Famous pianist Sandaya Tin Win Hlaing passes away at 77

Academy Awards winner pianist U Tin Win Hlaing passed away at 1:20 am on 14 July.
The 77-year-old pianist died of lung and kidney diseases at Royal Asia Hospital in Yangon.
He lived at No 218/B (5) A on Pyay Road, Myaynigon (South) Ward, Sangyoung Township, Yangon.
“Ba Ba, I wish I could be your nephew that you love most in the next life,” singer Aung Aye Chit, nephew of the deceased pianist posted on his Facebook.
Pianist U Tin Win Hlaing won the first academy award for Best Background Music in “Kyel Sin Maw Kun” movie at the 2013 Myanmar Academy Awards and the second one for Best Background Music in “40 Days in Kunlong” at the 2017 Myanmar Academy Awards.
He was born of U Myo Hlaing and Daw Tin Thin Hlaing, owners of the Padaytha Gramophone House and Tailoring Company opened at No 618 on Maha Bandoola Road, formerly Dalhousie Road, in 1946. He is the second child out of three siblings.
“At that time, although there were foreign-owned gramophone companies earlier than Padaytha, the Padaytha was the one owned by Myanmar citizens,” he said during an interview with The Myanmar Times in 2017. He attended Yangon Arts and Sciences University from 1967 to 1978 and got his Master’s degree majoring in Myanmar. He was an alumnus of St. Paul’s School.
He married singer Kyi Kyi Win and had two daughters. He was a member of the classic/modern music board of MRTV, a member of education board at the National University of Arts and Culture (Yangon) and a part-time professor for a post-graduate diploma course for Music.
He started learning to play the piano at the apartment on 42nd street where the Padaytha family lived in. His piano teacher was Maung Chit Swe, a musical prodigy Pianist Chit Swe.
He learnt to play the piano at 5 and won many prizes in competitions at 13. He served as an assistant for Alinka Kyawswa Saya Shwe Pyi Aye in recording soundtracks for movies at 18 and was named Sandaya Tin Win Hlaing later. He played the piano with Playboy, LPJ and Electronic Machine bands spending about 20 years in the stereo field, and introduced Myanmar traditional music to international countries. He taught Myanmar music at the Tokyo Art University of Japan. He also played music and delivered speeches at Music Universities in Japan and England. He made his own tune Myanmar classical song and the “Chan Myae Par Say” song received the greatest achievement.
The piano icon’s funeral will be held at the Yeway Cemetery at 2 pm on 16 July. — Soe San Ko/GNLM