Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/310131
25 maltatoday, SUNDAY, 11 MAY 2014 TRENDY TOULOUSE PG 30 WANDERING WALTER PG 34 MAGIC MUSHROOMS PG 28, 29 TEODOR RELJIC speaks to Ghanafest Artistic Director Ruben Zahra and Festival Manager Noel D'Amato ahead of this year's annual showcase of Maltese folksong – which will be accompanied, as ever, by an international gathering of musicans Who is the gћannej? Ruben Zahra: The għannej is more than just a singer. He is a poet with the capacity of improvis- ing verse in rhythm and in rhyme. The most popular style of għana is known as Spritu Pront – essen- tially an improvised song-duel be- tween two għannejja. Usually, the subject of the duel emerges early in the encounter itself, with the sing- ers provoking their adversary. The għannej demonstrates his ability in the craft by observing the correct metre of the verse, matching the rhyme and composing a clever ar- gument to outsmart his opponent. Would you say għana remains the domain of the older genera- tion? Is it dying – or has it made a comeback? In what way is it changing? RZ: A lot of people might have the impression that għana is dy- ing out or that it is only fostered by old-timers. Għana has always been a sub-culture. Għana sessions are never publicised media or cultural calendars. Għana sessions take place every Sunday morning in a few wine bars around Malta and the enthusiasts that follow għana are well aware of these hubs. Every fortnight or so other sessions are organised that are disseminated simply by word of mouth. There are several young għannej and folk gui- tarists. The youngest protagonist is 6-year-old Nordai Desira from Żejtun who sings with his grandfa- ther Joseph Musicat in-Nizza. Noel D'Amato: Għanafest itself actually serves as a useful platform for the young, up-and-coming gћhannejja – and they are around – by giving them a space in which to perform. The festival also makes an effort to reach out to primary and secondary school students in an effort to continue fostering an appreciation for traditional folk song among the younger genera- tion. Despite its roots in the past, can għana – and Maltese folk music – still be relevant and contempo- rary? RZ: Relevant to whom? For the community of għannej and enthu- siasts għana is relevant because it portrays contemporary issues. For the international audience it is a hard pitch because għana relies almost exclusively on the language. Maltese instrumental folk music on the other hand has become rele- vant through a revival process that I initiated in the year 2000 with the launch of Etnika and is still going strong with my current folk combo: Nafra. How much does Maltese mu- sic tell us about ourselves as a people, about our past and our culture? How much of it has been lost? How much can be revived? And – should we care? RZ: I believe that every country should preserve, foster and care about its own heritage. Għana is part of our heritage just as much as the Neolithic temples and the Ba- roque churches. Maltese folk music portrays an interesting mix of dif- ferent Mediterranean ingredients that in many ways represents the Maltese character. The Maltese bagpipe: iż-Żaqq, is probably of Aegean origin yet the terminology of all its different parts is Arabic. The guitar music that accompanies għana has a strong Italian influ- ence. Għana fil-Għoli – another style of Maltese folksong, is sung on a high vocal register with a dis- tinct melodic contour reminiscent of other forms of Mediterranean chant. NA: Apart from this, it's worth remembering that the 'Spritu Pront' genre encourages the singers to come up with lyrics on the spot: you can't really get more relevant or contemporary than that. How have you been enticing in- ternational musicians to perform at the festival? Which elements in particular are they attracted to – both in terms of the milieu of Maltese għana and the island itself? Over the past eight years, Għanafest has been program- ming a strong line-up of bands and musicians from the Mediter- ranean. These bands are touring professional musicians and their participation is subject to contract agreements and fees. However it is worth mentioning that Għanafest runs on a tight budget and the art- ists coming for the festival are paid less than their regular rate. When I negotiate with musicians or their agents I factor in the unique experience of the festival as well as Malta. This has made it possible to invite international artists like Ross Daly from Crete, Zoobazar from Spain, Zamballarana from Corsica… and many others. Għanafest has had a strong international element for some years now. Do you think this ele- ment runs the risk of eclipsing the presence of the local għannejja in the festival? RZ: The international element is one of the highlights of Għanafest. This year we have three very strong gypsy/klezmer bands from Spain, Croatia and Israel. The festival presents a music pro- gramme that starts at 18:30 and ends at around 23:30. Some of the audience attend specifically for the international bands and some fol- low the għana sections of the pro- gramme. This has created an inter- esting cross-over whereby different audiences are exposed to different genres. Għanafest attracts an audi- ence of around 1,000 every evening and what's great is that most people attend "the festival". This year's edition of the Ghanaf- est will be taking place at Argotti Gardens, Floriana between May 30-June 1. For more information log on to: www.maltafolkmusicfestival. com Old and new, local and global Barcelona Gypsy Klezmer Orchestra Nordai Desira from Zejtun singing with his grandfather Joseph Muscat in-Nizza - photo by Stephen Buhagiar