As part of this season's Teatru Manoel BOV Opera Week, Teatru Manoel presents a concert by Maltese soprano Miriam Gauci with the Goldberg Ensemble conducted by Michael Laus on 10th March at 7.30pm at St. Augustine's Church, Valletta.
The programme includes Church Sonatas K67, K328, K336, Quere superna K143, Tantum ergo K142, Agnus Dei from Coronation Mass K317, Offertorium pro festo Stii Ioanni Baptistae, K72, Te Deum K141, Miserere K85 and Ave verum corpus K618.
Mozart's sacred music presents a rich stylistic mosaic: Gregorian choral elements, as in the early Miserere, alternate with rigorous counterpoint, as in the final section of the short but succinct Te Deum. Even operatic elements can sometimes emerge. The soprano aria, Quære superna, is a typical operatic aria, complete with cadenza. Keen ears will discern snatches of Don Giovanni's aria Fin ch'han del vino in the Church Sonata K336. The Agnus Dei from the Coronation Mass was to develop into Porgi amor, the first aria of the Countess in Le nozze di Figaro. The Offertorium pro festo Stii Ioanni Baptistæ was composed for the feast of St John the Baptist on June 24th, 1771, when Mozart was only fourteen. A much later work, the motet Ave verum corpus was written six months before the composer's death, while he was working on Die Zauberflöte. An iconic composition, it is the only work being performed in this concert that was written after Mozart had left Salzburg and settled in Vienna.
Mozart's Sacred Music (10th March) is part of the Teatru Manoel Opera Week which is being dedicated to the memory of Maestro Joseph Vella.
The Opera Week includes Don Giovanni (5th, 7th, 9th, 11th March) and concerts by renowned pianist Vassilis Varvaresos (6 th March) and Flute in Opera concert with flutist Rebecca Hall and pianist Lucia Micallef (8th March) at the Manoel. There are discounted tickets for those attending the opera and these other three events. Booking is from www.teatrumanoel.com.mt, telephone 2124 6389.