Arts

ITN Rantaru 2006 The Band of the Year:

A talent booster for budding music bands

by Ranga Chandrarathne

Ingenuity and the talents of the Sri Lankans have hitherto not been tapped in a proper way so as to brings forth them to the limelight irrespective of the field they are engaged in.

It is also not a secret that back stabbing and all kinds of harassments are endemic to the fields of arts and literature so much so it prevents talented youth from entering into the area of music and making a lasting contribution to this field. The host of music bands throughout the country bears ample testimony to the pool of talents dormant especially in rural Sri Lanka.

Excessive reliance on music and artistic dynasties coupled with lack of creative space for budding musicians and troupes have effectively deprived Sri Lankans of their talents and the would-be contribution to the fields of music.

One of the specialties of these troupes is that they are capable of producing diverse styles of music such as Pop, Rock, Jazz as well as authentic Sri Lankan music, though they (troupes) are based on occidental music traditions.

Independence Television Network (ITN) which is a premier national channel, has come forward in a creative way to address this issue as part of their social responsibility programmes with the launch of ITN Rantaru 2006, a talent competition aimed at providing space for music troupes scattered around the country.

In the first tier of the programme, 800 music bands representing all parts of the country took part in the competition which went on for six months. Fifty bands out of 800 were selected for the second round and 10 promising music bands were selected for the third round of the competition.

The bands include Santhr (Marawila), Srimath (Kaduwela), Horizon (Polgahawela), Serendib (Nainamadama), Matara C (Matara), Sagma (Nittambuwa), Stranger (Gampaha), Mathra (Halawatha), Music Lover (Awissawella) and Wagerners (Katunayake).

ITN should always produce qualitative programmes. We also identified music bands in Sri Lanka that have not been recognised. For three years, the ITN telecast a programme titled Tharunu Ridma. The programme was telecasted from 10.00 am to 12.00 noon.

The programme featured budding music groups, said Executive producers Chandika Wijesena and the producers Sunil Premaratne and Udaya Tennakoon.

The band selected from the final round will provide music at the final programme. The final round made up of 08 tiers and out of which the best band of the year will be selected at the end of the competition.

The ten winning teams include, best youth Band of Sri Lanka, the most popular band (selected by fans vote by SMS / post cards / Fax), best pilot vocalist, best Lead Guitarist, best bass-guitarist, best Rhythm guitarist, best drummer, best Octpad player, Best Organ player and the Best group song.

"The selected bands will be announced on December 31, 2007 after midnight. The ten selected groups were given individual 10 numbers. The fans could cast a vote to a favourite group or to the ten groups. This is a turning point in Sri Lankan group music," say the producers.

"It is obvious that music groups play on popular stage without acquiring proper knowledge of music. This is an attempt to introduce qualitative and talented music groups to popular stage. Some of the groups have talented lead guitarists but they were not supported by other players and vocalists. We selected the best groups for the final round and were given especial exercises to sharpen their talents.

The exercises include 80 songs that fell into different categories. In the first hour of the finals, the best two bands are selected. The selected bands will have to play back music for ten popular vocalists and they will have to present their own sessions. After the session, the best band of the year will be selected.

At the final session, we wish to present a session with best two bands performing on the same stage," said the panel of judges.

"We wanted to be a helping hand to the youth of this country and to get involved them in our channel. We thought how to do an exercise in this regard and we found a way to call upon armature band of the country for a competition.

About seven to eight thousands youth were interested in this programme," said Chairman Anura Siriwardena about the programme.

The final round of the programme will be held on December 31, 2007 at the Sugathadasa Stadium and the tickets for the programme will be provided at a concessionary rate. The panel of Judges consists of Ernest Soyza, Sarath Alwis, Shirley Waijayantha, Rohona Bogoda, Keerthi Pasquel, Upali Sanasgala, Manoj Peiris, Ashoka Kovilage and Mahinda Silva.

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Two books to mark 50 years to Rekava - The Line of Destiny

by Ranga Chandrarathne

As the screening of 'Rekawa' marks 50 years, two books on the life and times of master filmmaker Dr. Lester James Peiris will be launched at the Regal Cinema at 5.00 pm on December 28, 2006. Rekava will be screened at Regal Cinema to coincide with the book launch.

Adasiyawasaka Ridee Rekava (Five decades of The Line of Destiny) by veteran journalist and critic A.D. Ranjith Kumara contains among other things, the screenplay of Rekava, Lester's debut in cinema, and critical assessments of the film with a large number of rare photographs.

The book is published by Surasa publishers. The key note address on the occasion will be delivered by Prof. Sunil Ariyaratne.

"Lester Wirachita Lekana Sanhita", a book by young journalist, critic and a lecturer in cinema attached to the University of Kelaniya, Nuwan Nayanajith Kumara, is a Sinhalese translation of a series of critical essays by maestro Dr. Lester James Peiris. The essays written in English by Dr. Peiris over the last sixty years reflect on the hitherto lesser known facet of the master filmmaker as a journalist, critic and a perceptive thinker.

Here Nuwanjith endeavours to introduce the hitherto lesser known facet of the internationally acclaimed filmmaker who is hailed as one of the best directors of our time.

The corpus of work over 60 years, have been categorised into 6 sections; self- appraisal, cinema and art from, critical essays on the industry, film reviews at international film festivals, book reviews and critical evaluation by veterans in the field. Among the essays is the essay on the importance of preserving and conserving Sinhala films, emphasising on the setting up of a film archive.

Artistes who acted in Rekava and now living will be felicitated on this day and songs in the film will be sung and the event is organised by "Sahurda Sanwada Kendraya". The book is published by "Sarasavi" Publishers and is sponsored by DFCC Banking Group.

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