DR. Rohana Weerasinghe (born February 18, 1949), is a Sri Lankan musician, composer and singer.

Early life

Weerasinghe was born on 18 February 1949 in Algiriya, Matara in southern

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. He was the youngest child to his parents Henry Weerasinghe and Sepalin Weerasinghe. In 1954, Weerasinghe started schooling from Good Shepard Family Convent in Nuwara Eliya, and later moved to Vidyachakra Buddhist School Ruwan Eliya, Welimada Maha Vidyalaya, Pannipitya Dharmapala Vidyalaya and Gamini Maha Vidyalaya Nuwara Eliya. In 1977, Weerasinghe married to Leela Beatrice De Silva, a dancing teacher in profession. They had two sons, Kalindu Gajaba and Chirath Kanishka. His cousin daughter Priyani Jayasinghe was also a popular actress in Sri Lanka, who sang the popular hits ''Kandula Niwannam'' and ''Sundara Hadakata''. She was killed at the age of 51 by her husband using a pair of scissors on 18 July 2018.

Music

Weerasinghe learnt the basics of music from K.V.S Perera Kithsiri Aluthge. He was able to enter the Government Music School of

for further studies in Oriental Music by mastering

Sitar The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in medieval India, flourished in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form ...

. Later he joined maestro Premasiri Khemadasa as a Sitar player in his Orchestra. Weerasinghe became a key Sitar player for music concerts of prominent Singers in

such as Victor Ratnayake's ''Sa'', Nanda Malini's ''Shrawana Aradhana'' and Sanath Nandasiri's ''Swarna Kundala''. Weerasinghe taught music in D. S. Senanayake College, Senananda Maha Vidyalaya Meepilimanna and Ananda Sastralaya, Kotte as a government music teacher. In 1982, he joined "Sing Lanka" studios as a Sound Engineer. At that time, he composed T. M. Jayaratne's ''Ekasitha dethanaka'', ''Hiruta Horen'' and

Neela Wickramasinghe Visharada Dona Delicia Neela Wickramasinghe ( si, නීලා වික්‍රමසිංහ; 30 March 1950 – 17 January 2022), popularly as Neela Wickramasinghe, was a Sri Lankan songstress, teacher, playback singer and musician. A four-t ...

's ''Punchi Sithe Punchi Sina'' which became popular songs in Sri Lanka. So far he has created melodies for over 8000 songs, which includes films, teledramas, stage plays. Weerasinghe has been the Advisor to the

President of Sri Lanka The President of Sri Lanka ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා ජනාධිපති ''Śrī Laṃkā Janādhipathi''; ta, இலங்கை சனாதிபதி ''Ilankai janātipati'') is the head of state and head of government of t ...

in Cultural and Aesthetic Affairs since 2006.

Notable performances

* Live performances of ''Ransara Dahara'' at

Arts Centre Melbourne Arts Centre Melbourne, originally known as the Victorian Arts Centre and briefly called the Arts Centre, is a performing arts centre consisting of a complex of theatres and concert halls in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, located in the central ...

in 2004 * ''Rohana Ransara'' performed at

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...

in 2006 * Live performance at

Millennium Dome The Millennium Dome was the original name of the large dome-shaped building on the Greenwich Peninsula in South East London, England, which housed a major exhibition celebrating the beginning of the third millennium. As of 2022, it is the ni ...

, London in 2008

Awards

Publications

* ''Lankika Sangeethayei Rohana Lakuna – Rohana Icon in Sri Lankan Music'', Edited by Ravi Siriwardhana and Samudhra Wettasinghe, 2002 * ''Gaman Magak'' – Along a Winding Path, Biography of Rohana Weerasinghe, 2009

References

External links

"ප්‍රේමය නම්" මටත් ඕන වුණේ වෙනස් වෙන්නයිසරසවිය සම්මානයෙන් ඇරැඹි රෝහණ වීරසිංහRohana Weerasinghe Songs Listරෝහණ වීරසිංහගේ “සුදු මුතු රළ” බ්ලුරේ ගී තැටිය
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weerasinghe, Rohana 1949 births Living people Sinhalese musicians Sri Lankan Buddhists Alumni of Dharmapala Vidyalaya Kala Keerthi