Those brave enough to have ventured out on a squally night were last month treated to a refined musical evening at St Paul’s Anglican Pro-Cathedral, Valletta, for the opening concert of the third edition of the Malta International Organ Festival, under the artistic direction of baritone Joseph Lia.

Lia forms part of a new generation of local artistic directors who broadened his education beyond the musical and artistic confinements of Malta and is establishing himself on the international platform, He is, in fact, applying his knowledge and experience to improve the local classical music scene. Against all odds, with limited financial resources and no help from the establishment, Lia singlehandedly stages an event that slowly, but surely, will be leaving its legacy.

The festival unwrapped with a bang. Lia’s choice for the festival opener, Wayne Marshall, gave a terrific organ recital of French and German repertoire with two improvisations of his invention that opened and closed the performance with zest.

Marshall was a commendable and smart choice. He flung open the heavenly gates, at times with celestial harmonies, torrential cascades of intricate passages, and noble trombone-like calls, never falling into the overdramatically shallow. The listeners, hypnotised in their seats, dared not move as if the sound emitted from the most potentate of instruments had stunned them.

Marshall knows his stuff. He possesses wisdom and strength, and uses them to convey beauty.  His opening Intrada Improvisation was no piece that took the faint-hearted listener by the hand, but an explosion of colours very much reminiscent of a post-Messianic sound, which not only brought to light the mastery of Marshall’s technique but more so his aural imagination.

He then (almost literally) attacked the third movement Marcia from Charles Marie Widor’s Symphony no. 3 in E minor op.13. Although considered an early work, it shows a subtle use of harmony and modulation, which highlights the late-romantic French Organ school. Widor, himself an Organ professor at the Paris Conservatoire, succeeding César Franck and greatly contributed to the Organ repertoire.

With limited financial resources and no help from the establishment, Lia singlehandedly stages an event that slowly, but surely, will be leaving its legacy

Roger Ducasse’s Pastorale in F Major came next. It is the composer’s only work for organ, written in 1909. Although the title, the 12/8 tempo and the opening 16 bars are suggestive of an idyllic landscape it is far from being one. Having been Fauré’s star pupil and a close friend, Ducasse inherited a strong and unique harmonic language which was, however, overshadowed by the modernist language of those years. It is a work full of complex structures and explorations of the Organ’s sound scape which Marshall had no difficulty unfolding them.

Marcel Dupré’s Symphony no. 2 in C Sharp Minor brought to a close the first part dedicated to the French repertoire. Dupré’s organ music is phenomenally difficult and, like Paganini a century or so before his time, no one but himself could perform his own compositions. Symphony no. 2 in three movements – Preludio, Intermezzo and Toccata – is no exception. Again Marshall graced through the work with apparent easiness and unmistakable nobility.

Before passing on the second half of the recital dedicated to the German repertoire, Marshall encouraged his listeners to join him and sing to his accompaniment to Lobet den Herrn – without much success, however.

Following this ineffective attempt, he invited Lia to sing two lieder – Gebet (Prayer) from the Möricke Lieder by Hugo Wolf and Herzenstausch (From heart to heart) from Max Reger’s Schlichte Weisen. This was a tasteful interlude where both musician and listener could take a breath before the final works of this recital.

After Lia’s short but well-poised performance, Marshall played for us Benedictus from Zwölf Stücke für Orgel op.59 by Max Reger, a reflective but highly complex contrapuntal composition evocative of Bach, but impregnated with extended harmonies that recall Liszt and Wagner.

The last work was Franz Liszt’s Prelude and Fugue on the name Bach, which the composer wrote during his stay in Weimar, one of the most important cities of Organ tradition. This work is considered as one (of the two) most important works for Organ of the composer. Marshall yet again proved to possess a deep understanding of the work.

To bring the evening to an end, Marshall performed a set of exquisite improvised variations on the theme of Twinkle twinkle little star. He laid all his improvisational and harmonic powers to create a piece at times resonant of the repertoire he had just performed, at others verging into Eastern modes touching on the orchestral repertoire, never releasing the opening pulsating rhythm, that kept aflow till the final crescendo.

There was never a dull moment or an instant of the apparent. This was a thoroughly gratifying evening and an outstanding kick-off to the Malta International Organ Festival.