Pics by Chandana Wijesinghe
It may seem easy, but apparently it is a talent.
Only a few can actually play piano, which involves the use of both hands
simultaneously. One such person is Sarath De Alwis, who’s known as the
‘best pianist in Sri Lanka’. He completes 45 years in the music industry
next month and will be felicitated for his contribution to the music
industry.
Sarath De Alwis is ever willing to help amateurs. This much loved musician, Sarath De Alwis humbly says that amateurs are the future of music, therefore, they deserve help.Sarath De Alwis is the youngest in a family of eight. When his elder sisters and brothers were attending music classes, young Sarath also tagged along. He carefully observed his sister’s singing and brother’s Harmonium playing. This was to be the foundation of his long and accomplished music career. “When I was small, I used to run to the ‘dhoby houses’ to listen to their flutes and Dola. When they finish their daily chores, they get together and play music. My father was a policeman and those people were scared that Ralahami’s putha’s arrival will cause trouble. So they informed my father about this,” De Alwis recalled.
This was a turning point in this budding musician’s life. The old Harmonium used by his elder brother was repaired and presented to him and he was also asked to sit for music lessons with his brother. “The music master, M K Winson came to our house. He taught my brother to play Tabla and me to play the Harmonium. When the session wound up, I ran to the Tabla and practiced what he taught my brother. I also had the practice of playing the Japanese mandolin and the accordion my mother bought for me.”
As the word spread, young Sarath de Alwis started getting invitations to play in private parties and get-togethers. His parents tried to send him to India for higher education but the youngest of the family refused to leave the family. “I was afraid to leave home,” admitted now a mature Sarath. However, choosing to stay in the homeland didn’t do him any harm. He later went on to do stage performances and then moved on towards band music. “I have played in several bands like Diamonds; and Super Sets formed with Sunil Dharmasena, Triangles with Dharmarathna Brothers, Sathsara with Dias Hettiarachci , Superstars with Ernest Soyza, Knight Riders and the Super Dynamite,” he recalled. “I still love to play music like this no matter what I am today,” he added.
According to Sarath De Alwis, recognition came after they ventured into television media. “Soon as the country started to recognize my talent, I met with a fatal bike accident. It was a crucial time of my life and the astrologers had predicted that if I can survive this, I will climb to the top of the ladder of success. I survived and as they predicted my life was changed for better after that.”
His inaugural music composition was for Dayarathna Ranathunga’s ‘Mangala Madusamaya patha’. “This was the beginning of my music composing. By now I have composed music for about 5,000 songs. I can’t even remember who sang some of the songs, but I have all the recordings. I have forgotten to scribble the names on the cassettes. I’d be grateful if they can inform me about the songs I have done for them if they think I have missed.”
Obata Diwura Kiyannam was the first movie Sarath De Alwis directed music for. The movie was directed by Sunil Soma Peiris and was released on July 5, 1985. “Anoja Weerasingha took a risk recruiting three amateurs to the field at a time when the commercial film industry was going downhill. It was also Sunil Soma Peiris’s first direction and the actor Sashi Vijendra’s first movie. But we made it a blockbuster.” Since then Sarath De Alwis has directed music for over 120 films and 40 tele-dramas.
Sarath De Alwis was also one of the pioneers of ‘Paduru Sajja’, one of the most admired radio musical programs. After Hurbet Ranjith Peiris passed away a group of people lead by Sarath De Alwis continued with the programs. “Paduru Sajja music and songs speak to the heart unlike that of musical shows which provide music for the feet. After all these years I still enjoy it very much.”
Looking back at the path he traversed over 45 years, Sarath De Alwis said it is like living in a University of music. “Knowledge is everywhere. You just have to know how to look for it,” he reiterated. “In my line of work I have observed great musicians like Mohomad Sami, Roksami master, R Muththusami, Lional Algama, Premasiri Kemadasa and Amaradeva. I never had an aim to become this or that, but I always had great interest in music.”
Sarath De Alwis’s music does not have boundaries. Sometimes its weighs more on eastern music but sometimes it weighs more on Western music. However, he knows how to balance it. “No one can impose limits to music. There is no need to censor the things coming from abroad. We should accept the things coming from any part of the world and learn how to use them according to our interests. There is a way a Trumpet can be used for nationalistic songs and there is also a way it can be used for a mother’s song. A musician should learn the way of using the instrument accordingly,” he described.
He also spoke about the harm caused due to the lack of knowledge in musicians when using musical instruments. “One can use electric keyboard to play different instruments. But if he doesn’t know how to play the original instrument, he cannot do a thorough job,” he opined. Sarath De Alwis’s music turned some singers stars. He is behind the success of many famous singers from Dayarathna Ranathunga to the present day reality show stars. He lamented that there are many reasons the modern day reality stars and singers cannot stay in the field for a long period. “The main reason is that they don’t know how to respect veterans in the field. Some of them don’t even want to get to know the professionals if it’s not to their advantage,” he said.
He also said that the future of the today’s reality stars is in their own hands. He explained that they should have social understanding. They are selected for their voice. Their intelligence and understanding is not considered. “If all these were considered, no superstar would be selected from Sri Lanka” he said sarcastically. “Money is the other factor. If a person goes behind money, he will soon get tired. But if he does what he is good at following his interests, money will automatically follow him. That is what I did. I composed music free of charge for many when I started my carrier,” he said. “Today’s reality show stars are taken from place to place from sky. Therefore, they are prone to look down on others and they can easily fall. We started our journey by walking. That is why we are still stable,” he added.
According to Sarath De Alwis, remaking and remixing is timely. “People forget artistes who are still alive. So what do you think will happen if nobody was there to ‘re-sing’ CT Fernando’s or Milton Perera’s songs?” he raised a question. “If the song is not damaged and if it’s not a hack job, remixing and remaking is fine. I myself have done that. What I do, I do for the ‘heart’. The problem is remixing and remaking is mostly done for the ‘feet’,” he reiterated.
He also pointed out the issues of the royalty payments and illegal internet song downloads. “Except for one media institution, no one pays the royalty payments properly. Not even government media. How can we expect the youngsters to go straight when the older crabs fail to do so,” he sighed. Speaking of the illegal downloads, he said it doesn’t do any good for the musicians. “In July, I will launch my website which includes all my songs. Then others will have to take down my songs from their illegal sites,” he stressed.
Sarath Sara Vindana, the Sarath De Alwis felicitation ceremony will ceremoniously take place at the Nelum Pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa Theater on July 6. The Superstars band which was formed by Sarath De Alwis will perform on stage after 25 years. A book including 175 songs and 30 film songs will also be launched at the ceremony.
Published in The Nation on June 16,2013
Link :http://www.nation.lk/edition/fine/item/18427-music-for-the-heart-not-the-feet.html
Sarath De Alwis is ever willing to help amateurs. This much loved musician, Sarath De Alwis humbly says that amateurs are the future of music, therefore, they deserve help.Sarath De Alwis is the youngest in a family of eight. When his elder sisters and brothers were attending music classes, young Sarath also tagged along. He carefully observed his sister’s singing and brother’s Harmonium playing. This was to be the foundation of his long and accomplished music career. “When I was small, I used to run to the ‘dhoby houses’ to listen to their flutes and Dola. When they finish their daily chores, they get together and play music. My father was a policeman and those people were scared that Ralahami’s putha’s arrival will cause trouble. So they informed my father about this,” De Alwis recalled.
This was a turning point in this budding musician’s life. The old Harmonium used by his elder brother was repaired and presented to him and he was also asked to sit for music lessons with his brother. “The music master, M K Winson came to our house. He taught my brother to play Tabla and me to play the Harmonium. When the session wound up, I ran to the Tabla and practiced what he taught my brother. I also had the practice of playing the Japanese mandolin and the accordion my mother bought for me.”
As the word spread, young Sarath de Alwis started getting invitations to play in private parties and get-togethers. His parents tried to send him to India for higher education but the youngest of the family refused to leave the family. “I was afraid to leave home,” admitted now a mature Sarath. However, choosing to stay in the homeland didn’t do him any harm. He later went on to do stage performances and then moved on towards band music. “I have played in several bands like Diamonds; and Super Sets formed with Sunil Dharmasena, Triangles with Dharmarathna Brothers, Sathsara with Dias Hettiarachci , Superstars with Ernest Soyza, Knight Riders and the Super Dynamite,” he recalled. “I still love to play music like this no matter what I am today,” he added.
According to Sarath De Alwis, recognition came after they ventured into television media. “Soon as the country started to recognize my talent, I met with a fatal bike accident. It was a crucial time of my life and the astrologers had predicted that if I can survive this, I will climb to the top of the ladder of success. I survived and as they predicted my life was changed for better after that.”
His inaugural music composition was for Dayarathna Ranathunga’s ‘Mangala Madusamaya patha’. “This was the beginning of my music composing. By now I have composed music for about 5,000 songs. I can’t even remember who sang some of the songs, but I have all the recordings. I have forgotten to scribble the names on the cassettes. I’d be grateful if they can inform me about the songs I have done for them if they think I have missed.”
Obata Diwura Kiyannam was the first movie Sarath De Alwis directed music for. The movie was directed by Sunil Soma Peiris and was released on July 5, 1985. “Anoja Weerasingha took a risk recruiting three amateurs to the field at a time when the commercial film industry was going downhill. It was also Sunil Soma Peiris’s first direction and the actor Sashi Vijendra’s first movie. But we made it a blockbuster.” Since then Sarath De Alwis has directed music for over 120 films and 40 tele-dramas.
Sarath De Alwis was also one of the pioneers of ‘Paduru Sajja’, one of the most admired radio musical programs. After Hurbet Ranjith Peiris passed away a group of people lead by Sarath De Alwis continued with the programs. “Paduru Sajja music and songs speak to the heart unlike that of musical shows which provide music for the feet. After all these years I still enjoy it very much.”
Looking back at the path he traversed over 45 years, Sarath De Alwis said it is like living in a University of music. “Knowledge is everywhere. You just have to know how to look for it,” he reiterated. “In my line of work I have observed great musicians like Mohomad Sami, Roksami master, R Muththusami, Lional Algama, Premasiri Kemadasa and Amaradeva. I never had an aim to become this or that, but I always had great interest in music.”
Sarath De Alwis’s music does not have boundaries. Sometimes its weighs more on eastern music but sometimes it weighs more on Western music. However, he knows how to balance it. “No one can impose limits to music. There is no need to censor the things coming from abroad. We should accept the things coming from any part of the world and learn how to use them according to our interests. There is a way a Trumpet can be used for nationalistic songs and there is also a way it can be used for a mother’s song. A musician should learn the way of using the instrument accordingly,” he described.
He also spoke about the harm caused due to the lack of knowledge in musicians when using musical instruments. “One can use electric keyboard to play different instruments. But if he doesn’t know how to play the original instrument, he cannot do a thorough job,” he opined. Sarath De Alwis’s music turned some singers stars. He is behind the success of many famous singers from Dayarathna Ranathunga to the present day reality show stars. He lamented that there are many reasons the modern day reality stars and singers cannot stay in the field for a long period. “The main reason is that they don’t know how to respect veterans in the field. Some of them don’t even want to get to know the professionals if it’s not to their advantage,” he said.
He also said that the future of the today’s reality stars is in their own hands. He explained that they should have social understanding. They are selected for their voice. Their intelligence and understanding is not considered. “If all these were considered, no superstar would be selected from Sri Lanka” he said sarcastically. “Money is the other factor. If a person goes behind money, he will soon get tired. But if he does what he is good at following his interests, money will automatically follow him. That is what I did. I composed music free of charge for many when I started my carrier,” he said. “Today’s reality show stars are taken from place to place from sky. Therefore, they are prone to look down on others and they can easily fall. We started our journey by walking. That is why we are still stable,” he added.
According to Sarath De Alwis, remaking and remixing is timely. “People forget artistes who are still alive. So what do you think will happen if nobody was there to ‘re-sing’ CT Fernando’s or Milton Perera’s songs?” he raised a question. “If the song is not damaged and if it’s not a hack job, remixing and remaking is fine. I myself have done that. What I do, I do for the ‘heart’. The problem is remixing and remaking is mostly done for the ‘feet’,” he reiterated.
He also pointed out the issues of the royalty payments and illegal internet song downloads. “Except for one media institution, no one pays the royalty payments properly. Not even government media. How can we expect the youngsters to go straight when the older crabs fail to do so,” he sighed. Speaking of the illegal downloads, he said it doesn’t do any good for the musicians. “In July, I will launch my website which includes all my songs. Then others will have to take down my songs from their illegal sites,” he stressed.
Sarath Sara Vindana, the Sarath De Alwis felicitation ceremony will ceremoniously take place at the Nelum Pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa Theater on July 6. The Superstars band which was formed by Sarath De Alwis will perform on stage after 25 years. A book including 175 songs and 30 film songs will also be launched at the ceremony.
Published in The Nation on June 16,2013
Link :http://www.nation.lk/edition/fine/item/18427-music-for-the-heart-not-the-feet.html
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