මර්වින් පෙරේරා
37 songs performed · 4 compositions
Mervin Perera (මර්වින් පෙරේරා, also spelled Mervyn Perera) was a Sri Lankan singer, composer and music teacher whose warm, unhurried baritone shaped Sinhala popular song from the 1960s onward. He is remembered for recordings such as Me Nagaraya and Pabasara Ran Pabalu, and for the melodies he wrote for other leading vocalists.
Mervin Perera was born on 21 September 1940 in the coastal area of Payagala, near Maggona. He came from a musical household: his father, T. Herman Perera, was a respected dancer and teacher. Rather than train in India, as many of his peers did, Perera studied locally, taking vocal instruction from the English musician Laili Goodridge, and worked for years as a schoolteacher while building his music career.
Perera broke through as a singer with Sanda Midulata Enawa, and went on to record a string of songs that remain staples of Sinhala radio. His best-known recordings include Oba Dedunna Akasaye, Adare Ran Bigun, Dedena Perada and the city song Me Nagaraya Ma Oba Muna Gasunu Nagarayayi, written with lyricist Premakeerthi de Alwis.
Beyond his own voice, Mervin Perera was a prolific composer. He wrote music for many other singers, including more than two dozen songs for Nanda Malini, among them Ayanna Kiyanna Lowatama Asenna. He also composed for figures such as Victor Rathnayake, and worked closely with lyricists including Milton Mallawarachchi-era writers of his generation.
Mervin Perera died on 7 December 2008 in Colombo, after a career spanning more than four decades as performer, composer and teacher. His sons Amal and Rohan Perera continued in music. For listeners across the Sinhala diaspora, the songs of Mervyn Perera, especially Me Nagaraya and Pabasara Ran Pabalu, remain touchstones of an earlier, gentler era of Sri Lankan pop.
Every Sinhala lyric, composition, and song credit by Mervin Perera.
Performed by: Nanda Malani (නන්දා මාලනී)
Performed by: Mervin Perera (මර්වින් පෙරේරා)