A group of Form 5 (Year 11) students from St Margaret College Secondary School, Verdala, Cospicua, recently attended an evening chamber music concert featuring European musicians performing music pieces inspired by China as well as European pieces. The students were accompanied by their senior science teacher Martin Azzopardi and LSE Robert Axisa.
Entitled Melody of the Orient, the concert featured the Belart Female String Quartet, which was formed in Brussels in 2016 and is composed of Chinese and Western artists active in the Belgian music scene. It falls under the China Belgium Art and Culture Society (Chinabelart) and performs both western pieces of music and traditional Chinese folk music and, in doing so, seeks to bring together Chinese and European music culture. The concert was held at Spazju Kreattiv, Valletta, and was organised by the China National Opera and Dance Drama Theatre in coordination with the China Cultural Centre in Valletta.
During this concert, Jean-François Maljean, a world-renowned Belgian pop artist and pianist, revealed his musical talent through a piano performance. Throughout his long career, Maljean has composed and recorded some 20 piano albums and released more than 50 editions worldwide. He has travelled throughout Asia and the rest of the world on numerous tours.
The concert also featured Johan Famaey, a Belgian composer and pianist who has composed countless works with and for different ensembles in Europe and China. He won the ‘Verdi Keurmerk’ and ‘Cantabile Piano’ composition contests in 2019. His three song cycles – Chinese Memories, Chinese Impressions and Omomwonden (Wrapped) are his highlights. He is also known for his piano and film music, including Moon Touch, Moon Wish, Back to Selene and Time Passenger.
The feedback of the students attending the concert was a very positive one.
Azzopardi commented: “It is very important that we offer these opportunities to our students so we can inculcate more multicultural spirit in our students and educate them to appreciate art and music. It was worth sacrificing nearly four hours from our free time to our students.”
It is important that we offer these opportunities so we can inculcate more multicultural spirit in our students- St Margaret College Secondary School senior science teacher Martin Azzopardi
He and his students congratulated the chamber concert members for their performance and thanked Malta China Cultural Centre director Yuan Yuan for the invitation.