On the occasion of the Year of Faith, the Church in Malta is organising a concert by three renowned tenors known as The Priests at the Catholic Institute, Floriana. These are the Catholic priests from Ireland: Fr Martin O’Hagan, Fr Eugene O’Hagan and Fr David Delargy.
This is the first time that The Priests will be performing in Malta and the concert will include the participation of Maltese soprano Gillian Zammit, who will be singing with the three tenors.
The concert will be directed by Fergus Sheil, The Priests’ music director. The orchestra will be formed by nine Maltese musicians.
Their repertoire will include classical and contemporary songs such as You Raise Me Up by Rolf Lovland, Funiculì Funiculà by Denza, Bring Him Home by Claude-Michel Schönberg from the musical Les Misérables, Pie Jesu by Andrew Lloyd Webber, You’ll Never Walk Alone by Rogers & Hammerstein, Amazing Grace by John Newton, Ave Maria by Schubert and Panis Angelicus by César Franck.
The Irish trio have been singing together since they boarded in the 1970s as students of St MacNissi’s College in Ireland. After signing a deal with Sony BMG in 2008, the priests recorded their debut album, with the unusual honour of having been allowed to record in St Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican.
The album The Priests, which follows the name of this trio, has been released worldwide in over 30 countries, and to date, has sold more than one million copies in Ireland alone.
They also recorded two other albums, Harmony and Noel, which have also been succesful and claimed several awards.
The Priests have given concerts in the UK, Italy and the US. The group’s concert schedule does not follow the usual band format, as they willingly emphasise that their priestly ministry and pastoral work in their respective parishes will always remain a priority.
Their message through music and song is intended to go beyond religion and culture, and aims to deliver peace and hope to the world.
The concert is taking place on Friday at 7.30pm. Tickets are available from the booking office at the Catholic Institute, Floriana, or online.
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