- The Trinity College Choir voices hope for a more environmentally aware future with the De Lanerolle Brothers and Neranjan de Silva
Initially composed as a patriotic anthem to be sung at the coronation of King Edward VII in 1902, the melody of Land of Hope and Glory is quite familiar to many as Edward Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 (today, this is most frequently used at graduations, and in 1981, it was the recessional march at the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales). This is because, at King Edward VII’s suggestion in 1902, the words of Land of Hope and Glory were set to the music of Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1, which was released in 1901.
Land of Hope and Glory is an undoubtedly patriotic song that evokes appreciation for the glories of your country, regardless of where you’re from. This sense of patriotism and of appreciation was what led to audio and video engineer Neranjan de Silva proposing this song.
Speaking to Brunch, de Silva shared that this version of Land of Hope and Glory came about when he and the De Lanerolle Brothers were invited to work the Trinity College Choir on a video in preparation for the launch of Trinity College, Kandy’s 150th anniversary logo (Trinity College, Kandy celebrates 150 years in 2022). De Silva, who has a long history of playing with the Trinity College Choir, decided, on a whim, to do his own video at the same time, choosing Land of Hope and Glory, because of how well it fit with the message he was trying to send – a message of marvelling at the natural beauty of Sri Lanka with the hope of a better tomorrow by taking care of that natural beauty today.
On his YouTube channel, de Silva wrote: “At a time when we live in hope, this song will remind us of our obligation to the land we are born to. Covid-19 is a clear indication that we continue to abuse Mother Earth. We pollute the air, water, and soil and then wonder why such disasters take place.
It is time to give back to the land – a land of hope and glory. The Trinity College Choir with the De Lanerolle Brothers and Neranjan de Silva recorded this in the beautiful Trinity College Chapel – a chapel which is one of a kind – totally open with a garden surrounding it; to mark their 150th year.”
De Silva also shared that the Trinity College Choir rose wonderfully to the challenge of making Land of Hope and Glory, adding that part of why he picked Land of Hope of Glory as a performance was because it is such a nice song for a large choir to perform, coupled with a message of hope that he felt was much needed at this time. “Living in a land with so much hope, we thought this was a nice dedication we could make to nature, which was why we recorded this. We had the full support and blessings of Trinity College, Kandy Principal Rev. Fr. Araliya Jayasundara OSB, and The Trinity College Choir was willing to take up the challenge to do this; it was a lot of hard work.”
The video for Land of Hope and Glory was directed by Neidra Williams and Jehan Bastians, with photography by Nelson George, with the audio and video engineering for the piece done by de Silva himself.
The Trinity College Choir who formed the mainstay of Land of Hope and Glory, traces its beginnings to 1872, and, for Land of Hope and Glory, was made up of approximately 38 choristers, aged between nine and 19 years. The choir, which is acclaimed for maintaining high standards, has a wide repertoire of music ranging from classical, gospel, jazz, to pop, has also had joint performances with other reputed choirs and musicians, both national and international.
Trinity College Choir Director Lasantha Tennekoon shared that working on Land of Hope and Glory was an undertaking the choir took seriously, with the choristers all coming together to truly make the performance one to remember. Tennekoon also explained that since the project was something of a spontaneous decision, the choir worked on it extensively with the majority of rehearsals taking place online, though they were able to meet in person once or twice prior to the recording itself.
Speaking on the challenges of the project, Tennekoon shared that one challenge was the choir singing with their masks on, but with the pandemic now having gone on for more than two years, this was something the choir has had to work around before, with their 2020 Christmas Carol service also being performed with the choir wearing masks. The biggest effect of the pandemic, Tennekoon shared, has been not being able to gather as a choir, with most of their activities now taking place virtually.
The Trinity College Choir’s performance of Land of Hope and Glory, together with the De Lanerolle Brothers and Neranjan de Silva can be viewed through Neranjan de Silva’s YouTube channel Neranjan de Silva’s Music Library.