From Hallelujah Chorus to Jingle Bell Rock, the Menaka Singers will sing with SOSL
Menaka de Fonseka Sahabandu’s home at Ward Place, Colombo is filled with Christmas music these days and spirits are high as her choristers sing their hearts out practising some of the most loved Christmas melodies in preparation for their performance at the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka’s (SOSL) Family Christmas Concert.
Menaka de Fonseka Sahabandu
The SOSL annual Christmas Concert on December 15 at the Ladies’ College hall at 7 p.m. will be conducted by Ajit Abeysekera and have something for the entire family, from classical pieces to evergreen pop songs.
The Menaka Singers led by Menaka de Fonseka Sahabandu will be performing a variety of Christmas specials including the ‘Hallelujah Chorus’, ‘Away in a manger’, ‘Simon and Garfunkel melody’, and ‘Winter Wonderland’ while Menaka herself will be the soloist in ‘Voices of Spring for Soprano’, which will be done for the first time by the Symphony Orchestra, ‘Laughing Song’, from the opera Die Fledermaus by Strauss and ‘Let the Bright Seraphim’ from Samson by G.F. Handel. The audience Sing Along will include crowd favourites such as Jingle Bell Rock, Silent Night and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.
The Menaka Singers, was officially formed in 1999 for a performance at the 125th anniversary celebrations of the Trinity College London, in Sri Lanka. From then on, the choristers have enjoyed increasing recognition, being invited to sing for the Symphony Orchestra’s Christmas concert in 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2011.
Menaka a Fellow of the Trinity College London and a Licentiate of the Royal Schools of Music in both piano and singing has been a frequent soloist with the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka since her debut in 1989 playing Saint Saens’ 2nd Piano Concerto in G minor. “Performing at the Symphony Orchestra always means so much to us, and we put in a lot of dedication to perfecting our arrangements,” says Menaka. Practices bring the choir together in a family atmosphere. “I’ve been blessed to be gifted with such students and they have always been a motivation themselves,” Menaka adds, promising to put on a great show at the SOSL concert.
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