Over the sound of children warming up and doing their vocal exercises in the background, I asked Seth Keerthiratne (8) and Meth Hettihewa (7) why people should come to watch their concert. Grinning at me, pat comes their candid reply – “Because we have nice voices!”
Seth and Meth are just two of the many students from the Mary Anne School of Vocal Music taking part in their forthcoming concert The Glory of Gold on October 10 and 11 at 7pm at the Lionel Wendt.
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| Some of the young adults in the choir |
Winning a whopping amount of 72 gold medals at the Sri Lanka Festival of Music, Drama and Speech affiliated with the British Federation earlier this year, this concert is a celebration of the abundance of talent at the School, explained Andrew David, managing director of the Mary Anne School of Vocal Music and producer of The Glory of Gold.
“It’s a great pity that people don’t get the opportunity to see the amazing talent we have in the country and we decided to go ahead and have this concert in order to display it all,” voiced Andrew.
“The age groups of the performers alone will surprise the audience,” elaborated Andre David, deputy director and deputy conductor of the Merry An’ singers. With performers ranging from five to 45 years of age, the concert most certainly has an all-encompassing age group!
Andre explained that for the most part in the entertainment field, a majority of the performers are youngsters. But in the case of the Merry An’ Singers, their doors are open to anyone of any age with a zeal and passion for singing. The sing-along sessions organized by the school for instance, have a large number of older adults aged 71- 90, who simply enjoy music and singing.
The Mary Anne School of Vocal Music, now in its 28th year is run by Mary Anne and Andrew David and is renowned for excellence in vocal music. Having produced a number of students who have achieved accolades both in Sri Lanka and abroad, Andrew explained that they focus on “making voices better.”
With well-known singers like Bathiya and Santhush and Kishani Jayasinghe, who’ve gone on to excel in their music, it is evident that the combined expertise of Mary Anne and 65 years worth experience in theatre production and drama on the part of husband, Andrew is clearly a recipe for success. The duo, who incidentally met while performing opposite each other in the musical Oklahoma, have touched the lives of innumerable students who share their love for song.
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| Andre David |
Andrew David |
Mary Anne David |
It’s a family affair at the school. “I’m grateful that my son Andre is engaging in it full time. He is also able to relate with the younger generation,” explained Mary Anne. The audience can expect an assortment of genres such as semi-classical, comedy, Broadway, gospel and jazz with old favourites like “There is no business like show business,” “Sway,” “Smile” and “Coconut Man” and much more scheduled on both nights.
“Soloists are very limited in concerts. In ours however, the audience can expect a lot of solos, diverse performances and fresh new talent,” said Andrew. While any one of any age can take part in the Sri Lanka Festival of Music, Drama and Speech, there were internal auditions within the school to harness new talent.
Tickets for The Glory of Gold are available at the Lionel Wendt.
The performers have their say
“She’s an excellent teacher,” voiced Sanjeev Niles (26) emphatically. “I think that the concert has different types of music on display and the talent available has not been seen.” A tenor-baritone, Sanjeev elaborated that classical music is his pet affinity and that he will be singing “Anthem,” from the musical Chess.
Naomi Muthukuda, who has been singing with Mary Anne for 10 years laughingly tells me that she’s really looking forward to the concert. “All the participants are given an equal chance,” she explained. “Mary Anne is a superb vocal teacher. I won’t dream of going to anyone else.”
“It’ll appeal to any crowd and is going to be very classy,” highlighted Melissa Perera (18) who will be singing her rendition of “I believe I can fly.” “She has taken my talent and brought me closer to my true potential. She has taken me to a whole new level,” said Melissa, speaking of her training with Mary Anne.
Singing with Mary Anne for the past 9 years has done her a world of good said Kavitha Amaratunga (17). “I used to be extremely shy. One of the best things is that she brings out who you are. Its nerve wracking singing alone on stage, but we have fun and we want to do Aunty proud. I’m so blessed to be a part of the choir,” said Kavitha. |
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