ARTISTS
Ophelia Ragtime Jazz Band
The orchestra was formed by Morten Gunnar Larsen, with the intention of playing
orchestrated arrangements of classic ragtime pieces, after he had heard The New Orleans
Ragtime Orchestra whilst studying in N.O. in the early seventies. Never a man to hurry his
projects, Morten managed to get the band playing concerts by 1977 - and not long afterwards
Ophelia had the pleasure of accompanying the then 94 year old Eubie Blake on a concert in
Oslo (unfortunately not recorded).
Gradually the band’s repertoire expanded to include other popular music from the beginning
of the last century and now includes 1920’s hot music, songs from early stage musicals,
vaudeville melodies, and waltz, tango, and novelty tunes.
The most recent development has been the inclusion of music from Brazil, the Caribbean, and
the famous (and notorious) cabarets of Weimar Republic Berlin (1918 - 1933).
In forming Ophelia, Morten has chosen professionals from a widely differing variety of
backgrounds- jazz, theatre, opera, and philharmonic orchestra. What they have in common is
their skill, flair, humour, and love of the music they play together.
The orchestra has
played at the
Edinburgh Jazz
Festival and toured
extensively in the
USA, in 1995,
1999, 2001, 2003
and 2005 giving
concerts in New
York, Seattle, New
Orleans, Kansas
City, Indianapolis,
Tulsa, Chicago,
Nevada City,
Columbia Mo, San
Francisco, Belmont,
Boulder Co, and
The annual Scott
Joplin Ragtime
Festival in Sedalia, Mo.
Within the last few years the orchestra has worked on a series of ‘theme’ concerts,
highlighting various composers, or works, including: Eubie Blake (Memories of Eubie)
George Gershwin, Kurt Weill (Berlin to Broadway) and of course, Joplin’s Treemonisha.
In the Mississippi Rag poll 1999 Ophelia was voted world's best ragtime orchestra.
Nora Brockstedt
is a successful Norwegian singer, born on 20 January 1923. She first entered a professional
stage at the age of 20, namely the highly reputed Chat Noir in Oslo. During the next two
decades, she managed to become one of Norway's most famous and beloved singers and
entertainers. Throughout the 1950s she had
several sing-along radio hits, including "En
liten pike i lave sko", "Augustin", and "Tango
for to". In the years 1950 to 1954, she was a
member of the six-member group The Monn
Keys, which also included Arne Bendiksen and
Egil Monn-Iversen. Brockstedt holds a
reputation as one of the most prominent Alf
Prøysen interpreters.
Brockstedt represented Norway in the
Eurovision Song Contest 1960 and 1961, with
the memorable songs "Voi-voi" and "Sommer i
Palma".
Over the last few years, Nora has tuned into the
jazz genre, with successful albums like As Time Goes By (2004) and Christmas Songs
(2005).
Dusdi Banomyong Buntasnakul
Soprano and voice coach since 1975.
Dusdi graduated from the Central Conservatory of
Music, Beijing. She went on studying at the Royal
College of Music in London. Her credits include
Humperdinck’s work, “Hansel und Gretel” as a
leading performer, Bizet’s “Carmen”. She has
performed as a lead vocalist with Bangkok Symphony
Orchestra and was a narrator for Prokofiev’s work,
“Peter and the Wolf”. She has performed several
times with the Royal Thai Navy Orchestra.
Dusdi gives singing lesson and lecture about her
famous topic “Music that develops the quality of
Life”
Magazine Lifestyle Asia published in
Hong Kong in November 1989, refer her as a Diva of Asia “ Life , to this
artist and teacher , is one continuous melody.”
Magazine Opera Now
published in the UK in July/August 2001said
“Dusdi Banomyong Veteran Thai singer ,sang the britches role of the god
Sudeva from Somtow Sucharitkul opera “Madana” with
profound
musicianship.”
Pathorn Srikaranonda
began his musical training at an early age at the Siam Yamaha Music
School in Bangkok and received scholarships from HM the King of
Thailand to study music abroad. He received his BMus, MMus, and
PhD degrees in composition from the University of Michigan at Ann
Arbor, Yale University, USA, and the University of Edinburgh, UK
respectively. Among his teachers are composers William Albright,
William Bolcom, Jacob Druckman, and Nigel Osborne;
saxophonists Donald Sinta, John Sampen, and Paul Cohen;
clarinetists Robert McDowell, Deborah Chodacky, and Lawrence
MacDonald.
Dr. Srikaranonda performs frequently both in Thailand and abroad.
He has appeared with many noted orchestras such as the National
Symphony Orchestra, the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra, and
l’Orchestre National de Lille in France. In 1999, he and his father
released an album featuring his own and his father’s jazz compositions for Polygram label
which he played the soprano and alto saxophones, and sang in it. It was followed by another
album performing the music of the Thai National Artist Dame Puangroy Apaiwongse,
featuring him playing the alto saxophone, clarinet, and trumpet. In 2000, many of his pop
songs were featured in Plön Pleng Prarachataan, a four-volume set album of HM the
Queen’s recent commissions. Pathorn also performed with many noted jazz musicians
including J. J. Johnson, Urbie Green, Gary Burton, Benny Carter, Jimmy Heath, Milt Hinton
and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band.
Although began his undergraduate career as a saxophone-performance major at the University
of Michigan, after a successful premiere of his composition Life of Christ at Oberlin
Conservatory of Music in 1991, Dr. Srikaranonda quickly attracted notice from the then Head
of Composition Department, William Albright, who offered him a place of admission to the
composition program. With Prof. Albright’s encouragement, Life of Christ was published by
Dorn Publications, Massachusetts the following year. In 1996, his composition Quintett für
Klavier und Streichquartett was composed at the request from the German Embassy and
Goethe Institut in Thailand to commemorate the 140th anniversary of friendship between the
two countries. It was premiered by the Corda Quartet with pianist Indhuon Srikaranonda
before HRH the Crown Prince of Thailand and HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha. In October
1997, he composed a song cycle Fonram…Baimairuang (Weeping Rain…Falling Leaves) by
the Royal Command of HM the Queen of Thailand as a requiem for those who perished in a
helicopter accident the previous month. Its premiere was given in January 1998 at the Royal
Command Performance before HM the Queen. In that same year, he was invited to represent
Thailand in Five Lyra World Festival (Olympic of Music) held in Budapest, Hungary where
his Portrait of Siam for Alto Saxophone and Piano was premiered with critical acclaims.
Recently, he had completed his first opera, Ngau P’a, adapting the libretto from HM King
Chulalongkorn’s dance-drama of the same name. While working on this monumental project,
Pathorn developed a new system in Thai-language transliteration method along with the socalled Neo-Siamese Tonality composition technique. It has been adopted by many of his
fellow Thai composers. In 2006, his most recent work, E se mais mundo houvera, lá
chegara… for Baritone, Chorus and Orchestra was commissioned by the Portuguese Embassy
in Bangkok and is dedicated to all the Diáspora Portuguesa around the world and in honor of
HM the King’s 60th anniversary of his accession to the throne. This is the first time that a nonPortuguese compose a piece based on Camões’ monumental epic poem, Os Lusíadas. It was
world-premiered before HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn with critical acclaims on the
Portuguese National Day Concert with the virtuoso baritone, Korawij Devahastin na
Ayudhya, the Chorus of the AMA Studio, and Orquestra “Dia de Portugal”, conducted by the
composer.
Dr. Srikaranonda is a recipient of numerous awards such as Band Award from the Interlochen
Center for the Arts, Michigan; Best Jazz Improvisation from the Collegiate Jazz Festival,
Indiana; Best Jazz Performance from the Tri C Jazz Festival, Cleveland, Ohio; and the 1998
Lyra Prize from the Foundation for Hungarian Performing Arts. In 2003, the City of Los
Angeles awarded him the Certificate of Commendation in recognition of his accomplishments
and achievements throughout the years. In January 2005, the Prime Minister awarded him the
Certificate of Commendation in recognition to his contributions to society.
Dr. Srikaranonda has been a visiting/guest lecturer at many universities and institutions
around the country including Chulalongkorn, Mahidol, and Thammasat Universities. He is a
founding member of Silpakorn University’s Faculty of Music, and is the founder of the
Rangsit University Conservatory of Music where he also served as its first dean.
Presently, Dr. Srikaranonda resides permanently in Bangkok where he is an active member of
HM the King’s Au-Sau Ensemble. He is a council member of Ministry of Culture’s Institute
of Art Advancement (Sataban Pundit Patanasin) and is a member of the Board of Committees
of Mahasarakam University’s Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts. He also serves as a
committee member to numerous governmental boards including one commission to revise the
National and Royal Anthems.
Teeranai Na Nongkai
Born in 1976 in a family of musicians, and began her
music education at the age of 4 and, at 16, obtained
her grade 7th piano certificate with merit from Trinity
College of Music, London. At the age of 15, her
hidden gems in singing was unveiled when she
started her singing lesson with Khun Anuchid
Nanthakowa, and later passed the 8th grade
examination with merit from Guildhall School of
Music and Drama.
Despite receiving her bachelor and master degree in
Linguistic from Thammasat University and Mahidol
University respectively, Teeranai had been much
better know to the public of her performance in
singing and musical plays Her early works include
“Fairy Tales” and “The Sound of Christmas” charity
concerts by S&P. She also served as the country’s
representative in a number of overseas cultural
promotion trip. Moreover, she has regularly
performed with Thailand’s prominent classical band such as The Bangkok Symphony
Orchestra and The Royal navy Orchestra. Her crystal voice was dubbed for thai language
songs and voices of lead characters of the Disney Company’s “Pocahontas” and the Warner
Brother’s “Prince of Egypt” cartoon movies. For Thai productions, among other recording,
she sang the title songs of “Dao Long Fa, Pu Pha si Ngern” and “Kasat-tariya” TV series.
Despite her performance and extensive works in musical arena, Teeranai is always in constant
quest to expand her knowledge and experience in other different fields. At least one paid off
handsomely. In 2002, she joined the Miss Thailand’s beauty pageant. She won both her
place in the last ten runner-ups and the “Miss Personality”
title for that year.
Teeranai’s most outstanding and best-known performing
work so far is her most recent role of the strong-willed
“Aungsumalin” in Bangkok Playhouse’s “Ku Kam, the
musical” during late 2003 to early 2004. The show’s
craftmanship and Teeranai’s talent interpretation of such
complicated role have won praises from Thailand’s leading
presses and commentators as “The Future Hope of Thai
Musicals”.
Other than her regular appearance in the country’s prominent
musical events, Teeranai now works as a singing instructor at
Grammy’s MIFA school of music in Sukhumvit 39. She is
called be her students with her nickname as “Khru
Nummon”.
Songsit Lertsethtakarn
Was born in Thailand. He had his first music
lessons at the age of 19, and got his Bachelor of
Arts in Western Music with 2nd class honours in
1997 from Kasetsart University, Bangkok,
Thailand, where he majored in singing, studying
with Mrs. Dusdi Banomyong Buntasanakul. In the
same year, Songsit passed the examination to
receive the performer’s certificate from Trinity
College, London.
After a year as a music teacher at Rung Arun
School and a guest teacher at the Department of
Western Music at Kasetsart University, Songsit
went to Norway to further his studies at Toneheim
Music Academy for 1 year, followed by 3 years in
the performing programme at the University of
Stavanger. In 2002 he was accepted for studies at
the Royal Danish Academy of Music (DKDM) in
Copenhagen under The NordPlus scholarship
exchange programme, where he studied with Mrs.
Else Paaske. Since his graduation from DKDM in 2003, he has been studying singing
privately with Mr. Anthony Rolfe Johnson in London regularly till now. He has also been
coached by Professor Sigmund Hjelset of The Norwegian State Academy of Music in Oslo.
Songsit has performed several concerts during his studies in Norway and Denmark. He made
his opera debut in Stavanger, in Mozart’s The Magic Flute in the College production. In 2003
he performed as soloist in concerts with Oslo Chorale Selskap. In 2005 Songsit has
performed several concerts with Birgit Elfving (piano) and Rønnaug Bakke (sopran) during
the summer and autumn, such as Music Festival in Egersund, Stavanger Concert House,
Sofienberg Church during the Euro Pride, etc. Earlier in 2005, Songsit made a concert tour in
Thailand with Professor Sigmund Hjelset. Beside his solo career he became a member of
Oslo Kammerkor in the beginning of 2006.