Ghajnsielem hosts Tolfa mayor and choir
The weekend of February 24-27 was characterised by rain, cold and wind. Yet despite the inclement weather, the festivities prepared by the Ghajnsielem council in honour of a visiting delegation from the town of Tolfa, near Rome, with which the Gozitan...
The weekend of February 24-27 was characterised by rain, cold and wind. Yet despite the inclement weather, the festivities prepared by the Ghajnsielem council in honour of a visiting delegation from the town of Tolfa, near Rome, with which the Gozitan village is twinned, went ahead.
That weekend Ghajnsielem hosted around 25 members of the Tolfa choir, Corale di Tolfa, led by their mayor, Dr Alessandro Battilocchio, along with a number of other Tolfa residents and other Italians for a short holiday in Gozo. The Corale di Tolfa is well known in the Lazio region and has taken part in many special occasions.
The flight from Italy to Malta was satisfactory, but the crossing to Gozo was buffeted by the rough sea. Nevertheless, the programme went ahead as planned.
On Saturday morning the group was taken on a coach tour of Gozo. They visited Ggantija temples, Azure Window and the inland sea at Dwejra, the old borough in Victoria and the Citadel. In the evening the Corale di Tolfa gave a concert in the old parish church of Ghajnsielem, which they opened with Beethoven's setting of Schiller's Ode to Joy, which is the anthem of the European Union. The choir sang a cappella.
The programme included sacred works and songs including Era sera, Signore delle Cime, Vola vola, La Strada dell'Amore and O Pescator del Mare.
The following day the Corale di Tolfa joined the Lauretana Choir of Ghajnsielem during the 10 a.m. Mass at Ghajnsielem parish church. After lunch they were invited by the Ghajnsielem council to attend the Carnival activities in Victoria.