The President and Mrs Fenech Adami will be hosting a concert by The Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) Band and the popular folkloristic group Nafra, on Friday 17 August in the grounds of Verdala Palace. All proceeds from this concert will be going towards the Malta Community Chest Fund.
Various pieces from the AFM Band’s wide repertoire, which vary from military marches to classical and popular music, will complement the unique sound of the ethnic prototypes, which are synonymous with Nafra, on the night. Both the AFM Band and Nafra will be performing alternatively. However, the culmination of the night will be a joint session with both groups interacting to provide some scintillating music through popular songs.
The AFM Band, under the baton of its Director of Music, Lieutenant John Ivan Borg, has a complement of forty-three musicians. It performs on a regular basis during national events. The Band holds also, on numerous occasions, frequent displays and programmes all over the island to entertain the locals as well as tourists. During these last years, it had also represented Malta in various festivals and military tattoos held overseas, such as in Monchengladbach and Bremen (Germany), Agrigento (Sicily), Modena (Italy), Breda (Holland), as well as very recently in Brussels (Belgium) and St Petersburg (Russia).
On the other hand, Nafra, lead by Ruben Zahra, is an acoustic ensemble featuring traditional Maltese instruments: zaqq (bagpipe), zummara (reed pipe), flejguta (cane flute), zafzafa (friction drum) and tanbur (frame drum). Nafra is also very active on the local platform and has been invited to perform abroad in Portugal, Spain, Germany, Tunisia and Hong Kong.
Verdala Palace will be set up specifically for the night, creating an atmosphere which complements the show. The concert will commence at 8.15pm. As from 17 July, tickets may be obtained from the The Palace, Valletta on 2123 1350, St James Cavalier, Valletta on 2122 3216 or email: [email protected] and AFM Headquarters, Luqa on 2167 8102/2249 4007 or email: [email protected]. Verdala Palace will be open for viewing after the show.