The Malta Independent on Sunday
Strengthening the youth factor in the Three Palaces Festival
This November, Festivals Malta will be presenting the sixth edition of The Three Palaces Festival, a festival which has been steadily growing and engaging new audiences. This year’s edition will be focusing on attracting a younger generation of audiences with one of its main highlights being an opera aimed specifically for children, entitled ‘Il-Qtates ta' max-Xatt’, which will be held at the Maritime Museum. Based on a book written by Clare Azzopardi, and adapted as a score by talented young composer Euchar Gravina, under the direction of Denise Mulholland, this opera will also have special performances targeting the younger age groups.
Youth contribution in this festival will also include Charlene Farrugia, who is considered as the enfant terrible of the Maltese piano and an internationally renowned artiste in her own right. Her contribution to this year's edition of this festival will be a solo performance. Ian Ellul, violinst and member of the Malta Youth Orchestra and soprano Michaela Agius are also two more emerging youth exponents at this festival and this year, they will team up for a presentation of popular and less popular works at the Malta Society of Arts in Valletta.
The National Archeology Museum will host Maltese soprano Claire Debono, a graduate from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, who will be accompanied by pianist Gary Matthewman, as well as a concert by O Duo, who have kept a very youthful zest through their marimba and percussive presentations and moreover, their experiences abroad over the past two decades. The National Archeology Museum will also host The Stockholm Philharmonic Wind Quintet, as well as Phantasm, an award winning consort of viols, and Les Musiciens de Louvre, considered by The Guardian as one of the best orchestras in the world, as well as veteran, multi-talented musician Dominic Galea, who will be leading a jazz trio for this occasion.
The festival will also host the Koncz String Trio which pertains to the much revered Vienna and Berlin Philharmonic Orchestras. Their performance, which relates to its deep association with the history and tradition of European classical music will further add to this Festival’s own rich historical background.
The Three Palaces Festival is the main autumn festival organised by Festivals Malta and will run between the 2nd and the 11th of November.
For more information and to book tickets, please visit the festival’s official website - www.3palacesfestival.com