Our tour to Malta in words and pictures

The choir and a supportive band of friends have just returned from a really excellent tour to Malta and Gozo. Our ranks were bolstered by six guest singers, who were a tremendous asset. We all felt that the tour was a success both musically and socially.

We are so lucky as a choir to have an experienced dedicated choir trips’ organising committee with many varied talents. Planning started around two years ago and we ensured that there would be a good balance of singing and free time.

It was helpful that choir member Stephanie is well acquainted with the islands and is well connected with the various churches. Of necessity there’s a lot of emailing before a foreign tour and it’s easy for some things to get lost in translation, but Stephanie has a patient disposition! Diana produced a comprehensive tour booklet; Katy produced the posters and did some social posts; Jane liaised with the various restaurants for the group meals; David organised the transport; Pam produced the programmes; Mark liaised with our travel agent as regards group flight arrangements; Louise and Darren worked on fund-raising; and Simon wrote some PR.

Peter conducted the four concerts and Malcolm conducted the service on the final day.

Here are some brief notes describing our itinerary.

Saturday 24 May, Valletta. It was a free day but there were some organised activities, including a trip to Conspicua/Birgu, one of the Three Cities. We had a guided tour of St Lawrence’s Church in Birgu, to include treasures from ‘the Gems of St Lawrence’ on recent display including some ancient relics. It’s the oldest church in Malta and where the Knights of St John originated. We then enjoyed a group meal at a waterfront restaurant.

Sunday 25 May, Valletta. Our first concert was in St John’s Co-Cathedral, which is famous for two enormous Caravaggio paintings, including The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist, as well as for its marbled floor. You can watch a video of us warming up in our hotel lobby.

Monday 26 May, Valletta. Our second concert was at the Dominican Church of the Annunciation, Birgu.

On Malta we enjoyed the many sightseeing opportunities, which included the Café Cordina with its pastries, the historic museums and churches in Valletta, Mdina (the Silent City) and Rabat in the centre of the island, the Hypogeum (a 5,000-year-old necropolis) and Marsaxlokk, a charming fishing town.

After the concert in Birgu, we took a bus and ferry to Mgarr, the principal port on the neighbouring island of Gozo, where we spent the following four days.

On Gozo we enjoyed the many sightseeing opportunities, which included a hop on, hop off bus round the island, the salt pans, the Ta Pinu Shrine, the Ggantija Temples, Victoria Cittadella, Xlendi and Marsalform villages as well as a Craft Village.

Tuesday 27 May, Gozo. Our third concert was at Gozo Cathedral in the citadel of the island’s capital Victoria (Rabat), with its trompe-l’oeil painted ceiling.

Wednesday 28 May, Gozo. Our fourth singing event was a recital at the Xewkija Rotunda, a church with a vast dome and such huge resonance that we decided to surround our audience with sound. You can watch two excerpts of us singing Chesnokov’s “Spaseniya Sodelal”. That evening we enjoyed another group meal at an excellent fish restaurant after a swim at Mgarr ix-Xini overlooking a crystal-clear harbour.

Thursday 29 May, Gozo. Our fifth and last singing event was at an Ascension Day service at Zebbug Parish Church, which was followed by our final group meal at Francesco’s Special Pizza restaurant (complete with a virgin Mary statue!), which brought to an end a highly successful week on tour.

To judge by the positive responses we received, we felt that the performances met our goal of bringing our two countries closer through the medium of shared music.

Here are some images of our tour.