The history of the King’s Own Philharmonic Society is a long and illustrious one, and anything organised by this club is bound to elicit interest and excitement. Their annual instrumental programme is a highly anticipated event, and this year’s event held on November 11 at the Catholic Institute was no exception.
Under the musical direction of John Galea, the band has established itself as one of the foremost brass ensembles on the island. Galea, a renowned conductor and composer, is certainly one of the King’s Own best assets, and few other band clubs in Malta can boast of such an accomplished musical director.
The programme was a generally well-balanced one with the right mixture of classical, contemporary, and brand new music. It was also just the right length for a music programme, as, unfortunately, many band clubs tend to think that quantity is somehow a synonym for quality leading to interminable mind-numbing concerts.
The Ben Hur Overture by Miklós Rózsa was an excellent opener: an ideal showcase for the band, especially the brass. The epic tone was immediately set, and the band rose to the challenge posed by this complex score. Slightly less successful was Bizet’s Arlésienne Suite No. 1 which did not sound as assured as the preceding piece. The slower parts, particularly the Adagietto, were the weaker parts and the overall effect was a slightly cautious approach to the music. This cautiousness persisted into Etienne Spiteri’s Mystico for clarinet and wind band, although soloist Jessica Ellul delivered a polished and emotional performance.
The first part of the programme concluded with Mro Galea’s A Celebration of Life, a recent work written in memory of Anne Marie Matrenza who passed away earlier this year. This piece was definitely the highlight of the evening – beautifully orchestrated and full of energy. The band was also on top form, and delivered an exhilarating performance. Hats off to King’s Own Band for making this work possible.
The second half opened with Rossini’s overture to La Gazza Ladra. The opening march was assured, but the middle section was slightly less so. The music did gain momentum though, ending in a great climax. This was followed by music from Disney’s animated feature The Jungle Book, in a wonderful arrangement by Marcel Peeters. It was great watching musicians tackle this with the right spirit, with some wonderful solos across the whole ensemble.
The concert concluded with a great rendition of Wagner’s Grand March from Tannhaüser and a new song by Sandro Camilleri called Tislima lill-Banda Ċittadina King’s Own. The song was meant to be performed by Anthea and Justine Bezzina, but alas the latter was unable to attend due to illness. Anthea has a beautiful and powerful voice, and it was rather a pity that technical problems with the sound marred the performance.
The whole evening was well presented, with simple yet effective staging and a welcome absence of speeches. One tiny comment on the compere’s script: a script is meant to help the programme move along, and reading the printed programme notes defeats the purpose of having a printed programme. Also, and this is directed at the audience, I am sure anyone can survive an hour without having to eat, so save the nibbles for before or after the music.