The Cartography of Culture Zones

This chapter criticizes the “cartography of culture zones”—the standard way cultural history is described in Sri Lanka—which locates traditional cultures in ethnically defined, regionally based culture zones. First, the chapter expands on the book’s previous exploration of Sinhala and Tamil musics by introducing the musics of Sri Lankan Muslims (an ethnic and religious category), Christians (a heterogenous religious category), Burghers (Eurasians), Kaffirs (Sri Lankans of African descent), and Väddas (the indigenous population). The chapter argues that scholars tend to adopt the European-derived idea that music belongs distinctly to humans with cultural histories rigidly demarcated along ethnic, religious, and regional lines. The chapter then traces histories of musical connection between Sri Lankan communities and culture zones. All the same, the chapter avoids debunking Sinhala Buddhist music as “Hindu” in character (a mistake of colonial era scholarship). The chapter respects difference while arguing for the importance in the Sri Lankan public sphere of recognizing connections.

Beravā Secrecy and the Hoarding of Musical Gifts

This chapter provides an introduction to Sinhala Buddhist music-making, focusing on the domain of drumming in religious ritual. These genres, with their accompanying dances, have become the most esteemed traditional music genres in Sri Lanka. The chapter also considers the ways that nationalism has influenced the use and placement of these genres, discussing a riot that broke out when Sinhala students agitated for Sinhala drumming to be performed at the head of a graduation ceremony at the Tamil-dominated University of Jaffna. The chapter provides basic information on drumming for the caste of drummers, dancers, and ritualists called the Beravā, and discusses the life and work of my drum teacher, a performer of the low-country Sinhala drum (pahata rata beraya, yak beraya).