The 15th Edition of the Din l-Art Helwa Bir Miftuh International Music Festival this year launches with a series of three concerts which will take place at the medieval Church of Santa Marija ta’ Bir Miftuh c 1450 in Gudja, which, with its unique frescos of the Last Judgment, fluted arches and perfect acoustics provides an exceptional back drop to the high calibre international artists who will be performing this year.
The opening concert takes place on Saturday, 21st May, with a return to Malta of the Cosmos Wind Ensemble. These artists were most highly acclaimed at the Festival last year and by popular request the Ensemble have been asked to perform again. The Ensemble is made up of Rebecca Hall (Canada) – Flute, John McDonough (U.K.) – Oboe, Godfrey Mifsud (Malta) – Clarinet, Ulrike Buhlmann (Germany) – Bassoon.
The Cosmos Wind Ensemble was formed in 2005 and is a woodwind-based group committed to the performance of original chamber music compositions. The members of the Ensemble come from different nationalities and their diverse cultures have been intertwined through their mutual love of music. All of them have played as soloists and as orchestral musicians with the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra. The Ensemble has performed varied and exciting repertories for diverse combinations and in different formations. Their repertoire ranges from the Baroque to the Contemporary. They have played at a variety of venues and events across the Maltese Islands, including the Manoel Theatre, St James Theatre-in-the-Round, St Catherine’s Church, St James Cavalier Recital room, the Historic Palazzo Falson, the Museum of Fine Arts and the Malta Arts Festival. In May 2009 they performed an all Maltese contemporary programme in Munich, as part of the Europa Musicale Festival. The Ensemble takes particular interest in working with local composers through the commission and performance of new compositions. Their programme includes very interesting and beautiful works by Rossini, Albert Garzia, J. Françaix, Mozart and Mike Curtis and has been made possible by the generous support of the German Embassy.
The second concert on the Saturday 11th June is a Violin and Guitar Concert by the Duo Marco Misciagna on the violin and Vito Vilardi on the guitar. This has been made possible by the Italian Embassy and the Istituto Italiano di Cultura.
Marco Misciagna is Professor of Viola at the Conservatorio di Stato di Vibo Valentia and also at the Conservatorio Italiano a Parigi. He studied under the tuition of Professor Salvatore Accardo and was a prize winner at the Accademia Chigiana di Musica di Siena. He performs as a soloist with several national and international orchestras. He was recently invited to deliver Master Classes at the Conservatorio Superior Reina Sofia in Madrid, at the Royal Academy of Music in London and at the University of California in Santa Barbara. He has recorded many CDs for ‘Dynamics’ and ‘Phoenix Classics’.
Vito Vilardi teaches classical guitar at the Accademia Martucci di Bari and at the Associazione Domenico Sarro di Treni. After obtaining his Diploma, under the guidance of Maestro Scarola, he had the opportunity to study with the Cuban Maestro Leo Brower. He performs as soloist with several national and international orchestras. In 2008 he played in Malta for ‘The Order of the Knights of St John’ in Valletta. He has recorded two CDs for ‘Digression’ with Maestro Marco Misciagna celebrating Carulli, Giuliani and Paganini.
The repertoire of the Duo ranges from Paganini and Giuliani to contemporary composers and during this recital the duo will play works by Carulli, Giulani and Paganini.
The third and final concert on Saturday 18th June, is a Flute and Harpsichord recital by Jean-Christophe Sampson – Flute, Sophie Charpentier – Harpsichord and has been made possible through the kind efforts of the French Embassy and the Alliance Francaise.
Jean-Christophe Sampson started studying the flute at the age of ten with the Trio d’Argent and received his first Award of Excellence from the city of Senart in 2001. He also won the Lutece Flute Competition. He perfected his studies with Professors Prats, Bernold, Deboste and Larrieu. He is a graduate from the Ecole Polytechnique and holds an MBA from INSEAD. Jean-Christophe Sampson is a passionate flutist. He regularly gives concerts of chamber music and poetry in Paris and has founded the Trio Vinteuil. He has performed with reputable artists in France, Russia, Argentina and Turkey and has played at prestigious venues such as L’Opera National de Paris, the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris. He is currently director of the Festival Mai Musical of Aÿ Champagne near Épernay.
Sophie Charpentier studied in France with Professors Pontet, Longellé and Stocchetti and at the Conservatoire of Geneva with Professor Jaccottet. She is the winner of a Gold Medal Award both in harpsichord and flute. She conducts choral recitals and is the founder of various vocal ensembles performing in adaptations of operas, polyphonic repertoires and contemporary creations. As a harpsichord and flute performer, she dedicates herself to chamber and orchestral music, playing with other distinguished musicians and with renowned ensembles and orchestras. Sophie Charpentier is Professor at the Conservetoire de Bagnois-sur-Cèze (Gard). She also takes a keen interest in musical theatre, vocal jazz and contemporary opera.
This concert features works by Johann Sebastian Bach, so lovers of this great composer will be enraptured by the beauty of his captivating music throughout the evening.
All concerts start at 8 p.m. and tickets are Euros 20 per person including refreshments in the Church grounds after each recital. Booking is through the offices of Din l-Art Helwa at 133 Melita Street, Valletta. For more information please call 21220358/21225952 or email on info@dinlarthelwa.org [1].