S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia:

Fundraiser for 'The Canon Roy Yin Choir Fund'

Internationally renowned The De Lanerolle Brothers (Rohan and Ishan) will perform with the Thomian Choir at 6 p.m. on September 16, at the Chapel of the Transfiguration at S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia to raise funds for 'The Canon Roy Yin Choir Fund'.

The Lanerolle brother said, "The primary objective of the show is to raise funds for the Canon Roy Yin Choir Fund to enable S.Thomas Choir to travel abroad in general and visit Singapore in particular. One of the reasons for taking the choir to Singapore is that it is in Singapore that Rev. Roy Yin spent his retirement after serving the college for many years."

The De Lanerolle Brothers will perform together with S.Thomas' Choir at the festival. The Festival will be a collection of well-known anthems and hymns traditionally sung in the College Chapel interspersed with readings from the Holy Scriptures.

The nationally and internationally renowned De Lanerolle Brothers, Rohan and Ishan, are themselves products of the Thomian Choir having been choristers during their school days at the feet of the legendary Russell Bartholomeusz.

The Brothers have performed all over the world including the USA, the UK, Germany, Austria and Singapore where they sing at the Cathedral every Christmas.

They have in the recent past collaborated with the Bishop of Colombo in directing a Choral Festival of Church School Choirs in aid of one of the Bishop's projects. Their collaboration with the College Choir in the launch of the Choir Fund is a labour of love and the repaying of a nurture fee.

The primary purpose of the Choir Fund for the immediate future is to raise funds to enable the Thomian Chapel Choir to look at musical horizons beyond the shores of Sri Lanka.

The late Revd Canon Roy Yin, who passed away just after reaching his 100th birthday in late 2010, was an institution at S.Thomas' from 1947 to 1962 when he served as Chaplain of S. Thomas'. He inaugurated the famous Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols of the Chapel in December 1947 based on the pattern of the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's College, Cambridge, where he had served as a Chaplain before coming to Sri Lanka.

This service is still a much awaited annual event and for many heralds the season of Christmas in Colombo. He was also responsible for the training and formation of many famous organists and choral singers.

Former choristers, old boys and other well wishers could channel donations to the Choir Fund by cheque in favour of 'The Warden, S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia' with a covering letter clearly stipulating the object of the donation.

The awe-inspiring Chapel of the Transfiguration of S. Thomas' College, with its equally inspiring Mural by David Paynter, towers over the rest of the school's campus at Mount Lavinia and is a vital element in the education of STC being the centre of the spiritual life of the college, where many generations of Thomians have received their formation and experienced God.

Dear to the hearts of all Thomians of diverse faith, the Chapel continues to serve as a reminder to us of our heritage and the Chapel Choir plays a crucial role in this process.

The Thomian Choir is one of the oldest and most reputed boys' school choirs in the country and is one of the oldest institutions of the college and made its debut on St. Mathew's Day, September 21,1854 at the dedication of the Christ Church Cathedral that served as the School Chapel till 1918. It has developed a reputation for high standards of Choral music since then. After the School moved to Mount Lavinia in 1918 it was trained by R. B. W. Jayasekera, Revd T. W. Gilbert, Canon A. J. Foster, Budd Jansze and Canon Roy Yin.

Canon Yin's work was continued by his students the late Revd Lucian G. B. Fernando and then since 1979 Russel Bartholomeusz (who combined the roles of Choir Master and organist for the first time and was also the Chapel's first Precentor) and is now carried on by one of Bartholomeusz's protégés Vinodh Senadheera who maintains the highest standards of Anglican choral music in the liturgical worship of the Chapel. The Thomian choir is perhaps the only one that sings without a conductor and is also affiliated to the Royal School of Church Music in the UK. It has earned itself a venerable place in the life of the college.

The highlights of the year for the choir apart from the regular Sunday service and the carol service are the joint service with Trinity College in February, the Good Friday and Easter Liturgies, the Choral Evensong and Festal Sung Eucharist on the Feast of the Transfiguration in August and other special liturgical events as and when the occasion arises.

The demand for the choir to sing at weddings in the Chapel became so heavy that only two weddings are now permitted in the Chapel each school term. In addition to singing traditional Anglican anthems, hymns, and psalms, the choir has a wide range of repertoire singing choral work from Bach to Rutter.