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Nihal Nelson

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Nihal Nelson
නිහාල් නෙල්සන්
Born(1946-01-09)9 January 1946
Moratuwa, British Ceylon
Died13 December 2022(2022-12-13) (aged 76)
Moratuwa, Sri Lanka
NationalitySri Lankan
Education
  • Rawathawaththa Methodist College
  • Moratu Maha Vidyalaya
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter, musician
Spouse
Malini Sriyalatha
​
​
(m. 1974; died 2020)​
Children1
AwardsMoratu Puthra Abhimani
Musical career
Genres
InstrumentVocals
Years active1963–2022
LabelsDKRS, Torana, Nilwala, Tharanga
Signature

Nihal Nelson (Sinhala: නිහාල් නෙල්සන්; 9 January 1946 – 13 December 2022) was a Sri Lankan vocalist, songwriter and composer.[1] One of the most influential singers in Sri Lanka, and considered 'undefeated on the concert stage',[2] Nelson holds the record for the most albums recorded by a Sri Lankan artist, at a total of 113.[3][4]

Personal life

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Nelson was born in Moratuwa on 9 January 1946 as the only child in the family.[5] His father, D.C. Hendrick was a businessman and his mother, D.P Weerawardena was an English teacher.[6]

He started primary education at Innocent Maria Mixed School (now known as Rawathawaththa Roman Catholic College).[1] After passing grade 8, he entered Moratu Maha Vidyalaya where he completed his GCE Advanced Level schooling in 1960.[6] It was here that he began to focus on making music.[2]

Nelson married Malini Sriyalatha, the second in a family of four, on 16 May 1974.[1][7] The couple have one son, Kanchana Tharanga, who was born on 10 January 1978 and works as a radio sound administrator.[2] Nelson's wife Malini died in July 2020.[8][9]

Career

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Nelson was popular on the school stage as well as in Moratuwa as a singer. However, he had to polish his musical ability to enter the music world. During this period, he met Sarath Munasinghe (now a monk, Meegahawela Sumanashantha Thero) who had written many songs. In 1962 during a wedding, he met popular musician A. J. Kareem, who introduced him to composer R. A. Chandrasena.[10] Nelson's first recording Lassanata Pipunu Wanamal, written by Munasinghe, was released in SLBC as an EP on 31 March 1963 under the guidance of Chandrasena. Later, he joined Kandy Lake Club with Chandrasena.[6][1]

Nelson was among the first Sri Lankan vocalists to release a cassette in 1978 with Gune Ayyage Kamare. The release was on Wijaya Ramanayake's Tharanga label, which introduced the format to Sri Lanka. Nelson was also among the first to release a compact disc in the region.[11]

Nelson's 110th album Nihal 110 Dot Com was released in 2000. It was recorded at Sunflowers Studios in Mahawewa, Chilaw, with Neil Warnakulasooriya conducting and music by the Sunflowers.[11] At this point Nelson had been singing on the concert stage for 55 consecutive years.[12]

He also worked as a playback singer for many films. His maiden playback singing came through the film Pem Kurullo with the song "Kasii Basili Na".[10] It was written by Chandradasa Fernando and the music was composed by Tony Weeratunga. He then did playback for the films Sakvithi Suwaya, Loka Horu, Rodaya, Hari Yanakota Ohoma Thamai, Sanda Wata Rantharu, Loku Thaththa, Mal Warusa, Valampuri, and Diyamanthi. He also sang a song called Hitha Honda Minihage for Gamini Fonseka.[2]

On 15 March 2013, a "50 years old, Nihal Awith" concert was held at the Musaeus College Auditorium to celebrate his 50 years of singing.[2][13] In 2015, Nelson was awarded the 'Moratupura Ratnavibhushana' award.[10][14]

Death

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On 13 December 2022, Nelson died in his residence after suffering a heart attack, at age 76.[15][16]

Legacy

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In January 2021, it was announced that the third lane of his hometown, Rawathawatte, Moratuwa, would be named after the veteran singer.[17]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "When I saw Mali I knew about her". Hiru FM. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Welcome here, '50 years, Nihal has come'". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  3. ^ "Nihal Nelson in Paris". Lankadeepa. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  4. ^ "Nihal, who climbed the other side, is still at the top of the hill". Dinamina. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  5. ^ "කැසට් පට ගීත යුගය වර්ණවත් කළ නිහාල් නෙල්සන් ජීවන වේදිකාවට සමුදෙයි" ['The flower shot I brought today will never fall to the ground': Nihal Nelson, who coloured the era of cassette songs, bids farewell to the stage of life.]. BBC News සිංහල (in Sinhala). 13 December 2022. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  6. ^ a b c "Nelson with Lassanata Pipunu Wana Mal". Mirror Arts. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  7. ^ "My bird flew away". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  8. ^ "Farewell to Nihal Nelson's wife". gossiplankaralla. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  9. ^ "Death of Veteran artist Nihal Nelson's wife". Hiru FM. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  10. ^ a b c "50 years of Nihal Nelson's music". gossiplankahotnews. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  11. ^ a b "Nihal Nelson releases 'Ransilu'". Upali Group. 2001. Retrieved 20 January 2008.
  12. ^ "Here's why Nihal Nelson does not produce a new album". The Truth. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  13. ^ "A Genuine Half Century from Nihal Nelson". Boondi. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  14. ^ "Ratnavibhushana Award winner Nihal Nelson". Dinamina. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  15. ^ "Veteran singer Nihal Nelson passed away". NewsWire. 13 December 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  16. ^ "Veteran Sri Lankan vocalist Nihal Nelson has died". Colombo Gazette. 13 December 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  17. ^ "Third Lane in Moratuwa named Nihal". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
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