Classical Guitar Favourites: A Lunchtime Recital

Barocco Foundation, in collaboration with Din l-Art Ħelwa, is pleased to present a special lunchtime recital featuring well-known Maltese guitarist Bernard Catania at the historic Our Lady of Victory Church in Valletta. The recital will take place on Tuesday, 27 October 2026 at 12:30pm, offering audiences an opportunity to enjoy an hour of beautiful guitar music in the unique atmosphere of Valletta’s first historic church.

The programme opens with the haunting and deeply expressive Adagio from Joaquín Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez, one of the most recognisable works ever associated with the classical guitar. This is followed by Isaac Albéniz’s Asturias (Leyenda), a work renowned for its evocative Spanish character and rhythmic intensity. The programme continues with the lively Allegro from Federico Moreno-Torroba’s Sonatina in A and Enrique Granados’ elegant Danza Española No. 5, Andaluza.

The music of Francisco Tárrega, one of the great figures in the history of classical guitar, features prominently with two much-loved works,  Recuerdos de la Alhambra  and  Capricho Árabe. These pieces demonstrate Tárrega’s extraordinary ability to create both delicate intimacy and rich musical colour through the guitar.

The recital then travels across the Atlantic with João Pernambuco’s Sons de Carrilhões, followed by the lyrical Julia Florida by Paraguayan composer Agustín Barrios. The programme continues into the twentieth century with Leo Brouwer’s Un Día de Noviembre, a work of lyrical simplicity and gentle beauty, before moving to the unmistakable rhythms of Argentine tango in Astor Piazzolla’s Verano Porteño.

Further highlights include Stanley Myers’ Cavatina, widely known for its beautiful melodic line, and José Luis Merlin’s Joropo from Suite del Recuerdo, which brings the programme to a vibrant and rhythmic conclusion.

Presented in the atmospheric setting of Our Lady of Victory Church, this lunchtime concert also forms part of the cultural collaboration between the Barocco Foundation and Din l-Art Ħelwa, bringing together music and Malta’s rich architectural and historical heritage.

Classical Guitar Favourites: A Lunchtime Recital: will be held at Our Lady of Victory church, Valletta on Tuesday 20 October 2026 at 12:30pm. Entrance to the concert is at a suggested donation of €13.  One can obtain the tickets prior to the concert from the venue itself or by email: baroccobookings@gmail.com/baroccomalta@gmail.com or phone 79680952.