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P ho t o b y Ju s t i n M a m o My essentials GIOSUE' AGIUS 24, opera singer I am a Maltese tenor and opera student with the Opera Nova Project in Malta. This is a project designed to help local opera singers develop their skills. I will be performing the role of the Duke of Mantua in Verdi's opera Rigoletto and the role of Basilio in Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro with the Mediterranean Opera Studio & Festival. 1. Book 2. Film 3. Internet 4. Music 5. Place THIS is a bit complicated as my life is surrounded with art and music. I do enjoy the great tenors of the past and learning from them like Enrico Ca- ruso, Beniamino Gigli, Jussi Bjorling, Luciano Pavarotti and Franco Corelli. A great singer I'm enjoying listening to at the moment is the great German tenor, Fritz Wunder- lich. I enjoy these singers be- cause they belong to both the traditions of Bel Canto and Verismo. LOVE the historic plac- es in Malta such as Mdi- na and Valletta. Places I enjoy visiting are places where my soul feels at home such as Teatru Ma- noel or watching opera at the Astra Theatre and the Aurora Theatre in Gozo. One of my favourite places to visit abroad was when I was a visitor to Teatro alla Scala in Milan. This sum- mer I also had the oppor- tunity to visit Lake Como which was a relaxing and romantic destination. SINCE I am a bit of a nerd and an avid book reader, I en- joy reading a lot of literature and philosophical books. Re- cently however, I have been reading a book called Great Singers On Great Singing by the operatic bass Jerome Hines, where he interviewed various singers on their mu- sical practice. Another book I read was The Fundamentals Of Great Vocal Technique by American tenor Michael Trimble. From this book, I learned how yoga can be used in singing. ONE movie that stood out to me was The Great Caru- so, where the opera singer Mario Lanza acts out the life of Enrico Caruso. Another movie that stood out to me was Whiplash. While cen- tred around Jazz rather than opera, it captures the phys- ical and emotional torment performers sometimes have to go through. WHEN it comes to a television series, I was convinced recently to start watching Stranger Things and I'm quite glad that I did. I also watched a lot of Star Trek, Small- ville, any series that per- tains to the Arrow verse, Breaking Bad and Dex- ter. When it comes to the internet, I tend to avoid spending too much time on social media as I be- lieve that doom scrolling is bad for one's health. Compiled by Laura Calleja suggestions by email lcalleja@mediatoday.com 4 5 1 MaltaToday is supported by Arts Council Malta 4 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 11 JANUARY 2026 ALMANAC 3 2