Cappella Sanctae Catharinae (CSC) is Malta’s only male chamber choir, and this year they will be kicking off the winter festivities with their popular ‘Gaudete’ Christmas concerts on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th December.
These two concerts will be held at the Church of St. Liberata, Kalkara (also known as tal-Kapuċċini) on the 6th December at 7.30pm, with a repeat on the 7th December, at 11:30 at the Church of St. Francis in Valletta.
Cappella Sanctae Catharinae has aimed to breathe life back into old, forgotten music and present it back in its full glory in the settings it was originally intended for. The event promises to be more than your usual Christmas carol singing concert.
“Christmas concerts tend to end up into a festive jukebox of well-known favourites. We try and give our audiences an experience, and offer them things they would not otherwise experience. We can all look up our favourite carols on YouTube, so we want to offer people more than 'just songs'.
"That is why we choose our repertoire and venues carefully. We present music in its original setting and try to preserve a sense of ritual as much as possible. You can also expect good music and a fun enjoyable atmosphere that will put you in the mood for Christmas!” explained Alex Vella Gregory, Artistic Director of Cappella Sanctae Catharinae.
Vella Gregory describes CSC as “an experiment that got out of hand.” For seven years there was a series of lunchtime concerts held in the Church of St Catherine of Italy in Valletta, to raise awareness and funds for its restoration. One of the Italian restorers working on the project, Fabio Billi, convinced a group of singers to form an all-male choir to sing Renaissance and Baroque repertoire.
“The choir held its first concert in December 2009 and it was so well received that we decided to continue working on the project. We are now entering our 5th season and look forward to many more years of singing!”
Entrance to these concerts is against a free donation towards the needs of the churches hosting the concerts. Both churches are currently undergoing some extensive maintenance and restoration works and these concerts are aimed at raising awareness and funds through donations from the public.