The virtuoso Russian pianist, Yury Rozum, played for us at the Russian Embassy in Kappara last month. I have been to the embassy several times over the years and enjoyed their hospitality  but never to the intimate concert hall where the recital was held that evening.

This was a recital after my own heart as when all is said and done my favourite instrument is the piano. I enjoy listening to it more than I enjoy anything else. An evening after my own heart too as Chopin and Rachmaninov were prominent on the programme.

The concert was in the framework of the concert series - Russian Classics and supported by the European Foundation for Support of Culture. It was naturally also supported by the Embassy itself and the Russian Centre for Science and Culture.

The pianist Yury Rozum glowed and sparkled as he immersed himself - and us - into three Nocturnes by Chopin which were followed by Bacarolle in F-sharp major, Op. 60 and then, as the audience sat breathless and mesmerized he went on to play three of Chopin's waltzes. We sat there not believing our luck that all that Chopin was being played with such ease and virtuosity by a pianist who had not only received a medal of People's Honored Artist of Russia but who had been placed within that country's list of 'Top Ten Classical Musicians in Russia'.

As to Chopin who doesn't  love his music which is easy on the ear and on the heart. Talking about heart you may recall that as Frederic Chopin gasped for air on his deathbed in Paris in 1849, he whispered a request that became the stuff of musical legend: Remove my heart after I die and entomb it in Poland. He was, after all, half Polish. He wanted the symbol of his soul to rest in peace in the native land he pined for from self-imposed exile in France.

Ever since, the composer's body has rested in peace at the famed Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris - while his heart has endured a wild journey of intrigue and adulation.

First it was sealed in a jar of liquor believed to be cognac. Then it was smuggled into Warsaw past Russian border guards. Once in his hometown, Chopin's heart passed through the hands of several relatives before being enshrined within a pillar in Holy Cross Church. During World War II, it briefly fell into the clutches of the Nazis. It has been exhumed several times.

Chopin's heart inspires a deep fascination in Poland normally reserved for the relics of saints. For Poles, Chopin's nostalgic compositions capture the national spirit - and the heart's fate is seen as intertwined with Poland's greatest agonies and triumphs over nearly two centuries of foreign occupation, warfare and liberation. Chopin is extremely special for the Polish soul.

A Russian pianist  is bound to play music by a Russian composer and Yury Rozum chose works by Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943) another musical giant. He is not only a fine composer but in his day was a fine conductor and magnificent concert pianist. He was tall and had large hands. He could stretch over twelve piano keys from the tip of his little finger to the tip of his thumb which is around four keys more than average. No wonder some of his piano pieces are fiendishly difficult to play by those with 'normal' hands.

I was hoping the pianist would play what is perhaps the best known Rachmaninov composition: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. But it was not to be. We did however, enjoy two beautiful preludes and the Etude-Tableaux in E-flat major, Op. 33, No. 7.

Alexey Shor seems to be a contemporary composer.  I have never heard of him but the three pieces chosen by the pianist were easy on the ear:  moody, mellow and appealing. I am not a great fan of contemporary music I have to say. I prefer the familiar and at this stage of my life would rather spend an evening listening to music I know and love instead of something new. But Shor fitted into this recital very well.

Yury Rozum was so generous with his encores: he gave us four of them, one of them Op 7 III the Pas de deux from the Nutcracker. I had never heard it played on the piano alone for it was composed for the orchestra.  I believe the pianist transcribed it for the piano himself. It was splendid.

Afterwards, the pianist who had come to Malta before mingled with the guests. Quite a spread had been laid out out round the fountain and made it even more of a pleasant evening.

Short stories from Malta

I want to say a few words about this book as I consider it to be somewhat special. How many Maltese have had their work accepted for publication in Britain with the cost borne by the publisher? We are not talking of vanity publishing here where the author bears the cost.

Godwin Francis Bugeja's  Short Stories from Malta  was accepted for publication by Janus Publishing in Cambridge. Quite a feat in my book. Mr Bugeja comes from a family of ten and his mother lived to the age of 102, he tells me. His teaching career spanned over 40 years, teaching English and history from primary to senior level, attaining the position of Head of School. He was later promoted to Inspector of Adult Education. Once he retired Mr Bugeja continued teaching English to refugees and migrants from south Sahara and Maghreb nations. He still teaches English to foreign students who come to Malta from all over Europe for that purpose.

His other major activity is writing. Four short stories included in his book were broadcast on the BBC World Service. Others have been published in local and foreign magazines, including The Catholic Fireside. One was made into a play which won first prize at a drama festival and was later produced for television. Several of his stories and plays were broadcast on national radio. In short: his is a success story indeed, especially for someone who writes in a language which, after all, is not his own.

Mr Bugeja says that his inspiration and motivation come from meeting so many interesting people from all walks of life, from different countries and cultures.

Janus publishing receive some 1,000 scripts a year from the UK alone for publishing.  Mr Bugeja's script was accepted just three days after submission and he is the only Maltese so far, whose script was accepted by Janus Publishing.

These stories give an insight into Malta's traditions, its religion and its people as well as its natural beauty. All the characters display a variety of evergreen human characteristics, from love and solidarity to hate and jealousy. A pleasant, easy read.

The book is available from Agenda and Merlin bookshops and also from Amazon.co.uk.

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