on January 13, 1911 in Sri Lanka. In 1936,He had his primary and secondary education at Christian College ,Kotte,presently known as Sri Jayawardenapura M.V.Kotte.His Sinhala Guru was Pandit D.C.P. Gamalathge.Later he served his Alma mater as a teacher of Music and Art. Samarakone left for Santiniketan in India to study art and music. After six months he abandoned his studies and returned to Sri Lanka, and changed his name to Ananda Samarakone, embracing Buddhism[1].
He was very much influenced by Rabindranath Tagore while in India and his fascination and the desire to imitate the great Indian musician would go on to take him in the direction of creating a musical tradition for the Sri Lankan people.
Composer
In 1937, the popular music of Sri Lanka consisted of songs derived from the North Indian Ragadhari music. These songs lyrics often contained meaningless phrases with little or no literary merit. Samarakone set out to create a form of a music that can be classified as Sri Lanka's own and came out with the song Endada Menike (1940) that paved the foundation for the artistic Sinhala music.
The love themed song unfolds in the form of a dialogue between a young village boy and a girl. It, poetic and beautifully rustic, became a success and Samarakone followed it with a string of successful songs in the early to mid 1940s, the period considered his golden age. Among his best known works are:
Podimal Etano
Vilay Malak Pipila
Poson Pohoda
Asay madura
Sunila Guvanay
Punchi Suda
nilvala Gangay
Sumano
Pudamu Kusum
Siri Saru Saara Ketay
Painter
In 1945 Samarakoon's only son died at the age of five and the grieving Samarakoon left Sri Lanka for India where he pursued a painting career and held eleven art exhibitions there. Though his painting were critically acclaimed, he returned to music in 1951 back in Sri Lanka.
During Samarakoon's stay in India, one of his early compositions, Namo Namo Mata (composed in 1940, recorded in 1946) was nominated as the national anthem and was officially adopted by the State as the Sri Lankan national anthem in 1952. Critics attacked Namo Namo Mata, particularly the "Gana" significance of the introductory words (Namo Namo Matha) which designate disease and ill luck. Samarakone was not a believer in "Gana", and the criticism caused him to write numerous articles counter attacking his critics to defend his composition. However, without his consent, the introductory words were changed to "Sri Lanka Mathaa" so that the "Gana" significance now would designate victory and prosperity.
Death
On April 5, 1962, at the age of fifty one, Samarakoon committed suicide by taking an overdose of sleeping tablets.
Samarakoon's legacy lives on in his music and in the musical style he created.
W. D. Amaradeva
W. D. Amaradeva
Pandith Amaradeva
Origin Sri Lanka
Genres Sri Lankan music, Folk music, Raga
Years active 1947—present
Wannakulawattawaduge Don Albert Perera (born December 5, 1927 in Moratuwa, Sri Lanka), better known by his adopted name Amaradeva, is a Sri Lankan vocalist and musical composer. Primarily using traditional instruments like sitars, tablas and harmoniums, Amaradeva incoporates Sinhala folk music with Indian ragas in his work.
In the mid-1950s, Amaradeva in his Janagayana project consulted experts of the Kandyan dance tradition like Pani Bharata, Kiriganita, Gunamala, Ukkuva and Suramba in his path to understand what constituted Sinhala folk music. Noting that it mostly revolved around a single melody, he decided to add verses that would lead up to the central melody which would now be a chorus thus forming two parts (unseen earlier in traditional Sri Lankan music) removing restrictions that had existed earlier. In doing so, Amaradeva created a uniquely Sinhalese music style that stayed true to folk tradition while incorporating outside influences. His work was vital in the creation of the sarala gee genre practiced subsequently by artists like Victor Ratnayake, Sunil Edirisinghe and Sanath Nandasiri.
Pandit Amaradeva has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Philippine Ramon Magsaysay Award (2001), Indian Padma Sri Award and Sri Lankan "President's Award of Kala Keerthi" (1986) and Deshamanya Award (1998). He has also represented Sri Lanka in many forums including the UNESCO 1967 Manila Symposium, and composed the melody for the Maldives national anthem, Gaumii salaam, at the request of British Queen Elizabeth II in 1972.
Life and career
Early life and education
Amaradeva was born the youngest of six children to carpenter Wannakuwatta Waduge Don Ginoris Perera and Balapuwaduge Maggie Weslina Mendis at Janapriya Mawatha in Koralawella, Moratuwa. Perera was a Buddhist while Mendis was a Methodist bringing both Christian and Buddhist values to the family.
Amardeva was introduced to music at a young age by his father who crafted and played violins. Amaradeva would often strum the violin whle his mother sang hymns. Another family influence was Amaradeva's elder brother who taught Indian classical music to him. Amaradeva was presented with his own instrument on his seventh birthday.
He obtained his early education under Ven. Malalankara Nayaka of the Koralawella temple. With the development of his musical talent, Amaradeva was asked to recite poems and prayers at the temple; he was subsequently picked to lead the village choir.
Amaradeva continued his studies at Sri Saddharmodaya Buddhist Mixed School. While attending the school, he won a poetry contest held at the Moratuwa Vidyalaya; Amaradeva also led the school choir to a triumpant showing at a contest held by the Colombo Arts Society. His poetry win prompted school teachers to get him a showcase to recite poetry on Radio Ceylon. In 1945 Amaradeva won a gold medal at a music and violin contest held by Jana Kala Mandalaya.
Amaradeva entered Sri Sumangala Vidyalaya, Panadura after completing his primary education with a scholarship for English. At the school, he formed a friendship with the Principal Danister Thomas. Thomas helped Amaradeva get into Kalutara Vidyalaya and subsequently Siddharta Vidyalaya Balapitiya.
By chance filming of the film Ashokamala commenced nearby. Gerard J. Pieris of Moratuwa introduced Amaradeva to Mohamed Ghouse Master who was handling the music for the film and Ghouse recognizing Amaradeva's skill enlisted him as the top violinist in his orchestra.
Amardeva left his studies and accompanied Ghouse to India to work on the film. He would play a triple role of singing, dancing and acting on the film with the song "Ayi Yameku Kale Ale."
Career
He found steady work as an artist on Radio Ceylon, where his unique vision and talent could be exhibited to an audience wider than he had ever before known - earning him a position at the Bhathkande Institute of Music in Lucknow, India. After extensive training, Albert returned to Sri Lanka as Pandit Wannakuwattawaduge Don Amaradeva.The name Amaradeva which translates as Immortal god was given to him by Prof. Ediriweera Sarachchandra (Sri Lanka's foremost playwright and a close associate).
During this time, Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) had only begun emerging as an independent nation, and the question of what Sri Lankan music was, was slowly being addressed with equal vigour by intellectuals, artists and the general public. In response to the spirit of these times, Amaradeva began interweaving indigenous folk music with the Indian ragas he had studied in Lucknow, thereby giving expression to a more sophisticated cadence.
His other innovations include his experimentation with Western harmonies and counterharmonies, as well as with South Indian and Tamil musical forms. His opus, however, remains the work he did with Sri Lanka's celebrated lyricist Mahagama Sekera, in exploring the contours of fusing classical Sinhala poetry with his unique musical intonation. In time, Amaradeva's music came to reflect an entire philosophy, reflective of the spirit of a nation.
He has composed music for ballet(Karadiya, Nala Damayanthi, etc), film(Ran Muthu Duwa, Gam Peraliya, Ransalu, Delovak Athara, Gatavarayo, Rena Girav, Thunman Handiya, etc), theatre(Wessantara, etc), radio and television, and has sung over one thousand songs.
Amaradeva, and wife Wimala, have one son (Ranjana Amaradeva), and two daughters (Subhani Amaradeva, herself a talented vocalist, and Priyanvada Amaradeva).
Honors
Officier (officer) in the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of Arts and Letters) from the French government (2003)
The Ramon Magsaysay Award of the Philippines - (2001)
Title of Deshamanya form the government of Sri Lanka (1998)
Title of Kala Keerthi form the government of Sri Lanka (1986)
Padma Sri Award from India
Filmography
Music director
Year Film Other notes
1962 Ran Muthu Duwa debut as music director
1963 Adata Wadiya Heta Hondai songs only
Sikuru Tharuwa one song and background music
Gamperaliya
Getawarayo
1965 Saama background music
Laa Dalu
Saravita
Adarayai Karunawai
1966 Delovak Athara
Westhuru Siritha
Pandith Amaradeva
Origin Sri Lanka
Genres Sri Lankan music, Folk music, Raga
Years active 1947—present
Wannakulawattawaduge Don Albert Perera (born December 5, 1927 in Moratuwa, Sri Lanka), better known by his adopted name Amaradeva, is a Sri Lankan vocalist and musical composer. Primarily using traditional instruments like sitars, tablas and harmoniums, Amaradeva incoporates Sinhala folk music with Indian ragas in his work.
In the mid-1950s, Amaradeva in his Janagayana project consulted experts of the Kandyan dance tradition like Pani Bharata, Kiriganita, Gunamala, Ukkuva and Suramba in his path to understand what constituted Sinhala folk music. Noting that it mostly revolved around a single melody, he decided to add verses that would lead up to the central melody which would now be a chorus thus forming two parts (unseen earlier in traditional Sri Lankan music) removing restrictions that had existed earlier. In doing so, Amaradeva created a uniquely Sinhalese music style that stayed true to folk tradition while incorporating outside influences. His work was vital in the creation of the sarala gee genre practiced subsequently by artists like Victor Ratnayake, Sunil Edirisinghe and Sanath Nandasiri.
Pandit Amaradeva has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Philippine Ramon Magsaysay Award (2001), Indian Padma Sri Award and Sri Lankan "President's Award of Kala Keerthi" (1986) and Deshamanya Award (1998). He has also represented Sri Lanka in many forums including the UNESCO 1967 Manila Symposium, and composed the melody for the Maldives national anthem, Gaumii salaam, at the request of British Queen Elizabeth II in 1972.
Life and career
Early life and education
Amaradeva was born the youngest of six children to carpenter Wannakuwatta Waduge Don Ginoris Perera and Balapuwaduge Maggie Weslina Mendis at Janapriya Mawatha in Koralawella, Moratuwa. Perera was a Buddhist while Mendis was a Methodist bringing both Christian and Buddhist values to the family.
Amardeva was introduced to music at a young age by his father who crafted and played violins. Amaradeva would often strum the violin whle his mother sang hymns. Another family influence was Amaradeva's elder brother who taught Indian classical music to him. Amaradeva was presented with his own instrument on his seventh birthday.
He obtained his early education under Ven. Malalankara Nayaka of the Koralawella temple. With the development of his musical talent, Amaradeva was asked to recite poems and prayers at the temple; he was subsequently picked to lead the village choir.
Amaradeva continued his studies at Sri Saddharmodaya Buddhist Mixed School. While attending the school, he won a poetry contest held at the Moratuwa Vidyalaya; Amaradeva also led the school choir to a triumpant showing at a contest held by the Colombo Arts Society. His poetry win prompted school teachers to get him a showcase to recite poetry on Radio Ceylon. In 1945 Amaradeva won a gold medal at a music and violin contest held by Jana Kala Mandalaya.
Amaradeva entered Sri Sumangala Vidyalaya, Panadura after completing his primary education with a scholarship for English. At the school, he formed a friendship with the Principal Danister Thomas. Thomas helped Amaradeva get into Kalutara Vidyalaya and subsequently Siddharta Vidyalaya Balapitiya.
By chance filming of the film Ashokamala commenced nearby. Gerard J. Pieris of Moratuwa introduced Amaradeva to Mohamed Ghouse Master who was handling the music for the film and Ghouse recognizing Amaradeva's skill enlisted him as the top violinist in his orchestra.
Amardeva left his studies and accompanied Ghouse to India to work on the film. He would play a triple role of singing, dancing and acting on the film with the song "Ayi Yameku Kale Ale."
Career
He found steady work as an artist on Radio Ceylon, where his unique vision and talent could be exhibited to an audience wider than he had ever before known - earning him a position at the Bhathkande Institute of Music in Lucknow, India. After extensive training, Albert returned to Sri Lanka as Pandit Wannakuwattawaduge Don Amaradeva.The name Amaradeva which translates as Immortal god was given to him by Prof. Ediriweera Sarachchandra (Sri Lanka's foremost playwright and a close associate).
During this time, Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) had only begun emerging as an independent nation, and the question of what Sri Lankan music was, was slowly being addressed with equal vigour by intellectuals, artists and the general public. In response to the spirit of these times, Amaradeva began interweaving indigenous folk music with the Indian ragas he had studied in Lucknow, thereby giving expression to a more sophisticated cadence.
His other innovations include his experimentation with Western harmonies and counterharmonies, as well as with South Indian and Tamil musical forms. His opus, however, remains the work he did with Sri Lanka's celebrated lyricist Mahagama Sekera, in exploring the contours of fusing classical Sinhala poetry with his unique musical intonation. In time, Amaradeva's music came to reflect an entire philosophy, reflective of the spirit of a nation.
He has composed music for ballet(Karadiya, Nala Damayanthi, etc), film(Ran Muthu Duwa, Gam Peraliya, Ransalu, Delovak Athara, Gatavarayo, Rena Girav, Thunman Handiya, etc), theatre(Wessantara, etc), radio and television, and has sung over one thousand songs.
Amaradeva, and wife Wimala, have one son (Ranjana Amaradeva), and two daughters (Subhani Amaradeva, herself a talented vocalist, and Priyanvada Amaradeva).
Honors
Officier (officer) in the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of Arts and Letters) from the French government (2003)
The Ramon Magsaysay Award of the Philippines - (2001)
Title of Deshamanya form the government of Sri Lanka (1998)
Title of Kala Keerthi form the government of Sri Lanka (1986)
Padma Sri Award from India
Filmography
Music director
Year Film Other notes
1962 Ran Muthu Duwa debut as music director
1963 Adata Wadiya Heta Hondai songs only
Sikuru Tharuwa one song and background music
Gamperaliya
Getawarayo
1965 Saama background music
Laa Dalu
Saravita
Adarayai Karunawai
1966 Delovak Athara
Westhuru Siritha
Annesley Malewana
Annesley Malewana
Background information
Origin Ratnapura, Sri Lanka
Genres Sri Lankan music
Years active 1965 to present
Associated acts Moonstones, Super Golden Chimes, Super Chimes
Annesley Malewana (Sinhala, pronounced [ˈænəsli ˈmaːləvənə]) is an influential Sri Lankan musician.
Life and career
Malewana was born in Ratnapura (a city in south-central Sri Lanka), and attended St. Joseph’s College in the capital city of Colombo. Upon leaving school, he met Clarence Wijewardena, who (with Malewana) formed the group Moonstones. In the early 1960s, the Moonstones began performing songs composed by Wijewardena and sung by Malewana (their first hit was Mango Nanda - a song written about the maid who once worked at the home of Clarence's wife in the early days of their relationship).
Moonstones
Primarily due to Wijewardena's unique compositions, the Moonstones continued to dominate popular Sri Lankan music for nearly a decade before ultimately breaking up in the late 1960s. The Moonstones were managed by the advertising man Sri Sangabo Corea and were mentored by the legendary Radio Ceylon broadcaster Vernon Corea and his cousin Vijaya Corea.[1] Their music was featured for the very first time on the English Services of Radio Ceylon and subsequently the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation. They became household names as a result of the airplay on Radio Ceylon throughout the 1960s. Annesley Malewana was well known for being a master of contemporary baila.[2]
During the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, the songs of the 'Moonstones' and the 'Super Golden Chimes' were on the lips of so many music lovers in Sri Lanka - the musicians were at their peak and Annesley had reached the heights of popularity in the world of music on the island.
Super Golden Chimes
Malewana and Wijewardena remained friends and reunited in the 1970s to form a group dubbed the Super Golden Chimes - this group would, similarly, produce a string of popular songs that included Udarata Niliya (Up-Country Dancer), Sihina Pathum (In Dreams), Wana Bambaro (Jungle/Wild Bee), and Sathuta Senasuma (Happy Feelings).
The Super Golden Chimes performed for another 8 years until, in 1978, Malewana married, and announced his retirement from music.Despite his retirement, Malewana returned in 1988 as a solo artist, and continued to record songs particularly for CDs released in Sri Lanka.
Super Chimes
Malewana came out of retirement to get back into the music world, in 2005 he formed the band Annesley & The Super Chimes.
According to Malewana: "It was a long felt need in the music scene especially after the Super Golden Chimes Reunion Concert which was held last year. I was under tremendous pressure from my fans and well-wishers to continue with the Super Golden Chimes, but since some of the members are abroad and some others are playing in different groups, I did not want to use the name Super Golden Chimes."
The songs performed by Malewana and Clarence over their three decade careers have recently been credited, by the group Pahan Silu, as having served to influence them in crafting their unique musical style. Annesley Malewana has reached the pinnacle of fame as a highly respected recording artiste and as an accomplished musician. Together with his close friend, the late Clarence Wijewardena, they were at the very top of music world in South Asia. Wijeywardena and Malewana were two of the most sought after musicians in Sri Lanka. Their songs topped the charts on both the English Service and the Sinhala Service on Radio Ceylon/Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation for decades. Annesley Malewana has also made countless appearances on television. His voice has been heard by Londoners over BBC Radio London 206 on the popular 'London Sounds Eastern' radio programme and on community radio in the United States of America and in Australia.
Background information
Origin Ratnapura, Sri Lanka
Genres Sri Lankan music
Years active 1965 to present
Associated acts Moonstones, Super Golden Chimes, Super Chimes
Annesley Malewana (Sinhala, pronounced [ˈænəsli ˈmaːləvənə]) is an influential Sri Lankan musician.
Life and career
Malewana was born in Ratnapura (a city in south-central Sri Lanka), and attended St. Joseph’s College in the capital city of Colombo. Upon leaving school, he met Clarence Wijewardena, who (with Malewana) formed the group Moonstones. In the early 1960s, the Moonstones began performing songs composed by Wijewardena and sung by Malewana (their first hit was Mango Nanda - a song written about the maid who once worked at the home of Clarence's wife in the early days of their relationship).
Moonstones
Primarily due to Wijewardena's unique compositions, the Moonstones continued to dominate popular Sri Lankan music for nearly a decade before ultimately breaking up in the late 1960s. The Moonstones were managed by the advertising man Sri Sangabo Corea and were mentored by the legendary Radio Ceylon broadcaster Vernon Corea and his cousin Vijaya Corea.[1] Their music was featured for the very first time on the English Services of Radio Ceylon and subsequently the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation. They became household names as a result of the airplay on Radio Ceylon throughout the 1960s. Annesley Malewana was well known for being a master of contemporary baila.[2]
During the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, the songs of the 'Moonstones' and the 'Super Golden Chimes' were on the lips of so many music lovers in Sri Lanka - the musicians were at their peak and Annesley had reached the heights of popularity in the world of music on the island.
Super Golden Chimes
Malewana and Wijewardena remained friends and reunited in the 1970s to form a group dubbed the Super Golden Chimes - this group would, similarly, produce a string of popular songs that included Udarata Niliya (Up-Country Dancer), Sihina Pathum (In Dreams), Wana Bambaro (Jungle/Wild Bee), and Sathuta Senasuma (Happy Feelings).
The Super Golden Chimes performed for another 8 years until, in 1978, Malewana married, and announced his retirement from music.Despite his retirement, Malewana returned in 1988 as a solo artist, and continued to record songs particularly for CDs released in Sri Lanka.
Super Chimes
Malewana came out of retirement to get back into the music world, in 2005 he formed the band Annesley & The Super Chimes.
According to Malewana: "It was a long felt need in the music scene especially after the Super Golden Chimes Reunion Concert which was held last year. I was under tremendous pressure from my fans and well-wishers to continue with the Super Golden Chimes, but since some of the members are abroad and some others are playing in different groups, I did not want to use the name Super Golden Chimes."
The songs performed by Malewana and Clarence over their three decade careers have recently been credited, by the group Pahan Silu, as having served to influence them in crafting their unique musical style. Annesley Malewana has reached the pinnacle of fame as a highly respected recording artiste and as an accomplished musician. Together with his close friend, the late Clarence Wijewardena, they were at the very top of music world in South Asia. Wijeywardena and Malewana were two of the most sought after musicians in Sri Lanka. Their songs topped the charts on both the English Service and the Sinhala Service on Radio Ceylon/Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation for decades. Annesley Malewana has also made countless appearances on television. His voice has been heard by Londoners over BBC Radio London 206 on the popular 'London Sounds Eastern' radio programme and on community radio in the United States of America and in Australia.
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