The Rooftop Series Summer Festival 2025 continues with a very special concert that brings
together a rare combination: a string sextet featuring a solo guitarist, journeying through a
repertoire of classical music. On Friday, September 5th, 2025, audiences will gather on the rooftop of the Catholic Institute in Floriana to experience an enchanting evening of music.
This 1-hour performance will feature a Sextet from the Malta Youth Orchestra String Quintet,
including solo guitarist Karol Aquilina, in a programme that spans from the timeless works of
W.A. Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik to the distinctive sounds of Maltese composer Charles
Camilleri’s Malta Suite Movements 1, 2 and 3, passing through Piazzolla and Paco De Lucía
amongst others.
The six-piece ensemble — Teona Debono (violin), Bernard Curmi (violin), Mikaela Balyot (viola), Ryan Paul Camilleri (cello), Joachim Bros Debono Sultana (double bass), and soloist Karol Aquilina (guitar) — offers a concert format that is seldom heard outdoors, in Summer, in Malta.
By producing this evening of classical music and bringing this combination of strings and solo
guitar to the rooftop setting of the Catholic Institute, the Rooftop Series Summer Festival creates an accessible atmosphere where classical music is reimagined in an inviting and intimate way.
Audiences will be seated so close to the musicians that they could almost touch the
instruments, see through the eyes of the musicians and feel the repertoire being performed
through the soul of these young musicians who are some of the best, upcoming local talent in
Classical Music.
This concert is presented in collaboration with the Malta Youth Orchestra (MYO), under the
tutorship of Michael Laus, Principal Conductor of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra and Artistic
Director of the Malta Youth Orchestra. Since its debut in 2004, the Malta Youth Orchestra has
been a training ground for Malta’s most promising young musicians, offering them the chance to grow as orchestral performers. Their recent performances at the Florence Youth Festival in
2024 brought them international acclaim.
Artistic director Annalisa Schembri said that choosing to feature a selection of musicians from the Malta Youth Orchestra — the island’s upcoming orchestral talent — the Rooftop Series Summer Festival reinforces its commitment to creating opportunities for emerging artists. This deliberate and very wanted choice reflects the festival’s vision to invest in and showcase the next generation of musicians.
Ritratt: Nichi Agius Deguara
In 2023, Archbishop of Malta Charles J. Scicluna entrusted Mgr. Claude Portelli to be the
first Delegate for Culture for the Archdiocese of Malta. The office of the Delegate for Culture’s
mission is to strengthen dialogue between the Church in Malta and the cultural world through
collaboration with Malta’s artistic community and innovation in cultural practice. This includes
commissioning, supporting and launching projects amongst various partners and with the
support of some of Malta’s most influential cultural exponents.
