Chitral Somapala

Peragaswatte Chandana Chitral Somapala (born 4 November 1966: Sinhala: චිත්‍රාල් සෝමපාල), aka Chity Somapala, is a Sri Lankan hard rock and heavy metal vocalist and a music director.[1] He is known for his work with European power metal bands Firewind, Power Quest,[2] Avalon, Faro, Red Circuit, and Civilization One.[3] Somapala gained popularity in his home country due to his Sinhala track "Nadee Ganga" which was released in 1998.[4]

Chitral Somapala
චිත්‍රාල් සෝමපාල
Somapala performing live with Civilization One, 2008
Born
Peragaswatte Chandana Chitral Somapala

(1966-11-04) 4 November 1966
Colombo, Sri Lanka
NationalitySri Lankan
Other namesChity Somapala
Occupation(s)singer, musician
Parents
Musical career
Genres
Instrument(s)vocals, keyboards, chapman stick, bass guitar
Years active1986–present
Labels
Websitehttp://www.somapala.com/

Personal life

Chandana Chitral Somapala was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on 4 November 1966. His parents, Peragaswatte Liyana Acharige Somapala and Chithra née Perera, were musicians, music directors and producers.[5] His parents' song, "Dambulu Gale", was recreated by Somapala and received mixed feedback by critics.[6] He has three brothers: Prasanna, Rohan, Nalin, and one sister, Piumi.[7]

Somapala was educated at Isipathana College (formally Greenlands College), a national school for boys, located in Colombo.[8] While there, he played cricket, football (soccer), and hockey.

Musical career

Somapala joined the Sri Lankan alternative band, Shock, founded by Diliup Gabadamudalige, and considered a pioneer of computer-based music production in Sri Lanka.[9] In 1986, Somapala toured Europe with Rendesvouz (later re-named Friends). He joined German underground metal act, Court Jester in 1996, with whom he recorded the album Forced II Believe, which received favorable reviews in the European press.[10] In 1998, Somapala contributed the song "Nadee Ganga", which became a hit.[11] It was originally recorded for a TV/Radio commercial to promote Lion Beer. The song was based on the melody of "Many Rivers to Cross" by Jimmy Cliff, and sung in the Sinhala language in a hard rock and metal style.[12]

Avalon

Somapala joined a German progressive power metal band, Avalon, as front man and lead singer.[13] Avalon was produced by Charlie Bauerfeind, a German sound engineer and producer who had worked mostly with power metal bands. Avalon was in the midst of the underground scene going back to 1992. The third album by Avalon, Vision Eden, received excellent reviews in the international press. The band's Vision Eden Tour used Avalon as a support act for bands such as HammerFall, Uriah Heep, Metallica, Motörhead, Royal Hunt, Pink Cream 69, and others. During the summer of 2000, Somapala participated on Avalon's 4th Album, Eurasia, under the direction of Sascha Paeth, known for his work with bands such as Rhapsody of Fire, Kamelot, and Heaven's Gate. On Eurasia, Somapala can be heard playing the chapman stick, an electric musical instrument created by Emmett Chapman in the early 1970s. As a band, Avalon was more diverse than the usual power metal groups, and incorporated Euro power metal with prog metal in their music, giving it a somewhat unique sound. The release of Eurasia was followed by a European tour with Metalium. Avalon disbanded shortly afterwards.[14]

Firewind
Somapala singing with Rekuiem in 2009

In 2002, Somapala contributed "Greenland's Theme" for his alma mater Isipathana College's International Rugby Championships in Sri Lanka. Later that year, Somapala formed a melodic rock outfit called Faro.[15] The band released the albums Dawn of Forever and Angelost through MTM Music, also in 2002. In Summer 2003, Somapala recorded the album Echoes of a Nightmare with the Swedish symphonic metal band, Moonlight Agony, for Massacre Records. In late 2003, Somapala joined the band, Firewind, for a January 2004 headline tour of Japan. Following the successful Japanese tour, Gus G asked Somapala to join the band on a permanent basis, and they collaboration on Firewind’s third album, Forged by Fire, entered the Japanese TOP 100, and internationally received excellent reviews. After a joint tour with Hammerfall in 2005, he decided to leave Firewind.

Civilization One

In 2006, Somapala formed his own band, Civilization One, together with guitarist Aldo Lonobile (Secret Sphere), bassist Pierre-Emmanuel Pelisson (Maladaptive, Ex-Heavenly), and drummer Luca Cartasegna (Secret Sphere). They intended to form a band which created hard and aggressive riffs with the sensitivity of classical music combined with memorable vocals and choruses. The band received increased attention due to their performance at the PogPower UK Pre-Party in 2007. By the end of the year, the line-up of Civilization One changed. Only two of the original members, Somapala and Pelisson, stayed on; Christian Muenzer (Majesty, Necrophagist) joined the band as lead guitarist.[16] He was followed by Boern Daigger (Majesty, R:I:P) as second guitarist.[16] At the beginning of 2008, Holly Rodammer (formerly of Ancient Ceremony and Hellmasters) was announced as the new drummer.[16]

In November 2008 and October 2009, Civilization One were invited by TNL (the biggest rock music radio station in Sri Lanka) to perform as the main act at the TNL Onstage Finals in Colombo. This was the first time a western-style heavy metal band had performed in Sri Lanka.[17] The band's line-up changed again in 2009, with guitarists Nicklaus Bergen and Oliver Marmann, and drummer Michael Stein being added to replace the previous musicians. Their debut album, Revolution Rising, was recorded in studios in France, Italy and Germany and was mixed and mastered by Markus Teske (of Vanden Plas, Mob Rules, Dominici, Symphony X and Red Circuit).[17] The band finished recording its second album, Calling the Gods, in 2012.[17]

Other collaborations

Somapala was recording and performing with the German progressive metal band Red Circuit from 2002 till 2016 and the British classic metal rock band Rekuiem from 2008 till 2012, one of the founding members of the new wave of British heavy metal movement from Birmingham back in the early 1980s. In May 2010, Somapala joined the British power metal band Power Quest. Following 17 months as a member of the band and an album release, Blood Alliance, he left the band on amicable terms. Somapala was the composer and singer of the Olympic theme song, "Dreams of Fire" for MTV Sri Lanka, and composed and sang "Believing the Dream", the official Cricket World Cup song for MTV.[18]

In 2017, he launched his seventh music video "Sinha Lokaye Sinhaya" on the 16th of January at the Colombo City Center.[19] It was directed by internationally acclaimed director, Asad-ul-Haq.[20] In July 2019, he launched DVD and Blu-ray version of the concert "Lalithakala" held in February during the ‘Memories of the fabulous Moonstones’ concert held at the BMICH.[21]

Film music

Somapala has worked with Chandran Ratnam, Asoka Handagama, and other notable filmmakers, winning international & national awards.[22] Other original Sri Lankan movie music of his includes: "Aherenna" in the film Let Her Cry; "Man Adareyi" in the film Me Wage Adarayak; "Miringuwa Parada"; and "Sihinaya Pupura Yai" from the movie Dedunu Akase.[23] Somapala performed as a solo singer at the 2009 & 2011 ‘Fete La Musique’ Concerts with the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra at Rock Am Knuedler with conductor Professor Gast Waltzing. He won the Best Backing Vocalist award at the 2016 Presidential Awards for the song "Aharenna".[24] In 2017, he again won the Best Playback Award at SIGNIS Awards Ceremony.[25]

Collaboration with International Artists
• 2008 and 2009: Performing at the "TNL-Onstage-Show Sri Lanka" with Civilization One as special guest
• Performing at Wacken Open Air Festival with the band Rokken
• Contributed to the singing technique book "Raise Your Voice" by Jamie Vendera (USA)
• 2009: Concert with the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra as solo singer at Rock um Knuedler with Professor Waltzing
• 2011: Composing and singing the Cricket Championship song, "Believing the Dream," in Sri Lanka
• Performance in the USA with Red Circuit at the Premier ProgPower USA Festival
• 2012: recording first solo album Photographic Breath
• Composer and singer of the Olympic theme song "Dreams of Fire" for MTV in Sri Lanka.

Discography
  • 1996 – Court Jester – "Forced To Believe" (Allister Records)
  • 1998 – Avalon – Vision Eden (Omega Records)
  • 2000 – Avalon – Eurasia (Omega Records)
  • 2000 – Aimless – Seven Stars and Supernova (Bellaphone/Allister Records) (Bass Player)
  • 2001 – Another Piece of Metal – Tribute To Scorpions (Dwell Records)
  • 2002 – Shadowkeep – A Chaos Theory – (Limb Music) – Backing Vocals
  • 2002 – WOLFF – Metanoia – (LEICO Music, LC-7701) – Guest Vocals (some songs)
  • 2003 – Faro – Dawn of Forever (MTM Music)
  • 2003 – MTM Compilation – Volume 9 (MTM Music)
  • 2004 – Final Chapter – The Wizard Queen (Underground Symphony) – Guest Vocals
  • 2004 – Moonlight Agony – Echoes of a Nightmare (Massacre Records)
  • 2004 – Mystic Prophecy – Never Ending (Nuclear Blast) – Backing Vocals
  • 2004 – Firewind – Forged By Fire (Emi/Toshiba)
  • 2005 – Firewind – Forged By Fire (Century Media Records)
  • 2006 – Faro – Angelost (MTM Music)
  • 2006 – Red Circuit – Trance State (Limb Music)
  • 2007 – Civilization One – Revolution Rising (Metal Heaven)
  • 2009 – Red Circuit – Homeland (Limb Music)
  • 2009 – Chitral Somapala – The Works (Criminal Records)
  • 2011 – Power Quest – Blood Alliance (Napalm Records)
  • 2012 – Chitral Somapala – "Photographic Breath" (Audio Gate Productions - M Entertainment)
  • 2012 – Mob Rules – Cannibal Nation (AFM Records)
  • 2012 – Civilization One – Calling the Gods (Limb Music)
  • 2014 – Chitral Somapala - "Sinhabumi" (M Entertainment - Audio Gate Productions) [26]
  • 2014 – Mob Rules - "Time Keepe" (AFM Records)
  • 2014 – Red Circuit - "Haze of Nemesis" (Limb Music)
  • 2016 – Wilpattuwe [27]
  • 2016 – Vivaldi Metal Project - "Four Seasons" (Pride & Joy Music)
  • 2017 – Beyond the Labyrinth - "The Art of Resilience" (Spinal Records)
  • 2018 – Costas Varras - "Neon Classical" (Symmetric Records)
  • 2018 – Chitral Somapala - "Dambulugale" (Audio Gate Productions)
  • 2018 – Chitral Somapala - "I am Echo" [28]
  • 2018 – Chitral Somapala - "Aherenna" (Audio Gate Productions)
  • 2018 – Chitral Somapala - "Manusatha (Humanimal)" lyric by Danushka Kumarathunga (Audio Gate Productions)
  • 2019 – Chitral Somapala - "Lalithakala"  [29]

Filmography
YearFilmRolesRef.
2014LeechesFilm Music Composer
2015Me Wage AdarayakFilm Music Composer  & Playback Singer[30]
2015Let Her CryFilm Music Composer & Playback Singer[31]
2016Adaraneeya KathawakComposer & Playback Singer[32]
2016Sulanga Apa Ragena YaviFilm Music Composer & Composer[33]
2017Dedunu AkaseComposer & Playback Singer[34]
TBDBahuchithawadiyaFilm Music Composer[35]

References
  1. "Chitral in focus". Sunday Observer. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  2. "Chitral now Power Quests' vocalist". Sunday Observer. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  3. "Charismatic Chitral". Sunday Observer. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  4. "Love for Narcissus still echoes". Daily News. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  5. "Chitral Somapala in Concert on Feb. 10". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  6. "Chithral Somapala asks why there is an English accent when singing Sinhala songs". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  7. "P.L.A., who popularized films with 'Asoka'". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  8. "Chitral Chitty Somapala". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  9. "There are no imitations in my life Chithral Somapala". Divaina. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  10. "Interview with Chitral". Divaina. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  11. "Jealousy has the most in Sri Lanka - Chithral Somapala". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  12. "The youth have lost their voice : Chity". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  13. "MASTERS OF METAL-Avalon". truemetal. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  14. "Reconciliation is a urgent need - Chithral Somapala". srilankamirror. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  15. "Faro commence recording second album Angelost". Blabbermouth.net. 22 August 2005. Archived from the original on 9 September 2012. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
  16. Weerasinghe, Chamikara (5 July 2008). "Calling the gods". Daily News. Sri Lanka. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 17 November 2009.
  17. "Civilization One New Album To Feature Guest Appearance By Helloween Guitarist". Blabbermouth.net. 29 August 2009. Archived from the original on 1 February 2013. Retrieved 17 November 2009.
  18. "I can't see the dog work that politicians do". Deshaya. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  19. "FIND YOUR LION!". Daily FT. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  20. "Chithral Somapala introduces a brand new inspirational music video". The Morning. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  21. "Lalithakala DVD & Bluray by Chitral Somapala". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  22. "One would think that there is no culture in appearance: Chithral Somapala". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  23. "Miringuwa Parada". Sunday Observer. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  24. "Career of Chitral Somapala". Dinamina. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  25. "An award for the first time to Chitral". Divaina. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  26. "Sinhabumi launched Chitral leaps to fame". Sunday Observer. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  27. "Chithral Somapala on behalf of Wilpattu". Lankadeepa. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  28. "'I am Echo' to be launched". Daily News. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  29. "CHITRAL'S LALITHAKALA CONCERT". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  30. "මේ වගේ ආදරයක් – Me Wage Adarayak – A Love Like This". cinema.lk. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  31. "'ඇගේ නෙත අග' ටැලින් බ්ලැක් නයිට්ස් උලෙළේ තරගකාරී අංශයට". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
  32. "A true love story in an age where love is measured by data". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  33. "සුද්දා සොයා සුළඟ අප රැගෙන යාවිද?". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  34. "Somewhere, over the rainbow..." Daily News. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  35. "'Malaka brings 'Bahuchithawadiya'" (Web). sundaytimes. sundaytimes.lk. Retrieved 15 January 2012.


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