‘Distant Sounds’ will showcase music from Malta, China and Australia performed by Equinox Trio on Friday, 18 May, 8pm at Sagrestia Vaults, Valletta Waterfront. The trio will perform works by Peter Sculthorpe, Bright Sheng, Douglas Knehans, Charles Camilleri and Ruben Zahra. The concert is organised by Barocco Cultural Events.

The programme opens with Dream Tracks. Since 1988, Peter Sculthorpe wrote a series of works inspired by Kakadu National Park, in the north of Australia. Some of these works have melodic material in common, the contours of each line usually being transformed in some way, both within pieces and in successive pieces. Sculthorpe has come to regard these melodies as ‘songlines’ or ‘dreaming tracks’. The second trio on the programme is trio New York by Charles Camilleri. In 1971, Camilleri embarked on a series of chamber works amongst which was this trio which was left unfinished. The composer recalls how during a visit to New York in 1998, the energy and hustle and bustle of the City reminded him of the trio which was eventually brought back to life.

Rive by Australian composer Douglas Knehans will close the first half of the programme. ‘Rive’ literally means a ripping or tearing apart. When the Verdehr Trio visited Tasmania in 2001 they were taken with the severity of such primal ripping and tearing as expressed in the feeding habits of the Tasmanian Devil. This work represents somewhat of a departure from previous works of Knehans in its immediacy of expression and clarity, even its traditionalism in many ways.

Tibetan Dance by Bright Sheng was written in October 2000. The work is anchored on the last movement, the longest of the three. The first two movements are reminiscent, as if one is hearing songs from a distant memory, and the music becomes real in the last movement. There, the music material is based on the rhythm and melodic motive of a Tibetan folk dance from Qinghai, a Chinese province by the border of Tibet, where the composer lived during his teenage years.

Etnika Suite by Ruben Zahra was originally composed for the Etnika project concerning the revival of Maltese traditional instruments. The original instrumentation of these pieces within the Etnika project in 2000 was flute, clarinet, violin, guitar, accordion, piano, tuba and percussion. The music has been since arranged for various formations and ensembles and shall be premiered in this new version by the Equinox Trio.

Equinox Trio features clarinettist Lino Pirotta, violinist Tatjana Chircop and pianist Tricia Dawn Williams. Tickets at €15, €14 and €10 can be bought from Barocco Cultural Events by phoning 7968-0952 or one can send an email to bookings@baroccomalta.com.