Teen voices in harmony at Thomian Carols

Ruwini JAYAWARDANA

CAROLS: To enter the grounds of S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia, is like stepping back into history. The school's environment and buildings boast of grandeur, years of tradition and fine architecture.

The air was filled with organ music joined by 36 youthful voices as we approached the College Chapel. Carols like Hark the Herald, O come all Ye faithful and The first Noel were among those chosen for the annual carol service at the College Chapel on December 3 at, 6.00 p.m.

The speciality about this year's event is that it will be the 60th carol service held by the school. The Thomian choir hopes to sing 18 carols at this function.

"This is a very popular event which lots of people attend not only from Colombo but from other areas as well. We have past Thomians who arrive from abroad to take part, in this service," said Vinod Senadeera, the choir master of S. Thomas College.

"It is a much looked forward to event among Christians. People of other religions also take part."

S. Thomas is the first school which held this service on the same format as King's College, Cambridge. Unlike other schools in the island, S. Thomas includes traditional choral music in their service. The Thomian choir hopes to launch a CD with 11 carols to mark their 60th anniversary.

As the carol practises continued well into the evening, a few members of the choir took a break to exchange ideas with Daily News Teen.

"It is a rewarding experience for me to give leadership for this prestigious choir. This annual service is an important event in our school calender. Therefore, we have been putting on a lot of hard work to make this a success," said Charles Seevaratnam, 19, the leader of the Thomian choir.

Charles had occupied this position for two continuous years and had been in the school choir for nearly 10 years.

"I have been a member of this choir for the last nine years and I consider it a great privilege to sing in the carol service," Sushan Jayatheepam, 19, another senior member of the Thomian choir.

"It was my two brothers who encouraged me to join the school choir as they have recognised the benefits of being members."

Sushan is interested in social service activities and he hopes to engage in an occupation related to tourism.

Jurinesz Shadrach, 17, says S. Thomas College is one of the few schools which has the membership of the Royal School of Church Music in London. Therefore he prides in being an active member of the school choir. His parents are very supportive towards his role.

"The speciality about being in a choir is that we learn how to work as a group. There is dedication, discipline and harmony among us. Our choir master taught us a lot about singing techniques. We learn about different countries' music since Australian English, French and Latin words are included, in the carols," Niresh Muthuratnanandan, 17, expressed his ideas. He had been a member of the choir for nearly seven years.

Denushka Perera, 14, admits that his parents encourage him to attend choir practises. He had been influenced through his cousin who had been a past member of the Thomian choir.

"We sing for the glory of God. This is a service of the birth of Christ," he explained.

Marlon Jesudason, 15, says he joined in because his brother had been a member. Marlon had been a member of the Thomian choir for six years.

He had sung Treble for four and had sung Alto for another six months. Now he sings Bass.

Elmo Shanmugam, 18, says this opportunity gives them the chance to meet past Thomians. He believes that the service gained recognition due to team effort.

"We put a lot of work into the CD. We spent late nights recording at the Chapel and I feel as if all our hard work has paid off'" he said.

Devaka de Silva, 19, said his parents are members of church choirs. They are the main influence behind his decision of stepping into the choir.

"Being a lover of music, I did not have any objections towards their request. I was quite pleased about the fact because I believed in my talent," he grinned.

Amila Gunasena, 17, is also the flautist in the school orchestra. He admits that he can play the piano well and handle it occasionally in morning services in the absence of the master.

Suranthaka Cabraal, 14, had made way from the school junior choir to the senior choir. He is also an active participant of the basketball team representing Colombo South.

"I joined the Thomian choir last year. This is my second and last year as a member of the school choir. The choir had been improving throughout the years and we have a very good standard," commented Rayesh Gunasekera, 19. "Our choir master had always been there for us. We are very grateful for his support."

Before hurrying back to their practises, the lads remained to express their gratitude to their choir master, Vinod Senadeera, the former choir master, Russell Bartholomeusz, S. Thomas' College warden, Dr. David Ponniah, and Chaplain, Lloyd Weerasooriya. Then with smiles and a chorus of thanks, they scurried back into the chapel to join their friends.

Pictures by Saman Sri Wedage

Teens reach dizzy heights

Ruwanthi ABEYAKOON

HONOUR: Two teenaged scouts of Dharmaraja College Kandy brought honour to the motherland climbing a virgin peak called Baden Powel Scout Peak in the Himalayas mountain Range. Chameera Chandrasena, 17 and Nalaka Hapuheena, 18 were the youngest in the group of eight.

The teenagers together with others had to find the track to this peak (5890 metres). Their target was to find the easiest way to reach the peak and prepare a report providing details of the track, what you should take and open the track to the world.

Chameera shared his experience first with Daily News Teen. "This was my first experience abroad. We had to climb eight hours per day for nine days. The rain and the climate changes made our journey a difficult one. Yet it was enjoyable and thrilling," Chameera said.

"For about three days we had to eat tinned food, chocolates and biscuits. First I was feeling a little nervous but soon I adapted myself to the environment. It was tiring. As we moved on there was less oxygen and it was difficult to breathe. But we were able to overcome all obstacles and take our National Flag to the top," Nalaka said.

Both Chameera and Nalaka had their training, climbing several mountains such as Namunukula, Knuckles and Bathalegala. They have gone places in scouting in Sri Lanka. Both have been honoured with the President's Award, the highest award a scout can get. Gathering all the experience and achievements they were able to enrich their life with this new adventure.

"The whole journey was memorable. Each day we faced new experiences. We woke up at 6.30 a.m. and on the day of reaching the peak, we had to wake up around 4.45 a. m. Using compass and maps we found our way to our goal," Nalaka said.

"At the foot of the mountain there were pigs, zebras and yaks. The mountain was covered with snow and bushes. We had water from the streams made of melted snow. It was wonderful. I will never forget this journey," Chameera added.

Chameera studies in the commerce stream while Nalaka does Mathematics. Both are determined to continue scouting even though they are in A/L classes.

"We thank our master Ajith Jayasekera for his support. He had climbed Himalayas 14 times. His experience strengthened us a lot. He helped and guided us right throughout this tough journey," they said.

Chameera and Nalaka also thanked Sri Lanka Scouts' Association, their Principal S. M. Keerthiratne and teachers, Chief Scout Commissioner H.S. Weerakone, International Commissioner Shantha Madurawara, Scout Leader Sarath Matharaarachchi and their parents for their support.

Getting ready for exams

EXAMS value your memories and your skills and ability to understand what you are studying. Examinations test a student's knowledge and understanding of a particular subject.

They bring questions from an entire module together in a challenging environment. It is wise to remember that exams are not there as punishment. Instead, they are a good way of testing to see how much information you have learnt.

You can...

1. Start studying early.

2. Use your class notes and textbooks

3. Make a timetable for the period you are studying

4. Work together. For example, form a small group

5. Review all the materials at least once after your main study session

6. Think up a few questions you might be asked on you exam, and try answering them

7. Keep cool

Examinations are not really something to fear because, usually, if you attend to revising your subject you should not have to much of a problem when you get into the exam.

Avoiding Stress

Although examinations can be stressful, there are ways to avoid stress. Revision before hand is very helpful, as is group discussion. In the exam it helps to make a good plan, including points, because should you fail to finish in time, the plan and points can gain you some marks. Always go for the question you are sure of.

Relaxation

Allow yourself time for relaxation and thinking.

Use strategies like deep breathing to overcome panic Visualise yourself in positive and relaxing situations

Past Papers

It is a good idea to look for past papers and have group discussions to answer the questions. In most cases, examiners only make slight changes from year to year.

Quite often questions are just reworded. By comparing questions from year to year you can get a good idea about the substance the examiners are looking for and prepare yourself to recognize the questions you have revised for when you sit the exam.

Revise

Start revising early as this is connected to good time management skills. Allow plenty of time to revise. Do not leave anything to the last minute as it is really not beneficial. Sleep well once you know where you are going.

The night before the exam have a good sleep, but, before that, make sure you know the room number and time for exam.