Creative Spotlight | Abby Jayasuriya
Published on 14 December 2020
Tell us a bit about who you are and what kind of creative work you make
I am a vision impaired musician, guide dog handler and Assistive Technology specialist. I compose indie pop songs and prefer bare and real instrumentation, focusing on the piano and my classically trained vocals. I have a Sri Lankan background and grew up listening to a lot of this music, but I mainly listened to alternative rock bands and especially liked the ones that use a lot of piano, like Jack’s Mannequin. While my voice isn’t suitable to rock, I still like to emulate the vibe of indie rock and indie bands.
Where can we find out more about your work and get in touch? Please provide links to website or social media
https://www.youtube.com/@abbyjayasuriya6694
Can you share your experience living with a disability and how music has impacted or transformed your life?
Music was a huge part of my life as I wasn’t always able to get out of the home and experience new things like my friends did. So music was my form of entertainment and playing or composing it was just as satisfying as listening to it. I could spend hours memorising classical music and could never get bored, unlike my friends when they were stuck at home on rainy days!
What did you learn from participating in the Ryde Shine Ability Competition? Did it have a meaningful impact on your life? If so, how?
I learned a lot about how people with different disabilities can learn to adapt to their situation and to their performance talents, and this was awesome to witness. It had a major impact on my life as I was finally able to record a song that has been left in the shadows for almost a decade.
What are your top three pieces of advice for this year’s candidates?
Back yourself, keep trying if you don’t succeed this time, and if you feel you need improvement, find a really good teacher that you jell superbly with, as that’s really important if you are to learn from them.
Are there any special processes, techniques or tools you use to make your creative work?
I like to start really simple, just using my piano or ukulele. In the past use to write something and then score it in Sibelius, a music notation software. I have recently purchased a new iPad and am hoping to experiment with Logic Pro and its new AI-based tools.
What creative project are you working on at the moment?
I have recently recorded a song my sister and I wrote together a decade ago, called Toxic Love. It’s been amazing to rekindle this creative gem and to hear that the song still sounds fresh and relevant today, being written in a simple style and with lyrics that almost anyone can relate to.
Do you have any top tips for emerging artists and creatives just starting out?
My journey as a musician has been one of growth. I always had a nice voice but didn’t develop great technique until I was finishing off Uni. I learned a lot from my last vocal teacher who is now a close friend. She has a very broad-minded perspective on teaching and showed me a wholistic approach to my singing. This involved having the correct posture, being fit, being hydrated and avoiding drying substances before performances like coffee and alcohol. So by making simple lifestyle changes like managing my allergies better, drinking herbal teas and doing yoga, I started to see unexpected improvements. She also taught me that it is OK to have bad days, and that I should respect what my body and mind are going through at any given point because this is likely to affect my singing. So whatever your performance style is, make sure you look after yourself from the inside out and you may just be surprised by the results!