Valletta Baroque Festival - Music & History in the heart of the Mediterranean
Deal number 28933327
Martin Randall Travel
18/01/2027
Malta
7-day tour
Departing from Valletta
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7 day Martin Randall Tour departing Valletta.
6 night 5-star hotel accommodation at Hotel Phoenicia, Valletta.
Meals including breakfast daily, 4 dinners and with wine, water, coffee
Music tickets (top category) are included for 8 performances.
Travel by private coach.
The services of the lecturer, tour manager and local guide.
All admissions.
All gratuities and taxes.
The service of a dedicated Travel Advisor managing your booking.
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Malta is a highly apposite setting for the performance of Baroque music. During this period the island was ruled by the Knights of Malta or Knights Hospitaller, Valletta was completely rebuilt and the knights themselves were vigorous patrons of the arts, including music and architecture.
One of Europe's oldest working theatres is the Teatru Manoel, built in 1731 at the behest of the Grand Master of the order, Fra Antnio Manoel de Vilhena. With only 600 seats, the theatre is a masterpiece of carpentry, with three tiers of wooden boxes, gilded and painted, and a trompe-l'oeil ceiling. Opera companies visited Malta regularly, performing works by Hasse, Piccinni and Galuppi. Other venues to host concerts during the festival include Verdala Palace, at Buskett, the summer residence of the Maltese president, and the striking St Johns Co-Cathedral, with one of most ornate Baroque interiors in Europe.
Valletta occupies a beautiful position on one of the worlds greatest natural harbours, and has fine buildings that still dominate the city. Our itinerary balances the concerts with lectures from our musicologist and visits and excursions to some of the great sites of the Maltese archipelago led by a local guide.
One of Europe's oldest working theatres is the Teatru Manoel, built in 1731 at the behest of the Grand Master of the order, Fra Antnio Manoel de Vilhena. With only 600 seats, the theatre is a masterpiece of carpentry, with three tiers of wooden boxes, gilded and painted, and a trompe-l'oeil ceiling. Opera companies visited Malta regularly, performing works by Hasse, Piccinni and Galuppi. Other venues to host concerts during the festival include Verdala Palace, at Buskett, the summer residence of the Maltese president, and the striking St Johns Co-Cathedral, with one of most ornate Baroque interiors in Europe.
Valletta occupies a beautiful position on one of the worlds greatest natural harbours, and has fine buildings that still dominate the city. Our itinerary balances the concerts with lectures from our musicologist and visits and excursions to some of the great sites of the Maltese archipelago led by a local guide.
Itinerary
Day 1 Valletta
Arrive into Malta and drive to Valletta, a peninsula flanked by fine natural harbours and once the most strongly fortified city in Christendom. Some time to settle into the hotel before dinner. All six nights are spent here.
Day 2 Valletta
Morning lecture followed by a guided walk to introduce the city: survey the massive fortifications protecting the landward approach and view the Grand Harbour from the ramparts. Afternoon tour of the Teatru Manoel (subject to confirmation) before an early dinner and evening concert at St John's Co-Cathedral: Da Pacem - Concert for Peace: Music by Magistrali, Lotti, Farina, Jommelli, Banchieri, Bettinelli, Palestrina. Giulio Prandi, Renato Cadel (directors), Coro Ghislieri, Coro Gregoriana Ghislieri.
Day 3 Valletta and Attard
A lecture precedes the midday recital at San Anton Palace, Attard, with rising star modern pianist: Bach Piano Transcriptions. Ljubica Stojanovic (piano). Return to Valletta and visit the opulent Grand Master's Palace and Armoury, once the seat of power for the Knights of St John, nowadays housing a superb collection of arms and armour. An evening concert at St Dominic Church: Bach/Telemann 1735. Meret Luthi (violin, direction), Les Passions de l'Ame, Hana Blazikova (soprano), Anne Parisot (flute).
Day 4 Valletta and Siggiewi
Morning lecture before driving out to Siggiewi for the midday performance at Verdala Palace: Partita Dolorosa: Music by Montserrat, Purcell, Handel, Strozzi, Conti, Lully. Venerem Ensemble. In Valletta, the rest of the day is free, or attend the optional evening performance at the Casino Maltese: Music by Scott, Glass, Part, Stravinksy. Michael Laus (direction), Malta Philharmonic Orchestra.
Day 5 Valletta, Paola and Tarxien
In Paola, the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the only prehistoric underground burial site in the world. The Tarxien Temples site is the most complex in Malta and would have been the most decorative. It was rediscovered by accident in 1902 and is the source of outstanding carved reliefs and statues. An afternoon lecture back in Valletta before dinner and returning to Teatru Manoel for this evening's opera: Giulio Cesare in Egitto (Handel). Antonio Florio (musical direction), Denise Mulholland (stage direction), Raffaele Pe (Giulio Cesare), Claire Debono (Cleopatra), Candida Guida (Cornelia), Giuseppina Fina (Sesto), Joel Vuik (Tolomeo), Matteo Loi (Achilla), Cristina D'Alessandro (Nireno), Carlo Feola (Curi).
Day 6 Valletta and Birgu
A morning lecture then visit to the Co-Cathedral of St John, one of the most interesting of Baroque buildings with lavish carved wall decoration, ceiling paintings, magnificent tombs and two paintings by Caravaggio. Then on to St Mary Magdelen Church for the midday concert: Erato - The Muse of Music. Redita Vox Ensemble. Iris Faceto (viola da gamba), Rossella Pugliano (violin), Cecilia Innandrea (harpsichord). An early dinner in Birgu, across the Grand Harbour from Valletta, then the final concert at St Lawrence Church: Vulnerasti Cor Meum - Motets from the Song of Songs: Music by Valentini, Casati, Patta, Grandi, Tarditi, Monteverdi, Banci, Banchieri, Malgarini, Riccio, Leoni, Rovetta, Rigatti, Colombi. I Disinvolti Ensemble.
Day 7 Valletta
An optional visit to Muza, the National Museum of Art housed in the Auberge d'Italie, or a free morning, followed by an independent lunch. Depart Malta anytime or after lunch if taking optional tour.
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