Love, Magic & Mischief. Music from the English Baroque Theatre

Step into the colourful world of the English Baroque theatre, where music brought to life tales of love and longing, magic and mischief, fairies, storms and enchantment.
Featuring music by Matthew Locke and Henry Purcell, Love, Magic & Mischief explores the rich musical world of the seventeenth-century English stage. From the dramatic soundscape of Locke’s The Tempest to the irresistible theatricality of Purcell’s The Fairy Queen, Abdelazer and Dido and Aeneas, the programme moves between spirited dances, expressive instrumental writing and some of Purcell’s most captivating vocal music.
At turns playful, dramatic and deeply moving, this is Baroque music with a story to tell — a glimpse into a theatrical world where music, drama and imagination come together.
𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀
ViBE Collective
Violins
Sarah Spiteri
Tatjana Chircop
Marcelline Agius
Stefano Gullo
Violas
Matthew Fenech
Orietta Beaumer
Cello
Jacob Portelli
Double Bass
Michelle Agius
Harpsichord
Lorenzo Bellagamba
Soprano
Bettina Zammit

The ViBE Collective – Profile
The ViBE Collective is a Maltese artist-led ensemble bringing together professional musicians with a shared interest in exploring repertoire, performance and the relationship between music and its audiences.
Emerging from the work of the Valletta Baroque Ensemble (ViBE) and the Abos Project, the Collective builds upon a strong foundation in historically informed performance while deliberately looking beyond the conventional boundaries of the Renaissance and Baroque repertoire. Its artistic work embraces music from different periods and traditions, with a particular interest in the possibilities that emerge when repertoire, instruments, musicians and context are brought together in unexpected ways.
Under the artistic direction of soprano Gillian Zammit and violinist Sarah Spiteri, The ViBE Collective brings together experienced performers and collaborators from Malta and abroad. The Collective draws on the knowledge and experience developed through two established Maltese initiatives while opening a new chapter in their artistic development.
The Valletta Baroque Ensemble, founded in 2012, established itself as a prominent force in Malta's early music scene, performing repertoire from the Renaissance and Baroque periods and championing Malta's rich musical heritage. The Abos Project, initially established as the Monteverdi Project, developed a complementary focus on vocal music, historically informed practice, music education and the rediscovery and performance of the works of Maltese composer Girolamo Abos (1715–1760).
The two strands now come together as the ViBE Collective — a name that reflects both its origins and its intention to remain open to what comes next. The Collective is interested in the dialogue between old and new, between familiar repertoire and unfamiliar perspectives, and in finding fresh possibilities within music that may have been performed many times before.
Based in Malta and connected to the wider European musical landscape, the ViBE Collective is committed to creating performances that are rooted in knowledge, but driven by curiosity.
The ViBE Collective's forthcoming projects include Henry Purcell's All Hail! Bright Cecilia under the direction of Sandy Burnett, and Johann Adolph Hasse's Miserere.