|
|
|
| Sunday, 16 October 2005 |
 |
|
 |
Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Acoustics to remember by Joseph D'Souza Though based abroad I have been fortunate to regularly visit my home country two or three times a year. One of the things I took forward to most is the theatre scene in Colombo, especially performances in music and drama. What talent. Unfortunately in Western performing arts the local theatre can only achieve amateur status, as opportunities of meeting the standards of the West are restricted; however we are not able to see too much in the West as ticket prices are dear. On the other hand, Colombo offers a great variety of entertainment most of which is within one's budget. Standards vary of course from slap-up jobs to slick well presented productions. I recall some musicals which, even though lacking originality, were carbon copies of West End shows. The principal players in these were of high standards. Some of today's actors and singers are pretty good, though I venture to suggest that most fall short of the Serasinghes, Colin Thome, Richard de Soyza, Michelle Lembruggen, Lylie Godridge, Joan Cooray or Lorraine Abeysekera. August was a month to delight theatre goers. A slick production of a British comedy; a recital from a performer who, not surprisingly, is in Julliard; a concert by a choral group which had obviously worked hard, but fell short of expectations and a tribute made up of a bag of tricks-some good, others not so. Last Sunday at the Lionel Wendt a vocal recital presented by Mary Anne David gave audiences a new dimension in quality-generally termed 'class'. Four female Sopranos, one boy Soprano and a tenor handled the classical music in the first half. The Sopranos were all obviously well trained and the quality of their voices matched the elegant presentation that evening. The wide choice of composers showed how each with a different style could effectively interpret excerpts from Operas or Lieder. Kumudini David and Piyumika Wimalasuriya had superbly matched voices in the duets "I waited for the lord" (Mendelssohn) and the "Flower Duet" (Delibes) young Chanuka Piyarisi showed tremendous poise while his bell like voice soared in "Who is Sylvia" (Schubert). Dinali Wijesinghe has a powerful and pure voice which will take her to greater heights in years to come. In Quand do men vo (Puccini) her interpretation of a flirtatious countess was cleverly done with eye and calculated body movement. A different interpretation was conveyed in "Habenera" where Piyumika Wimalasuriya's factory worker's coquetry was indicated by more flamboyant movement and quality of voice. I felt the most developed voice of the evening was Kumuduni David. Her rendition of "D'amo sull' ali rosee" (Verdi) conveyed the message of loving hope most effectively. It was exciting to hear a voice that soared up to the top register and had the capacity for holding on to long phrases. Chanuka Piyarisi and Akram Drahaman's duet "Panis Angelicus" (Francke) did not quite match up to the other items though Akram redeemed himself in Schumann's: "Widmung". Though this too could have been presented a lot better. By and large what impressed me immensely was the accompanist David Ratnanayagam. I heard that he is better known as an organist; but what an impact he made as a pianist. His playing is crisp and accurate, his posture is delightful and he does not indulge in theatricals or distracting body movements. Even his acknowledging bow was dignified. I do wish other accompanists, excellent musicians though they be; take a lesson in stage presence from him. I must say Edwin Mendez showed promise as an accompanist. In this respect I was delighted to see that this group has shown the public of today what wonderful acoustics prevail at the Lionel Wendt. From the 1960s to the 1980s performers never needed to use electronic amplification and there were half a dozen shows each year. Now I rarely see a concert where sophisticated sound equipment is not the order of the day. Performers have forgotten the word 'projection'. I am not against using sound equipment for effects and instruments like the keyboard but, in moderation please, with the controller hearing the volume that the audience does! The program after the interval was lighter with ladies ensemble giving us some delightful old time and Jazz. Harmonising voices for jazz can be quite a feat and they did it well with controlled choreography that was pleasing to the eye. The men's ensemble's 'Lover come back' was less polished because the 'levels' of the performers were not uniform. Melanie Bibile whom I have heard earlier has a special inimitable timbre in her voice and it was eminently suitable for her beautiful "I dreamed a dream" (Schonberg). The final Anthem with Akram Drahaman and Ashan Algama singing solos had the Marry Anne singers supporting them. It was an interesting arrangement. The suggestion that the words in the souvenir be followed was a problem with the poor auditorium lights, which incidentally in 50 years has still not had the facility of 'dimming' but plunges one into darkness causing the inevitable latecomers to grope their way stepping on many a toe! |
|
| News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
| Produced by Lake House |
