Dr Tanya to perform at SOSL

Dr Tanya Ekanaya, distinguished Sri Lankan and International Pianist will perform Beethoven's Piano Concert No. 3 at the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka's Premieres Concert on November 10.

Tanya now resides in Scotland, where she combines her academic pursuits with her love of music. Tanya is currently on the staff of Edinburgh University, Scotland where she has been teaching part-time in both its Departments of Linguistics and Music since 2007.

Dr Tanya Ekanayaka

She began her piano studies at the age of five, made her debut public recital appearance at the age of twelve and has since performed widely as soloist, accompanist and in ensembles both internationally and in Sri Lanka.

In Sri Lanka, Tanya studied the piano under the tutelage of her mother Indira Ekanayaka and later with Bridget Halpe. She is also a Fellow of the Trinity College of Music London (FTCL) and a Licentiate of both the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (LRSM) and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (LGSMD)UK. The Guildhall school awarded her its Professional Performer's Diploma (PPD) in 1999.

Consistent with her interdisciplinary background, Tanya holds a Bachelor of Arts (BA) Honours degree in English Literature and Linguistics from the University of Peradeniya, a Master of Science (MSc) degree in Linguistics and English Language from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and a Doctorate for her interdisciplinary research involving the disciplines of Linguistics and Musicology also from Edinburgh University.

In July 2010, Tanya became the first Sri Lankan pianist to perform in the 'Pianists of the World' series at London's St. Martin-in-the-Fields, one of the oldest recital series at this premier London concert venue. In May 2012 Tanya was invited to perform at the prestigious John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC, USA. This concert was followed up by a full house recital at the Asia Society Concert Hall in New York in July 2012. Tanya will rush back, after her concert in Colombo, in November 2012, to a second recital at London's St. Martin-in-the-Field concert venue.

At the SOSL Premieres Concert in Colombo, Tanya will take on Beethoven's challenging Piano Concerto No. 3. The first reviewer of this piece of music, declared that it required a soloist who possessed not only technical precision, but emotional maturity to interpret and bring out the best of this work. Tanya has all these attributes to draw out the drama and intensity of this piece, and the audience can be assured of a masterful rendition of Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto. Her piano playing has been described as "expressive, elegant, displaying a strong technique and varied palette of tone colours" (Jonathan Pasternack, Conductor and Musical Director of the University of Washington School of Music, Seattle, USA).

Dr. Tanya Ekanayaka's musical accomplishments are not limited to her piano playing alone. She has gained a reputation as a composer, whose "music is subtle, beautiful and surprising" (Prof Nigel Osborne MBE, FRCM, Reid Professor of Music, University of Edinburgh, UK). Tanya's compositions are based on Sri Lankan folk tunes, filtered through a "prism of Classical Music".

She has drawn on her intercultural experiences to mould original music using the traditions of Sri Lankan music within the framework of western classical music.

Tanya Ekanayaka is truly a gifted musician. Do not miss the opportunity to hear this beautiful and incredibly talented soloist at the SOSL Premieres Concert at Ladies College.

This concert is sponsored by LOLC, part sponsored by the Devar Surya Sena Trust and the Japan Foundation, with Electronic media sponsors MTV SPORTS and Yes FM and creative partner LOWE LDB.