The audience at Our Lady of Victory Church in Valletta was regaled with a dazzling classical guitar recital by the Franco-Israeli classical guitarist Liat Cohen, a rare treat by a musician rightly hailed as "the princess of the classical guitar". The concert, presented by Din l-Art Helwa to support the Victory church's Façade Fund, lasted some 75 minutes and consisted of a musical journey by a remarkable musician, an array of Spanish and South American (Argentinean, Brazilian and Venezuelan) composers, with the inclusion of Johann Sebastian Bach and the Russian Nikita Arnol'dovich Koshkin. Some of these works are indispensable in the repertoire of every guitarist.
Ms Cohen introduced the evening with Bach's (1685-1750) beautiful Prelude BWV998 in E flat major arranged for guitar. This was followed by the Brazilian Heitor Villa Lobos's (1887-1959) Prelude No.2 in E Major, the second of Five Preludes (1940), also known as Melodia capadócia (Capadocian Melody). Villa Lobos's rebellious spirit had led him to the street musicians of Rio de Janeiro in his youth, something which had a permanent effect on him, and the Melodia refers to a mischievous character of the Rio de Janeiro Carnival. The second Villa Lobos piece, Étude No.8 in C sharp minor, is one of the Douze Études composed in 1929. It was charming to watch the intense feeling that Liat Cohen infused in her superb and polished playing and how this reached to her audience.
Spanish works included Enrique Granados Campiña's (1867-1916) La Maja de Goya from the Tonadillas en estilo antiguo (1914), played with technical finesse, and three works by Francisco de Asís Tárrega y Eixea (1852-1909), considered as one of the greatest guitarists of all time. These included two original pieces for the guitar, Capricho Árabe and Recuerdos de la Alhambra, two lovely works of which Liat Cohen gave a flawless rendition, obtaining very warm applause and the Fantasía Sobre Motivos de La Traviata, a transcription of some arias from Giuseppe Verdi's (1813-1901) well-known oeuvre. Ms Cohen showed she was much at home in this lovely selection, infusing in her playing a rich, mellow and silken sound.
The Argentinean composer Ariel Ramírez (1921-2010), renowned for his unwavering efforts to bring his country's folk music to the widest possible public following the years spent absorbing the music of the Indios, Gauchos and Creoles, featured in the evening's programme with Alfonsina y el Mar (1991), inspired by the tragic death of the poet Alfonsina Storni who drowned, walking out to sea after writing her last poem, Voy a dormir (I'm going to sleep) - a deeply expressive composition performed with notable elegance.
Two virtuosic piezas - Passacaglia and Zapateado from Joaquín Rodrigo's (1901-1999) Tres Piezas Espanolas (1954) concluded the Spanish medley and confirmed what an exceptionally talented guitarist Ms Cohen is.
The South American selection included Antonio Lauro (1917-1986), a Venezuelan musician of Italian origin who was chiefly inspired by the 19th Century creation of Valses Venezolanos by talented national composers. Like other Latin American composers, he felt the need to keep alive the musical heritage of his country and was convinced that this genre could also encompass pieces for the guitar, although his first interests were the piano and the violin. Ms Cohen played one of the Cuatro ValsesHYPERLINK "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valses_venezolanos" Venezolano, which Lauro composed in 1938-40 when he was in Ecuador. This short Valse was impeccably executed.
The Usher Valse of the Russian composer Nikita Arnol'dovich Koshkin's (b.1956) refers to Edgar Allan Poe's short story, The Fall of the House of Usher, which, according to the Koshkin's biography, he read when he was 12, and was deeply struck by the episode where the protagonist, Roderick Usher, tries to improvise a waltz. Koshkin too was determined to compose a waltz in the Russian tradition, evocative of the death, decadence and decay that shrouded the Usher household. The listener is able to visualize Roderick Usher's internal conflict and suffering by the rhythmic speeding up and slowing down of the music.
Ms Cohen concluded her performance with the celebrated Asturias (Leyenda) by the Spanish pianist and composer Isaac Manuel Francisco Albéniz y Pascual (1860-1909), who was Tárrega's contemporary and friend. This piece was a favourite work of the famous guitarist Andrés Segovia and is considered by many as the archetypal Spanish guitar piece even though it was originally written for the piano. The title of the work is misleading for the composition is more akin to Andalucian culture than Asturian. Cohen displayed technical elegance and indisputable musicality. The audience showed its appreciation, clamouring for an encore which the guitarist conceded, concluding her performance with another Bach composition, the presto from the Sonata BWV 1001, the precise fingerwork enhancing the lovely musical phrasing and the ageless quality of Bach's music.
Before commencing her recital Ms Cohen said that she was very happy to be back in Malta and was very impressed by the beauty of the church of Our Lady of Victory. She also commented on how very pleased she was with the acoustics.
During the short interval, former Din l-Art Ħelwa chairperson Simone Mizzi explained that the project of restoration started in 2012 and is now in the final stages. She thanked the sponsors who have been instrumental in bringing the project to near completion and expressed the hope that the work would be finished by 2018.
Din l-Art Ħelwa merits our thanks for the sterling work it is doing towards the conservation of our national heritage, and particularly in its effort to complete the restoration in time for 2018 when Valletta will be the European Capital of Culture. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin is the first building of Valletta and is known as the Church of Our Lady of Victory as it was erected in thanksgiving to the Blessed Virgin by Grand Master Jean Parisot de Valette after his victory in the Great Siege of 1565.
Proceeds from this concert will go towards the restoration of the façade of the Victory Church, its belfry and its historic bells.
Donations can be made to the Din l-Art Ħelwa Victory Church Ac. No: 008-082166-001 either by Bank Transfer to: MT06MMEB44082000000008082166001 or by cheque to: Din l-Art Ħelwa, 133 Melita St, Valletta, VLT 1123.