Reaching the highest note
The young and old choristers of the Cantabilé School of Singing have got plenty to be excited about. Come October 27 and 28, Cantabilé will stage their third concert ‘Reach-In A Singing Style’ at the British School Auditorium, bringing together the three choirs (Juniors, Intermediates and Seniors) of the school.
A staggering 90 students will perform on stage, serenading you with hits from the past and present. “Teaching at Cantabilé is quite different to teaching at a normal school,” says Director Prashalini Peiris, who left a promising teaching career in an international school to start Cantabilé. “In school, the kids don’t have much of a choice. Like it or not, they’ve got to learn. Here the students come because they want to and that’s very encouraging.” The school, which was formed in 2004 with just eight students, has grown in leaps and bounds to the almost 100-strong foundation it is today.
‘Reach’ is their third production. Following ‘Beat It’ and ‘Sparkle’ (2010), this production is a more versatile one, says the choir. The concert is named less after the S Club 7 hit of the same name the Intermediates are performing and more after the school’s vision for its students.
Roshani Kumarasinghe, choreographer for the aspiring young singers, is thrilled with their effort so far. “It’s easy to sing, but to have the coordination to sing and dance at the same time is something else,” she enthuses. “It been lovely working with the kids and the more mature singers. They’re very open to doing all sorts of tricky moves!” The choristers themselves are matter-of-fact about their previous dancing experience-or lack of! You’d expect Roshani, with her professional Latin-American dance background to balk at the thought of teaching some very left-footed singers to dance, but she’s taken on the task with an enthusiasm that is contagious. It’s not your average hands-on-hip toe tapping that accompanies the singing either. The choristers swirl, dip dramatically and tap dance their way across the stage. Forget the complex choral arrangements; the footwork is enough to keep them on their feet-pun intended!
The choirs have been rehearsing their music for the concert in class for almost a year. A full two months’ of proper rehearsals later, they’re confident in pulling off a magical evening to remember. The Juniors aged a precocious 5-10, will be tackling some Spongebob and Disney, while the intermediates (aged 10-14) will perform hits from Glee and High School Musical, singing in two-part harmony. The seniors, aged between 15 to an experienced 40 will belt out some more Glee tunes, along with Queen, Sting and the Bee Gees among others. Asteria, a female vocal group directed by Mahen Peiris will join the Cantabilé students on stage for a special guest performance.
For Prashalini and the team behind the scenes, it’s an exhausting process but extremely rewarding at the same time. “The last time we did this, the kids asked me almost immediately afterwards when the next one was and I laughed and said ‘over my dead body’”, grins Prashalini. “But we keep coming back to this every time. Just seeing my students having the time of their lives is reward enough.”
‘Reach-In A Singing Style’ will be held at the British School Auditorium. For box plan and tickets (priced at Rs.1000, 750, 500 and 300) contact the British School Auditorium (Warren) on 0777555904. The official print sponsors are the Sunday Times and Daily Mirror. Real Radio is the official radio partner.
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