The Valletta International Baroque Festival fills the city with beautiful music that takes you back to the time Valletta was constructed and its streets took life. Boasting an impressive line-up, this annual festival promises shows and performances of the highest calibre. It runs from the 10^th to 24^th January 2015.

Dedicated to Maltese composer Geronimo Abos, this year’s edition is a way of celebrating the 300^th anniversary of his birth. Abos’ music will be performed by Die Kölner Akademie, Passacaglia Ensemble and the Valletta International Baroque Ensemble.

The Festival features The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, a British period orchestra that will perform the Bach’s St John Passion in St. John’s Co-Cathedral, and also the Cappella Mediterranea that will perform Michelangelo Falvetti’s Il Diluvio Universale, conducted by Leonardo Garcia Alarcon at St. Publius Church in Floriana.

Under the direction of conductor Peter Stark, the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra will present an impressive programme of 20^th century musical pieces that were inspired by the baroque, including a Lukas Foss flute concerto performed by the MPO’s flautist Rebecca Hall.

The Festival, which also has events for children, boasts a promising programme which incorporates a collection of works by musical greats such Bach, Handel and Gluck. It will come to a climax with the Baroque Festival Ball, a favourite amongst all attendees.

The first ever Valletta International Baroque Festival was held in January 2013. The third instalment of this festival promises to continuously enhance Valletta’s prestige while also celebrating our heritage and our strategic role during the course of European history.

The festival’s events are held at a number of different venues including the magnificent Teatru Manoel, the Maltese National Theatre and one of the oldest working theatres in Europe, and other impressive buildings such as St John’s co-Cathedral, the Grandmaster’s Palace, the different Valletta auberges, numerous Valletta churches and other baroque edifices.

The Valletta International Baroque Festival acts as a vibrant musical testament of our heritage, culture and talent, making Valletta a city befitting of the European Capital of Culture while also extending the European Baroque map to Malta.

For more information about bookings and events, please visit the Valletta International Baroque Festival website.