Malta Diary Hip-Hop Hooray – and throw in some rock, some rap … and Malta is making its mark in the world of festivals and concerts
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ALBERT FENECHe/mail – salina46af@gmail.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/jerome.fenechMy Blog: https://myreachingout.wixsite.com/myblog.Right ho – so yes, there is an age gap, a great age gapand I now stand (or sit) at the end of one extreme in themusic world.My late father loved classical music, opera and lightclassical. On Sunday mornings, aged four and mybrother aged barely two, we sat and listened to an oldgramophone (remember the one featured on past HisMaster’s Voice labels?) as he cooked Sunday lunch andput on large 78 discs and played Mozart, Verdi andWhen dear dad was in a “lighter” mood it was BingCrosby, Doris Day and Edmundo Ros and his LatinAmerican rumba orchestra.All these ingrained a musical love in me that I still carrytoday.Later, as a growing teen, Bill Hayley and his Rock ‘n Rollentered my world (classed by dad as “rubbish” and “theend of decent music”) and later still Chubby Checkerwith his “Twist” and undoubtedly Elvis, Cliff Richard,Roy Orbison and a host of others.My musical journey saw its sunset with The Beatles andThe Rolling Stones in the 60s and like dad, the rest wasa virtual disintegration of music as far as I amconcerned.Am I therefore qualified to write this piece?The situation is this; buoyed by wonderful summerweather (that is if you like being roasted alive by blazingsunshine – but apparently many people do) and starrysummer nights, Malta’s Ministry for Tourism hasembarked on a committed musical path to make Maltaone of the most attractive concert venues in theThis is what I am writing about and NOT the music.A number of outdoor evening concerts have been drawnto Malta and with them thousands of young touristsfrom throughout Europe have flocked to Malta to enjoy asummer break, holiday and attend various concerts.One was the first-ever performance outside Britain bythe BBC Concert Orchestra which regularly performs onBBC Radio 2 and 3.Their open air concert on the Floriana Granaries,compered by the much-admired actor Charles Dancewas to say the least spectacular and attracted manythousands.The 70-piece orchestra was conducted by RichardBalcombe and performed classic film scores from Out ofAfrica and The Magnificent Seven as well as some oftoday’s most popular film songs from films such as TheGreatest Showman. Bohemian Rhapsody, Frozen andMary Poppins Returns.There was also music from films made in Malta and thewhole show was rounded off with a spectacularfireworks finale to the main theme from Star Wars.Guest vocalists included Louise Dearman (Wicked),Hannah Waddingham (Game of Thrones) and BradleyJaden (Les Misérables).Incidentally, the show was free of charge on a first-The other has to be the annual concert given by Malta’sworld-famous tenor Joseph Calleja last Saturday, thistime round accompanied by the much-loved blind Italiansinger Andrea Bocelli.The rest of the concerts did not mean much to me butscores of thousands of youngsters begged to differ!Controversy did its rounds too. Surely enough, theconcerts attract publicity and they attract thousands ofvisiting followers and fans to listen to rap, hip-hop andwhat have you. However, among the thousands there isalways a percentage of drunks, drug traffickers anddruggees and Malta Police had a hectic time roundingResidents in various localities complained bitterly ofrowdy, urinating and vomiting youths at all hours of thedays and nights. Standards of dress, or perhaps moreaccurately lack of dress, particularly by young womeneager to show off their physical talents in the summerweather and let everybody see their tattoos, also cameunder heavy criticism.The first to set the scene in early summer was the Lost‘n Found Concert stretching over a long weekend invarious localities and estimated to have drawn 10,000visitors just for the concerts and the music.Naturally, cash tills jingled merrily in bars andrestaurants, hotels and apartments were packed andtaxi drivers worked 24/7 and the airlines were keptThe Isle of MTV Concert has become a regular annualfixture too, held on the Floriana Granaries and estimatedto have attracted 50,000 followers (mainly Maltese) withmuch screaming, swooning and fainting. With the day-time temperatures registering close on 40 degrees, thestifling heat was apparently no deterrent.Setting the scene and responsible for all the swooningand screaming were guys like DJ Martin Garrix, BebeRexha, Ava Max (who apparently is a female Yank ofAlbanian descent) and Wiley.I had never heard of them before and do not particularlywant to hear of them again but, as I said, the age gap isAmidst all this, former Oasis star Liam Gallagherbreezed in to give his own concert on the Granaries,once more in conjunction with the Malta TourismTo cap it all, around the 15th ofAugust (a PublicHolidayand the Feast of The Assumption) there were two furtherevening concerts, including Summer Daze, once moreattracting bumper attendances and once more keepingthe Police busy with drugs traffickers and druggees.The Martinez Brothers kicked off proceedings on 11thAugust with a performance in partnership with well-However, the main events took place over 14th and 15thAugust at the Ta Qali National Park with “undergroundlegends” in the form of Paul Kalkbrenner, Loco Dice,Green Velvet, BBC Radio 1’s Monki and local favouriteCarl Bee all performing on the first evening.On the second evening it was David Guetta, Tyga,James Arthur, Danny Howard, Alle Farben, Tenishia anda number of local artists.And what exactly are “underground legends”?Search me; not my cup of tea naturally, but it takes allsorts.I wonder what Mozart, Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatrawould have made of it all?ALBERT FENECH____________________________________MALTESE SAYING“The oil will always surface in the water”This indicates that sooner or later, finally the truth willemerge and be known. As oil will always surface onwater, at some point or other the truth of a situationwill become known._________________ _______________