Recital
Silvio Zammit, flute; Ramona Zammit Formosa, piano
Franciscan Oratory, Valletta

The series of lunchtime recitals at the Franciscan Oratory in Republic Street will shortly terminate for summer. The attractive 18th-century venue lends itself excellently to chamber music performances of which one of the latest was a selection of works from the Italian baroque period.

The husband and wife flute and piano duo remain formidable in their preparation, the variety of works they perform and the very accomplished and harmonious way which characterises their music-making. Vivaldi was their first choice with his four-movement Sonata No. 3 in G. It was warm and direct with a beautiful music line throughout and with some virtuoso flute work in the allegro ma non presto. The rest of the tempi marked by dance titles came forth very clearly in their contrasting effects.

A very beautiful and lyrical arrangement by Severino Gazzelloni was next on the programme: the famous Adagio from Alessandro Marcello’s Oboe Concerto in D minor, all too brief but very beautiful and lyrical. Although one would not classify Cimarosa as totally baroque, his brief keyboard sonatas hearken back somewhat to Domenico Scarlatti and Ms Zammit Formosa performed two of them both in C. They are brief, concise, highly satisfying and make ideal interludes in such recitals.

Concluding, the duo performed G.B. Platti’s Sonata No.2 in G. Formally like the above Vivaldi sonata in the same key, its opening grave had a certain lyricism and no heavy-handedness about it. It was followed by an aptly jolly allegro, offset by a largo full of pathos and concluding with a bubbly allegro. As a final offering the encore was Vivaldi’s magical La pioggia from Le Quattro Stagioni’s L’inverno.