Gajaga Vannama – Dinuk Wijeratne

“[Wijeratne’s] attempt to capture the majesty of the elephant as it pertains to ritual and ceremony in Sri Lanka….the ‘East-meets-West’ work bristles with the energy of a coiled spring, fuelled by a near-impossible melting pot of tabla-like dance rhythms, funky jazz riffs, tonal clusters, [and] extended instrumental techniques. It left the impression one had just journeyed into the heart of a strange new world of breathtaking beauty and joyous energy, and it earned a rousing standing ovation by the bewitched crowd” – the WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

‘Gajaga Vannama’ – Fantasy Variations on a Traditional Theme (2019)

Duration: 15-16 minutes

Instrumentation: solo piano, string orchestra (or minimum 2.2.2.2.1)

World premiere: October 2019 featuring the composer on piano with the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, Winnipeg, Canada.

Commissioned by the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra & I Musici de Montréal

Composer’s program note:

‘Gajaga Vannama’ – Fantasy Variations on a Traditional Theme

– for piano and strings

The two most prominent ethnic groups of Sri Lanka – the island country of my birth – are the Sinhalese and the Tamils. I happen to be a product of both. This piece is a highly personal musical interpretation and realization of a traditional melody and classical ‘Vannam’ dance-form that dates back to the early 1700s. In the royal courts of the city of Kandy, the last capital of the era of the ancient kings, the vannamas evolved from short sung melodies into longer, substantial dance pieces. In ‘Dance and the Nation’, cultural anthropologist Susan A. Reed captures the cultural context of the vannamas:

“The staple of most Kandyan dance performances, whether in processions or on stage, are the vannam dances. Originally the vannamas were a group of songs of both Sinhala and Tamil influence composed during the Kandyan period and sung in the courts of the Kandyan kings. The expressive arts of the court that developed during this time can be viewed as a blend of South Indian and Lankan elements. There are 18 traditional vannam dances, of which the most popular is the Gajaga Vannama. It depicts the majestic gait of the celestial elephant of the great god Sakra. The song of the Gajaga Vannama describes the sacred elephant with 8 trunks and 16 tusks bathing and frolicking in one of the 700 lotus ponds of the abode of the gods. The vannamas are often danced in processions, from small wedding processions with a few dancers to large ritual processions with dozens.”

We tend to perceive many artforms as being unchanging, ‘vertical’ creations that are fixed in time. Yet when we look closer, or dig into their histories, they reveal aspects of tradition and innovation in proportions that are delicate, subjective, and often hotly contested. My ‘imagining’ of the Gajaga Vannama is scored for strings and piano (my instrument), and set in a single-movement 15-minute span. After a short, slow introduction of 7 beats to the bar, the main section of the piece begins. It gradually increases in tempo and urgency over time. Towards the end is a 2-part vocal recitation. The first part is a direct quotation of the kastirama (drum composition) from a classic recording of the vannamas by Piyasara and Chandrakanthi Shilpadhipathi. The second part is a variation on the kastirama of my own composing. The further increase of tempo in the coda (concluding section) imagines the dancers entering a state of trance.

This piece was composed on a co-commission from the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra and I Musici de Montréal. My thanks to Pabalu Wijegoonawardane for his translation of original source material; to Dr. Sumuditha Suraweera for his knowledge on traditional drumming; and most especially to my dear colleague Eshantha Peiris, without whom I would have been lost if not for his invaluable ethnomusicological expertise, assistance, and advice.

Dinuk Wijeratne, 2019

NB – audio begins at 8’31”, after Bartok

Please enquire re: purchase of full score and parts in PDF format

'Exuberantly creative'

the New York Times

'An artist who reflects a positive vision of our cultural future.'

the Toronto Star

'A modern polymath...one of Canada’s
most sought-after classical artists'

The Manitoba Chamber Orchestra

'I'm a big fan of Dinuk. To experience the birth of a new piece of his is exciting.'

James Ehnes

'The [Tabla Concerto] is fantastic, complex, and brilliant.
The orchestration and solo writing are masterful. I didn’t
think one could pull off [such] a concerto, but Dinuk did.
I don’t know of anything like it. The audience went crazy
after it for good reason.'

John Corigliano

'[The] mesmerizing Sri Lankan-Canadian composer/conductor/pianist Dinuk
Wijeratne…proving his inestimable chops in all three disciplines while living up
to his creative reputation.'

the WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

'He is representative of the best of a new generation of musicians
who work fearlessly in a variety of styles with flair and imagination'

Ara Guzelimian
Dean - the Juilliard School
Former Director - Carnegie Hall

'Dinuk Wijeratne is a musical force to be reckoned with.'

The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra

'Internationally acclaimed'

the North Sea Jazz Festival

'Compelling'

The Telegraph (UK) on the Tabla Concerto

'Dinuk Wijeratne continues to astonish us'

the Chronicle Herald

'Dinuk is one of the most gifted musicians I know.'

Bernhard Gueller
Music Director Laureate - Symphony Nova Scotia
Former Music Director - Johannesburg Philharmonic, Cape Town Philharmonic, Nuremburg Symphony

'Young Dynamo'

the Coast

'[Dinuk] is a fabulous composer writing music full of energy,
expressivity, rhythmic complexity and non-stop excitement.
As a composer, conductor, pianist, improviser and experimenter
across various musical genres, Dinuk redefines what a classical
musician is and does.'

Christos Hatzis

'An artist internationally respected for his virtuosity and sensitivity'

the CBC

'Wijeratne's multi-disciplinary piano-playing sounds like
the work of an entire backing band....stretch[ing] his
audience's conception of how the instrument should sound'

Lebanon Daily Star

'[The] Tabla Concerto is a pioneering work of musical fusion,
a seamless integration of the most complex aspects of
North Indian Classical Tabla music into a totally Western model.'

Bernhard Gueller
Music Director Laureate - Symphony Nova Scotia
Former Music Director - Johannesburg Philharmonic, Cape Town Philharmonic, Nuremburg Symphony

'Dinuk Wijeratne’s Tabla Concerto is a breath of fresh air
in the repertoire – a vibrant, colourful piece that orchestras
love to play, and audiences will never forget.'

JoAnn Falletta
Music Director - Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra & Virginia Symphony Orchestra
Principal Conductor - the Ulster Orchestra

'Remarkable piano artistry....he has an enviable touch'

the California Chronicle

'Wijeratne’s extraordinary setting was the last of three concerts featuring
works commemorating Bishop. Not only interesting but apocalyptic - an
exciting whirlpool of energy and tranquility, marking the impact of Portuguese
steel on Brazilian rainforest and aboriginal humanity, and rising in its latter
stages to an apotheosis of movement and drums. The music was a brutal
exposition of colonialism at its nastiest, yet colourful, exotic, vividly original,
and sent over the top by the last section.'

the CHRONICLE HERALD on 'Brazil, January 1, 1502'

'Dinuk embodies the true meaning of an artist. His creative
approach to composition brings a fresh virtuosity to an age old
art form. Invisible Cities is a milestone in the genre.'

TorQ Percussion Quartet

'Voraciously curious, indefatigably adventurous,
Dinuk is an artist who appears to be constantly
challenging himself.'

Sri Lanka Sunday Times

'[Love Triangle] is the kind of direction I like to see composers who are writing for chamber music go in.
What [Dinuk] is able to do so expertly is articulate a mix of sounds, and a mix of worlds.'

Roman Borys, the GRYPHON TRIO

'[The] East-meets-West work bristles with the energy of a coiled spring,
fuelled by a near-impossible melting pot of Indian tabla-like dance rhythms,
funky jazz riffs, tonal clusters and extended instrumental techniques. It left
the impression one had just journeyed into the heart of a strange new world
of breathtaking beauty and joyous energy, and it earned a rousing standing
ovation by the bewitched crowd.'

the WINNIPEG FREE PRESS on 'Gajaga Vannama'

'One of the most exciting compositional voices in this country right now.'

the CBC (2023)

'The Tabla Concerto [is] an east-west fusion at once beguiling, deeply serious and joyous.
Wijeratne creates an entirely original soundscape.'

The Guardian, UK

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