The cultural cooperation: Malta & Utrecht

Cindy Dekkers / Designer Cafe supports INVEX

2012-02-22T18:05:00.000+01:00

Panel of evaluators for Malta’s European Capital of Culture bid

2012-01-16T16:53:00.000+01:00

Article published on 13 January 2012

The Ministry for Tourism, Culture and the Environment as the National Managing Authority responsible for organising the selection of Malta’s European Capital of Culture has announced the names of the panel of evaluators who will be assessing Malta’s bid for the title of European Capital of Culture for 2018.

A selection panel of 13 members is set up to assess the applications of cities bidding for the title. Seven of the panel members are nominated by the European institutions, and six are nominated by Malta. These are: Mr Mario Azzopardi, director of the Malta Drama Centre, theatre director, poet and journalist, Prof Vicki Ann Cremona, an academic specialising in theatre studies and a diplomat, internationally renowned architect Prof Richard England, Prof of Philosophy, poet and playwright Joe Friggieri, Ms Cynthia de Giorgio, curator of St John’s Co-Cathedral Foundation, and Mr Sandro Zerafa, Paris-based musician and artistic director.

The seven European members are: Mr Constantin Chiriac (Romania), former vice-chairman of Sibiu 2007 and currently director of the national theatre Radu Stanca; Mr Manfred Gaulhofer (Austria), Director-General of Graz 2003 and manager of many European projects who has acted as chairperson of former ECOC Evaluation Panels; Mr Steve Green (UK) consultant and researcher in cultural policy; Sir Jeremy Isaacs (UK), television producer and executive, and former General Director of the Royal Opera House and Covent Garden; Mr Jordi Pardo Rodriguez (Spain), scientific coordinator of the Culture Lab at Barcelona Media Foundation. He directs and develops projects in Europe, Latin America and Asia; Ms Erna Hennicot-Schoepges (Luxembourg), former Minister for Culture, MEP and member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, currently chairwoman of many national and international cultural organisations; and Dr Elisabeth Vitouch (Austria), a member of the Committee of the Regions’ Commission for Culture and local councillor in Austria.

The panel members were chosen on the basis of their substantial experience and expertise in the cultural sector, in the cultural development of cities or in the organisation of a European Capital of Culture. The structure of the evaluation panel guarantees a balance between local and national interests whilst safeguarding the European dimension.

The panel will convene for a pre-selection meeting next week in Malta to assess the application presented by the candidate city of Valletta.

http://www.independent.com.mt/news.asp?newsitemid=138102

Official call for candidates in The Netherlands

2011-12-14T17:30:00.000+01:00

At 12 December the Ministry of Culture sent out the official call for Dutch candidates with the ambition to become Cultural Capital of Europe in 2018. The perfect date for SICA (Dutch Centre for International Cultural Activities) to organise an EUROPE DAY on which Henk Heikamp announced the start of the competition on behalf of the Ministry. Delegations from various cities were present. The City of Utrecht was represented by Han Bakker, Bram Buijze, Thomas Nova and Gertrud van Dam.

On the programme were speeches by Neil Peterson and Beatriz García telling about the Liverpools' experiences as ECoC 2018. Liverpool is a good example of a bid that had a big support from the city. In the final programme many citizens were involved, for example in Creative Neighbourhoods and Volunteer Exchanges. Neil and Beatriz also gave a report on the impact on cultural capital, the theme of the day.

Off course Utrecht is already working hard on the bidbook. The first draft is expected 1 November 2012, so there's work to be down. As someone said: 'The heat is on'!

Central Museum and Heritage Malta

2011-12-06T14:38:00.000+01:00

Two colleagues of the Centraal Museum (CM), Errol van de Werdt (director Collections & Research) and Renger de Bruin (curator for Utrecht History) visited Malta to talk about proceeding museum contacts in the framework of European Capital of Cultural 2018. Maltese counterparts of Heritage Malta (HM) like Martin Spiteri, Pierre Bonello and Luisana d’Amato, whom they know from earlier meetings both in Malta and Utrecht, welcomed them on the island. Errol and Renger visited several museums and sites: the Archaeological Museum and the Armory in Valetta, the Hypogeum and the Hagar Quim temples, as well as the well equipped laboratories of HM.

The scientific expertise at HM and the experience of CM in collection policies and management (visits to the depot Utrecht impressed Maltese colleagues highly) offer possibilities for knowledge exchange. Errol gave a presentation for the HM staff on several museological issues. His lecture was titled “from collection policies and strategies to implementation, the Centraal Museum case” Most debate arose from the deaccessment topic (removing objects from a museum collection). Renger gave a presentation at the University of Malta on the historical background of Utrecht art in the 16th and 17th centuries, related to the current Bloemaert exhibition.

For exchange of exhibitions various possibilities exist. Malta is interested in topics like the Leidsche Rijn excavations, the Teutonic Orde, the Utrecht Caravaggists and Rietveld. HM has important and attractive collections like prehistoric temples, the Roman period, the Knights of St. John and also Caravaggists. From the museological point of view there is a special interest in the field of collecting/deaccessioning, accessibility of collections and the case of central storage for collections.

De Bruin and Van der Werdt met also with David Felice, who coordinates the nomination of Valletta for 2018. He confirmed his interest for Utrecht as the Dutch candidate for 2018 in view of the cultural relations that have been built during the last years. Together we'll move onwards!

Miss Ophelia in Malta

2011-11-18T13:27:00.001+01:00

The Utrecht based music theatre group Het Filiaal [ 'the branch'] performed the beautiful theatre play Miss Ophelia at the MITP theatre in Valletta. After performances in New York, Edinburgh and Dublin it was Malta's turn. Miss Ophelia is an ‘object theatre’ piece, based on the picture book Ophelia’s Shadow Theatre by Michael Ende. It's about an old lady collecting shadows. At night they leave her bag to tell and play the most beautiful stories. All characters are done by Ramses Graus and Mirthe Klieverik.

These performances are the result of good cooperation between Sarah Spiteri, artistic leader of the festival, and the City of Utrecht. During three shows many children from Maltese schools enjoyed the play a lot. Also the teachers were impressed.

Miss Ophelia herself is still enjoying her stay in Malta, looking over Grand harbour, looking for ..… shadows.

'Miss Ophelia was considered the highlight of the festival.
The raw reality of Ophelia's life as characterised by solely two peolple on stage, and their simple, yet beautiful props, enthralled the boys and their accompanying teachers. It was, by far, a touching and impressive performance. The two actors deserve much acclaim for their wonderful rendition of Ophelia's life path.

Said Catherine Cachia of St. Edward's College Junior School at Malta.

Het Filiaal plays on Youth Arts Festival Malta 2011

2011-11-08T12:05:00.000+01:00

http://www.ziguzajg.org/

Valletta's bid to become European Capital of Culture submitted

2011-10-17T17:43:00.000+02:00

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20111017/local/valletta-s-bid-to-become-european-cultural-capital-submitted.389614#.TpxL8EtpNQ4.facebook

Heritage Malta discovers Utrecht above and underground

2011-10-17T10:52:00.001+02:00

The maintenance and development of cultural heritage is an important theme for exchanges between Malta and Utrecht. During their intensive work visit in Utrecht Martin Spiteri and Luisana Damato (Heritage Malta) discovered the city both above as underground. In meetings with their colleagues a follow up was given for the ongoing cooperation.

In the programme cultural heritage was discussed in its broad manifestations. Martin and Luisana looked at the tiniest glass fragments at Dep. Archaeologie and visited the Mansion Oud-Amelisweerd that's being restored commissioned by the Centraal Museum. And in between they enjoyed the Utrecht Caravaggist paintings, visited the underground visitors centre at Domplein and several fortresses. They experienced a lot of enthusiasm and involvement and it's obvious that several ideas for cooperation and exchanges popped up. For example about the climate control of the Hypogeum which is of great importance for the second visitors centre at Domplein.

The visit to the National Museum for Religious Art St Catharine Convent and the exhibition 'Pilgrims, on the way to Santiago de Compostela' ended the visit to Utrecht. Filled with inspiration and business cards the visit almost felt like a successful pilgrimage itself.

Utrecht icon: Architect Rietveld in Malta

2011-10-13T15:25:00.001+02:00

Well known architect and carpenter Gerrit Rietveld was born in Utrecht. His masterpiece and Unesco Heritage Site the Rietveld House attracts many architecture lovers and tourists to Utrecht every year. Therefore it seemed a good idea to offer the honourable mister Mario de Marco a replica of Rietveld's iconic Red and Blue Chair.

It was a nice surprise to discover that Rietveld inspired Chris Briffa to design a Red and Blue Shelf. It was shown at the Malta Design Week. Off course the people from Utrecht immediately recognized it!

In this way the Utrecht icon is well known in Malta too.

Notte Bianca 2011: Utrecht well represented: music, dance and many good meetings

2011-10-13T15:17:00.001+02:00

The festival was a good opportunity for Frits Lintmeijer (vice mayor for culture and international affairs) to visit Malta. He was accompanied by Peter de Haan and Bram Buijze (responsible for the bidbook process for Utrecht 2018), Hans and Gertrud. In a tightly scheduled programme they were fully immersed in Malta! Along the way the existing good contacts were strengthened and new ideas for cooperation were launched. A connection with a lot of potential and future.

Off course the process for Utrecht 2018 and Valletta 2018 formed the red wire in the meetings with Mario de Marco, Alexiei Dingli, David Felice and many others. With the Valletta 2018 team they shared experiences on the process and activities in that matter. Fortresses and their re-use already is a subject in which several organisations in Malta and Utrecht cooperate. Very interesting was the tour round St Elmo and St Angelo by Pierre Bonello and Martin Spiteri of Heritage Malta. The visit to the Hypogeum was in one word considered impressive, as well as the sight of the Caravaggio paintings at St John's Co-Cathedral.

Impressive was also the interest in tango. Hans Sakkers connected 10 dancers from Utrecht to tango dancers in Malta. During several milonga's tango dancers shared their passion, at Il Forn, Hotel Phoenicia and during the festival. The dancers also exchanged the typical dance music.

At the National Museum of Fine Arts the Van Doorn/Van Vugt Quartet formed the contribution to the festival in a close cooperation with the museum. For not fairly the amount of audience they hoped for, but with several people returning for more Ineke, Marc, Behsat and Steven performed with a cross over of jazz and world music. Many people who strolled through the museum rooms enjoyed the music.

The night before the festival Robert Gabriëlse, Dutch ambassador organised a welcome party for the delegation in his residence. With the company of interesting representatives from the cultural life of Malta and an extra music performance it surely was a pleasant evening.

Notte Bianca 2011: Utrecht delegation in Malta

2011-09-20T14:39:00.002+02:00

adventurous, exciting and international
For the second time the City of Utrecht and the National Museum of Fine Arts cooperate in a contribution to Notte Bianca. Four Utrecht musicians joined in an ensemble especially for this occasion perform in the courtyard of the museum. The VAN VUGT / VANDOORN QUARTET promises 'adventurous, exciting and international' performances. The line-up and the sound of a special blend of instruments and personalities of Ineke van Doorn (vocals, piano), Marc van Vugt (guitar), Steven Kamperman (reeds) and Behsat Üvez (saz, ud, percussion, vocals) will pleasantly surprise the audience.

Make sure to attend this special experience in a special place!

Notte Bianca is a good opportunity for Frits Lintmeijer (Utrecht alderman for Culture) to visit Malta. Together with the heart of the Utrecht 2018-team – Peter de Haan and Bram Buijze – he will attend a fully scheduled programme with meetings and site visits. With the team Valletta 2018 he will certainly discuss the two processes for the bidbook and our (cultural) cooperation. The delegation will also meet several organisations in Malta that have been busy in cultural exchanges with Utrecht. Also the Maltese creative economy is on the agenda.

The days before Notte Bianca and during the festival 10 tango dancers from Utrecht and Malta will dance together (Programme). You're well invited to join!

So, see you in Malta!

ART IDEA Blog

2011-08-28T23:25:00.000+02:00

http://artidea-artidea.blogspot.com/2011/08/valletta-2018.html?spref=fb

Launch Foundation Valletta 2018 and workshops

2011-06-25T09:53:00.003+02:00

Malta Today

Times of Malta

Malta Media Online

Gertrud van Dam and Bram Buijze attended the official launch of the Foundation Valletta 2018 on 20 June in the beautiful Manoel Theatre. Alexei Dingli, Mayor of Valletta, and David Felice, chairman of the Interministerial Commission, illustrated the candidacy, emphasizing that entire Malta will be included in the programme. It was nice to meet Karsten Xuereb again. After having been cultural attaché in Brussels he is now the project coordinator of Valletta 2018. He warmly welcomed the small delegation from Utrecht and showed the video that Utrecht made about the vision and themes for Utrecht 2018. As always people responded positively – it is indeed an informative and funny video.

The themes for Valletta 2018 were being discussed in yet another terrific spot: Verdala Palace. By having the workshops there, the organisation put into practice that being European Capital of Culture will certainly not be restricted to Valletta. It was very nice how Gertrud and Bram were included in the discussions on the themes. They attended two workshops: '18-Creativity and Play at the Heart of Learning' and 'Cultures of Translation'. Both themes are closely connected to the themes on which Utrecht is working.

It was inspiring to attend and it was a good introduction of the Malta-Utrecht cooperation for a large group of people who are interested in the European Capital of Culture. Many showed their interest in this cooperation, for example in the 18-theme, creative industry and cultural heritage.

The Foundation Valletta 2018 will work on the first version of the bidbook, to be presented in October 2011.

Centraal Museum Utrecht and Heritage Malta: on cultural heritage

2011-06-14T13:46:00.001+02:00

On 28 and 29 March Renger de Bruin, curator History of Utrecht and Errol van de Werdt director Collection & Research of the Centraal Museum in Utrecht visited Malta to discuss possibilities for a cooperation between Utrecht and Malta in the field of cultural heritage. Both have a long tradition of caretaking for cultural heritage with a great diversity. In the frame of the candidature for cultural capital of Europe in 2018 explanatory talks to investigate possibilities started. On the initiative of the Utrecht department of Governmental, International and Subsidies (BIS) which already has a long tradition in supporting bilateral contacts between Malta and Utrecht the first steps have been made to concretize this cooperation between the two mentioned partners.

On the basis of earlier talks it became clear that although there are historical connections between Utrecht and Malta the most topical historical issue the ‘Treaty of Utrecht’’ is not the most suitable vehicle for starting cooperative programs. In contrast to this there is on both sides an extraordinary interest in exchanging knowledge and heritage on the topics of the military Orders (the Order of St John and the Teutonic Order) and the Utrecht Caravaggist on the one hand and on the other hand in the field of museology with themes like Collecting and deaccessioning, collection management, museum storage, opening up collections etc. In cooperation with heritage Malta and the University of Valetta Renger de Bruin and Errol van de Werdt started the first talks to set up an exchange programme with lectures and workshops which is now in planning. At the end of this year the first steps for executing a concrete programme will be made as a start for further structural and more extensive cooperation,. This can be seen as a step forwards to the realisation and concretisation of the candidature of the Utrecht/Maltese Cultural capital of Europe.

Opportunities for a holistic approach of arts education - Malta, April 2011

2011-05-18T18:16:00.002+02:00

In April Monique Corvers and I traveled on a mission to explore further exchange of arts and education between Malta and our home town, the City of Utrecht. This was my second trip. For Monique who is artistic director of music theatre Het Filiaal it was her first time on the island. As I experienced last time, it took Monique a day or so ánd an illuminating encounter with a wise old lady to grasp some of the tongue in cheek behind the Maltese practice of ‘complaining their way through life’. Report on a short journey– from culture shock to inspiration – meeting artists and other professionals working in education.

Visiting Malta in April you cannot but notice the strong presence of seasonal rituals and symbols. In December I got a taste of this through the Festa of Maria Immakulata, this time Easter was around every corner: in colors, foods and music. A splendid surprise was being taken to Bach’s St Matthew’s Passion in Mdina, the former capital and principle inland city of Malta. Seated between clergy in the shady purple illuminated baroque St Paul’s cathedral, I was tapping straight into the emotions and sounds belonging to my youth and (protestant) cultural upbringing. The experience illuminated one of the reasons Monique and I were here: to share best practices and join in collective talent building towards an effective –holistic– approach to creativity in the arts and arts education.

Thursday we saw Malta’s first full orchestral staging of Prokovjev’s Peter and the Wolf & Benjamin Britten’s Young people’s guide to the orchestra. Directed by Christopher Muscat, animated by visual artist Pierre Portelli and staged and narrated by Sarah Spiteri. The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra performed in the island’s largest venue, the Mediterranean Conference Centre in the former Knights Hospitallers’ hospital. Acoustically not ideal and with more than 800 children in the house quite a challenge. An important milestone however at which the parliamentary secretary Mr Mario de Marco was present.

Monique: “I’m always interested to see how kids enter the theatre. Is there a system? How long does it take for the kids to be seated? Are they exited, are they prepared? Those things do have a major influence on the success of a show. The concert was a good starting point for discussion with our hosts: ‘What is your goal? Do you want to explain music or do you want children to experience and maybe even love music? Do you want to create a habit? That is the habit of going to concerts or theater. Or do you want to create a craving? That is you loved it so much you only long to go back?’ “

Friday morning we visited the other side of the spectrum: St Margaret’s primary school in Bormla. Being shown around and talking to the headmaster gave us a good impression of the cultural status quo at school, its dreams and its difficulties. Two teachers of the music and arts department happened to be around and gave us additional insight in their teaching practice. Trained art teachers are actually being provided for in the Maltese school system (3 hours a week!) . However the curriculum doesn’t allow integrating art lessons with other disciplines or school projects as yet.

Monique: “I’m a hands on kind of person and enjoy meeting people at work. This school building, British colonial style with high ceilings, large windows and soft wavy curtains – all light and airy – it was wonderful being there. It’s in a rundown area but there are actually quite a few reasons to envy this school. Such as weekly visiting art teachers and a special classroom for art classes. Half an hour in the headmaster’s office was a surreal experience: Charlot Cassar and his staff members craftily divided their attention between their Dutch visitors, children at the door, a frantic grandmother on the phone, a furious mother at reception and other mayhem. All the while the school atmosphere remaining warm and structured.”

A holistic approach to art education means being aware of and positioning your art project in a wider context: that of the child’s everyday life, it’s professional prospects, the school curriculum, sports, welfare, changing society etcetera. This is what Utrecht would like to bring into this exchange: to collaborate with local professionals, get inspired and inspire them to look as much to the context as to the content of an art project. Meeting both teachers and artists in their own environment was important for Monique to get a picture. After the school visit she was excited by the idea of maybe developing a whole new project, based on local stories, getting on board everybody involved in art for children: teachers, parents, artists, animators and last but not least children themselves.

Friday afternoon on the terrace of St James Cavalier Centre of Creativity we met up with a group of ten local artists. In an informal setting we recovered personal memories of when the magic of art struck us for the very first time: a big sister playing the piano, discovering acting as an escape route from bullying, being fascinated by images looking through a lens…. Our own child memories are important root material for anyone wanting to engage young people in the arts. Monique: “I would have loved to see more of the work of all the interesting people I met, hear their stories and see the work of the Band Clubs which are fascinating me. It is quite tough making a living as artist in a community as small as Malta. I do admire the ways in which art and artists are coping (we might soon need their survival skills in the Netherlands too).”

Monique: ” I was told that Malta (or Gozo) is actually the very island where the fairy Calypso enchanted Odysseus. For years on end he renounced going home to his wife. Someone told me that Maltese artists suffer from a kind of Calypso-syndrome. They go abroad, study, come back brimfull of plans and ambitions – and then life on Malta is so comfortable and they forget. I did spend some enchanting days . Having met some Maltese artists I doubt if there is any truth in that story. But it is a good story.”

Saskia van de Ree, april 2011

Information Day on the Malta EcoC 2018, March 4 2011

2011-05-10T20:14:00.002+02:00

https://secure2.gov.mt/ECOC/home?l=1
A well-attended Information Day on the European Capital of Culture for Malta in 2018 was held on Friday 4^th March 2011, at the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry in Valletta. It was addressed by Dr. Mario de Marco, Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism, the Environment and Culture, Jacqueline Pacaud from the Directorate General for Education and Culture at the European Commission and Mary McCarthy, Director of Programmes and Deputy Director for Cork, the European Capital of Culture for 2005. It was introduced by Caldon Mercieca, Culture and Audio Visual Co-ordinator at the Parliamentary Secretariat for Tourism, Culture and The Environment.

Dr. de Marco underlined the fact that the winning bid for the title of European Capital of Culture has to tell its story in its own particular way. Malta's will include both its Euro-Mediterranean dimension and the involvement of its citizens. Moreover, he stated that the regulatory framework of the cultural sector is being revisited in order to ensure and support an integrated framework of cultural infrastructure. What are being targeted are not just physical buildings, but the actual governance structures. These changes will integrate cultural objectives within wider social and economic obligations. This requires the participation of both the public and the private sector. There is the need to place culture high on the national agenda, and among the top tiers of economic regeneration. The draft cultural policy, for example, already spells out the need of consolidating cultural activity as an important facet within Malta's economic potential.

Mme Jacqueline Pacaud explained what the European Capital of Culture project consists of. This project gives rise to the most visible European cultural events in scale and scope, and publicises the cultural excellence of a city. Projects should build on a city's roots and identity but also focus on their European dimension. Projects have to be forward-looking and involve different stakeholders across a city's society. The title can only be given to one city which can involve the region around it. Moreover, if a member state only presents one bid, there is no guarantee that it will be successful, because that bid will still have to fulfil all the established criteria and show that it can deliver a successful and sustainable programme.

Ms Mary McCarthy illustrated the process for the European Capital of Culture in 2005 in Cork in Ireland. She described it as a long 'conversation' that went on over a number of years. She stated that it was a long and tortuous process, but very valid to go through since culture helps a city realise and achieve its full potential. Ms McCarthy insisted that the project should not only be seen as a tourist extravaganza, but that it needs to pose the basic questions to the host community such as what it can mean for its citizens, and how it can be used to shine a spotlight on the community's cultural strengths. She also said that a great European Capital of Culture Project is one which evolves a great vision, one which is authentic and honest to itself and is therefore distinct from that of other cities that have held the title.

During question time, it was highlighted that all the mayors of Malta and Gozo are supporting a joint bid led by Valletta and that this proposal has obtained cross-party support. Today's children will be the force behind the volunteer programme that will make the project happen in 2018 and thinking and planning will have to take this factor as a basis for all considerations to be made.

Utrecht presents first ideas for Ecoc 2018

2011-02-28T21:52:00.001+01:00

Have a look at "the pitch"-video ... Utrecht2018.nl

For the first ideas from Utrecht ... Utrecht 2018 Brochure

Pictures: Anna van Kooy

Localities unite behind Valletta in cultural capital bid

2011-02-03T17:54:00.002+01:00

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110126/local/localities-unite-behind-valletta-in-cultural-capital-bid

St James’ cultural community - a birds eye view

2011-02-02T13:46:00.000+01:00

Report visit by Saskia van de Ree, December 2010

Invited to pay a visit to St James Centre of Creativity (Valetta) I spent a week on Malta last month in the Mediterranean December sun. A year after I got to know my host Christopher Gatt, director of St James’ who visited Yo! Opera Festival in Utrecht in November 2009. Chris was inspired by the way Yo! Opera (the festival where I was managing director then) is exploring the connection between high art (opera) and communities. He asked: would I come over and comment - with a birds eye view - on opportunities outside in the Maltese communities. In my week on Malta St James convincingly showed how they are creatively and seriously searching to extend their scope into a wider, young community of Malta.

For my visit Sarah Spiteri (violinist and senior staff member for education both at St James and at the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra) proved to be an excellent guide. She set up a series of meetings with musicians of all sorts. Starting of with encounters (with lots of cakes and espresso) in the café down the fortress walls of St James Centre of Creativity we soon turned outside. Band Club Houses, School yards, chapels and a rehearsal space in a warehouse, that is where the creative action is. I spent what you could call a 180 degrees treasure hunt in which I learned, amongst others, about the dualism which is embedded in Maltese society. On Malta – so I was told by practically everyone I met – all things come in two. Matters of faith, politics and pleasure are threaded in – both playful and deadly serious – juxtaposing pairs all throughout everyday life.

I visited warehouses and chapels, Band Club houses and churches. I was welcomed at the Humanistic Society’s winter reception and had the full Festa experience (including burgers and fries on the pavement) at the Bormla (Cospicua) Festa of Maria Immakultata. The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra and the all male choir of Capella Sanctae Caterina performed with convincing quality, true to their own character and scale.

While at home in the Netherlands the new government is abandoning culture as one of the pillars of civilization in which it is worth to invest, I found Malta has just increased the arts budget with 10% . The budget is still very small compared to home. But a lot of artists I met expressed a sense of momentum. Having become a member of the EU only seven years ago and with the global possibilities of Internet the country literally seems to have opened up.

My impression can be anything but complete. But I was surprised to find myself fascinated and hooked to this place and its people after only one week.

And what opportunity we have with 2018 lying ahead of us! I do see some good chances. Reporting back to the City of Utrecht I have recommended a.o. to invest in shared talent building and methodology for creative partnerships. While the Utrecht School of the Arts has a lot on offer for Maltese musicians looking for BA or MA degree, I see opportunities for international traineeships for Utrecht master students at the National Arts Festival and other places. I will be going back soon and advise any artist or cultural entrepreneur with a good plan and genuine interest in exchange to get in touch.

Saskia van de Ree, Utrecht, the Netherlands (independent art consultant)

New guide for visitors

2011-01-30T20:05:00.000+01:00

http://www.inyourpocket.com/Netherlands/Utrecht

Mario Frendo and Sean Buhagiar biking their way through Utrecht

2011-01-19T09:49:00.001+01:00

7-11 January 2011

Mario Frendo (artistic director of the international Malta Arts Festival, musician and lecturer in theatre studies at University of Malta) and Sean Buhagiar (arts Executive for the performing arts for the Arts Council) visited Utrecht. As always in a tight schedule it was a good introduction to cultural life and organisations. The focus was on cooperation and the cultural capital ambitions. Gertrud van Dam and Christa Stoop accompanied the guests on their journey through Utrecht…….. even on bikes!

Heart of the programme was Cultural Sunday, a one day festival paying attention to many disciplines. Because of the theme New Year's Dive ('re-start of cultural season') people actually dived in the canal… very cold! Watching dancers at Observatory Sonnenborgh and the Chopin etude marathon at the official University University Building was much warmer.

In many meetings several themes are being discussed. With Thera Jonker (HKU, university for applied arts, Faculty Theatre and other departments) we discussed internships and colleagual consultancy. With Maaike Bleeker (University of Utrecht, Theatre Studies) and Cobie de Vos (production house and theatre festival At the Wharfs) we discussed the festival Camillo 2.0, an international conference on performing arts, taking place in Utrecht 25-29 may.

Possibilities for having productions from Utrecht performed in Malta were discussed with Niek Idelenburg (Holland Opera). Focussing on a young audience they might perform 'Feeks' (revision of Shakespears Shrew with a jazz quartet) at the Summer Art Festival 2011. The same goes for Tjerk de Ridder (and his little dog). His road show tells the story of his journey along cultural capitals Essen, Pecs and Istanbul, hitchhiking with his ECoC-caravan and looking for a tow bar. This performance would help give content to the ECoC0-ambition in Malta.

The other way round - in the meeting with René van de Giessen and Britt Verstegen (Cultural Sundays) Maltese artists are mentioned to perform in Utrecht. We might even organise a special Cultural Sunday on Malta….!

Off course it's interesting for professionals to discuss organisation and daily hassles with colleagues. Policy making, dealing with budget cuts, discovering new audiences – these subjects were discussed with Renée Heijnen (dep. Cultural Affairs) and with Hildegard Draaiijer (dance groupe DOX) and Hans Blik (theatre groupe Het Lab). Both groups focussing on young talent they're about to merge into a new organisation. Meeting the Holland Baroque Society and Xavier Vandamme (director festival Early Music) was especially inspiring for involving early music to Malta.

The visit strengthened the relation between Malta and Utrecht. To be continued, for sure!

For more information please address to Gertrud van Dam and Christa Stoop.

Robbert Gabriëlse - the Dutch ambassador in Utrecht

2011-01-19T09:47:00.001+01:00

13 January 2011

Every time when a delegation from Utrecht visits Malta they meet Robbert Gabriëlse, the ambassador for The Netherlands in Malta. He is truly interested in the activities by Utrecht in Malta and how things are developing. Being in Holland for the yearly ambassadors conference he took the time to come to Utrecht. A pleasant and interesting visit.

Not only cultural cooperation or the ECoC ambitions were being discussed. Robbert Gabriëlse wants to contribute to broader exchanges between Malta and The Netherlands. One of the ideas that came along was the gaming industry, booming in Malta. Utrecht developed the Dutch Game Garden – a laboratory for young artistic talent in the creative gaming industry. The connection is being made.
Frits Lintmeijer, alderman for international affairs, cultural affairs and mobility, exchanged information on mobility and the carbon neutral ambition. Both Utrecht and Malta work on a cleaner and healthier air, although guests from Malta often praise the freshness in Utrecht. For Utrecht Eco Gozo would be an interesting example. We took the opportunity to show the ambassador our townhall, done by Spanish architect Miralles.

Of course we discussed the process to become cultural capital in 2018. The meaning of the candidacy was subject in the meeting with Peter de Haan and Bram Buijze, working for Foundation Peace Treaty of Utrecht 2013. With 2013 as a stepping stone this organisation sets up the bid book for 2018. Autumn 2013 the decision for The Netherlands will be clear. Before that Malta and Utrecht can certainly cooperate to make the meaning of this ambition visible to the inhabitants. In 2016-2017 The Netherlands, Slovakia and Malta will form a trio being chair of the European Union. For that matter the two countries will certainly be more visible.

Malta launched bidding proces for ECoC 2018

2011-01-13T09:48:00.000+01:00

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20101217/opinion/on-the-road-leading-to-2018

David Felice and Josephine Vassallo in Utrecht

2010-11-25T12:38:00.001+01:00

Half of November David Felice and Josephine Vassallo visited Utrecht. David is chairman of inter ministerial commission for European Capital of Culture Malta 2018, Josephine Vassallo is personal assistant to the Prime Minister. They were invited by Frits Lintmeijer, alderman for Culture and International Affairs, and a strong supporter of the ambition of Utrecht to candidate for cultural capital.

Two days with a full programme gave the Maltese guests a good introduction to Utrecht. They met the lobby and bidbook team with representatives from the Foundation Treaty of Utrecht (commissioned to do the lobby), the city and the Province of Utrecht. Peter de Haan, Bram Buyze, Renée Heijnen, Thomas Nova en Quinten Peelen informed them about the organisation and process.

Bettina van Santen (Dep. City Development, Monuments and Archaeology) and Mirelle Kolnaar (City Development, Strategy) gave a clear view on the city development and ambitions, and how these are involved in the strategy papers. David and Josephine were surprised that several departments and policy fields are involved in the ECoC-ambition. It shows that Utrecht wants to do the process in an integrated, holistic way.

Visiting the Science Park De Uithof and admiring modern architecture with Han Schraders (city planner), new ideas for cooperation came along. Malta too is working on the development of a science park with university and hospital, and scientists seem to know each other. To be continued.

The same things goes for the redevelopment of the Dutch Water Line and the fortresses in Utrecht being developed as a camping place, information centre, et cetera. Martine Sluijter and Peter Ros already visited their colleagues from Paola in the REPAIR project on military heritage.

After this full programme, with too many meetings and visits to mention all, we were all inspired to work on our cooperation. As the guests stated: 'Visiting Utrecht was a revealing experience both in terms of the Capital of Culture and also to appreciate the quality of Utrecht, that was visible and tangible in so many different ways.'

As said: to be continued.

2018

2010-11-19T00:07:00.000+01:00

Sanne, Christa & Hans visited Malta during the Open Days in Brussels

2010-10-16T19:46:00.001+02:00

Utrecht at Notte Bianca 2010: a big hit!

2010-09-30T13:29:00.002+02:00

For the first time Utrecht contributed to the programme of Notte Bianca. The music ensemble Holland Baroque Society, based in Utrecht and gathering the youngest generation of baroque musicians, set up a special programme for this occasion. By integrating art forms the six musicians gave a true baroque experience within the setting of the Museum of Fine Arts' collection. They performed six times, including a 'Kids Only' concert. The children were really thrilled they could 'play' the exciting instruments themselves

The night before Mister Robert Gabriëlse, the Dutch ambassador in Malta, threw a reception on the occasion of the visit of the delegation from Utrecht. Gertrud van Dam, Renée Heijnen en Bram Buijze met several representatives from cultural life in Malta. As Mr Gabriëlse mentioned:' So many cultural activities done by a small group of people in Malta makes you feel thankful for all their efforts.' He himself received gifts from Utrecht including the latest book by the famous writer Arthur Japin signed by the author (who is living in Utrecht).

During this lovely evening the good relation between Utrecht and Heritage Malta, Malta Council for Culture and the Arts and the Ministry of Tourism and Culture were again being established. The delegation from Utrecht really felt at home, being among good friends.

The performances of the music ensemble at the Museum of Fine Arts could not have been possible without good cooperation and very positive attitude of all entities involved. It was one of a number of cultural collaboration initiatives promoted by the City of Utrecht, candidate to become Capital of Culture 2018 together with Malta. Looking back at the positive results it will certainly not been the last!

Utrecht at Malta Arts Festival, Jazz Festival and many more meetings

2010-08-17T17:12:00.001+02:00

On the occasion of Malta Arts Festival and Malta Jazz Festival a small delegation from Utrecht visited Malta, 14-17 July. Gertrud van Dam and Christa Stoop, both working for Department Public, International and Subsidy Affairs, since last October form a team cooperating in the connection with Malta. It was Christa's first visit to Malta, but she already met delegations from Malta. Jeanneke den Boer, music and festival consultant, joined them, investigating possibilities for music connections.

As usual a meeting with Robbert Gabriëlse, the Dutch Ambassador, was on the programme. Making connections between the Netherlands and Malta visible he shows himself happy with the efforts Utrecht is taking. And with pleasure – it's always nice to meet friends abroad! Therefore a meeting was scheduled with Davinia Galea, Malta Arts Council. One of the appointments made is that Utrecht invites the artistic directors of the Maltese festival over, for example to attend a Cultural Sunday, to get acquainted with Utrecht cultural life. Hopefully these visits can be scheduled this Autumn, but concrete exchanges were already subject for discussion with Peter Busuttil (Notte Bianca) and Sandro Zerafa (Jazz Festival).

One important subject was the Utrecht contribution to Notte Bianca 2010 (25 September) in cooperation with the Museum of Fine Arts. A ensemble of young, successful musicians based in Utrecht, Holland Barock Society, will perform a specially developed programme at the museum. The project is being done together with Sandro Debono and Russell Muscat (Heritage Malta). This is only one of the projects in which Heritage Malta is involved.

Unfortunately the planned visit of David Felice, chairman of the committee for Cultural Capital of Culture 2018 had to be cancelled in May. But, during a nice and informal meeting together with Marika Grech, new plans are being made for this Autumn.

Already being in Café Inspirations at St James Cavalier a meeting with Chris Gatt and Toni Attard was logical and as ever pleasant and efficient at the same time. Many ideas for cooperation were launched or made concrete, like with YO Opera (cultural education). Toni accompanied the ladies to the Jazz Festival were they ran into Adrian Mamo, Caldon Mercieca and Mario Frendo. That was really nice!

Back in Utrecht Gertrud and Christa set up a calendar with all the plans and suggestions for cooperation in the following months. This includes the cooperation between Heritage Malta and two museums in Utrecht: the Ste Catharine's Convent and the Cities Central Museum. More info? Ask Gertrud (g.van.dam@utrecht.nl) or Christa (c.stoop@utrecht.nl)

Utrecht at Notte Bianca 2010

2010-05-17T22:06:00.002+02:00

www.nottebiancamalta.com

The City of Utrecht, International Affairs, is working on a contribution to Notte Bianca 2010. This yearly all night cultural event will take place on Saturday 25 September in Valletta and attracts many people to the capital city. It will be the first time the City of Utrecht participates. One of the ideas that came up is an exhibition of streetpainting panels with images of Caravaggio paintings. Caravaggio and the Utrecht School of Caravaggist painters form one of the cultural similarities between Malta and Utrecht. Gertrud van Dam and Christa Stoop will certainly come up with a smashing presentation of Utrecht.

Cultural leaders working together

2010-05-04T14:47:00.001+02:00

Tony and Quinten

Saskia and Gertrud at opening Roodnoot

2010-03-22T09:24:00.002+01:00

With a 24 hour programme on March 20 and 21 the Roodnoot 'city farm' was officially launched. What used to be a real farm Roodnoot is now a culture house that gives artists of any discipline the possibility to work and exhibit in an inspiring environment.
During the weekend the programme offered music performances, theatre, films, sand sculptures, food and good atmosphere. Saskia van de Ree of Yo Opera is member of the board and was of course present. Also present were Harrie Bosch, vice mayor for housing, and Gertrud van Dam.

The surrounding of Roodnoot cannot be denied – it plays an important role in the activities. Situated between highways and railways in the western part of Utrecht the former farm is an oasis and fun for all ages. Near by is the newly built area Leidsche Rijn – by including the neighbours and letting them participate in the activities the artists at Roodnoot contribute to the cohesion of this new part of Utrecht.

In October Chris Gatt and Toni Attard visited Roodnoot and met Wout de Boer and Peter Kolpa. It's our objective to organise exchanges in an artist in residence programme for artists from Utrecht and Malta. Visiting the former farm on a drizzly day Chris and Toni almost lost themselves in an Ibsen drama. Roodnoot-very inspiring!

http://www.roodnoot.org/

Heritage Malta in Utrecht

2010-03-04T09:57:00.001+01:00

February 17 till 19 a delegation from Heritage Malta visited Utrecht. Pierre Bonello (senior executive exhibitions and design) and Kenneth Gambin (head curator) were provided with a full, but interesting programme to get acquainted with Utrecht and some cultural organisations. Because the Malta Museum of Fine Arts (part of Heritage Malta) is already cooperation partner with Utrecht they could also refresh some contacts.

An important field of cooperation is found with the Catharijne Convent -National Museum for Religious Art- and Centraal Museum, the city museum of Utrecht. Pierre and Kenneth enjoyed the tours through the museum and visits to the depots. With Marc de Beyer, replacing Guus van den Hout, Renger de Bruin, Liesbeth Helmus and Errol van de Werdt they discussed the various possibilities. For example: a shared exhibition about the Knights of St John, who lived in the convent of the Catharijne Convent.

Because Heritage Malta is also responsible for several archaeological sites and pays a lot of attention to education and visitor centres it was logical to introduce them to the Initiative Domplein 2013 (making the Roma history visible, e.g. with a visitors centre underground) and the colleagues of dep. Archaeology and Monuments. Utrecht has several Roma sites in Leidsche Rijn where education is an important task. Discussing challenges faced at the Dom square Pierre and Kenneth could give advice Paul Baltus and Herre Wynia after the example of the underground Hypogeum. The enthusiasm was really inspiring and will surely lead to exchanges. Erik Graafstal, one of the city archaeologists, already shared educational programmes with the Maltese colleagues.

Off course there was time to meet Floris de Gelder, alderman for Culture. He was happy with the good contacts with Malta and embraced the ideas in which the various museums could cooperate. Off course these projects are an asset to the ambition to become Cultural Capital of Europe. The process was subject of the visit to Het Gebouw [The Building], were an exhibition on the ambition is placed. Inhabitants of Utrecht and people involved in culture participate in workshops to define the cultural 'soul' of the City. For Pierre and Kenneth this visit was also very inspiring. After three intensive days we said so long, but all participated in the programme of the visit are convinced that a follow up won't take long.

Chris Said in Utrecht

2009-11-16T14:54:00.001+01:00

November 15 – 17

Utrecht hosts the 16th session of the conference of European ministers responsible for local and regional government. Chris Said, the Junior Minister for Local Councils is in Utrecht to participate in the conference. Through intervention of Marika Grech, communications coordinator at the Secretariat for Public Dialogue and Information, Gertrud van Dam succeeded to pass security and meet with Chris Said in the hotel lobby. They talked about the cooperation between Malta and Utrecht and the partnership in the lobby towards a successful programme for Cultural Capital and agreed to continue their conversation in Malta.

Chris Gatt and Toni Attard in Utrecht

2009-11-16T14:48:00.007+01:00

November 3 – 10

Chris Gatt and Toni Attard visited Utrecht. Chris (director) and Toni work at St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity and are involved in the inter ministerial committee on cultural capital. They were dipped into the cultural life of Utrecht in a tightly scheduled programme. Gertrud van Dam, Hans Sakkers en Christa Stoop accompanied them to several sites, cultural entrepreneurs and colleagues working in the cultural field.

The main reason to come to Utrecht was the Yo! Opera Festival where they met Saskia van de Ree and Anthony Heidweiller. They ran into Aleid Wolfsen, mayor, and had dinner with Floris de Gelder, vice-mayor for culture (second picture). They met Peter de Haan, 'intendant' for European Cultural Capital and took part in a forum at the SICA course for cultural entrepreneurs who want to work internationally. Charles van Zanten (dep. Cultural Affairs) took them to Leidsche Rijn where they visited Roodnoot, an artist in residence project. With Rien Sprenger and Paul Feld they discussed community art and with Quinten Peelen they discussed the idea of Maltese ambassadors abroad. They even ride a bike!

Back in Malta Chris and Toni will work out all ideas and smart connections to a draft of a creative road map for our cooperation. As they wrote they have been 'truly inspired' and they find 'the strong motivation of the City of Utrecht to facilitate cooperation between Utrecht and Malta very encouraging!'

To be continued!

Malta presents European Capital of Culture 2018

2009-10-12T17:05:00.003+02:00

New exchanges in the making

2009-10-08T23:09:00.007+02:00

Report will follow soon

Notte Bianca 2009 activities

2009-09-29T12:12:00.001+02:00

Programme Notte Bianca 2009

Military heritage exchange Utrecht and Malta

2009-09-28T14:30:00.001+02:00

September 25 – 27, 2009

Utrecht/Organisation New Dutch Waterline (responsible for maintenance and redevelopment of fortresses) and the City of Paola are partners in the project Repair: a project in exchanging knowledge in the field of military heritage.

On behalf of Paola Kevin Borg (council Paola) and Malcolm Borg (Heritage Enterprise) attended the workshop that took place in Utrecht, September 24 – 26. Their project is the redevelopment of a former military prison, partly already changed into a sports centre.

One of the activities in the busy programme was a visit to and dinner at the Fortress 'Fort aan de Klop', near the river Vecht. Gertrud van Dam, responsible for cultural exchanges and a 'contact broker' between Utrecht and Malta enjoyed the evening with the very friendly Maltese guests. It turned out that they have some mutual acquaintances and share many interests. Malcolm and Kevin offered Gertrud to introduce her to some missing links in her network. Being in Malta Gertrud will surely contact them.

Anticantate at the Malta Arts Festival

2009-09-25T23:09:00.006+02:00

ROSA ENSEMBLE
Valetta, Malta, 10-14/07/2009

After their first performance in Valletta, the capital of Malta, in 2008, the Rosa Ensemble was invited to return to the island for the annual Malta Arts Festival in July 2009. Since we were working on our new multimedia production Anticantate it was agreed we would perform this piece at the festival. To make the performance more accessible to the Maltese audience, Rosa and the festival arranged two Maltese actors to re-record the Dutch spoken parts on Anticantate’s surround-sound backing track. Actrice Lizzy Timmers performed her role in English especially for the occasion.

And so, well prepared and with 140 kilograms of equipment and instruments, the Rosa Ensemble team boarded the plane to Malta on July 10th 2009.

At our arrival we were very happy to see the location – the ruins of the old opera house in Valletta – well-prepared, which allowed our technicians to could get to work immediately. After some problems with the deliverance the right equipment, which were solved by the festival, we were ready right in time for the two performances.

The two shows went very well. The first one was obviously a first performance on an unknown location and suffered from some unfortunate background noise (fireworks, a local band). But the second performance, with the musicians more at easy and less background distraction, was very satisfactory and turned out to be a beautiful, open air spectacle.

Audiences reactions varied from highly emotional people who were very touched to people for whom the ensemble was just a little bit to experimental. Because of the open character of the location, it was also possible to look at the performance without buying a ticket, which many people did of whom some even returned the to watch it a second time. We realize the music of the Rosa Ensemble is quite experimental compared to what the Maltese audience is accustomed to. Mario Frendo, artistic director of the festival, was very pleased we joined their festival and contributed to it with something unique and seldom seen on the island. The ensemble will probably never reach a mass audience on Malta, but is certainly appreciated by lovers of new and exciting music and theatre.

Looking back, we consider our visit to Valletta a success. By integrating Maltese actors we managed to connect the performance with the island and their inhabitants, which showed us this is a procedure that can be repeated when we play Anticantate, or other pieces, in other countries. Furthermore, we gave an important artistic and experimental impulse to the festival and made new valuable contacts. Lastly, we gained experience in presenting such a complex and demanding production in a foreign country. Thanks to sufficient preparations, it went rather smoothly, which are valuable experiences for the future.

Jeanneke den Boer visits Għanafest

2009-07-13T14:43:00.007+02:00

29 mei – 1 juni 2009
Malta Meditteranean Folk Music Festival
Jeanneke den Boer, DB Consult
http://www.dbconsult-utrecht.nl/

The Utrecht Municipality, department of International Relations, sent Jeanneke den Boer of DB Consult at the end of May to Malta. She was asked to visit Għanafest, Malta Meditteranean Folk Music Festival in order to explore possibilities for cultural exchange and cooperation. Jeanneke asked Behsat Üvez, artistic director of the Utrecht based music ensemble Baraná, to join her.
Għanafest took place on the 29th, 30th and 31st of May in the beautiful Argotti botanical gardens, a lovely spot on walking distance of the capital Valletta. The festival is primarily dedicated to the very unique Maltese singing tradition of għana. Għana is a very raw and straightforward way of singing with little melodic and rhythmic variation. The għannej (singer) seems to be spitting out his song. The programme included several styles of għana : Spirtu Pront, an improvised form of song duel; the narrativeTal-Fatt and Fil-Għoli, a style of singing on a high vocal register. The festival also included Maltese guitar music known as Daqq tal-Prejjem.

Għanafest also presented a selection of musicians and ensembles which portrayed Maltese identity in a more contemporary fashion. Nafra, the music ensemble of Ruben Zahra, played wonderful compositions inspired by Maltese traditions. In this genre, the angry young musicians of the innovative folk band Brikkuni were absolutely sensational. They took the stage by storm with their energetic folkpunk, influenced by Maltese folk and bands like the Pogues, Ennio Moricone, Nick Cave. Besides the Maltese traditions, the festival presented Mediterranean crossover music groups from France, Israël and Algeria. The festival also hosted a series of workshops on traditional instruments and a special programme for children.

On sunday morning, għana musicians use to gather in a harbourbar in Floriana to eat, drink and make music. During the festival, all foreign artists and guests were invited to join them in their ‘original theater’ and it resulted in a great spontaneous jam session!

During their stay in Malta, Jeanneke and Behsat had many inspiring meetings with Ruben Zahra, artistic director of the Għanafest, with Chris Gatt of the St. James Cavalier Creative Centre, with Davinia Galea of the Malta Arts Council, with all the musicians. Many ideas came up for musical exchange projects with Maltese musicians and the musicians from Israel and France. And also for cooperation with St. James Cavalier Centre and the Malta Jazz festival. All of these will be discussed with Gertrud van Dam and will get follow up in september!

Utrecht & the Malta Arts Festival 2009

2009-06-30T17:40:00.003+02:00

The ROSA ENSEMBLE is with two concerts on the programme of the Malta Arts Festival 2009. On Sunday July 12 and Monday July 13 the young musicians will perform their new programme called The Anticantata. The location is Old Opera House Ruins in Valetta. The concerts are part of a 14 days festival programme with a variety of dance, music and theatre shows by international groups (1-24 July; http://www.maltaartsfestival.com/)

ROSA creates music and music theatre in a small electro/acoustic formation. The ensemble is inspired by literature, techno, visual arts, traditional and experimental, classical and popular music.

The writers of the music theatre installation The Anticantata ('The contra-song') were fascinated by the idea that you can stop the world, make it stand still. This idea formed the inspiration for the show. The Anticantata is an electro-acoustical collage performance in which music, images, dance and text in multiple languages are intertwined.
Originally the show was written for four musicians and a large amount of voices. In Malta it will be slightly adjusted to the audience. The most important story lines will be performed by Maltese actors. In that way a new version of The Anticantata will be created in a way that the Maltese audience will certainly enjoy watching it.

The Rosa Ensemble is not unknown to the Maltese audience. They recorded their latest CD in Malta and performed in the MITP in Valetta. They also worked together with Renzo Spiteri, percussionist and leader of the band Trania and director of Musicconnect, the intercultural music management. They performed together in Utrecht. http://www.rosaensemble.nl/

The Rosa Ensemble at Malta

2009-04-22T14:50:00.002+02:00

Message from Arjen Barel, Manager Rosa Ensemble

The concert of ROSA in The Black Box (MITP) in Valetta convinced the Malta Council for Culture and the Arts: Rosa should perform at the Summer Arts Festival. Mario Frendo, artistic director of the festival, totaaly agreed. The festival will take place Juli 1 – 24. Performances by ROSA are scheduled July 12 and 13. Please take note of the review on the concert in December 2008.

In the framework of the cultural exchange between the city of Utrecht and Malta the Rosa Ensemble visited the island to for a concert in the MITP in Valletta on December 5th 2008. The ensemble combined this visit with a recording session for their new album in David Vella’s Temple Studios on Malta. The concert was subsidized by the city of Utrecht and the Dutch Embassy in Malta.

Musically, the performance went very well. The audience was enthusiastic and although the music of the Rosa Ensemble is more daring than what the Malta audience is accustom to, the experiment was highly appreciated: the people of Malta have effectively gotten to know the music of Rosa. Nevertheless, there were not as many visitors as hoped for, mainly since it proved very difficult to promote a first performance in a foreign country when based in the Netherlands. A future visit to Malta will on the other hand be much easier, since Rosa now has the necessary knowledge and connection, which were lacking in December.

Our visit to Malta proved very useful to consolidate existing and make new contacts on which basis further projects will be possible. We have experienced that a strong partner is necessary, especially regarding good marketing and communication. For future projects in Malta as well as in other countries we will look for those partners and as such we hope to increase the interest in the work of the Rosa Ensemble.

Many projects coming up ... and fun is all around

2009-03-10T21:18:00.008+01:00

Many projects are in the pipeline and the best practicioners and experts start to become real friends ... the mutual commitment is growing deeper and deeper ... here is a wonderful cooperation, full of inspiration, growing for the coming decade...

Davinia Galea, Malta Council for Culture and the Arts, in Utrecht

2008-09-30T12:49:00.003+02:00

Community art in Overvecht, excavations in Leidsche Rijn and underneath Dom Square, Rosa Ensemble in the Leeuwenbergh, opera at the Oudegracht and much, much more. This gives a view of the busy programme Davinia Galea worked through when she was in Utrecht, half of September. The period was well chosen: Open Monumentsday op Saturday, Uitfeest- Start of the cultural season on Sunday and Fortress Month in September.

Gertrud van Dam, coordinator for the cultural exchanges between Utrecht and Malta, showed Davinia a variety of activities and venues. It gave Davinia a good view of the ambition and enthusiasm of every one involved. In between all kinds of excursions and performances Davinia met many people who are active in these fields. Among them Cees van Eijk, vice-mayor for Culture and Anneke Raven, vice-governor for Culture. Theo van Wijk, Foundation Initiative Dom Square 2013, took Davinia literaly underground and showed her a Roman wall. Saskia van Dockum gave a tour around the newly opened and state of the art Utrecht Archive. After four days and many, many other interesting meetings Davinia left Utrecht with a lot of inspiring ideas.

Jam session Renzo Spiteri and Daniël Cross in Utrecht

2008-09-30T12:45:00.003+02:00

For three days Rosa Ensemble took over the stage of Kikker Theatre in Utrecht. The occasion was the premiere of Rosa’s new programme BigLifeHi – which they will record in Temple Studios on Malta in December.

One of the performances was a ‘jam session’ by Daniël Cross (artistic director of Rosa) and Renzo Spiteri from Malta. Both being percussionist they used all kinds of objects they found in and around the stage. This improvisation was mend as a preparation for composing music for the concert on December 5. Rosa and Renzo will then perform together at MITP in Malta.

Rosa Ensemble & Renzo Spiteri in concert 25 September, Utrecht

2008-09-03T12:21:00.002+02:00

In February members of the Rosa Ensemble visited Malta to meet several people there from various organisations. The purpose for this trip was to find out if a cultural exchange was possible for Rosa. There were several interesting organisations and interesting contacts. We met for example Renzo Spiteri a musician and composer. Daniel Cross, the artistic leader of Rosa, and Renzo talked about their music and continued talking when Daniel was back home. As a result Renzo Spiteri will come to Utrecht in September to work on a composition together with Daniel and to perform in Theater Kikker in Utrecht the 25th of September 2008 in the “Rosa in Kikker-week”. In this week the Rosa Ensemble takes over Theater Kikker for four days and you can enjoy the music of the Rosa Ensemble including the premier of the new performance BigLifeHi.

In December the Rosa Ensemble will visit Malta and play with Renzo Spiteri the piece they composed in MITP in Valetta on December 5th. After this piece the Rosa Ensemble will play their new concert BigLifeHi. On the days before the 5th the Rosa Ensemble will record their new album in Malta in the Temple Studios in Mellieha. The Rosa Ensemble is looking forward to this Maltese exchange! We hope it is a first step for doing a larger project in Malta in 2009 or 2010.

European Museum of the Year Award 2008

2008-05-19T15:30:00.004+02:00

Good news, this weekend, for the Museum Catharijneconvent! Guus van den Hout had the honour to receive the important 'special Commendation' from queen Fabiola of Belgium. Off course he is radiant of pride. We congratulate him and his staff with this achievement.

From the jury’s report:
‘After its success in the European Museum of the Year Award - competition in 1980, the Museum Catharijneconvent in Utrecht has undergone a challenging refurbishment, and the result, according to our judges, is well balanced. Great efforts have been made to encourage younger people in particular to become more familiar with the symbols of the Christian religion, and the museum has also addressed the problem of how to communicate the Christian heritage to non-Christians. In a prudent move, the museum set aside a sum from its budget to make improvements and adjustments to its exhibitions after testing their viability after its reopening. All in all, the museum was judged to be a good example for a whole sector of European museums dealing with similar materials.’

Maltese paintings in Museum Catharijneconvent

2008-05-01T18:40:00.002+02:00

Friday April 25 the Museum Catharijneconvent, the national Museum of Christian art in the Netherlands, organised an exclusive preview of the exhibition Painted with Passion, Masterpieces from the Golden Age. Two paintings from the Museum of Fine Arts are part of this beautiful exhibition as a result of the cooperation between the two museums. Quiet thoughtful, Guus van den Hout, general director of the Museum Catharijneconvent, wore a tie with the Maltese cross on it, referring to this cooperation and his visits to Malta.

This evening gave good opportunity to Aleid Wolfsen, Mayor of Utrecht, to meet Ivan Fsadni, Maltese ambassador in The Netherlands. Among the selected audience we could also welcome Cynthia de Giorgio, curator of St. John’s Co-Cathedral Foundation, and Cees van Eijk, alderman for Culture in Utrecht. Off course the nomination for European Capital of Culture was one of the subjects, as well as further cooperation between Utrecht and Malta.

Until September 14 it will be possible to visit the exhibition and participate in all kinds of activities and special tours.

Shared passions

2008-03-14T14:25:00.008+01:00

Visit to Malta brings concrete appointments and strengthened contacts

Posted by Gertrud van Dam

Three days of meetings and visits to concert locations, exchanging business cards and good ideas, nice conversations in good atmosphere – here’s in short the report of the visit of a Utrecht-delegation to Malta (Feb. 20 – 22). One of the highlights was the dinner at the residence of Jan Heidsma, Dutch Ambassador in Malta, and his wife Marjolijn Heidsma. Assisted by Dania Burlage from the Embassy, they organised a inspiring evening with the tops of cultural Malta, on the occasion of the cultural visit from Utrecht. Very welcoming and very good for networking!

For Guus van den Hout and Nicolette Bartelink (Museum Catharijneconvent, national museum of Christian art in the Netherlands) it was the second visit. They made appointments about the loan of two paintings of Matthias Stomer from the Museum of Fine Arts with Pierre Bonello and Sandro Debono (Heritage Malta/Museum Fine Arts). End of April the exhibition ‘Painted with passion’ will be launched with a VIP-evening with, off course, special attention for this cooperation. The two museums made appointments about future loans - shortly an exhibition from Utrecht will be exhibited in Malta. Nicolette Bartelink is satisfied: ‘It was an inspiring visit to Malta: initial ideas turning into concrete projects, professional contacts turning into friendship made it a fruitful trip.’ Guus van den Hout is enthusiastic about the fact that Malta and Utrecht share a rich possession of religious art. ‘It’s really top quality what I see in churches. I would like to help Malta to reveal their art treasures and show it to people from Utrecht’. To be continued!

For Mariëlle Pals (Organization Cultural Sundays) it was the first visit but, according to her, not the last. In various meetings she got the chance to introduce the background of the monthly one-day festivals in Utrecht, about which every listener was surprised and curious. Off course Mariëlle invited Adrian Mamo and Davinia Galea (Arts Council) to come to Utrecht and experience a cultural Sunday. For her part she learned about festivals in Malta, like the Summer Arts Festival, and locations for performances. During her visit to St James Cavalier Cultural Centre she talked over possibilities for exchanging performances with Chris Gatt, Sarah Spiteri and Toni Attard. ‘I met inspiring and passionate people - working in the same field, speaking the same language. We really had a click. Now I’m anxious to visit a performance and watch the interaction between artists and audience.’

A delegation from the Rosa Music Ensemble, Floor Ruyters, Daniël Cross and Alex Geurink, showed special interest in stage locations for their performances and in cooperation with local artists. Visits to St James Cavalier, the black box of MITP, the Manoel Theatre and even the cellar beneath the Ministry of Tourism and Culture gave a good view on possibilities. Surely the Rosa Ensemble will return in Autumn for the recording of their new CD at Temple Studios. They also work on cooperation with Renzo Spiteri, percussionist, to perform together. He’s planning to come to Utrecht in June to talk things over. For the Rosa Ensemble this first visit was successful, Floor Ruyters said, ’The following weeks we will check what we can organise in Malta. For certain we returned with several good ideas and contacts.’

Apart from these cultural exchanges we also talked with Marika Grech, Caldon Marcieca and Oliver Farrugia, Ministry of Tourism and Culture, about preparations as a future Cultural Capital of Europe. Off course, that’s why it all started in the first place. It’s a good idea to make a connection with the organization Peace Treaty of Utrecht, who is, commissioned by the City and Province of Utrecht, working on a lobby plan. One of their activities is to visit former and future cultural capitals to learn form their objectives, activities and experiences. The following months Gertrud van Dam will put up a plan for exchanging experiences and contacts in this matter, together with Malta.

We consider this visit as a good step in concrete cooperation between Malta and Utrecht. The best way to end this review is …… to be continued!

Varied delegation from Utrecht planning a visit to Malta February 19 – 22

2008-02-12T14:39:00.001+01:00

The National Museum for Religious Art Catharijne Convent, Cultural Sundays, Rosa Ensemble – they all have in common that their representatives are planning to go to Malta, end of February. Gertrud van Dam, for the City of Utrecht working as the coordinator for cultural Exchanges between Utrecht and Malta, will off course join them.

Guus van den Hout and Nicollette Bartelink from the museum Catharijne Convent will meet Pierre Bonello, senior executive - Exhibitions and Design at Heritage Malta, and Sandro Debono, Senior Curator of Arts and Palaces at Heritage Malta. They will make appointments about the loan of two paintings by Mattias Stomer from the Museum for Fine Arts to the exhibition in Utrecht ‘Painted with passion’. This cooperation is the result of recent contacts between Utrecht and Malta. The official opening of this exhibition with mostly paintings from 17th century with a religious theme will take place at Friday April 25 by the new Mayor of Utrecht, Mr. Aleid Wolfsen. Being in Malta Guus van den Hout and Nicolette Bartelink will also talk about lending pieces from their museum to Malta, and off course visit St John’s Co-Cathedral.

Mariëlle Pals is project manager for the organization of the Utrecht Cultural Sundays, a concept Malta is interested in. Cultural Sundays is a series of festivals and events with a new edition taking place once every month. Local art institutions and venues work together to prepare a festival based on a theme which is of specific relevance to the city of Utrecht. Each festival presents a broad spectrum of cultural and recreational events and programmes for a wide audience, generally free of charge and programmed over one day: a Sunday. Every art discipline, including theatre, opera, music, dance, film, literature, visual arts, street culture and storytelling are represented in the festivals. Having a broad view of cultural life in Utrecht, Mariëlle Pals can play an important role in organising cultural exchanges between Utrecht and Malta. It’s our ambition is to have groups performing at each others festivals and at Cultural Sundays. A visit to St James Cavalier, the multi cultural centre in Valetta, with meetings with Sarah Spiteri and Toni Attard, is surely on the programme.

Rosa Ensemble is the first music group from Utrecht that will surely perform their ‘world music’ in Malta. Rosa is a young and very successful group. Having good contacts at the Temple Studios in Malta the group is working on recording their new CD there. This gives the chance to meet with local musicians and perform together at several spots in Malta. One of the possible stages is the Manoel Theatre in Valetta, the oldest theatre in Malta with a modern programme. Floor Ruyters (manager), Daniël Cross (artistic manager) and Alex Geurink (technics) use this first visit to Malta to make arrangements for a tour later this year. On Friday February 22, Floor Ruyters will be present at the big launch of the Maltese Project of the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue, which will take place at St James Cavalier.

The whole group will also have a meeting with the ambassador of The Netherlands in Malta, Jan Heidsma. The visit of this Utrecht-delegation comes about in good cooperation with Marika Grech and Caldon Marcieca from the Ministry for Tourism and Culture. They will surely put together a busy programme with interesting meetings combined with their friendly hospitality. Next time this blog will give a report of the trip.

New steps to cultural exchanges

2007-11-19T16:53:00.000+01:00

‘This gives a good basis for further cooperation. An interesting discussion. Really good idea to continue it in Utrecht. This would be wonderfull on the Domsquare! Let’s organise a Maltese cultural sunday!’. Some reactions from the participants of a visit to Malta in October. Renger de Bruin (Central Museum), Guus van den Hout (National Museum for Religious Art Catharijne Convent) en Edsard Kylstra (Monuments and Archeologie, city of Utrecht) already met their Maltese counterparts in Utrecht. It was about time that they’d come to Malta! While enjoying the Maltese sun and hospitality they discussed the next steps in cooperation in a extended programme, complied by Marika Grech and Caldon Marcieca from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Leader of the delegation was Gertrud van Dam, new coordinator for the cultural exchanges between Utrecht and Malta. Also for her this visit was an introduction to this partner and its possibilities. During several meetings she looked for possibilities to link Maltese initiatives to those in Utrecht and combine organisations and activities.

Heart of the programme was Notte Bianca, comparable with the Dutch ‘museumnight’, with a great range of cultural activities during the night, like music performances, exhibitions of baroque altars on the street and an open air music concert in the ruins of the former opera. At the official start of the Notte Bianca the Dutch delegation was introduced to Dr. Francis Zammit Dimech, Minister of Culture and Tourism.

During the visit all kind of themes for cooperation popped up, like exchanges about the re-use of fortresses, an exhibition on religious art from the Catharijne Convent and the museum of St. John’s Co-Cathedral and music performances during Maltese and Utrecht festivals and initiatives. Enough ideas and enthusiasm to make a big success out of our cooperation.

Mario Farrugia in Utrecht

2007-06-26T09:56:00.000+02:00

Mario Farrugia – chairman & CEO of the Malta Heritage Trust - attended a thematic workshop on the finance and exploitation of forts at Utrecht, the Netherlands. During two days (13th and 14th of June 2007) several representatives of different countries – Italy, Spain, France, Poland, Great Britain, Germany – gathered at Utrecht. The New Dutch Waterline and ASCEND took care of the programme. Expert meetings and visits to different forts in the province of Utrecht as Fort Vechten and Fort Nieuwe Steeg were part of it. The involvement of public and private parties in the re-use of military heritage was a major issue in the debates, but the meeting also concentrated on future international cooperation and opportunities for EU funding.

Letter of Cultural Cooperation: 1st of June

2007-06-05T15:45:00.000+02:00

On the 31st of May and on 1st of June mr. Adrian Mamo (chairman of the Malta Council for Culture and the Arts), mr. Peter Portelli (permanent secretary Ministry for Tourism and Culture) and mr. Ivan Fsadni (ambassador of Malta in the Netherlands) were visiting the city of Utrecht to intensify the cultural corporation between Malta and Utrecht. On the last picture mr. Adrian Mamo and mr. Cees van Eijk (vice mayor for Culture) are signing the Letter of Cultural Cooperation.

Sarah Spiteri visited Festival aan de Werf

2007-05-25T16:03:00.000+02:00

Sarah Spiteri was invited to participate in the international programmers event ‘International Bravura’ of the Theatre at the Dwarfs that took plays in May (thursday 17- sunday 20 May 2007). This international event gathers theatre makers and producers from different countries and is an increasingly popular side event of the Festival of the Theatre at the Dwarfs at Utrecht.
During this international programmers event the theatre makers and- producers watch a selection of the international performances, meet with other producers and actors and discuss and comment on current themes.

During this festival Sarah Spiteri also met again with Annelore Scholten of the Department of International Affairs and together they attended different plays and performances, shared dinner and went on sight-seeing around Utrecht. Annelore Scholten jumped on the occasion to introduce the Dutch Art Library System of which she’s the director. Sarah Spiteri welcomed the idea of integrating an art library in the activities of the St. James Cavalier Centre for Creativity at Valletta. To be continued….

Cynthia de Giorgio in Utrecht

2007-02-20T15:47:00.000+01:00

On the 7th and 8th of February Cynthia de Giorgio (conservator of the St. John Cathedral) was in Utrecht for an exchange with her colleagues of the Catharijne Convent (at the picture together with Nicolette Bartelink) and the Central Museum. On her first visit to Utrecht Cynthia was shown around by Gertrud van Dam from the municipality's Department for International Affairs.

During the diner on Wednesday evening the first appointments were made with professor Renger de Bruin (conservator of the Centraal Museum) on exchangeable exhibitions on the Carravagists and the Teutonic Order. Apart from the exchanges on exhibitions Cynthia was also very enthousiastic about the newly renovated cellars of the Catharijne Convent; she's planning to advise her board to use the same concept for the restoration of the St. John Cathedral.

Interesting websites about experts who participated in the restauration of the Catharijne Convent are:
Hubert Jan Henket, architecture (http://www.henket.nl/)
Maarten Meevis van Kinkorn, showcases (http://www.kinkorn.com/)
Joost de Beij, lightdesign (http://www.licht-joostdebeij.nl/)
Ad van der Kouwe, grafics (www.manifestarotterdam.nl)

Co-operation is becoming concrete

2006-10-31T10:14:00.000+01:00

From left to right: Nicolette Bartelink, Marika Grech, Yvonne Franquinet, Annelore Scholten, Oliver Farrugia, Caldon Mercieca, Peter Portelli, Hans Sakkers.

From 26th until 28th of October 2006, the Ministry of Tourism and Culture and the city of Valletta welcomed a delegation from the city of Utrecht. The Maltese colleagues had prepared a very interesting programme with representatives of important Maltese cultural institutions such as the St. James Cavalier Arts Centre, the Manoel Theatre, the Summer University, the St. John's Cathedral Museum and the Heritage Trust.

The Utrecht delegation consisted of Hans Sakkers and Annelore Scholten, both from the Department of International Affairs, Nicolette Bartelink from the National Museum of Christian Art and Culture in The Netherlands, Museum Catharijneconvent, and Yvonne Franquinet from "Huis en Festival a/d Werf".

From the Maltese side the following people were involved:
Caldon Marcieca (EU affairs and Policy Development Directorate)
Oliver Farrugia (EU affairs and Policy Development Directorate)
Marika Grech (EU affairs and Policy Development Directorate)
Peter Portelli (Permanent Secretary)
Mary Ann Cauchi (Arts executive)
Dion Buhagiar (Head of Music Department University of Malta)
Lino Attard (Chairman National Orchestra)
Nathaniel Cutajar (Acting Superintendent)
Mario Farrugia (Director Malta Heritage Trust)
Kevin Fsadni (Architect MTA)
Judie Farrugia (General Manager Manoel Theatre)
Paul Borg (Mayor of Valleta)
Claude Busuttil (Executive Secretary St. Johns Cathedral Museum)
Cynthia de Giorgio (Curator St. Johns Cathedral Museum)
Sarah Spiteri (St. James Cavalier)
Frank Camilleri (Summer University Performing Arts)

The Maltese Chivalry Order

2006-09-11T17:28:00.000+02:00

The city of Utrecht (Annelore Scholten) was invited to the yearly event of the Dutch section of the Maltese Order. The great Dom church in Den Bosch was the scenery for this official and spiritual meeting of the members of the Order and their guests. After the ceremony, the guests came together at the Museum in Den Bosch.

A second meeting

2006-08-28T17:07:00.000+02:00

On 26th June 2006, three representatives of the Maltese Ministery of Tourism and Culture visited Utrecht. Oliver Farrugia, Caldon Mercieca and Marika Grech met with several directors of cultural institutes of Utrecht to seek mutual topics of interest for future cultural relationships. The programme included several expert meetings and guided tours at cultural institutes. On the picture Mr. Renger de Bruin (at the right), professor of Urban History, informs our colleagues about aspects of Utrechts history. The guided tours included visits to the Museum of Religous History, the Catharijne Convent, the Central Museum and the University Museum.

The Dutch section of the Knights

2006-08-07T15:41:00.000+02:00

The second international meeting on June 26th 2006 with the Maltese delegation ended at the unique setting of the grand knight hall of the Dutch section of the Maltese knighthood in Utrecht. Chairman Van Voorst tot Voorst showed the delegation and deputy Mayor Cees van Eijk the traditional costume of the boardmembers of the Maltese knighthood.

The start of a cooperation

2006-06-08T15:13:00.000+02:00

At June 8th 2006 mayor John Boxall visited mayor Annie Brouwer-Korf and the city of Utrecht to investigate on cultural topics for a future cooperation. Malta and the Netherlands are both nominated for the European Cultural Capital of the year 2018. The city of Utrecht has formulated its ambition to be proclaimed the Dutch candidate.

Well ahead of the year 2018 Malta and Utrecht have initiated a cooperation to concentrate on cultural matters that both partners hold in common and where new cooperations inspires new cultural developments and phenomena. Besides mister Boxall, mister Mario Attard, director of the Product Planning Directorate of the Malta Tourism Authority also attended to a number of interesting meetings with Dutch representatives of some of Utrechts cultural institutions.

The first meeting gave way to a further investigation with another three representatives of the Maltese Ministry for Tourism & Culture at June 26th 2006.