Karuna Nadee (River of Kindness) is an oratorio for chorus and orchestra based on the life of Buddha by the Sri Lankan composer Dinesh Subasinghe. It was composed in 2010 and released on CD in November of that year. Background Dinesh Subasinghe began composing the work in 2010 while on a break from his studies at the KM Music Conservatory in Chennai. Musical style The oratorio consists of 12 pieces of music, and, according to the Sri Lanka Daily News, is composed in "Far Eastern, Sri Lankan, Indian, and Western classical styles". It also includes Buddhist chant in the background, as well as elements from Tibetan music and folk and pop genres. Structure #Sounds from Tushita - Invitations from Gods #The Fortunate birth - Birth of Bodhisattva at Lumbini #The four sights - Finding the reality of life #The Great Battle and the Enlightenment - Buddhahood, Attained Enlightenment in Buddhism #The Greatest Father #The Candle behind Shdhartha #The town of Vishali #Buddha and his disciples #Woman's Spiritual attainment #Disaster of Devadatta - based on assassination attempts #Great demise (Mahaparinirvana) - final moment in Kushinagar #Danno Budunge - Buddhist melody Premiere recording On the 2011 premiere CD recording, the composer plays the Ravanahatha, a string instrument, associated with Ravana, the legendary king of Sri Lanka. The other singers and musicians on the recording include John Anthony, a frequent guitarist in Bollywood film scores, Eilidh Catherine Martin, the cellist who recorded movie scores by A. R. Rahman, and members of KM Music Conservatory and the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka.
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