November 1, 2010

Sonic canvas of Premasiri Khemadasa


Premasiri Khemadasa was not only Sri Lanka’s best known composer but also the founder of the greater tradition of Sri Lankan music. His creativity penetrated almost every aspect of modern music from academic compositions to popular film music.

Although his influence should be immense there is none to absorb it due to lack of talent and philosophy of music among the new-comers. This is the poverty of the musical scene in Sri Lanka.

His latest opera, Agni has already changed the direction of the musical creations and offer a big challenge to the popular concept of music. In a country where the popular mode is the simple song, his music has to change the audience’s relationship to the musical experience.

In the Agni opera you can listen to one-and-half hour musical performance giving the impression of a gigantic epic theatre because of its huge sonic canvas. Each new melody, harmony and rhythmic change is monumental and there is nothing to compare with it in the contemporary musical scene.

It bravely generates superb voices of Indika Upamali, Krishan Wickramasinghe, Subuddhi Lakmali, Sumudu Pathiraja, Wagesha and Thisari who could easily dismiss the entire catalogue of popular singers along with their musical scribblings.

Khemadasa was no doubt Sri Lanka’s foremost composer of classical music who had an intellectual monopoly on this field.

It is very interesting to note that the birthday of Premasiri Khemadasa and Phillip Glass, the American composer who wrote Einstein on the Beach, Mishima, Satyagraha, Glassworks etc., fall on the last week of January.

Perhaps the most salient features of Khemadasa’s music is the use of Western classical music with increased use of folk rhythms. No composer’s music is dramatic than that of Khemadasa’s.

There are many pieces that can be considered as dramatic symphonies with narrative elements and revolutionary additions of notes as an elaboration and sponge-like absorption of the folk colours thought to exist between the sound and rhythm and beyond the reach of the existing codes.

It enhances the spectrum of the code as the Impressionist and Post-impressionist painters such as Degas, Renoir, Monet, Gauguin etc. opened up a vast range of new colourism unimaginable to academic painters.

His music has a significant cross fertilisation with oriental music. He was one of the few musicians in the world who could work in both genres. In this particular sense of argument, he always voiced against the splitting of the audience into Oriental and Western, Traditional and Avant-garde, Bourgeois and Proletariat etc.

The performing of Agni not only in Colombo but also in Negombo, Chilaw, Panadura and Anuradhapura with full-houses has blurred the borders of that distinction and discrimination. The maestro was fortunate enough to find a welcome audience for every performance sometimes even amidst adverse security situations and parking arrangements.

His creations presented a radical basis for music and change the fundamentals of aesthetics of music and also its pedagogy. He fully embraced the use of folk music, sometimes its rare and esoteric categories such as Punam Gee to give a greater rhythmic and harmonic variety. He had a Levi-Straussian fascination for the repositories of the folk life available in their work-songs.

From the very beginning of his musical career, he endeavoured to create a tonality totally different from the traditional signing. In Sri Lankan music, the modernism should be the name appropriate to his trend of thought and philosophy in music.

There only we can experience how the refrain or ritornelle works effectively fascinating the heart of the native within the context of a larger creation and complex musical procedures. Modern music-blenders, fusion-experts and sales-rep singers would never reach this apex of musical creation.

They all want to replace the Muse with the computer and its fusion software.

According to Jonathan Harvey, Muse the Greek counterpart of Goddess Saraswathee is the crucial symbolic feminine figure in the composer’s life.

As the etymology of the words suggested, Harvey says, the idea of the Muse has always been central to music.

The word Music is derived from the Greek meaning of the Muses, suggesting that it was the art form most associated with the particular inspiration that only a Muse could bring.

I am sure that the Muse of Khemadasa dwells in his simple refrains or ritornelle. Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari, two Post-modern French philosophers who wrote on the philosophy of music in their landmark philosophical project, A Thousand Plateaus; Capitalism and Schizophrenia, admit that the Refrain or its Italian counterpart category, which means ‘the little return’, i.e. recurring part of a musical creation usually appearing again and again, creates the core and spirit of music.

When we evaluate the contribution made by Khemadasa for the musical world, we can easily witness that he has been able to fill a serious gap hitherto prevailed not only in the Oriental music but also in the Western classical tradition. Blissful moments of his music brighten the darkness and chasm created by that lack up there as the hegemony of the Western music and the complacence of the Oriental tradition. Even Western music, although it is a great musical language, still needs to acquire something from Non- western cultures.

Here we should appreciate the fact that the Western music has accommodated and absorbed many elements and moods from African and Latin American music in terms of codes, tempo and tonality. In fact, accommodating the sonic qualities of other cultures is a moral responsibility of the art of music.

Pierre Boulez argued that he was struck in a violent way by the beauty of the Far Eastern and African works.

He said that although this beauty was so far removed by his culture it was so close to his temperament.

Khemadasa was no doubt one of the pioneers who endeavoured to include the Oriental musical sensibility and its own elements in the Western tradition.

He has been successful in accommodating code additions, new rhythms and new sentiments hitherto unknown to the West, in his creations.

For him music was a way of life, a way of being in the world and become an integral part of the modernity and the post-modernity.

He has been brave enough in sustaining new codes or extending the existing codes. He was a winner at a particular point where the disciples of Western music fail.

Let me quote a very good example from the modern history of painting to prove my argument on the success and failure of the Western masters. John Berger, a famous American Marxist critic describes how Pablo Picasso failed in the later part of his artistic life due to the limitations of the European art world.

“Picasso should have left Europe, to which he has never properly belonged, in which he has always remained a vertical invader ..... He might have visited India, Indonesia, China, Mexico or West Africa. ....., I am suggesting that outside Europe he would have found his work”.

Khemadasa’s contribution should necessarily be understood in this paradigm, which is about to be shifted.

The complex cross-breeding of his musical heritage, the intense political basis of his art and very nature of his genius should be duly respected as he has been imaginative enough to become an artist of an emerging musical world.

The musical genius of Premasiri Khemadasa

The musical genius of maestro Premasiri Khemadasa flowered without any university "input". At a time when the only way Maestro PK can look at a university from the splendid pinnacle he has reached by self-effort is down, the University of Ruhuna has decided to recognise his genius. It will confer on the maestro an honorary doctorate.
As it happened in the case of another self-made giant of our time Martin Wickremasinghe, if other universities in the country emulate the worthy example of the University of Ruhuna, the maestro should soon have more doctorates that he knows what to do with. But that will be his problem. At a time when the University of Ruhuna has aspirants for degrees who are capable of kicking pregnant women reportedly "to save free education", the university should go out of its way to award degrees to outsiders like Maestro PK the musical genius.
Why do I call him a genius? A genius is a highly talented creative or intelligent person. Maestro PK hasn't taken a university course in music. Long ago, on the very day he was scheduled to commence sitting the Senior School Certificate Examination, Radio Ceylon had summoned him for an interview for selection as a flutist. Without a moment's hesitation, he had cheerfully abandoned the SSC Examination and attended the interview and had been duly selected. Quite clearly, very early in life he had made up his mind what he wanted to be. He pursued his objective single-mindedly against all odds. He broke new ground in the field of Sinhala music. His creations have touched the hearts of millions. He has spread the treasure of his talent over the whole range of music from art song to opera. In some genres such a symphony, cantata and opera he is the sole exponent in the world of Sinhala music. And some of his creations have merited the serious attention of and occasional accolade from our world class orchestral conductor and pianist Rohan Joseph.
And Rohan Joseph is a genius who cannot be bought for a mere song. So, I infer that Maestro Premasiri Khemadasa must be highly talented and innovatively creative. Therefore he must be a musical genius. Magic creation
If Maestro PK is a genius, why has he not been duly celebrated and honoured in this country for so long? Several possible explanations suggest themselves. The first is the state of underdevelopment of Sinhala music. As of now, the highest level Sinhala music has reached is the art song. And those who are celebrated and honoured are those who can sing art songs perfectly, wonderfully and definitively. PK cannot sing, or at any rate, he does not sing. He composes the music of songs that others sing and thereby become famous. The music of the most ravishingly romantic song I have ever heard in a Sinhala film was created by Maestro PK. It is the song called "Sulang Kurullo". The exquisitely romantic music of this song has the unfailing power of fleetingly transforming at least me from senility to a state of emotional adolescence. But few know that it was Maestro PK who created the magic. So he is not as widely acclaimed as those who sing the song.
Another reason why the Maestro is not as celebrated as he should be has to do with the fact that he is way ahead of his contemporaries in the world of Sinhala music. In that world, the state of the art if the realm of vocal music is the plain, straightforward, melodious singing of an art song. In such a world the kind of sophisticated singing Maestro PK has encouraged fails to elicit sympathetic resonance in most listeners. So he is dismissed as a misguided imitator of Western music, if not, indeed, as a positive force for musical evil.


Volatile temperament
Yet another reason why he is not widely popular is his temperament, shall we say, his volatile artistic temperament. By all accounts, he is incapable of suffering diplomatically those whom he regards as musical lameducks. And he has perfectly the art of demoting current heroes with a single phrase or act of mimicry.
It has been said of Woodrow Wilson, who was regarded by some as the most intellectual and scholarly man to have become President of the United States, that he failed to achieve his grand vision because he broke with friends, quarrelled with associates and alienated people. So a supreme genius became, at best, a magnificent failure. Maestro PK's ingrained irreverence and perverse love of sailing close to the wind of the laws of libel is surely one reason why he has not been widely celebrated.
Believe it or not, one of his musical creations produced in 1982 was titled: "The king of our country has sprouted horns". Our country being republic at that time, we didn't have a king. Nevertheless the performance was promptly and predictably banned.
Finally, the eternally valid reason why Maestro PK has not been sufficiently honoured in the land of his birth, was articulated by Jesus Christ: "A prophet is not without honour save in his own country, and in his own home." Maestro PK is a musical prophet in this country because he has been the harbinger of the shape that Sinhala music will take when it liberates itself - as it must - from the tyranny of the traditional art song. And he has been honoured, not only by Rohan Joseph but also by the likes of Lakshman Joseph de Saram, Valentine Basnayake and Lalanath de Silva who though born in this island, have been fortunate enough to live and move and have their musical being in foreign lands.
When they acclaim Maestro PK, they are bearing witness to the truth of what Jesus Christ said in the quotation just cited. In this era of rapid globalisation, however, when geographical boundaries between one's own country and other countries are becoming irrelevant, the University of Ruhuna deserves praise for honouring the musical prophet in our own country, Maestro Premasiri Khamadasa.

About Master

Dr. Premasiri Khemadasa Master
Dr. Premasiri Khemadasa (January 25, 1937 – October 24, 2008) also known as o “Khemadasa” or "Khemadasa Master" is one of the most influential composers of Sri Lankan music. Exploring the various styles of music around the world Khemadasa endeavored to develop a unique style of music. He combined Sinhala folk tunes, Hindustani music, Western music and many other streams of music in his compositions while adapting them to fit contemporary music.
Biography
Early life
Khemadasa grew up in Talpitiya, Wadduwa and attended Sri Sumangala College and St. John’s College, Panadura. As a teenager he became a gifted flautist. Khemadasa was asked to come to the Radio Ceylon for an interview on the day he was to sit for his Senior School Certificate examination. He finished the examination much ahead of time and went for the audition. He passed the audition and became a member of the Radio Ceylon.
As a composer
Khemadasa's debut as a film composer is Sirisena Wimalaweera's Roddie Kella. With his score for Bambaru Ewith he introduced a style of music that was knew to the Sri Lankan cinema. He then began collaborating with acclaimed director, Lester James Peries, handling music for films like Golu Hadawatha and Nidhanaya. Critics praised his film scores and he was honorably called "Khemadasa Master”. Khemadasa's signature in film music is carved by the use of elements from Classical Western music and other sources to heighten the emotion suggested by the picture. Some of his compositions are influenced by Western composers of opera such as Giuseppe Verdi and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Lately Premasiri Khemadasa contributed to films such as Agnidahaya and very recently he contributed to Ammavarune, the last film by Lester James Peiris who announced his retirement after it.
Other scores written by the Master for films such as Hansawilak,Thunweniyamaya, Paradige, Yasa Isuru widened his acclaim in the field of cinema. He has also composed music for films which were produced outside Sri Lanka (Thousand Flowers).
Dr. Khemadasa's contribution to teledramas also brought outstanding masterpieces to the public. His collaboration with director Jayantha Chandrasiri has turned out remarkable products whereas the themes he created for Chandrasiri's television series Dandubasnamanaya have shown his unprecedented power to mesmerise his audience. A repertoire of scores written for teledramas including Chandrasiri's Weda hamine, Sathara denek senpathiyo, Akala sandhya, Dharmasena Pathiraja's Gangulen egodata, Ella langa walawwa, Pura sakmana and Bandula Vithanage's Asalwesiyo bestowed the public with unforgettable musical experiences.
He also contributed to stage dramas such as Jayantha Chandrasiri's Mora, Ath, and Dharmasiri Bandaranayake's Makarakshaya & Dhawala bheeshana.
Furthermore, he has composed symphonies like Muhuda, Mage kale mavni and Sinhala Avurudda. His cantata named Pirinivan Mangalya, probably the only Buddhist cantata ever composed, was based on the passing away of Lord Buddha and it was played at his funeral by the students of the Khemadasa Foundation.
The presence of operatic and harmonic vocals in his music is explained by his vast knowledge of opera and harmony. In his lifetime he made many experiments with techniques of singing and playing, which include the use of asymmetric patterns of beats, revolutionary harmonies and novel techniques of playing musical instruments such as the sitar.
Khemadasa is the only known Sri Lankan musician who practiced and created opera. He has a large group of students many of whom were derived from rural milieus and trained for performing in his operas. His famous operas include Manasawila, Doramandalawa and Sondura Varnadasi. Recently he created the opera Agni which is about early civilization. His operas, written in Sinhalese form, can be recognized as Sinhalese opera. Khemadasa and his pupils have conducted shows in several countries. After a layoff following a kidney transplant he returned to the field of music, even in his 70s, trying to secure the future of Sri Lankan music. At the time of the maestro's demise on 24th of October 2008, he was 71 years old.

Images

http://picasaweb.google.com/arkdesilva/PremasiriKhemadasaHttpWwwPremasirikhemadasaCom#

Premasiri Khemadasa

Premasiri Khemadasa is the leading composer of serious contemporary music in Sri Lankan history.  Over fifty years of composing, Khemadasa fused Sri Lankan folk elements, Indian ragas, and Western classical forms into a beautiful melodic music that captures the deepest longings and sufferings of the simple folk among whom he grew up.  Khemadasa believed that all people are "deep," not just the educated elite.

Born the thirteenth child into a poor rural family on the west coast of Sri Lanka , Khemadasa started with nothing. There was no musical heritage in his family.  He was self-taught.  Khemadasa  learned how to play music on cheap wooden flutes, when he was only 6 years old.  His elder siblings kept burning his flutes, trying to steer him towards "more productive" pursuits.  He persisted nevertheless. In all his life, Khemadasa  would never receive formal training in music.

Recognition of Khemadasa's music as a legitimate art form was slow in coming in Sri Lanka.  Some of his early work was banned for being politically incendiary.  He was also denounced for attempting to destroy the country's heritage because, among other things, he used the french horn in a musical score.  At the premiere of his first symphony, the first ever written by a Sri Lankan composer, one prominent newspaper commented on his conducting in this way:  "why is he up there?  He doesn't even have an instrument."  He was mocked for aping the ways of the West, though in fact his lifelong task was to create bold music that drew on Sri Lankan folk melodies, on what he always called the "voices of the people."

Despite these enormous obstacles and against all odds, Khemadasa never stopped making music; his output was prolific and diverse.  His large-scale operas have been some of the most commercially successful ventures in Sri Lankan culture.  He wrote groundbreaking musical scores for over 150 films, including many of Sri Lanka 's classical films, some honored at the Cannes International Film Festival.  He also wrote music for an award-winning BBC documentary and experimental music for German television, fusing a soulful flugelhorn with a viola to play a raga.  He conducted his music in Beijing , Paris , Prague and Vienna .  He received dozens of awards for his contribution to the music of his country.

Khemadasa takes his rightful place among such contemporary international composers as Chin Un-Suk of Korea, the late Takemitsu of Japan, and China's Tan Dun, all of whom transformed their cultural heritages into striking classical music, music which has done as much to enliven the "Western" classical tradition as any music written in the past half century.

When he died in 2008, Khemadasa was given a state funeral in the center of Colombo , and thousands of Sri Lankans from all religions, ethnic groups, and classes came to pay their respects.  The recognition Premasiri Khemadasa hungered for most was the "love of the people."  And this he always had.

As a philanthropist and educator, Khemadasa started the Khemadasa Foundation to train

young adults in music free of charge. His students came from small villages all over the island.  The foundation continues its work through the leadership of Khemadasa's wife, Latha, and his two daughters, Anupa and Gayathri.  Khemadasa considered his teaching of Sri Lankan youths as important as his most complex compositions.  He wanted to give back to the people.  He never forgot his own impoverished childhood and refused to accept a world in which the poor had no opportunities. As Ben Okri, the great Nigerian novelist, wrote:  "he felt that his powerlessness, and the powerlessness of all the people without voices, needed to be redeemed, to be transformed."  Premasiri Khemadasa's music and his teaching of poor youths redeemed his country and transformed his society. He will be greatly missed, yet his music lives on.

Chrises suggestion on Para 2
In spite of this, Khemadasa began teaching himself to play music on cheap wooden flutes, when he was only 6 years old.  His elder brothers kept burning his flutes, trying to steer him towards "more productive" pursuits.  In all his life, Khemadasa would never receive formal training in music.  But he kept playing.