SOSL presents a tribute to Dr. Earle De Fonseka

• Featured soloist Tharanga Goonetilleke, clarinet soloist Ajit Abeysekera
• Sri Lankan composer Lalanath De Silva to introduce concert overture

 In continuing its 60 year celebrations, the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka pays tribute to one of its guiding lights on 19 October at 7:30 p.m. at the Ladies College Hall, Colombo.  The Tribute to Dr Earle De Fonseka will feature one of Sri Lanka’s most critically-acclaimed sopranos Tharanga Goonetilleke whose performances at some of the world’s most prestigious concert halls have led the Washington Post to cite her vocal prowess as ‘Magical’.  

Tharanga, who as Guest Soloist for this concert has been flown to Sri Lanka by the Dr. Earle De Fonseka Trust, will perform a series of arias that evidence her immense dexterity in depicting the emotive collectives of passion, drama and romance she is famed for in works ranging from Handel’s Julius Caesar to Puccini’s La Boheme.  

Ajit Abeysekera joins the tribute concert as Clarinet Soloist performing one of Mozart’s most inspiriting works, Adagio from Clarinet Concerto in A Major.  While the SOSL comes under the baton of its dynamic resident conductor Dushyanthi Perera, the concert will also feature renowned composer and former conductor of the SOSL Lalanath De Silva introducing the concert overture, The Dancers.  

It is fitting indeed that Dushyanthi Perera conducts this concert as she joined the SOSL when Earle was its conductor and has been a member for 46 years of its 60-year existence. She is the only woman in Sri Lanka to conduct a symphony orchestra and carries on Earle’s legacy with the same commitment and passion, augmented with her experience and exposure playing with international orchestras throughout her career.  

The program also features Aram Khachaturian’s extremely popular Masquerade Suite, with its five scintillating movements which progress from an unusually menacing waltz through a melancholy nocturne to a rollicking gallop.  Yet another highlight is Mexican composer Arturo Marquez’s Danzon No.2, which, with its wild rhythms and nostalgic melodies, captures the essence of the dance perfectly.

The concert sponsored by East India Holdings has as its Creative Partner JWT and Electronic Media Sponsors Yes FM, TV1 and Legends 96.6.

Tickets and box plan at the Lionel Wendt Theatre from 6 October.