Verdi - Nabucco - Va, Pensiero (Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves) | Soul Sounds Academy Children’s Choir

Performed at the Junior Symphony Orchestra (JSO) in Concert — sponsored by the Earle De Fonseka Trust on 10th November 2025, the award-winning Soul Sounds Academy Children’s Choir, directed by Soundarie David Rodrigo and assisted by Shivanthi Subramaniam: delivered a stirring and unforgettable rendition of the timeless chorus “Va, pensiero (Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves).” Each chorister poured exceptional musicality, phrasing, and heartfelt expression into the performance, beautifully evoking the chorus’s themes of exile, memory, and the yearning for home.

The Junior Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Dushyanthi Perera, provided a lush, emotionally resonant accompaniment that supported and elevated the choir’s voices, bringing Giuseppe Verdi’s moving anthem to life with warmth and dramatic sweep.

🎵 “Va, pensiero” — often called the Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves — was composed by Giuseppe Verdi for his 1842 opera Nabucco. The piece captures the anguish and nostalgic longing of an exiled people and has long been celebrated both for its lyrical beauty and its association with ideals of freedom and national identity.

Choristers of the Soul Sounds Academy Children’s Choir (Order as mentioned in the souvenir):

Yesandi Haputantri
Adhineshvar Sandesh
⁠Asheni Ananth
⁠Amraise Wijesinghe
Layaana Ratnayake
Ranu Gunawardena
Blessing ramaneshwara
Kaeyara Zufer
⁠Jehan Perera
Amber La Brooy
⁠Skyanne Hakel-Zufer
Dulara Gunawardana
Hirun Deepaja Samarathunga
Minuli Samarawickrama
⁠Aanya Amarasekera
Shayuni Weerasinghe
⁠Deana Rajapakse
⁠Navya Ganegoda
Richella Gomez
Tenuki Gomez
Akain Vonal Fernando
⁠Yonaara Weragama
⁠Pravaara Weragama
Sanithi Perera
⁠Prajna Hariharan
⁠Darya Kumarasiri
Ranudi Ganepola
⁠Miheli Kumarage
Lithmi Kannangara
⁠Risith Warusawitharana
Rishane Fernando
⁠Chenaya Premaratne
Rithushi Karunadharma
Keyah Ruberu
Aaden Juriansz
Amora Alazne Balthzaar
⁠Sasha Gunathilake
⁠Nethali Jayasinghe
Indigo Vedamanikkam
⁠Dinushika Tillekeratne
⁠Liyana Kulasena
⁠Diyana Kulasena
Senithi Bandara
Zoe Jayawardena
⁠Sithu Cooray
⁠Sanuli Cooray
Yaara de Zoysa
⁠Ishika Jayasinghe
⁠Sashia Corea
Liyara Munasinghe
Blessing Ramaneshwara
Keily Tissera
⁠Thuhansa Ratnapala
⁠Raya Ratnapala

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This performance celebrated music’s unique power to summon memory, unite performers and audience, and remind us of shared longings for home and freedom. A profoundly moving moment in JSO in Concert that left the audience hushed and uplifted.

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