Fusion his creative art

by Mahes Perera

It was not the right time to meet pianist/composer Harsha Makalande. He was in the midst of writing melody line notations on manuscripts that were spread on the piano.

He was putting together the orchestral arrangements for the concert 'It's Now or Never' featuring Janaka Palapathwala and he was not too happy about the interruption. But that didn't deter me from posing my questions about this concert next week.

Question: You are a musician renowned for performing concerts which radiate fusion music, how then did this pop music concert, for which you are writing the orchestral arrangements fall on your lap?

Answer: Actually Janaka Palapathwala contacted me. I've known him for quite some time. He was working in Dubai for a long period of time and now he has come back and is running his own business. It is a kind of 'reflecting challenge' to me. I have included a fusion item which will be played by my band Harsha and Khrome with oriental percussion by Jananath Warakagoda.

Looking back I have included fusion items in other concerts I have participated. There was Image Sri Lanka with artistes and fusion instrumentations. This concert will see, apart from the rhythm section, the inclusion of strings and brass.

Q: Knowing how dedicated you are to music, do you find this whole exercise interesting and inspiring?

A: I find the experience interesting. It's been some time since I got involved in such an exercise. As you know all Elvis Presley's concerts had Richard Strauss' Also Sprach Zarathustra as the curtain raiser and it was interesting writing the arrangements.

Q: What will be the composition of the orchestra you will be using and who will be handling the vocal harmony needed for Elvis Presley's songs.

A: I'm having nine violins, four brass instruments - sax, trombone, trumpet and flugelhorn, two keyboards, I'm playing the grand piano, there will be a double bass, electric bass, and percussion.

As for the voices there will be six voices with Antoinette de Alwis, Kumudini Perera, Dilini Perera Fox and Piumi.

Having studied the intracies of Science, Religion and Languages at his alma mater Ananda College, Harsha's baptism in the professional world of music was due to the then leading Sri Lankan jazz pianist Cecil Rodrigo who as Harsha says became his "mentor in the field of improvised music and jazz."

Wondering how he could express his artistry he was fortunate to have met Upali Edirisinghe the manager of the band Pioneers and the result was that Harsha was signed up as the group's pianist.

But Pioneers wasn't the beginning and the end for Harsha. He was invited to join Arabesque and Amazing Grace and from there he took the quantum leap into touring abroad with the highly acclaimed pop/dance band Priyanthi and Lotus, whose leader was the brilliant guitarist" Raja Jalaldeen and the equally brilliant vocalist Priyanthi Manamperi.

"We had an extremely successful tour and performances, when we played in the Middle East, in Kenya, (Nairobi), Venice (Italy) and Kuwait City said Harsha. But despite the involvement in pop music the desire to compose music began to intensify in Harsha. While in Kuwait, he was inspired to compose his first piece Serendipity and followed it up with the pop hit 'Sons and lovers which Priyanthi made into a hit.

Q: How did you move into the path of fusion compositions which was your ultimate goal?

A: I was lucky to be introduced to Sarath Fernando, the veteran Sri Lankan Film music director and oboe player who in turn introduced me to the dramatist Dhamma Jagoda.

At that time Dhamma was directing a production of the Sarasaviya Film Festival and wanted me to perform Nimal Mendis" Kandyan Dance'. I gave the piece a new arrangement with the introduction of bass, Western drums, mandolin and six getaberas. The getaberos gave the piece a fresh sound. With the piano being played percussively and with the local drums the result was a standing ovation from the audience".

This was the turning point for Harsha Makalande. He was invited by Tissa Abeysekera to compose his music for his teledrama Pitigamkarayo and the documentary 'Sun and the Moon Stone'.

Next came his compostion 'Svarasanga Vannama which was selected by the conductor of the Sri Lanka Symphony for a performance under the baton of the late Dr. Farl de Fonseka. The piano soloist was Ramya de Livera Perera with Ravibandu Vidyapathi on Sinhala drums. The composition had its international debut at the Tokyo Opera City in Japan in October 2007 under the baton of Hikotaro Yazaki with Harsha Makalande at the piano.

"In Pitigamkarayo I used the Horanava or as they call it our folk oboe, to play properly composed melody lines. It was well received and that was a cue for me to use the Horanava in my fusion-folk compositions "said Harsha whose creative artistry has never dulled to this day.

In fact when he was invited to perform at the Jazz Yatra festivals in India he made use of the Sinhala folk music in fusion compositions which was an eye opener to the Indian and cosmopolitan audience present at the concerts.

His band Harsha and Khrome was augmented with either tablas, thammatama and Kandyan and Low country drums, and the music was an over whelming success.

It was fitting that he was honoured with many awards and titles, Kalasuri being one of them.