Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/455578
II This Week maltatoday, Sunday, 1 February 2015 Internationalising Malta's as we wave goodbye to the recently-concluded third edition of the Valletta International baroque Festival, beTTIna bOrG CardOna reviews its tribute to Malta's own baroque composer, Girolamo abos, with three concerts taking place across the capital The Valletta International Baroque Festival, a two week extravaganza of Baroque music set against the backdrop of Malta's Baroque capital cit y, was this year dedicated to placing Maltese music squarely within the international Baroque scene. The 2015 festival – the third since its inception in 2013 – celebrated the tercentenary of the birth of Maltese composer Girolamo Abos. While perform- ances of Maltese works were a rare treat during previous edi- tions of the festival, this year's programme featured no fewer than three events dedicated to the exposition of Abos' relatively obscure oeuvre. Set amongst works by such eminent com- posers as Handel, Steffani and Thomas Arne, the festival served to locate Abos' music within the wider Baroque scene, allow- ing the portrait to emerge of a versatile and talented composer who was also very much a man of his time. Abos was born in Valletta in 1715, and through his connec- tions with the Order, was sent to complete his musical education at one of the famed conservato- ries of Naples. Finding himself amidst the burgeoning musical activit y of this cit y, Abos' talent f lourished, and the inf luence of the Neapolitan context upon him is evident. His composi- tions are mainly of vocal music, in a cit y which was exploring the full potential of the human voice in both sacred and secular contexts. Abos wrote a number of operas, performed in vari- ous locations around Italy and beyond. Abos was however es- pecially recognised for his skills as a teacher, becoming one of only two non-Italians to work at the conservatories of Naples. He was also engaged as a Maestro di Cappella at some of the most important churches of the cit y, where he directed works of his own composition. The three performances cel- ebrating the works of Abos each offered an exploration into a different aspect of the multi- faceted musician. The first of these events, performed by the UK-based Passacaglia Ensemble at Ta' Giezu church, presented a programme centred on the mid-eighteenth century musi- cal scene in London, where a number of Abos' operatic works were staged. This programme necessitated a substantial amount of research to be carried out by the ensemble, who were able to familiarise themselves with a period of Abos' life and work about which little is so far known. The result was an entertaining and illuminating programme, informed by the group's research into publica- tions and manuscripts of Abos' works. The ensemble performed ex- cerpts from two of Abos' operas. The soprano Julia Gooding sang two arias, 'Se d 'un amor Tiranno credei ' and 'Vendetta mi chiedi ' from the opera seria Artaserse, which premiered in Venice, and is based on one of Metastasio's most famous librettos. Excerpts were also performed from Abos' most celebrated and success- ful opera, Tito Manlio. This opera seria had premiered at the Teatro San Carlo in 1751, with the main role sung by one of the greatest castrati, 'Caf- farelli ', and was later revived in London at the King's theatre in the Haymarket in 1756. The arias performed by Passacaglia from this opera were based on versions published in a volume entitled 'The Favourite Songs in the Opera call 'd Tito Manlio', intended for domestic use. The most fascinating portion of the programme was however the ensemble's performance of excerpts from a pastiche opera put together by English compos- er Thomas Arne, which included arias by Abos. The pastiche 'Love in a village', an opera in three acts, was staged at Cov- ent Garden in 1763, three years after Abos' death. Passacaglia performed a highly entertain- ing comic setting of one of the dramatic arias from 'Tito Man- lio', which begins "whence can you inherit, so slavish a spirit/ Confin'd thus and chain'd to a log!" Passacaglia presented the works by Abos in the context of the London musical scene at the time when they were staged. Thus, the performance included works by Handel and Thomas Arne himself. A highlight of the evening was the performance of German-born composer C.F. Abel 's compositions for solo viola da Gamba by Reiko Ichise, whose fiery rendition of these intensely moving works provided a counterpoint to some of the more buoyant pieces performed. The second event in the cele- bration of the Abos tercentenary was a performance at St Paul 's Anglican Pro-Cathedral by the Valletta International Baroque Ensemble (VIBE), inaugurated during the 2014 Baroque festival with the express purpose of giv- ing life to Maltese works. VIBE this year presented a two-part Abos was born in Valletta in 1715. He was especially recognised for his skills as a teacher, becoming one of only two non-Italians to work at the conservatories of Naples Valletta International Baroque Ensemble Kenneth Zammit Tabona. Photo by Ray Attard