Bank of Valletta is supporting Intimate Letters, a series of six concerts in auberges and palaces, organised by the St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity, that links the intimate letters of famous composers with their music. This is the second year that the series Intimate Letters has been staged, following the

success of the first series.

The first concert of the series for 2007 was held at Auberge de Castille last Thursday, and featured a selection of Giuseppe Verdi’s operatic arias for bass, sung by Noel Galea and the String Quartet in E minor by the ProMuzika Ensemble, featuring Sarah Spiteri and Roberta Attard on violin, Stephen Zammit on viola and Yaroslav Miklukho on cello.

Bank of Valletta head of PR, communications and corporate branding Michael Galea presented the bank’s sponsorship to Sarah Spiteri, coordinator of the events, in the presence of St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity general manager Chris Grech.

Speaking during the presentation, Mr Galea said: “Bank of Valletta is delighted to participate in this project that will see Maltese musicians and artists performing the works of great composers for the Maltese public. Bank of Valletta maintains a strong support for local cultural initiatives, which are also combined with our local heritage, as the concerts are held at historical landmarks in our islands.”

Ms Spiteri thanked Bank of Valletta for its support and said: “Over the last few years we have experienced a strong resurgence in interest for cultural activities in Malta. These high quality performances by artists with a proven track record, also aim to open the doors to venues which are not generally accessible to the general public, such as Auberge de Castille and Palazzo Girgenti”

The other concerts in the series will present works by Shostakovich in February at the Manoel Theatre, Janacek in March at the Auberge d’Italie, Brahms & Schumann in May at the Auberge d’Italie, and Chopin in June and Mozart in July at the Palazzo Girgenti.