Music of Sri Lanka - Folk Music

Folk Music

There are sets of folk poems (kavi) unique to members of different castes (farmers, cart drivers, miners, etc.). These originated as a way to pass time for the individual groups as they engaged in their work. Today, they are sung as a form of cultural expression.

Kavi also exists that accompany folk rituals. The rituals are rarely performed today but the songs survive among folk musicians.

Another traditional Sri Lankan folk style is called the virindu. It involves an improvised poem sung to the beaten melody of a rabana. In the past there were contests in which two virindu singers would compete with verse.