"Move it Man" by Mahendra (Speedy) Gonsalkorale
This blog (created in March 2011 by Lucky) is about new entrants to the Colombo Medical Faculty of the University of Ceylon (as it was then known) in June 1962. There were a total of 166 in the batch (included 11 from Peradeniya). Please address all communications to: colmedgrads1962@gmail.com. Header image: Courtesy Prof. Rohan Jayasekara, Dean, Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo (2011 - 2014). Please use the search bar using a keyword to access what interests you
This composition of mine played on my Yamaha Tyros 5 keyboard may not appeal to everybody It is a "free-range", jazzy modern type of music with plenty of drumming and use of electric guitar. This was only possible because of the amazing creative possibilities of modern Keyboards.I tried to match the tempo with fast changing images.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, it was a change from the usual and I thought I would share it with you.
Always creative! Enjoyed a "Preview" and had no hesitation in posting it. But I still prefer to listen to his renditions of CT, TM et al.
ReplyDeleteLucky. Can't let that go unheeded, you will get one soon!
DeleteMahen
ReplyDeleteBravo!! Simply amazing music. I cannot believe this is not from a 10 piece band. I like the arrangement, the base and the beat. Had to listen to it a few times to get into the swing of it and appreciate the rhythm but at the end of it felt like I've had a brilliant night out. Well done my friend for producing something different from the soppy, sentimental and syrupy old music of the crooners that have had their day. Don't get me wrong, there are times I like to take a walk down memory lane and let my emotions rule my thoughts. We mustn't forget Jazz Fusion too started in the 1960's with improvisations and electronic music, when we were busy poring over Hamilton Bailey and Davidson's Textbook of Medicine
You are a multitalented, intelligent, kind and modest person. A rare breed indeed. I am thankful I had the good fortune to walk those long corridors of the GHC with you and we have remained friends.
As the standing ovation fades away and the curtain falls we await eagerly for the encore!!
ND, my dear friend, you are too kind and if not my well pigmented frontal facade, you will see me blushing! Likewise, it has been and still is, a privilege to have a lovely and sensitive person like you as my friend but I had better stop before we are accused of running a MAS!
ReplyDeleteMain thing is you appreciated my latest musical effort. The capabilities of the Tyros 5, if you know how to handle it, are amazing and one is reminded of the ot that other natural wonder, the female of the species!
I still remember with such clarity when Prof Cooray repeated those words of Thomas Gray
ReplyDelete"Full many a flower is born to blush unseen,
And waste its sweetness on the desert air.”
To us all, the good professor will remain a legend forevermore.
He was a great teacher. I have written about a memory I have of him in a previous post about our teachers but I shall repeat it here. During one of his early lectures to us, he emphasised the importance of questioning him at the end of a lecture."if you don't ask me a question, I get the feeling that you haven't quite grasped the subject. So please do ask questions". However, he allowed very little time for questions. One day,as he was gathering his papers at the end of a lecture clearly intent on leaving soon, almost as an aside, he said, "Any questions". I remember one of us (possibly Punsiri but I am not sure), asking him a question and Path Cooray's annoyed response was, "your question clearly shows that you have not been paying attention because I explained that in great detail. I suggest you listen to my lectures properly", and he stormed out. That was the end of students daring to ask questions!
DeleteI know we all respect our teachers despite their idiosyncrasies.
DeleteWhen we were med students our teachers and the consultant staff thought they were demi-Gods. We accepted that as the norm. A 2nd opinion for a diagnosis would have caused such and uproar. Nowadays such behaviour would have even made them lose their jobs (in the UK). Some were rude and harsh to students. But that was a different era. So the phrase "the good old days" has no real meaning as things are better today - for medical students
Mahen, this is great- it certainly makes one want to shake rattle and roll !
ReplyDeleteYou are amazing on your Tyros. As Nihal has said, it does sound like a 10 piece band. Takes me all the way back to the good old days when we shook rattled and rolled to Bill Hayley and the Comets, and rocked and rolled to Elvis Presley during the lunch break in the back garden at Ladies’. College, winding up a little gramophone !!
Thank you Mahen - well done!
Thanks Rohini. With the Tyros, the possibilities are immense.You do need a bit of skill and imagination but the instrument does so much for you. I have a little surprise coming soon which I hope will go down well. Keeping it a secret for the moment!
DeleteMahen, You are very modest- I know what talent and skill you need to play something like this !
DeleteShall look forward to the surprise
Mahen, referring to your little chat with ND about “the other natural wonder, the female of the species” - the only way to handle this is with “kid gloves” and with the utmost tenderness and appreciation!
DeleteWilliam Golding has summarized -
Whatever you give a woman, She will make greater.
If you give her sperm, she will give you a baby.
If you give her a house,she’ll give you a home.
If you give her groceries,she’ll give you a meal.
If you give her a smile, she will give you her heart.
She multiplies and enlarges what is given to her.
So,if you give her any crap, be ready to receive a ton of shit !
Just to obviate misunderstanding- dancing in the back garden at Ladies’ College was not part of the school curriculum !
DeleteIt was a pastime of the unstudious with likeminded friends!
And if you give her and inch,she will take a mile!
DeleteOnly in jest Rohini! Whatever would we do without you!
Mahen, this is not ‘jest’-
DeleteI consider it a seriously brilliant and perfect rebuttal to Sir Golding !
Sure he would have been amused if he were alive !
Thanks Mahen-
Sorry I missed the Quotation marks which should have been there with the quote.
Rohini, I didn't know you did that! I remember that we did get a rather long lunch break and I was able to walk home for lunch, when we lived down 5th Lane. Later, when we moved to Wellawatte, I spent a part of my lunch break playing tennis in the blazing hot sun. Nuts!!
DeleteI hope it would seem appropriate to make use of this space to pay homage to the Suffragettes who won the right for women to vote in the UK, a hundred years ago to this day. Their courage and sacrifice must be acknowledged as their movement and their ideals spread far and wide to encompass the whole world. Although much has been achieved in a century there is still much to be done to bring about equality. Personally I had a great deal to learn in my journey through life about women's rights. I would like to remember the courage of those who endured great hardship to bring about this change. In particular I wish to remember the woman who went to the horse races and jumped in front of the King's horse and killed herself to bring to the attention of the general public the suffragette movement and their fight for equality.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely right ND It is something I never quite understood,by that I mean the almost universal discrimination that existed in the World against women. I still cannot understand why an "advanced society" such as the UK should pay less for the same work if you are a woman. They have had a bad time for long long time and I hope the trend to correct this injustice will continue unabated, indeed I hope it gathers speed
ReplyDeleteSome interesting facts I got from the Wikepedia.
In 1918, Parliament passed an act granting the vote to women over the age of 30 who were householders, the wives of householders, occupiers of property with an annual rent of £5, and graduates of British universities. About 8.4 million women gained the vote. Women received the vote on the same terms as men (over the age of 21) as a result of the Representation of the People Act 1928.
The establishment of universal adult suffrage in Sri Lanka in 1931 gave its women the right to vote on the same basis as. men just three years after women in Great Britain and slightly more than a decade after women in the United States.
By the way, pressed the wrong button and lost my first comment which had to be deleted as it had some funny characters!
Mahendra
ReplyDeleteThank you for the valued comment. One hundred years ago is not that long when we consider we were in med school 50 years ago. When women have given their lives to get the vote it is amazing to find there are some who just don’t vote.
Nihal D A
Nihal, it is admirable you’ve brought this subject up.
DeleteThere are still men in this day and age who cannot accept the idea that women have much to contribute to society.
You still see this in the work place even in the practice of medicine.
I greatly admire the courage of those women who have gone before us to enable us to vote, and who continue to struggle to secure equal opportunities for women ,which obviously has to be preceded by promotion of their welfare.
The work involved is enormous, with a myriad ramifications as you can imagine.
Not all are born ‘movers and shakers’ , and all one can do is try to make a difference in one’s own little corner of the earth.
Of note- NZ has been the first self-governing colony in the world to establish universal suffrage- 1893.
New Zealand’s last parliamentary elections held in Sept last year saw many men as well as women deciding not to vote for a variety of reasons- including religious. They had the freedom to make that choice, whereas in Australia, I understand voting is compulsory .
I am so pleased that the Weinstein affair has brought to the open another important issue. We must learn to respect women at their work places.
DeleteIt is interesting that we went from Speedy's musical contribution to women's rights and voting. That is the beauty of this Blog "conversation." Yes, I believe that in Australia, people are fined if they do not vote. I think some people are too darned lazy. Tomorrow, there will be local elections in Sri Lanka, and I am happy to report that people are taking it very seriously.
DeleteI set the ball rolling and look at the results! I mean the interesting comments that my own comment generated, for which I take the credit.
ReplyDeleteI can't match the knowledge of Rohini and ND in particular, when it comes to English Literature. But I shall await Speedy's "Lucky. Can't let that go unheeded, you will get one soon!", for my own entertainment.
Sorry Rohini, what Speedy comes up with may sound "Greek" to you!
Lucky, Of course you have to take the credit for all that happens in the blog !
DeleteIam eagerly awaiting Mahen’s surprise too - never mind if it is ‘Greek’!
I have a good translator - my BIL in Melbourne .
I figured out who CT in your comment might be , but not TM !
Great to see you come out of hiding to comment too !
Thanks Lucky
It is quite remarkable how relatively recent some of these changes are. I would have thought that discrimination of any kind would have been viewed as unfair and unjustified, especially against women. Other types such as colour, ethnicity, connections etc are grossly unfair but to discriminate on the basis of sex is so wrong. It is quite chastening to ponder on how recent things such as slavery were abolished. I am also surprised that apparently strong champion of morality, i.e., religion, also harboured such injustices. I am sure 99.9% of men respect and love their mother and has it not occurred to them that she is a female?
ReplyDeleteAt the same time, and I know I am treading water here, I do believe that when it comes to employment and assessment of suitability using agreed criteria such as experience, qualifications, track record, knowledge etc, in some cases, it is not unreasonable to consider gender. Of course I accept that we must get away from stereotyping (which is the underlying danger in my contention), but I would prefer a hunky big male to be appointed as a Bouncer or a sensitive Female Gynecologist for a Muslim women's hospital. What I see over and over again in recent times is the adoption of extreme positions, and subservience to political correctness. I shall be very interested in your views.
Mahen and ND, I appreciate the comments you have made about the unfair treatment of women. The ugly incidents regarding sexual harassment is another story, perhaps more prevalent in certain industries. I was fortunate to have had decent bosses for most of my career in the US., but even so I have experienced discrimination in compensation early in my career. It was only after a female manager brought it to the attention of the Chief of Pathology, that it was corrected. I learned then that one has to speak up! We have to teach our daughters and granddaughters to be confident and stand up for themselves and other women.
ReplyDeleteSrianee, since when did you become a Women's Lib activist?
ReplyDeleteWhat most of you are unaware is that in the local government elections due to take place tomorrow in Sri Lanka, by virtue of newly passed legislation, every political party has to field a minimum of 25% women candidates. Since nomination day, sexual harassment has taken place in a big way. One woman candidate in the NCP has been raped by political opponents.
Lucky, my reply to your question is "forever!" I didn't know about the 25% requirement and I am sorry to hear about the candidate in the NCP. We have a long way to go, don't we?
DeleteHi!Srianee
DeleteI am sure,you are enjoying the warm sunshine in Colombo.Been,a hosteller at Bloem,I was very familiar with the surrounding.Carey college next door,Aquinas seminary just opposite Physiology block.Big houses with tall concrete wall,all around,with warning signs-beware of the dog(nai kavanam-ballangem pravesam wanna).
Lastly,talking about feminism,were there any femme fatale,among our batch.I am sick to my teach,to hear about dirty politics in Srilanka.
Hope!I have not offended you.
Name,Kalupahana,lingers in my mind.You mentioned that you have no idea of his whereabouts.
Hope you are not sun burnt.
Sumathi
Readers,please correct the sentence I am sick to my teeth as sick upto my teeth.
DeleteSumathi
Thanks Sumathi, I will send you an email with answers to some of your questions!
DeleteThank you, Srianee,
DeleteI am sure you were able to read between the lines,what I have requested.Keep it entre nous.so that even our aficionado,Mahen will not know what this all about.
Sorry!Speedy,it is no insult to your integrity.
Sumathi
Now back to the music. Mahen, I enjoyed your composition very much, and as Rohini said it made you want to get up and move! It was different from the other stuff you do, but I loved it. I was checking the Blog while listening to a collection of songs from 'Queen' and I put 'Queen' on pause to listen to you. I hope you feel honored! I like listening to my favorite 'oldies,' but I also try to keep up with the current pop music. (I don't want to be the 'uncool' boring grandma.) I complain to my grandkids that the young female singers all sound alike, and they sometimes agree. One of my favorites among the present crop of pop stars is Bruno Mars.
ReplyDeleteBy the way Mahen, do you think I can download this to my personal collection of music? I am going to give it a try...
Srianee, what can I say! I am deeply touched and honoured by your comment. It is so nice to know that my music has brought a smile to so many faces. I shall email you my song but I will need to convert it to MP3 form (from WAV) as the WAV file willbe too big for emailing. It shall arrive, this I promise!
DeleteThanks Mahen, I was able to download it on to my iPhone (after a few technical difficulties) and play it while walking on the treadmill! It certainly made that boring, though important, activity so much more enjoyable. I also played it for my sister on a speaker. She was quite impressed!
DeleteLet me add my voice even so late as this. Mahendra's playing is not new to me and each time he seems to do better and better. I always told him he should start his second career in music and I can see that he has! What a wealth of talent we have in our batch! Thanks Lucky for giving a platform for our batch to express themselves in talents we never knew they had. I hope it encourages more of our batch to come out of the closet. This is late-Zita(of course!)
ReplyDelete