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A fresh take on old Sri Lankan nursery rhymes: Rukshan Perera’s Nursery Rhapsody explained

11 May 2021

Renowned Sri Lankan musician Rukshan Perera premiered his newest original composition “Nursery Rhapsody” on 6 May on YouTube. Nursery Rhapsody is an arrangement of the famous Queen song Bohemian Rhapsody that features age-old Sri Lankan lullabies and nursery rhymes sung by Perera. Brunch reached out to Perera to learn more about Nursery Rhapsody, what inspired it, and how it all came together.  Here’s Nursery Rhapsody explained:   What inspired Nursery Rhapsody and how did it come together?   I have this crazy appetite to mix and match songs, tunes, add lyrics to instrumentals, etc. and have done these in the past by converting lullabies to big band jazz arrangements, classical tunes into a medley of fun songs by adding lyrics, creating acapella arrangements out of ordinary pop songs, and so on. When I was living in the US in 2008, I heard Bohemian Rhapsody on the radio and while listening, I found myself singing Sri Lankan lullabies in my head with Bohemian Rhapsody. After the song finished, I went to the piano and started fiddling with what I had in mind, and out came Nursery Rhapsody. A few days later I recorded a demo version of the song at home and shared it with a few musician friends in the US who encouraged me to take it forward.   When I came back to Sri Lanka, I showed the song to my brother and started recording the song at his studio and then ended up in my studio once we moved to our own house in 2010. I launched a CD titled “Coming Home To You” with all English originals except Nursery Rhapsody. My brother, who is a talented musician, played some of the instruments and also sang the very low harmony on the “Humpty Dumpty” part.   What are the rhymes that are in Nursery Rhapsody? Could you please explain them a little bit?   The rhymes are Me Gase Boho, Ranwan Partin Samanalaya, Samanalayo, Athuru Mithuru, Ambalame Pina, Tikiri Liya, and Doi Doi Doi. These are nursery rhymes we sang as children and have almost forgotten. If I understand correctly, some of these nursery rhymes are not taught to today’s children, and I thought it would be nice to bring back these songs in a fun arrangement for the children to listen to.     Why Bohemian Rhapsody as the track to set it to?   I haven’t sung Sinhala words to the Bohemian Rhapsody track. The nursery rhymes are sung in their own tunes, but the arrangement is an adaptation of Bohemian Rhapsody with some piano parts to give it that additional flavour. Bohemian Rhapsody is still one of my all-time favourite songs.   In fact, I sang this back in the 70s with the Super Golden Chimes and also with Esquire Set while touring. It is one of the most complex songs ever written in pop music –  the creative arrangement, complex harmonies, super guitar solo, multiple tempos, etc. I always enjoyed listening to and performing Bohemian Rhapsody, so with such ideas in my head it was easy to put together.   Freddie Mercury is one of those musicians who has influenced the whole world. What was his biggest impact on you?   Freddie Mercury is one heck of a musician. He is a multi-instrumentalist, a unique composer, a fabulous singer with a good range, and a brilliant entertainer – he has it all. He knows exactly what he wants in a song from the musicians and from the producer, and he is able to deliver the final product to the audience in a unique manner.   Also, Freddie is a person who is not afraid to call a spade a spade, whether in music or in his personal life. It’s also encouraging to note that this ultra-talented western musician was born to Indian parents.       What’s your favourite Queen song and why?   My favourite still remains Bohemian Rhapsody for the reasons I described above, but I enjoy most of Queen’s songs.   The rhymes in Nursery Rhapsody are to a large extent, forgotten. Why do you think this is? And why is it important not to let these rhymes be forgotten?   As with everything in life, generations move on with newer and better things in life for their children and as a result, we all tend to forget our own past and leave behind even important things in life.   In fact, I am currently leading a project at the Rotary Club of Colombo Metropolitan titled “Little Minds Strong Values” to inculcate ethics and values in children through video animated songs, and have composed 30 brand new Sinhala/Tamil songs with embedded moral values in the lyrics and a strong message at the end.     You can watch the songs and find more information on our comprehensive website: www.LittleMindsStrongValues.com.  Similar to bringing back ethics and values, Nursery Rhapsody brings back the forgotten Sri Lankan nursery rhymes to the children and I hope the teachers will start teaching these culturally rich, old nursery rhymes.


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