The Jesuits' Church in Valletta will be hosting Joseph Lia's solo concerts on Monday 2nd May at 12:30 (lunchtime concert), Friday 6th May at 19:30 and Saturday 7th May at 19:45 titled Ave Maria - A Sacred Vocal Concert.
Lia, a well-known baritone in Malta, will be performing an interesting program of sacred works for voice, focusing mainly on different Ave Marias and other Marian prayers composed in different styles over the span of music history. Joseph will be ably accompanied by Natalia Rakhmatulina on the organ, where she will also perform some solo works and variations on known melodies.
Ave Maria is an important Christian prayer based on two biblical episodes featured in the Gospel of St Luke: the Annunciation, and the Visitation, followed by an appeal for intercession.
Many composers have set music for the Latin text of this prayer through the centuries, with the most famous probably being Schubert's, even though this melody was originally written for a secular song Ave Maria! Jungfrau mild, together with Gounod's melody on Bach's Prelude No. 1 in C Major from the Well-Tempered Clavier, and Vavilov's, which is attributed to Caccini, a composer of the late Renaissance and early Baroque eras. The programme will feature also works by Bach, Durante, Brahms, Lorenc, Fenech and others.
These concerts are being supported by Arts Council Malta and tickets are available from www.ticketline.com.mt
Picture inspired by works of A.Callejja and V. van Gogh