From a carol cart to a national legacy
The milestones of a short but extraordinary life in music.
Ranasinghe Arachchige Chandrasena Perera is born, the third of eleven children.
“Dasabaladhari Budu Raju”, for the drama Sanda Kinduri — still loved today.
Chandrasena Sangeethaayathanaya opens its doors — a stepping stone for a generation.
He arranges the music for Mohamed Rafi’s celebrated visit to the island.
He launches a gramophone company, pressing his own compositions to EP records.
His daughter Darshani continues the school he began, in Mount Lavinia.
He taught the musicians who taught Sri Lanka.
R. A. Chandrasena mentored artists at the start of their journeys — names that would go on to define the island’s music.
Premasiri Khemadasa
Sri Lanka’s towering composer was coached by Chandrasena in 1953, early in his path.
Victor Ratnayake
A defining voice of Sinhala music, mentored in his formative years from 1962.
Dharmadasa Walpola
A beloved film and radio voice, among the first artists Chandrasena guided.
Three generations, one devotion.
Composer, singer and teacher who built the institute and shaped modern Sinhala music.
Singer and lifelong partner who sustained the school after 1980 and taught Darshani.
University of Kelaniya graduate and Sangeetha Visharada, continuing the family’s work.
The teaching never stopped. It only passed to the next pair of hands.