Folk singing festival this weekend

Over 60 popular folk singers and guitar players will be taking part in the sixth edition of the National Folk Singing Festival to be held at Argotti Gardens, in Floriana on Friday, Saturday and Sunday between 6 and 11 p.m.

Apart from Maltese performers, the festival will include folk groups from Italy, Spain and Tunis.

Gorg Mifsud-Chircop, chairman of the organising committee, noted that folk singing forms part of the country's cultural heritage.

The foreign performers will include Gianni Ciolli and Enrico Rustic, L'Espingari and Ikhwan al-Hadra. The Maltese ensemble Grupp Gukulari will be the festival's special guests.

Throughout the weekend, traditional Maltese food will be served while craftsmen will give details about traditional crafts, including filigree, wax, honey, preserved food, cane, lace, carpet weaving, woodwork and ganutell.

Visitors will be able to follow an English translation of the lyrics screened on a large monitor.

The festival is being organised by the Malta Council for Culture and the Arts and is supported by the Malta Tourism Authority, the Italian Cultural Institute and Cisk. Entrance to the festival is free.