Guitar - a musical friend

Winner:

The guitar is a string instrument which plays a big role in the world of modern music. It is one of the instruments that is difficult to learn. Even though instruments similar to the guitar have been used in ancient times, it was first written about in the 14th century.

The guitar developed greatly in the 16th century in Spain and became popular in Europe in the latter part of the 17th century. During the 18th century the appearance of the guitar had evolved to resemble the modern guitar.

The electric guitar which made a great revolution in the music world was invented in the 1930’s in California. It is crucial for Blues and Rock music.

The guitar can be divided into two main categories as the Spanish guitar and the Hawaiian guitar. The category that we are most familiar with is the Spanish guitar. This too can be divided into three groups according to the purpose it serves; as lead guitar, rhythm guitar and bass guitar.

The rhythm guitar helps to keep the rhythm of a song and to accompany the melody. We can play the rhythm guitar with the thumb and the fore-finger or with a pick. The guitar which is used to play melodies and interludes of a song is the lead guitar. The pick is very useful to play lead guitar. There are few techniques a lead guitarist must learn such as the note, block stock, shifting notes and so on. The guitar which is used to accompany the melody and the rhythm of a song with bass notes is the bass guitar.

There are many parts in a guitar which are very common to the instruments in the lute family. The guitar includes strings, sound box, sound hole, finger board, frets, fret marks, bridge and tuning pegs.

The instrument is used to play several types of music. Hard rock music which is very popular at present depends on the guitar. The guitar is one of the most spectacular instrument in music.

We can see the speciality of the rhythm guitar in Blues music. In Reggae music, introduced by Bob Marley the lead guitar and the bass guitar do a vital job. The guitar is an instrument that is used by most musicians worldwide. Folk songs in European countries are sung to the accompaniment of a classical guitar.

Fleminco music of Spain is a beautiful art.

The Fleminco guitarist keeps the special Fleminco guitar on his left knee in an unusual way and he strums the strings with his fingers while tapping the area around the sound hole. The playing techniques of Fleminco guitarists are tremendous and it is impossible for everyone to become a traditional guitarist.

The beautiful tones of this fabulous instrument has captured the world of music and spread widely today.

Mithun Mendis,
Grade 11B,
St. Anthony’s College,
Kandy.

Why cricketers are treated like VIPs

Winner:

“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” is a familiar saying. Likewise, sports and games play a vital role in keeping us healthy. “Health is wealth.” In order to be healthy, we should take sports and games seriously.

Many people think that education is the only key to their progress. That’s not really correct because it’s only one side of our progress in life.

It is true that we can enhance our knowledge by studying. But, even though ‘Knowledge is power’, by engaging in sports we can not only maintain our body structure, but also refresh our brain to do our studies better.

When we think about ‘sports’, the first thing that comes to our mind is ‘cricket.’ It is an international game as many countries participate in it.

It is a game played with a bat, ball, wickets and eleven players on each team. There are three categories in this game. They are ODI matches, Test matches and T20 matches. This famous game is known as the gentleman’s game. The players of a team take responsibility for the team’s scores, even if it is good or bad.

Cricketers consider every moment as a precious time when they play. They need to fully concentrate on the match while playing as a batsman, bowler or fielder.

Many of us consider the Sri Lankan team as ‘VIP’s, don’t we? This is because of their playing skills, courage, team-spirit and good qualities.Many children take cricketers as their role-models in life. The recognition they have in the country is evident from the roads, lanes and playgrounds named in their honour.

The bottomline is to remember that cricketers are very important people who work hard to bring glory to our motherland.

R. Thuvaragan,
B/Hindu College,
Colombo 4.

My hobby

A hobby is an activity done during one’s spare time or leisure. My hobby is collecting stamps. I have over 2500 stamps in my collection. I have mounted them in four albums. I have separate albums for stamps of Sri Lanka and other countries.

My parents, teachers and friends help me with my hobby by giving me stamps. I can learn so much from my hobby. I know that the first stamp was a penny stamp displaying the head of Queen Victoria of England. The first postage stamps of Sri Lanka also carried the head of Queen Victoria and were issued in April, 1857.

But they were not Penny stamps. They were Six pence stamps.I intend to improve my hobby with time and learn many things about the different countries of the world.

Charuka Lakshan
Grade 8 English Medium, St. Mary’s College,
Kegalle.

Whitney Houston - a legend to remember

Winner:

Whitney Houston was a famous American singer who was known as the “golden girl” in the 1980s. She was the daughter of a famous Gospel singer and cousin of the 1960s pop diva, Dione Warwick. Whitney Houston was born in 1963 and from the age of five she sang Gospel songs in the church in her hometown. She spent most of her youth singing backup vocals for various pop artist's recordings.

With time she became one of the most successful soul singers of all time with worldwide album sales of 200 million. Some of her famous songs include, ‘Saving all my love for you’, ‘I wanna dance with somebody’ and the ‘Greatest love of all’. She gained instant fame with the the song ‘I will always love you’ originally sung by Dolly Parton. She was best known as the record-breaking pop performer due to her popularity. At the age of 48 she died. She was known to have been batting drug problems at the time of her death. Sadly she is no more.However, her music will live on. She was a legend in the music world and will continue to be so even after her death.

Tahanee Harris
Grade 8,
Lakeland Inter-American School,
Ratmalana

Obesity - food for thought

Winner:

Obesity or being grossly fat is bad for one's health. Today many people including children are suffering from this due to their food habits and busy lifestyles.

Most mothers want their children to be fat or chubby. They think it is healthy to be fat but actually it is not so. According to medical research overweight human beings fall ill very easily.

They often suffer from diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiac problems.

This is mostly because they eat too much of food rich in proteins, fat and carbohydrates. Eating too much of fatty food, fast food and sweets can lead to obesity. Many children do not like to eat nutritious food such as grains, green leaves, fresh vegetables and fruits. Sometimes obesity is not due to food alone;it is a gene problem.

A family history of obesity can also make a person obese. In this fast moving world where people are grappling with time, there is hardly any time for exercises. Most adults and children spend their leisure glued to a television or a computer today .

As many travel by vehicles, they also do not have even the little physical exercise they could get by walking. Even at office most people are engaged in sedentary jobs. Obesity is not something we should treat lightly as it is bad for our health. We should try to develop healthy eating habits and do regular exercises to lead a healthy and happy life.

Kaveesha Shashipriya
Brilliant Stars International College,
Nupe, Matara

Train - a great mode of transport

Winner:

The train is a mode of transport which moves on steel wheels over rails.

It has lots of compartments or wagons which are pulled by a locomotive (engine). It is operated by the engine driver and the helper. They cannot operate the train any way they want.

The engine driver has to follow the radar signal lights. The main control room is in Maradana. There is a controller and several others at the control room. The control panel works automatically, on a relay system. However, during an emergency the controller can operate the radar systems manually. Every train has two guards. The person in charge of the train is the main guard and the engine driver must follow the guard's instructions.

Trains can be divided into the following categories; long and short distance trains (town service), goods trains, oil tanks, rail cars, rail vans and rail buses. Long distance trains are pulled by a locomotive. The compartments have many facilities. There are three types of compartments such as first class, second class and third class. The first class has adjustable velvet seats, air condition, water and toilet facilities. The second class and third class have water supply, toilet facilities, buffet and fans. Passengers can easily travel a long distance without any problem. Short distance trains work only in town areas. They are power sets. At school time and office time there are lots of power sets in operation.Goods trains can transport many items quickly from one place to another. Furniture, flowers, crops, animals, cement, lime stones and many other things are transported via goods trains.Trains cannot operate everywhere in the country. They can run only in limited areas. Rail roads are usually far from the city limits.

We can't get goods we load into a train at any place we want. We have to go to the nearest railway station to collect them. Even though we cannot operate a train the way we want, it is a good mode of transport for people, especially in a developing country as many can travel in it at one time.

Nisal Nethmina Fernando,
Alethea International School,
Grade 6 Lea,
Dehiwela.