The project "Days of Maltese Music in Armenia" is another step towards strengthening the friendship between the Armenians and the Maltese

The project “Days of Maltese Music in Armenia” was held in Yerevan on March 19-22. It aimed at presenting Malta's musical heritage to Armenian art lovers. The project featured famous musicians from Malta. Such intercultural contacts enable the musicians to get acquainted with the cultural heritage of different countries and open new perspectives for cooperation.

In 2018, on April 18-30, Days of Armenian Culture were held in the capital of Malta, Valetta. Within the framework of that project the Armenian rich culture was presented. A year later, on the initiative of the European Foundation for Support of Culture and the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra, Maltese musical art was presented to the Armenian audience. Within the framework of symphonic and chamber concerts, Maltese artists, violinists Carmine Lauri, Reggie Clews and pianist Bernice Sammut Attard performed in Yerevan.

"Give me a tune, and I will be happy." This is Carmine Lauri’s principle of living. "Music is harmony, it should touch the hearts of people," says the violinist and with the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra performs Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s Violin Concerto. His sincere performance gave a new shade to the work. He has been the Co-Leader of the London Symphony Orchestra for the past 18 years, the Concertmaster of the Oxford Philharmonic and Guest Leader of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra. He was also the guest leader of various orchestras including the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the London Philharmonic, the Rotterdam Philharmonic, the Bournemouth Symphony, Manchester Camerata and the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. Carmine Laurie has previously collaborated with the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra and assures that it is a fantastic collective; musicians are very professional and wonderful. Smbatyan is a great conductor and the violinist likes to work with him.

The next meeting with Malta's music took place at Tchaikovsky Music School where 18-year-old pianist Bernice Sammut Attard performed. The Maltese young pianist is the winner of the 2018 Young Musicians Eurovision competition. Her 18-min recital was broadcasted live amongst around 5 million people across Europe. Her performance was highly praised amongst many local and foreign musicians. In Yerevan she had a solo recital at Tchaikovsky Music School in front of her peers and other young musicians. The piano keys sounded soft and beautiful under the fingers of Bernice Sammut Attard. Her performance was so sincere that the harmonious sounds of music united the audience and the pianist into one. Bernice confesses that she is familiar with Aram Khachaturian's art and loves his music very much.

The co-concertmaster of Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, violinist Reggie Clews performed within the framework of Days of Maltese Music in Armenia. Reggie Clews welcomes the idea of holding Days of Maltese Music in Armenia. He thinks that such projects should be more frequent for the Maltese and Armenian people to know each other better. In this respect, Reggie Clews and other musicians have played a major role in supporting the European Foundation for Support of Culture, which carries out extensive programs for support of classical music in many other countries.

During these days, Maltese composer Joseph Wella's symphonic poem "Rebbieha" was performed in Armenia for the first time.

The intercultural dialogue between Armenia and Malta serves to enrich the cultures of these countries, creating opportunities for the Armenians and the Maltese to communicate through art. The project "Days of Maltese Music in Armenia" is another step towards the strengthening of friendship between the Armenians and the Maltese.