Albert Storace reports on the recent donation of the late composer Charles Camilleri’s works to the National Archives.

Certainly one of Malta’s best known composers, with more than 300 compositions to his credit, Charles Camilleri (who died aged 77 on January 3, 2009) left his considerable opus in the care of his family, mainly his widow Doris.

Mrs Camilleri was recently present at the National Archives in Rabat for a very special purpose. In agreement with her family she decided to donate her late husband’s music scores to Malta’s National Archives. More than half this music has been published and performed locally and abroad.

Camilleri’s reputation helped put Malta on the international music map. He also took a wide interest in Maltese folk music in particular and Mediterranean music in general, sources which inspired a great deal of the first two phases of his compositions.

In his latter phase, Camilleri was more deeply involved in a more avant-garde and contemporary idiom. This fascination was underlined by a fascination with the cosmos and metaphysics. He also did not eschew the fusion of folk elements with more daringly contemporary ones. His music belongs to Malta as much as it belongs to the world mainstream.

In her brief appreciation of all who worked at bringing to a successful conclusion the preparation of the deed of donation, Mrs Camilleri mentioned a crucial point upon which indeed all speakers at this event remarked: the donation not only sees to the proper professional conservation of the music but also makes it available to scholars and researchers.