After 25 years of entertaining the crowds while collecting millions for good causes, the Voices crew is about to take their final bow.
Children scooting outside, others sitting quietly reading a book, and a father rocking a baby back and forth were the sights that greeted me upon my arrival at a Voices rehearsal late one evening in Ta’ Qali.
That this is an extraordinary feat pulled off by ordinary people is clear, even in these little snippets of life we witness, as men and women from all walks dedicate precious personal and family time to perfecting melodies, all in the name of a good cause.
Many are aware of this phenomenon’s humble beginnings when back in 1990, 20-something-year-old Louis Naudi approached his friends Tony Vella (now magistrate), Sue Camilleri and Adrian Mamo with the idea of organising a concert to help raise funds for his old school, St Aloysius’ College.
And so the journey began, one that would take these four friends and another 200 or so people far into the future – 25 years to be precise.
Much water has passed under the bridge since the first concert, Voices in Harmony, was held at the Assembly Hall of St Aloysius’ College on the last two days of June in 1991. A publicity blurb for that year described it as “a two-and-a-half-hour spectacle of music featuring a 70-strong choir of young people singing a variety of songs ranging from Bach to Pink Floyd”.
Antonello Gauci, chairman of the Voices Foundation Committee, goes on to explain that the traditional hymn Jerusalem opened this first concert with the choir, directed by Tony Vella, lined up on the theatre balcony, bearing candles and wearing what was to become the trademark Voices T-shirt and jeans.
Voices is just like one big family, with its ups and downs over this quarter of a decade
“Back then, six musicians formed the first Voices band led by David Pisani on guitar and flute,” Gauci recalls. “The proceeds from this first concert amounted to €5,000 and were donated to the Jesuit Community at St Aloysius College to aid in the building of the new Sixth Form complex.”
Voices certainly started out as it intended to proceed.
“The idea of using one’s creative and musical talents for a repertoire of popular songs while raising funds for a worthy cause was always at the heart of it,” he says.
As time went on, Voices’ success grew, year in, year out and as at 2016, they have raised around €2,000,000 since the beginning. Dozens of charities and philanthropic organisations, both local and foreign, have benefitted from these funds.
Gauci is keen to point out that the increasing success of Voices also led to an increased sense of responsibility.
“The more we grew, the more it became apparent that a formalised organisation structure was needed. The Voices Foundation was established in June 2007 and was registered under the NGO Act. This helped the whole project remain as transparent, accountable and professional as possible.”
But things did not stop here, with the organising body deciding to set up a Beneficiaries Advisory Board in 2010, led by Marceline Naudi, to assist in evaluating the numerous requests for funding that were received.
“I would say our biggest challenge was making the necessary changes for Voices to grow from a small-scale event to an almost national-scale event,” Gauci muses. “It was a gradual process that saw us shifting venue from St Aloysius to the University Auditorium in 1992 and then to the larger theatre of the Mediterranean Conference Centre in 1998. Each step of the way was a risk and, therefore, the pressure was also on to improve our concerts with every edition.”
Mr Gauci points out that they reached audience peaks of 14,000, with sell-out concerts from the very first edition.
Amid all this positivity, naturally, some sour notes also emerge. After all, Voices is just like one big family, with its ups and downs over this quarter of a decade. Perhaps the biggest upset they faced was the passing away of the instigator of all this, Louis Naudi, in September 2004 after losing a year-long battle with leukaemia. He had also performed as the band’s drummer until 1996.
“As with any other community, the group celebrates great moments and supports each other through the harder times. Many singers have gone on to have children and some female singers have even performed while pregnant,” Mr Gauci enthuses. “In one case, a choir member who was pregnant with her son during one of the earlier concerts enrolled him into a later edition to perform on stage with the Voices Children’s choir.”
The concerts have also provided a backdrop for romance to blossom, with some couples forming and marrying as a result of meeting through Voices.
This year’s choir consists of 200 singers divided into six voice groups – soprano, high alto, low alto, high tenor, low tenor and bass – who have all participated in previous editions, once again directed by Martina Caruana.
Many of the band’s seasoned musicians have also been with Voices from the beginning. Led by drummer Sandro Grech, it includes Ryan Buttigieg on percussion, Conrad Briffa, Denis Mallia and Josef Farrugia on keyboards, Eric Santucci on lead guitar, Ramon Tonna and Tony Vella on guitars, Andre Micallef on bass guitar, Mario Briffa on saxophones, Effie Azzopardi di Lello on trumpet and Mark Ciantar on trombone.
The process to put together such a successful concert sees the long-term commitment of many. Gauci explains that it all starts with a small team of people, including the choir and band leader, discussing the repertoire more than a year before the concert is due.
“This gives our team enough time to make the necessary musical arrangements for the songs and to prepare before rehearsals start,” he reveals.
The band then starts rehearsing six months before the concert while the choir met up for their first rehearsal in June this year. Choir rehearsals are at first held on a bi-weekly basis, but this then goes up to three times a week.
“Two months ago the band then joined the choir for rehearsals,” Gauci continues. “Needless to say, things get even more hectic closer to production week.”
“This being our 25th anniversary concert, we decided to select highlights from among the 13 Voices shows staged so far since 1991. The set list has been chosen from over 300 songs. As usual, we focus on popular tunes and have included songs by Queen, Michael Jackson, Abba, Stevie Wonder, Coldplay and Adele.”
I tried to get Gauci to spill some of the surprises which are sure to ensue during Voices – Celebration. “The production team has promised some but are not divulging anything even to me,” he exclaims.
Dedication is really the name of the game here, with over 350 volunteers putting in scores of hours both on stage, front of house and behind the scenes to ensure the concert brings the house down.
“One married couple has taken part in all of the 13 Voices concerts,” Gauci marvels, “and their children also formed part of the choir”.
Choir director Caruana and band leader Sandro Grech look back on what the Voices experience has meant for them. Both go beyond the musical aspect.
“It is about values: values of inclusion, recognition, active citizenship, selflessness,” Caruana who has been with Voices since 1994 says. Her hope is that these values will continue to be active in those who have been touched by it.
While admitting that participation is very hard and time-consuming, it is certainly rewarding for Grech who has taken part in all but one of the concerts.
“The experience is further enriched through its philanthropic nature,” he says.
So why, after so much hard work and effort, is Voices coming to an end, one might ask.
“We wanted to end on a high note, if you’ll excuse the pun,” Gauci replies. “Furthermore, it has become increasingly difficult to raise funds to meet the costs of the production in order for all revenue from ticket money to be donated to charity.
“Our biggest reward,” Gauci continues, “is seeing the result of the work of the several hundred volunteers who always got together to ultimately contribute to making a difference to other people’s lives.”
“I pray that through Voices, a new formula may be found so that funds are raised and distributed to those in need,” Grech adds.
The story in fact may not end here, after all, since the Voices Foundation launched a public call for a new initiative to take over.
“It is an opportunity for organisations or individuals to create a new project which will be funded by the foundation, as long as this meets the foundation’s aims,” Gauci concludes.
■ Voices – Celebration is being held on October 7, 8 and 9 at 7.30pm at the Malta Fairs and Convention Centre (MFCC) in Ta’ Qali. Tickets are available from www.ticketline.com.mt or in person from Pjazza Teatru Rjal and Embassy Cinemas in Valletta and the MFCC.
Details on this Start-up Initiative Fund are available on the Voices website: www.voices.org.mt.