Back to What's onOpening Concert – 8PM
St Paul’s Anglican Pro-Cathedral
The opening concert of the 20th Malta Spring Festival features Philip Glass’s iconic Saxophone Quartet (1995), with four movements showcasing lyrical, rhythmic, intimate, and exuberant saxophone textures. Ignacy Zalewski’s mono no aware, commissioned for the festival, uses sparse motifs and delicate harmonics to evoke loss and fragile soundscapes. David Maslanka’s Recitation Book blends sacred chorales and Renaissance polyphony into a meditative, spiritually rich five-movement work. Malta’s leading Melika Saxophone Quartet, made up of the island’s top players, is renowned for dynamic performances across major festivals and venues.
Shostakovich Sonatas – 8PM
Teatru Manoel Main Stage
Dmitry Shostakovich’s chamber works feature deeply expressive and structurally masterful compositions performed by distinguished artists. Adam Klocek, Grammy-winning cellist and conductor, brings passion and precision to the Cello Sonata, a lyrical and intense work from Shostakovich’s early career. Dmitry Sitkovetsky, acclaimed violinist and conductor, performs the late Violin Sonata, a complex and introspective piece blending twelve-tone techniques and profound emotional depth. Alexandre Razera, noted Brazilian violist, and pianist Debbie Shah, a versatile collaborative artist, present the Viola Sonata, Shostakovich’s final work, marked by elegiac reflection. Together, these artists deliver a powerful exploration of Shostakovich’s evolving musical voice.
Huberman String Quartet & Christine Zerafa, piano – 8PM
Teatru Manoel Main Stage
Two contrasting piano quintets illuminate the expressive range of twentieth-century chamber music. Grażyna Bacewicz’s Piano Quintet No. 1 (1952) balances rhythmic drive with inward reflection, moving from tense energy to a searching central lament and a passionate finale. Shostakovich’s Piano Quintet in G minor (1940), combines classical clarity with a distinctive emotional voice, from its grave Prelude and austere Fugue to a sardonic Scherzo and quietly hopeful conclusion. The Huberman String Quartet (Poland) joins Maltese pianist Christine Zerafa for an evening of intensity, colour, and finely wrought ensemble playing.
Closing Concert – 8PM
Teatru Manoel Main Stage
The Malta Spring Festival closes with an evening of powerful string writing and striking contrasts. Charles Camilleri’s Suite 2001 – Kosmos opens the concert with a reflective meditation on humanity and the universe, followed by Britten’s youthful and spirited Simple Symphony. Karl Fiorini’s Weinende Frau, inspired by Picasso’s Guernica, offers an intense and searching contemporary voice, while Ginastera’s visceral Concerto for Strings brings rhythmic drive and dramatic force. Performed by the Malta Spring Festival Academy Orchestra conducted by Brian Schembri, this concert brings together young international talent in a compelling festival finale.
