Denise Azzopardi interviews Germany-based Maltese tenor Christopher Busietta prior to his performance with the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra.
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater and Anton Nani’s Responsori a Quartetto per il Giovedi Santo have been chosen to be performed as part of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra’s Grand Orchestral Concert 2 – Passions and Mysteries. How do you feel about the music selection for this concert?
It’s a wonderful programme. The Pergolesi Stabat Mater is a great Baroque vocal work, and I’ve only had the opportunity to witness it live and its entirety once before, so I’m really looking forward to hearing it again.
I’m also very excited about the prospect of performing a Maltese cantata in Malta. It’s something you would probably not get the opportunity to hear anywhere else in the world. Despite my Maltese heritage, I didn’t get the chance to hear any Maltese classical music while growing up in Australia. I find the Resposori a Quartetto per il Giovedi Santo very beautiful and dramatic and it will be very exciting to sing.
What is your connection with this music? Have you ever performed these pieces before?
Coming from a Catholic background, I’m familiar with the texts and have sung other settings of the Stabat Mater. However, this is the first time that I will be performing both pieces.
Before looking at a single note of music, I always start by reading the words and a translation of the whole work
Does this choral programme present any challenges for the soloist singers, particularly the tenor part?
Nani’s Responsori a Quartetto per il Giovedi Santo seems to be written very nicely for the tenor in that the range is most comfortable and there are no extreme technical challenges. Being an Easter cantata it’s rather dramatic as it deals with the betrayal, beating and eventual crucifixion of Jesus. Luckily, the music is written to express the words appropriately and clearly.
So, I think the main challenge for all the singers, therefore, is to sing the text clearly, to be passionate and dramatic – having the right expressiveness in the voice at the right moment. It is not enough to just sing this piece beautifully – it’s more like opera.
How are you preparing, vocally and mentally, for your performance?
Before looking at a single note of music, I always start by reading the words and a translation of the whole work. It’s important to know exactly what you are singing about and the entire context of the piece, to get a feeling of how you can sing the words with the right emotion and gravity.
Following that, I examine the music and try to follow the composer’s intentions. I do like to give my own interpretation, but that will always be dictated by the rhythm and the inflection given by composer. When Nani writes a fortissimo passage on the words Plaga crudeli percutiens (striking cruel blows) in a range where you would normally be yelling, you know that he is expecting a cry of pain from the depths of your being. Had it been a piano marking, for example, an introverted cry of pain would have been more appropriate. This is what I try to look out for when reading the music and its association with the text.
Vocal preparation for me involves singing through the music as often as I can. I try to find a nice legato line, the right dynamics, where to breathe and experimenting with different sounds and colours. I do this over and over again, till I find something that I like enough to present. Then, hopefully, the conductor and the public will like what I’ve come up with.
What is your connection with Malta and how do you feel about coming over here to perform?
My father migrated from Malta to Australia with his parents and siblings, so visiting Malta means visiting my roots. Every time I set foot here, there’s an eerie feeling that I’m retracing my father’s footsteps. I’m always very excited to visit and it’s extra special having the opportunity to sing here. I’m really looking forward to it!
Grand Orchestral Concert 2 – Passions and Mysteries takes place next Sunday at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta, at 7.30pm.
Entrance is free, but booking is required by sending an e-mail to bookings@mcc.com.mt, by calling on 2559 5750 or online.
www.mcc.com.mt;
www.maltaorchestra.com