Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1517916
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 24 MARCH 2024 3 MUSIC Singer-songwriter TroffaĦamra's new album Barcelona-based Maltese musician releases two singles and will launch her full album Weġgħat Żgħar at a concert on Sunday 31 March BARCELONA-BASED Mal- tese singer-songwriter Trof- faĦamra has just released the first two singles from her new album Weġgħat Żgħar, in the run-up to the official album launch concert taking place on Sunday 31 March at 6pm at a band club in Żabbar. Predominantly in her native Maltese language and record- ed at the prestigious Temple Studios, the album offers a glimpse into the life of a wom- an and mother navigating the challenges of living far from her homeland. Each track ex- plores the ambivalence of ma- ternity, the inexorable passage of time, living away from family and friends, and the inevitable winds of change. Speaking about the inspira- tion behind the album, Trof- faĦamra muses: "Making mu- sic has always been what makes me feel myself the most. After I became a mother six years ago, I felt I lost my identity, suffered from post-natal depression, and didn't really know who I was anymore. Living abroad, away from my family didn't make it easier, and I didn't real- ly have time to make music an- ymore. So when I slowly start- ed to find inspiration to write songs again, I started to heal, in some way, and now I feel like myself again!" Weġgħat Żgħar'is a collabo- rative project featuring some of Malta's finest musicians, such as Brodu's Żiżża, Oliver Degabriele, Michael Galea, Franco Tartaglia, Mark Attard, Mariele Żammit, Justin Galea, Mario Borg, Fiorella Camilleri, and Spanish trumpeter Javi- er Manzanares. The support act for the launch concert will be David Schembri. "I've been away from Malta for 13 years now, and I wanted to collab- orate with Maltese musicians who are also friends, as I miss that so much in Barcelona," she beams. The first single from the al- bum is called Noa and it speaks of TroffaĦamra's relationship with her daughter Noa. In a heart-warming moment, the six-year old can also be heard singing at the end of the song. The second single Mifruda bil- Ħin (Time Difference) tells the story of how two sisters expe- rience their relationship from two different hemispheres. The lyrics were written by Trof- faĦamra's childhood friend and writer Annamaria Schur- mann, who has been based in Australia for a number of years. Speaking about the way she composes her songs, Trof- faĦamra explains: "Songwrit- ing for me is like tapping into a kind of magic. It's crazy how I can go ages without jotting down a single note, and then out of nowhere, boom! Inspi- ration hits, and suddenly I'm crafting a whole song from start to finish in just an hour— music, lyrics, the works. Some- times it feels like the song al- ready exists in some alternate universe, and if I'm in sync with that vibe, I just snatch it up and bring it into our reality. How- ever, that usually means having a ton of free time on my hands, which doesn't happen too of- ten. However, over the past few years, I've had to scale back on my workload as a music ther- apist because of some vocal cord issues. Weirdly enough, that setback ended up giving me the downtime I needed to dive back into my songwriting groove." The official album launch concert will take place at the Każin tal-Blu in her native vil- lage of Żabbar. It will be an in- timate affair, a group of friends (and family!) gigging and buzz- ing together. Attendees are be- ing encouraged to bring their figolli to share together at the każin at the end of the gig. The melodies, lyrics, atmosphere, and magic will surely make for a memorable evening which is not to be missed. TroffaĦamra's album launch concert is taking place on Sunday 31 March at the Blue Arena Każin in Żabbar from 6pm onwards. Tickets for the concerts or combined concert + CD can be purchased from the link or at the door www. ticketline.com.mt/bookings/ Shows.aspx?Production- Id=1080&fbclid=IwAR3Tx- gHcyDcZ5gQ6rVCcPUMh- 6NQMcRlK7xdBjoH7BM- WMYK8fOUrfdECzY_A. Weġgħat Żgħar will also be available for download on digital platforms from 24 March.