Baritone Joseph Lia will perform a programme of sacred works for voice, focusing mainly on different Ave Maria compositions and other Marian prayers composed in different styles over the span of music history.
The works will be performed at the Jesuits’ church, Merchants Street, Valletta, tomorrow Monday, May 2 at 12.30pm, on Friday, May 6 at 7.30pm, and on Saturday, May 7 at 7.45pm.
Lia will be ably accompanied by his wife Natalia Rakhmatulina on the organ. She will also perform some solo works and variations on known melodies.
Ave Maria is an important Christian prayer based on two biblical episodes featured in the Gospel of St Luke – the Annunciation and the Visitation – followed by an appeal for intercession.
Many composers have set music for this prayer’s Latin text through the centuries, with the most famous being Schubert’s (even though this melody was originally written for the secular song Ave Maria! Jungfrau mild) together with Gounod’s melody on Bach’s Prelude No. 1 in C Major from the Well-Tempered Clavier, and Vavilov’s, which the composer himself attributed to Caccini.
The programme will also feature works by Bach, Durante, Brahms, Lorenc, Fenech and others.
These concerts are being supported by Arts Council Malta and tickets are available from www.ticketline.com.mt.