MICHAEL LAUS Conductor
CLAIRE MASSA Mezzo Soprano

Joseph Vella Sinfonietta for Strings, Op. 36
Charles Camilleri Iconi di Donna (arr. by Albert Garzia)
Antonín Dvořák Slavonic Dances Op. 72 (1-2) & Op. 46 (1-3, 8)
Franz Liszt Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2, S.244/2

Michael Laus conducts the MPO in another edition of the Independence Day concert, which appropriately gives prominence to Maltese works and soloists.

The orchestra opens with Joseph Vella’s Sinfonietta for Strings before being joined by mezzo soprano Claire Massa for Charles Camilleri’s song cycle Iconi di Donna, a musical setting of five Italian-language poems by Peter Serracino-Inglott.

The second half of the concert features Dvořák’s Slavonic Dances and Liszt’s famous second Hungarian Rhapsodies. Both works highlight the folk musical traditions of the composers’ homelands during a time when these lands were constituent parts of a greater empire.