Mozart's church sonatas

Mozart's collection of church sonatas is airy and joyous dispelling the thought that they may be austere and gloomy.

These short instrumental pieces composed to fill the gap between the readings of the epistle and the gospel will be the focus of tomorrow's round of the Passiontide festival being held at the church of St Catherine of Italy, in Valletta at 10 a.m.

The sonatas will be performed by the ProMuzika Ensemble made up of Sarah Spiteri, violin; Stephen Zammit, violin; Mario Psaila, cello and Michelle Cachia Castelletti, organ.

The brevity of the sonatas is in keeping with the compactness of Mozart's Masses, the main reason for this being the strict requirements by the Archbishop of Salzburg, who was Mozart's employer then.

The Archbishop specifically commissioned short Masses and decreed that the music was not to be too heavy or academic. Considering the strictures under which Mozart had to compose, it is remarkable how inventive and inspired many of his Masses were.

Even in the miniature epistle sonatas, Mozart infused his music with colour and imagination, perfectly crafted. Besides their considerable musical worth, the sonatas offer a fascinating insight into Mozart's development as a composer.

The ProMuzika Ensemble is one of the country's leading chamber ensembles performing locally and abroad. Before forming this team, the musicians performed separately as soloists and in chamber combinations for a number of years.

The ensemble promotes classical and contemporary repertoires for various combinations of instruments, ranging from string quartet, trio and duos to string chamber orchestra, apart from collaborating with other musicians in the production of new compositions.

Tickets for the Passiontide festival events cost Lm4 per person (Lm2 for students and senior citizens).

Passiontide, a festival of theatre and dance for Easter is being organised by St James Cavalier and the Valletta Rehabilitation Project to raise funds for the internal restoration of the church of St Catherine.

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