More unique sounds from Pradeep

Pradeep Ratnayake is usually a quiet man. But almost as soon as his fingers touch the strings of his sitar, he undergoes an almost complete transformation in the music he loves. With complete ease, he dazzles his audience, young or old. His next performance, Pradeepanjalee XIV will be on February 24 at 7 p.m. at the Lionel Wendt.

The show will feature Pradeepanjalee, a composition of North Indian classical music. In addition to this, there will be the Thuragawannama, the Raga Peelu (also known as East Meets West, the 1957 composition by Ravi Shankar, which won him the first Grammy award to be won by an Asian), the Flight of the Hawk and a medley of folk melodies. Pradeep Ratnayake will be joined by some of Sri Lanka’s leading musicians- Lakshman Joseph De Saram on the violin, Kumara Liyanawatte on the flute, Karunaratne Bandara on traditional drums and Alston Joachim on the bass guitar. “The concert is a fusion of classical, folk, jazz and new age music,” says Pradeep. “It is a unique blend of different styles which, coming together becomes one and the same.”

The show, sponsored by HNB Assurance, will also see the release of Pradeepanjalee, a DVD of Pradeep Ratnayake in Concert.The DVD will be the first music DVD to be made with Dolby 5.1 technology in this country.

Having been introduced to the sitar at an age where the instrument was bigger than himself, years down the line, Pradeep is now renowned as a world class artiste, travelling around the world to New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Austria, Geneva and Austria, He has also produced many concerts here, and has released a series of albums- Indrakeelaya, Roots, Visva and Sithijaya.

“In my less mature days, I used to compare Pradeep Ratnayake to Ravi Shankar,” says Professor Carlo Fonseka, a close friend of Pradeep’s. “But now, in my view, he has cultivated a style of his own- a very Sri Lankan style- one that we could call a Pradeep Ratnayake style.”

“I was impressed by the talent he displayed. His music now has a deep impact on listeners. He has introduced a technique where he uses harmony and rhythm with a great deal of skill and brilliance and produced something unique,” Prof. Fonseka said.
As its name suggests, the concert will be the 14th in the series. “HNB dedicates itself to achieving excellence in everything it undertakes. We feel that it is both an honour and a privilege to be associated with people like Pradeep who have achieved excellence in their fields, and we are truly inspired by his achievements,” says Manjula De Silva, Managing Director of HNB Assurance.