Sounds of music and singing that drove weather blues away
Music for both young and old : Ladies’ College Senior Choir and the OGA Choir with SOSL under the baton of Nishantha Warnakulasuriya. Pix by M.A. Pushpa Kumara
Gloomy weather did not stop the return of the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka’s in-demand POPS concert this past weekend at the Ladies’ College Hall after a break of almost five years. Organised and presented by Ladies’ College to collect funds to refurbish the nearly 70-year-old Mabel Simon Hall, the concert presented a crowd-pleasing selection of music from film and stage that appealed to both young and old.
Conducted by Nishantha Warnakulasuriya, the orchestra was also joined by Pradeep John on electric guitar, Shalintha Rodrigo on bass guitar, and Daniel Prins on drums.
The orchestra started the evening with the 20th Century Fox Fanfare, setting the theme for the rest of the night. The first orchestral arrangement was from the musical The Phantom of the Opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber. The arrangement by Calvin Custer started with the eponymous overture and continued with other numbers such as ‘Music of the Night’, All I Ask of You, and Angel of Music.
The dramatic theme continued with striking music from the film Gladiator composed by Hans Zimmerwhich conveyed the mood and setting of the blockbuster movie. Transitioning to something a little lighter, Anushka Abhayaratne performed the song ‘Beauty and the Beast’ from the 1991 Disney animation and the more recent 2017 live-action adaptation.
The orchestra was then joined by soloist Dinushka Jayawickreme and a combined choir consisting of members from the Ladies’ College Senior Choir and the OGA Choir to perform songs from everyone’s evergreen favourite, The Sound of Music. The title song ‘The Sound of Music’ was followed by the yodelling of ‘The Lonely Goatherd’, ‘My Favourite Things’, and ‘Sixteen Going on Seventeen’, among other popular songs from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s hit musical.
Soloist Chrishantha de Silva (CC) changed things up, going from musical theatre to rock music with a rendition of Queen’s ‘We Are the Champions’. He also performed the song ‘Skyfall’ from the 2016 James Bond film later on in the night.
The first half of the show ended with an arrangement of music from the film series The Pirates of the Caribbean featuring the adventures of Captain Jack Sparrow. Opening with the light cello jig of ‘Fog Bound’ and moving on to the more suspenseful ‘The Medallion Calls’, the medley of music from the first film of the series, The Curse of the Black Pearl, came to an end with the familiar main theme of ‘He’s a Pirate’.
The second half began with music from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita, the musical and subsequent film adaptation that depicts the life of Argentina’s Eva Peron and her fall from grace. The songs were performed by soloist Melanie Bibile who held the audience captive with her ability to portray the vibrant and emotional Eva with numbers like ‘Beunos Aires’, ‘I’d Be Surprisingly Good for You’, and ‘You Must Love Me’. Melanie was joined by Dinushka to perform a beautifully blended duet of ‘Don’t Cry for Me Argentina’.
Next up was music from Les Miserables, the musical and film based on Victor Hugo’s novel of the same name set in 19th-century France. Joined once again by the choirs from LC, the orchestra performed pieces such as ‘At the End of the Day’, ‘Master of the House’, ‘On My Own’, ‘I Dreamed A Dream’, and ‘Do You Hear the People Sing?’.
Taking the audience on a fast-paced adventure through the streets of Gotham City, the orchestra performed the thrilling music from The Dark Knight Rises. The film, with music composed by Hans Zimmer, tells the tale of the DC Comics superhero Batman who returns to take on the villain once again.
One of the hits of the evening was, without a doubt, the arrangement of music from Mamma Mia!, the musical and film featuring the music of Swedish supergroup ABBA. The audience enjoyed toe-tapping hits like ‘Mamma Mia!’, ‘Super Trouper’, VoulezVous’, The Winner Takes it All, and ‘Dancing Queen’.
Bringing the evening to a close, the orchestra performed music from Disney’s The Lion King. The nostalgic medley included hits like ‘Circle of Life’, ‘I Just Can’t Wait to Be King’, ‘Be Prepared’, ‘Hakuna Matata’, and ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’ composed by Elton John and Tim Rice and culminated with music from the score ‘King of Pride Rock’ by Hans Zimmer. A standing ovation cemented the success of the immensely popular concert undoubtedly leaving the audience awaiting its return next year.
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