Concert
Il Diluvio Universale
La Cappella Mediterranea/Namur Chamber Choir
Dir. Leonardo García Alarcón
St Publius church, Floriana

For the first time ever during the Valletta International Baroque Festival, a venue outside Valletta’s walls was selected for two performances on the schedule.

The St Publius parish church in Floriana was to host the first of them with the performance of Il Diluvio Universale by Michelangelo Falvetti (1642-1692). What a splendid work it proved to be, and what a great rapport there was between the performers and the audience.

This was thanks no doubt to the beauty of the music, the very richness of musical texture and tone, the sonority, sobriety and at times even some levity. The familiar story helped one get deeply involved. There was all-round excellence from soloists, from the same soloists singing with other choral elements in perfect cohesion and balance, the Cappella Mediterranea and crowning the whole effort the zestful, meticulous yet highly-sensitive direction of Leonardo García Alarcón.

Audience rapport there certainly was, as I can firmly vouch. Unbeknown to me sat a lady (Evelyn Ramirez Muñoz) who, after the orchestral introduction, rose from behind me and, representing Divine Justice, started raving at the wickedness of mankind, doing this with one of the most powerful alto voices I have ever heard.

It made me jump, of course, and on she ranted promising all kinds of retribution. The plot of this Dialogue for 5 voices follows a well-known story from Genesis and it is all about divine punishment, wicked mankind and eventual hope. That is because the exception, the ‘good man Noah’, his family and pairs ‘of every living creature’ survive the great flood in the ark built by that patriarch.

Falvetti cleverly weaves in other characters like the four elements – air, earth, fire and water – which have their say too.

Prominent among them was soprano Magali Arnault Stanczak (Water). Other soloists really worth their salt were tenor Fernando Guimarães as Noè and soprano Mariana Flores as his wife Rad.

Matteo Bellotto’s booming bass as God contrasted sharply with its antithesis, the countertenor of Fabian Schofrin as Death.

The latter, clad in black, face grotesquely made up, hooded and carrying a scythe, was not half as alarming as Divine Justice’s initial outburst.

In death’s unsuccessful tussle with the other characters, the triumph of hope could be seen. Soprano Francesca Aspromonte summed up the fears inherent in a helpless human nature while the few episodes of pure instrumental music were very evocative. Such was the storm symphony and the absolutely gorgeous piece celebrating the appearance of the rainbow, and the joy of the survivors sounded like an infectious tarantella. The conclusion was truly grand, too.

This was to be the only concert at the end of which the very enthusiastic audience rose in a spontaneous standing ovation.

Even before that happened, one had the feeling, which was practically confirmed by those I heard after the performance, that this was the highlight of the festival.