Piano prodigy Dmitry Ishkhanov, 12, to close musical season at Roman-themed gala concert

As the musical season comes to a close, the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra will be marking the event with a Roman-themed gala concert, featuring 12-year-old piano prodigy Dmitry Ishkhanov.

Under the direction of principal conductor Brian Schembri, Carnaval Romain will include three works inspired by Rome, including Hector Berlioz’ Carnaval Romain overture, Aram Khachaturian’s Spartacus Suite and Ottorino Respighi’s Pines of Rome, a symphonic poem which depicts pine trees in four locations across Rome.

Ishkhanov is one of the youngest soloists the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra has ever collaborated with, and was the youngest-ever participant in the Eurovision Young Musicians competition, representing Malta last year.

Together with the orchestra, Ishkhanov will be performing Dmitry Kabalevsky’s Third Piano Concerto, which was subtitled Youth dedicated to young musicians.

The orchestra’s workload has increased significantly in recent years, with the orchestra performing more than once a week this season.

While it organises numerous concerts on its own, the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra is also an automatic choice for opera productions and other performances of classical music.

Malta Philharmonic Orchestra has also helped raise funds for various charities with concerts in aid of the Malta Community Chest Fund, Fondazzjoni Qalb it-Tfal and the Appoġġ Children’s Fund.

Malta Philharmonic Orchestra has also performed overseas. This year, it performed Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the papal basilica built over St Paul’s burial place in Rome, joined tenor Joseph Calleja for the Malta EU Presidency opening concert in Brussels. It also performed Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony in two Austrian concert halls, including Vienna’s legendary Musikverein.

Carnaval Romain will be held on 24 June. Booking is now open, and tickets for the concert may be purchased through showshappening.com.

While the concert marks the end of its 2017/18 season, the orchestra will continue performing a number of summer concerts, featuring prominently in this year’s edition of the Malta International Arts Festival with three concerts. This includes the closing concert on 15 July. It will also perform in the closing concert of the Victoria Arts Festival on 10 of the month.