Folkfest in the gardens
Showtime previews the Malta Mediterranean Folk Music Festival
On May 16, 17 and 18 the Argotti Gardens in Floriana will be the setting for the Malta Mediterranean Folk Music Festival. This will be a celebration of traditional music from Italy and Spain and of course Malta. Għanafest 2008, as the festival will be known, is taking place on the initiative of The Malta Council for Culture and the Arts.
Għanafest 2008 will showcase some of the different styles of Maltese folk music.
There are three major styles of ghana: Spirtu Pront (quick-wit), an improvised form of song duel, Tal-Fatt (factual), a composed narrative that may be fictional or based on true events, and Fil-Għoli (high-pitched), a style of singing on a high vocal register. Għanafest 2008 will also include a programme of Maltese guitar music known as Daqq tal-Prejjem where the role of the għannej (singer) is replaced by the lead guitarist who embellishes the music with a sequence of melodic patterns.
Traditional Maltese instruments will feature in a concert by the Nafra folk ensemble and also as part of a special performance by Andrew Alamango. There will also be a concert by Walter Micallef u l-ħbieb as a prime example of Maltese song, commentating on the contemporary Maltese social context.
The festival also places Maltese folk music into the context of a wider Mediterranean cultural identity.
As well as featuring our għana music, the MCCA has brought to Malta two other ensembles to participate in the festival: Krama from Valencia in Spain and Uaragniaun from the region of Puglia in Italy. These bands have been very carefully selected in view of the similarity between flamenco chant, traditional Italian village songs and għana.
Another important level to this common territory is that both ensembles portray a bagpipe tradition which is similar to the Maltese instrument, iż-żaqq.
Għanafest 2008 will celebrate local music heritage in - hopefully - an entertaining manner. Besides the music programming the Argotti Gardens will feature food and beverage stands, as well as retail stalls pertaining to Maltese crafts and folklore.
Another important item introduced by the MCCA is a sequence of informal seminars on folk music. The foreign ensembles will demonstrate various aspects portraying their tradition while local folklorists will deliver a presentation on the various aspects of Maltese traditional instruments.
Tickets for Għanafest 2008 cost €2. Parking will be available at the Floriana Boy Scouts headquarters.
This year the festival is dedicated to the memory of Ġorġ Mifsud Chircop, former artistic director of the festival, who died last December.
Għanafest 2008 will showcase some of the different styles of Maltese folk music.
There are three major styles of ghana: Spirtu Pront (quick-wit), an improvised form of song duel, Tal-Fatt (factual), a composed narrative that may be fictional or based on true events, and Fil-Għoli (high-pitched), a style of singing on a high vocal register. Għanafest 2008 will also include a programme of Maltese guitar music known as Daqq tal-Prejjem where the role of the għannej (singer) is replaced by the lead guitarist who embellishes the music with a sequence of melodic patterns.
Traditional Maltese instruments will feature in a concert by the Nafra folk ensemble and also as part of a special performance by Andrew Alamango. There will also be a concert by Walter Micallef u l-ħbieb as a prime example of Maltese song, commentating on the contemporary Maltese social context.
The festival also places Maltese folk music into the context of a wider Mediterranean cultural identity.
As well as featuring our għana music, the MCCA has brought to Malta two other ensembles to participate in the festival: Krama from Valencia in Spain and Uaragniaun from the region of Puglia in Italy. These bands have been very carefully selected in view of the similarity between flamenco chant, traditional Italian village songs and għana.
Another important level to this common territory is that both ensembles portray a bagpipe tradition which is similar to the Maltese instrument, iż-żaqq.
Għanafest 2008 will celebrate local music heritage in - hopefully - an entertaining manner. Besides the music programming the Argotti Gardens will feature food and beverage stands, as well as retail stalls pertaining to Maltese crafts and folklore.
Another important item introduced by the MCCA is a sequence of informal seminars on folk music. The foreign ensembles will demonstrate various aspects portraying their tradition while local folklorists will deliver a presentation on the various aspects of Maltese traditional instruments.
Tickets for Għanafest 2008 cost €2. Parking will be available at the Floriana Boy Scouts headquarters.
This year the festival is dedicated to the memory of Ġorġ Mifsud Chircop, former artistic director of the festival, who died last December.