A little humming that turned into a big passion
Giving it her all: Melanie on stage
Every time five-year-old Melanie returned home from church each week she would always be instinctively humming a tune. A passing interest slowly became amplified into a serious passion and years later, music is still heavily intertwined into Melanie Bibile’s life. As she prepares for her upcoming concert, she speaks about her musical journey with an almost tangible enthusiasm, her face lighting up and gesturing animatedly. “I started singing in a little church concert at five, and that’s where my passion for singing started and it never really stopped,” she says simply.
Ruwanka Leanage
Melanie’s upcoming concert is titled ‘My Tribute’ and is a veritable musical celebration of gratitude on varying levels – appreciation for the mentors who have steered her over the years, for the family and friends who have been anchors in times of need and a desire to give back to the audience and to God.The recital which Melanie explains is long overdue, was always at the back of her mind as a hazy idea and propelled by her husband, is now finally emerging as a reality. The cornerstone of Melanie’s music over the years has been a combination of faith, spirituality and gratitude and a considerable part of the music for the concert is a reflection of this.
The concert brings together a host of familiar names on the music scene and features performances by Kumudini David, Ruwanka Leanage, Adele Beling Bibile, Joshua Asokan and the musical group, Camerati. Musicians for the evening will be Neranjan De Silva on piano, Ashane Bernard – jazz piano, Christo Prins on drums, Ranjan Josiah on guitar and Nilantha Ariyaratne on bass.
Hailing from a musical family (“My dad and mum both used to sing in the choir”), Melanie soon began singing in school under the tutelage of Christine Perera, at Ladies’ College as well as singing extensively in church. Afterwards, she went on to train with Mary Anne David – “It’s Aunty Mary Anne who I really owe everything to. She’s really taken me through, trained me and given me the exposure needed”. Melanie has also taken part in productions by Jerome de Silva (Colombo theatregoers may remember Melanie in her role as Evita in the Workshop Players’ 2012 version of the musical) and Jith Peiris and is grateful for the support rendered by these industry veterans.
And what is she most nervous about her forthcoming concert? “As a performer I’m nervous before I sing. I always have butterflies before I get on stage,” muses Melanie adding that of all the genres, she’s admittedly nervous about the jazz section as this is her first foray into the genre. The audience will see a playful mix of genres during the concert– from gospel, Broadway to a bit of jazz thrown into the musical melting pot. Songs like ‘I dreamed a dream’, ‘Hallelujah’, ‘My tribute’, ‘Somewhere’, ‘The anthem’, ‘Lady is a tramp’ are a prelude to some of the musical offerings from Melanie and the performers for the night.
“My passion is singing. I absolutely love being on stage and I give it my 100 per cent. It may not be perfect but I love to perform and in the past few years when I’ve performed I’ve tried to entertain and make people enjoy what they listen to so I’m sure they’ll enjoy the concert. If not for me, at least for the people I’m featuring,” smiles Melanie.
‘My Tribute’ – an evening of music presented by Melanie Bibile will go on the boards on November 22 at 7 p.m. at the Russian Cultural Centre.