Local singer Sarbani Maitra recently placed in four local singing eisteddfods including the Bundaberg Eisteddfod, The Wynnum-Manly Eisteddfod, Quota Beenleigh, and the highly coveted QMTA Vocal Competition at the UQ School of Music.
At the QMTA Vocal Competition Novice section for 13 and unders, Sarbani took home first place in Musical Theatre, second place in Sacred Song, and third place in the Australian Open and English Art song sections
Sarbani said winning with the musical theatre item was a highlight for her, because it was a category she had previously felt less confident in.
“It was a comedic piece – it was “I Can’t Say No” from Oklahoma. It’s about this girl who can’t resist boys … it was fun to portray that character, even though I’m not anything like her,” she said.
“I’ve seen a big improvement in my acting skills and my singing skills, so it was great to go out and show everyone the improvement that I’ve made, and prove to myself that I can be courageous onstage and give the audience a good laugh.”
At the recent Wynnum Eisteddfod, Sarbani was awarded one gold, two silver and two bronze medals in a total of eight sections for vocal and instrumental, including 1st in flute and 2nd in violin.
At the Bundaberg eisteddfod she received a total of six awards overall out of eight sections.
She also placed third in the Quota Beenleigh eisteddfod in the McDonald’s Songbird Bursary section, despite competing for the first time as one of the youngest performers in the 13+ age category.
Sarbani’s mother Debbie Maitra said Sarbani started singing when she was young and had developed a very good classical base, which helped her to master many styles of singing.
“She loves singing; from a very young age and she would sing herself to sleep. As she’s been growing up, music is her stress relief,” she said.
Mrs Maitra said Sarbani was proud to attend St John’s Anglican College where her love for music has been acknowledged throughout the years.
“She has been the Primary Music Champion at the school for 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2020,” she said.
Sarbani takes singing lessons with Anita Parakh-Morgan from Diva Productions, flute lessons with Jennifer Tsai at the school, and violin lessons with Liz Young.
