Sunday, 9 June 2024

St. Julian’s Choir

St Julian's Choir in 1965 led by Fr Guido Calleja

Since a few days ago I showed you my choir Pueri Cantores from the early 1960s, it’s fair enough that today I show you two photos of the St. Julian’s choir that was pretty strong, popular and quite appealing for a few decades. It was started by Fr. Guido Calleja, parish priest until 1966, and continued under the direction of Fr. John Galea into the new millennium. They rehearsed regularly and performed many classic choral pieces in various places, among them St. John’s Cathedral, where the major works were performed, as well as the St Julian’s parish church itself, where they also embellished the liturgy during major service. 

St. Julian's Choir in 1979, led by Fr John  Galea

They even sang at my First Solemn Mass on August 14, 1977, when they used the Missa Secunda Pontificalis by Luigi Perosi. Among the affluent repertoire they performed, there were three major oratorios: Handel’s ‘Messiah,’ Mendelssohn’s ‘Paulus,’ and Chev. Rev. Carmelo Scerri’s ‘San Gregorio Magno.’ They also became famous and in demand for the popular Maltese oratorio ‘Pawlu ta’ Malta’ (St. Paul of Malta) with words by Oliver Friġġieri and music by Charles Camilleri. (Click on each photo to enlarge)

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