A pianist par excellence

'Heavy metal music is not my cup of tea,' says Shantha

To Shantha also goes the credit for opening the Bangladesh centre of the Associated Board of Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM). Prior to its establishment, Shantha would take students to the Kolkata centre of ABRSM between 1991 and 1993. Subsequently, when the number of candidates increased, a similar line of exams was introduced in Dhaka in 1994 for the first time, monitored by the British Council. The following year, the Bangladesh centre of ABRSM was set up with Shantha taking over as the first founder representative (honorary) sponsor for the centre. This organisation celebrates its 10th anniversary. 'I was the first to introduce the systematic examination system of western music in Bangladesh,' asserts Shantha.

Along side with her piano recitals, Shantha is a committed piano teacher. Though she won plaudits in the 1980s at the Goethe Institut among others, she says that she was keen to go into teaching because she was interested in nurturing new talent. In her words,'My effort has been to launch at least one pianist in our country, which is better than me being on stage.'

Shantha has certainly succeeded in this endeavour. Among the success stories that she cites are those of Swani Zubayer, who learnt music under her from 1997 onwards. Today he is a renowned singer, composer and song writer. Based in Sweden currently, Shantha says that he stands apart from his contemporaries in his 'voice, arrangements, composition and lyrics.' She adds, 'I never tire of listening to his CDs of Bangla music and ghazals.'

There's also Emon Shaha, the son of the musician and composer of Bangla music Shatha Shaha. Today he is an upcoming artiste, composer and music director. Says Shantha, 'Emon still comes to take piano lessons and learn music theory with me. His thirst to learn has never ended though he disappears now and then because of his business.'

To Shantha also goes the credit for arranging the music and conducting the school choir for the Green Herald school song. The tune was given by Sister Mary Imelda, the ex-headmistress. Another of her unforgettable memories is that of the late 80s when the three-day highly successful Dhaka Music and Art Festival was organised by an enthusiastic expatriate crowd along with renowned local musicians and artistes.

Equally memorable is her return to Sri Lanka in March 2004 when she got a very warm welcome from her 80-year-old former KG teacher.

Shantha's taste in music is eclectic. Her preference runs from the classical music giants of Beethoven, Chopin, Tchaikovsky and Schubert to western music, Rabindra Sangeet and adhunik gaan. 'Heavy metal music is not my cup of tea,' she asserts.

A life without music is unthinkable for Shantha. At the young age of six she learnt the piano and gave exams under the Trinity School of Music, London. Getting flying colours in almost every exam, she sang in Radio Ceylon as a child artiste. In 1976 she gained admission to the State Institute of Culture in St Petersburg in USSR. She did her MA in music and majored in piano. Subsequently she did a year's teacher training course on how to teach small children and those who are partially impaired mentally.

Her education did not stop here. She got admission to the Institute of Ethnography of Academy of Sciences USSR to do a Ph.D in Ethnomusicology. After a short delay, she is now in the process of completing her thesis.

A Sri Lankan from Colombo, Shantha's musical talent comes from her parents. Her mother learnt piano in her childhood, while her father belongs to a well-known musical family. He was the first to play the Esraj in Radio Ceylon. Shantha is married to a Bangladeshi named Sheikh Mansurrudin Ahmed. Her husband is an art director with a local firm, besides being an artist and stage designer for Nagorik. Her daughter, Poornika Gayathri, is at the end of her graduate studies in engineering from the Wichita State University, USA. She is an able successor to her mother since she also shows promise in art, singing and playing the piano.

And the future? She hopes to pursue her study of music therapy. This discipline seeks to heal people through the art of music. Shantha describes music therapy as a means of treatment for people with psychological disorders, troubled teenagers, and terminally ill patients. To quote her,'Music therapy can help people who suffer abuse, drug addicts and the elderly, among others. One can divert their minds by teaching them piano or singing and help them to step out of stressful lives.'

Sensitive to the needs of the physically and mentally challenged, in 1997 she worked as a voluntary music teacher at a public school in Sydney. Here she conducted a rehabilitation class to teach music to partially disabled children. 'This was one of my most memorable teaching experiences,' she recalls.

In many ways, Shantha has contributed to the western music scene here. Her numerous gifted students are certainly her best torchbearers.