The Malta Independent on Sunday
A calming pleasure
To be taught singing by soprano Miriam Cauchi must be quite a treat. From her achievements and what I know of her she must be dedicated and a passionate artistic director and vocal coach.
I was delighted to be invited to a concert at San Anton Palace by singers from the Johann Strauss School of Music. Most of the time we go and listen to well-established musicians and I was therefore so glad that these enthusiastic young people were given a chance to perform in these elegant surroundings.
The line up that evening was four sopranos: Maria Eleonora Schembri, Dorothy Bezzina, Marisa Galea and Yanika Degiorgio; Baritone Ivan Vella and two pianists: Ramona Zammit Formosa and Maria-Elena Farrugia.
They sang arias from Puccini, Rossini, Bizet, Mozart, Bellini and Schubert, Donizetti, and Herbert’s I want to be a Primadonna, a light and pleasant interlude.
There were also three songs in Maltese from Mill-Qamar salQabar written by composer Alex Vella Gregory, which won the audience’s hearts. This is a song cycle for soprano and piano which brings together different Maltese literary texts from the Arab Period till the Second World War. It consists of eight songs by different authors some of which are not well-known. The title reflects the two important historical events that frame these poems.
The moon is a symbol of Islamic culture, which opens this cycle whilst the grave refers to WWII which caused both physical and psychological deaths in Maltese culture. They are also recorded on CD entitled Reflessi, sung by Miriam Cauchi.
I have to admit that I am no great lover of modern or contemporary music but these songs took me by surprise and I had to go and hug Alex Vella Gregory at the end of the concert. Like several others he was an Ian Tomlin Foundation scholar and did so well in Edinburgh.
I thought it a pity that there were no notes about this young composer or about the three songs in the programme.
Which music lover’s heart doesn’t beat when listening to Puccini’s Quando me’n vo from La Bohème? Puccini was admired by a loyal and passionate public in Italy and beyond. He still is.
The story goes that he had a clear perception of his musical talent when he listened to Verdi’s Aїda in 1876. His operas filled the theatres and still do so.
Even though his reputation was immense, the Maestro always preferred to withdraw to Versilia, at Torre del Lago where he had moved in 1891. In these beautiful surroundings Puccini could go hunting and receive friends and colleagues for meetings that could also be culinary. There was plenty of game around his country house including wild boar.
Rossini’s La pastorella delle Alpi from Les Soirées musicales was delightfully light, à la Rossini.
The young Gioachino, who narrowly escaped castration suggested by an uncle who admired his voice, devoted himself, body and soul, to music studies.
Rossini was legendary for the speed at which he could write an opera, once saying, ‘Give me a laundry list, and I will set it to music.’
Quick he may have been. But that didn’t always mean that he delivered everything on time. The Overture to The Thieving Magpie was overdue and the opera’s promoters reportedly had to lock Rossini in a room to force him to get it done. He is said to have thrown each sheet out of the window as it was finished in order that the copyists might get it to the orchestra on time.
How much easier our lives are today with word processors, computers and photocopiers!
It is unfortunate that although biographies of those participating at San Anton were extensive and very useful, however, there was no indication as to which aria each singer was going to sing. And of course I have forgotten.
Being an addict of nostalgia the finale was very much appreciated not only by me but by the audience, too. As encore the singers gave us a wonderful surprise when they came out and sang altogether Non Ti Scordar di me composed by the Neapolitan Ernesto De Curtis who has writ- ten other popular songs among them Torna a Surriento which dates back to 1902 with his brother, Gianbattista.
Others which have retained their popularity for well over a century are Voce ‘e notte, Tu ca nun chiagne and Ti voglio tanto bene.
It was glorious music throughout thanks to Miriam and her students. Here’s hoping we shall have more concerts from our one and only School of Music set up by the Austrians when Mr Mintoff was prime minister. He also did some good things for Malta. Besides given dignity to the common man by setting up social services the School of Music was certainly one of his babies.
Au Revoir Astrid!
Astrid Vella is moving on to greener pastures, following her husband’s appointment to a new position in the United States. Love her or hate her, it can’t be denied that in the 11 years that she has led Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar, FAA has imprinted plan-
We have Astrid to thank for the fact that we still have pristine settings at Ramla l-Hamra and Munxar in the south of Malta, that we can still enjoy the tree canopy at Salina and it-Tokk (just!), that St John’s Cathedral isn’t full of cracks due to the insane project to dig a museum four floors down beneath the piazza there; that the heritage house beneath the Cittadella has been spared from demolition, and that the gardens of the wonderful Baroque palazzi in HalGhaxaq have not been replaced by more monstrous blocks of flats – just to mention a handful of successful FAA cases that come to mind.
So while I hope that Astrid gets a well-deserved rest in the States, in her absence we need to be aware that we all have to pull our weight to save our own environment and priceless heritage that makes Malta so special.