The first evening of Festgħana concludes with an hour of spirtu pront performed by four established folk singers. These are the principal għannejja featured in the film Żejtune. Together with the guitarists who accompany them, audiences will experience some of the finest examples of this highly popular form of Maltese għana, which remains very much alive today, as clearly shown in this new film.
When people unfamiliar with Maltese għana think of the tradition, they most often imagine the call-and-response structure found in spirtu pront. In this form, the first and third singers exchange improvised verses, while the second and fourth respond to one another in the same way.
Għannejja:
Nenu Borg il-Brazz, Raymond Laferla r-Ruman, Jesmond Galea ta’ Kalora, Lawrence Galea ta’ Kalora
Guitarists:
Karol Aquilina (prim) and Jorge Aquilina
The photo above is a still from the film Żejtune.
Watch the trailer for Żejtune: