Qala International Folk Festival - Past EditionsSIXTH EDITION (2011)GALLERY - Traditional Maltese Wedding click HERE to view ----- ----- ----- GALLERY - Saturday Evening Show click HERE to view ----- ----- ----- GALLERY - International Conference click HERE to view ----- ----- ----- GALLERY - Day in Malta click HERE to view ----- ----- ----- GALLERY - Official Opening of the Qala International Folk Festival
----- ----- ----- GALLERY - Press Conference launching the Qala International Folk Festival (2011) click HERE to view ----- ----- -----
FIFTH EDITION (2010)GALLERY - Closing Ceremony click HERE to view ----- ----- -----
GALLERY - Local Crafts Exhibition click HERE to view ----- ----- -----
GALLERY - Traditional Maltese Wedding click HERE to view ----- ----- -----
GALLERY - Saturday Evening Show click HERE to view ----- ----- -----
GALLERY - Internatonal Conference on Maltese Trade click HERE to view ----- ----- -----
GALLERY - Day in Malta click HERE to view ----- ----- -----
GALLERY - Opening Ceremony click HERE to view ----- ----- ----- GALLERY - Press Conference launching the Qala International Folk Festival (2010) click HERE to view ----- ----- -----
Press Conference launching the Qala International Folk Festival (2010) click HERE to view
----- ----- ----- FOURTH EDITION (2009)Stqarrija ghall-Istampa: Ir-raba’ Edizzjoni tal-Qala International Folk Festival ----- ----- -----
Jittella’ b’success il-Qala International Folk Festival ----- ----- -----
QIFF 2009 - Final Ceremony - Photo Gallery
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QIFF 2009 - Local Crafts Exhibition - Photo Gallery ----- ----- -----
QIFF 2009 - Traditional Maltese Wedding - Photo Gallery ----- ----- -----
QIFF 2009 - Saturday Evening at Qala Square - Photo Gallery ----- ----- -----
QIFF 2009 - International Conference on Maltese Folklore - Photo Gallery ----- ----- -----
International Conference on Maltese Folklore (DOI Press Release) “Folklore is a reflection of our nation. Both its tangible and intangible aspects shape our country’s identity and they contribute to ‘Product Malta’; to what our nation offers. Continuing investing in resources to research folklore and safeguarding it are important for our country and will help in keeping alive significant traditions.” This was stated by Parliamentary Secretary for Public Dialogue and Information, Chris Said while addressing a conference as part of the Qala International Folk Festival organised this weekend by the Qala Local Council. This is the fourth edition of the festival which has become an annual appointment in Gozo’s cultural calendar. The conference which was attended by the participants of the folk festival aimed at discussing the role played by folklore in the social and cultural life of a nation and delved into a number of topics including the relationship between folklore and tourism. Chris Said stated Qala Local Council’s initiative is not just striving to keep our traditions and folklore alive, but also maximising their potential as a tourist attraction. “Government strongly believes in the potential of our history, identity and traditions as tourist attractions. We believe that every locality enjoys this potential and its up to us to work together and make sure that we take full advantage of it”, he stated. Through the Local Councils Reform, Government is passing the responsibility of maintaining and nurturing the historical and cultural heritage of our localities to local councils. Local councils are also being encouraged to work with local organisations specialising in particular fields in order to safeguard our historic and cultural inheritance. The Qala local council is setting an example of how this collaboration between local authorities and local specialised organisations brings out the best results, continued saying the Parliamentary Secretary. The ‘Qala International Folk Festival’ has benefitted from the Cultural Activities Scheme launched by the Parliamentary Secretariat this year. This is a scheme which is injecting numerous cultural activities in almost all localities in Malta and Gozo during the shoulder months. Due to the success obtained this year, the Parliamentary Secretariat for Public Dialogue and Information for 2010 teamed up with the Parliamentary Secretariat for Tourism and MTA to double next year’s budget to 250,000 Euros for this purpose, said Chris Said. Other speakers at the conference included folklore researchers Charles Coleiro, Anton F. Attard and Joe Zammit Ciantar. (This press release also appeared on the gozonews.com website. Click here to view) ----- ----- -----
QIFF 2009 - Day in Malta - Photo Gallery ----- ----- -----
QIFF 2009 Opening Ceremony - Photo Gallery ----- ----- -----
The Fourth Edition of the Qala International Folk Festival (www.gozonews.com)
The fourth edition of the Qala International Folk Festival will be taking place between today and next Sunday (8-11th of October 2009). This year two foreign folk groups from Greece and Slovakia respectively will be in attendance. The highlight will be the Traditional Maltese Wedding to be held on Sunday morning throughout the streets of Qala. The 4th Edition of this popular festival is organised by the Qala Local Council and the Menhir Qala Folk Group The list of events taking place is as follows: THURSDAY 8TH OCTOBER 2009 7.30pm – Defile by Ite ad Joseph Band. 8.15pm – St Joseph Square, Qala – Opening Ceremony for the 4th edition of the QIFF 2009 . Performances by: Menhir Qala Folk Group, Trencan Folk Ensemble, Folk Dance Group of Agios Georgios Municipality & Sinat Folk Group. FRIDAY 9TH OCTOBER 2009 11.30am – Marsaskala Primary School – Performances by: Menhir Qala Folk Group, Trencan Folk Ensemble & Folk Dance Group of Agios Georgios Municipality. 8.00pm – Xatt is-Sajjieda, St Julians . Performances by: Menhir Qala Folk Group, Trencan Folk Ensemble & Folk Dance Group of Agios Georgios Municipality. SATURDAY 10TH OCTOBER 2009 9.00am – Victoria – Cittadel Centre for Culture & Arts – International Conference on Maltese Folk. 8.00pm – St Joseph Square, Qala – Performances by: Menhir Qala Folk Group, Trencan Folk Ensemble, Folk Dance Group of Agios Georgios Municipality & Ta’ Cangura Folk Group. 10.15pm – St Joseph Square, Qala – Concert by: Spektrum. SUNDAY 11TH OCTOBER 2009 11.00am Bishop M. Buttigieg Square, Qala . A re-enactment of a Maltese Wedding ‘It-Tieg flfl -Antik’, starting at Imgarr Ro- ad and moving in a procession towards St Joseph Square and will be concluded with a small ‘festin’ serving traditional wedding delicacies. This will be immediately followed by the opening of the Local Gozitan & Maltese Traditional Hand-crafts Exhibition and accompanied by live traditional Instrumental Folk Music by the Ta’ Seguna Group. 7.30pm – Final Ceremony for the 4th edition of the QIFF 2009 – Performances by: Menhir Qala Folk Group, Trencan Folk Ensemble, Folk Dance Group of Agios Georgios & Aurora Folk Group. (Retrieved on the 08-10-2009 from Gozonews portal) ----- ----- ----- Qala Folk Festival f’Ghawdex (www.maltarightnow.com) Bejn it-8 u l-11 t’Ottubru, l-Qala se jkun ic-centru t’Ghawdex hekk kif ghar-raba’ darba l-Kunsill Lokali, flimkien mal-Menhir Qala Folk Group, se jorganizza l-Qala International Folk Festival. Bil-partecipazzjoni ta’ diversi gruppi folkloristici Ghawdxin, mis-Slovakkja u mil-Grecja, dan il-festival ghandu joffri divertiment uniku ta’ kant, zfin u kostumi spettakolari. Il-Hadd 11 t’Ottubru, l-attenzjoni se tiffoka fuq it-Tieg Malti, avveniment mistenni li jfakkar id-drawwiet antiki tac-celebrazzjoni tat-tieg tal-imghoddi. Fl-istess jum se tittella’ wirja ta’ Artigjanat li se sservi bhala vetrina ghal xoghlijiet li ma tantx ghadhom jinhadmu bhan-nases tas-sajd u purtieri tal-qasab. Se ssir ukoll Konferenza Internazzjonali dwar il-Folklor u t-Tradizzjonijiet Maltin u Ghawdxin, bil-ghan li dan il-wirt folkloristiku lokali jinzamm haj matul is-snin. Prezenti ghal din il-konferenza se jkun hemm il-Ministru ghal Ghawdex Giovanna Debono u s-Segretarji Parlamentari Mario de Marco u Chris Said. Is-Sindku Paul Buttigieg qal li dan il-festival hu ntiz biex filwaqt li jgedded il-memorji ta’ dawk li jiftakru z-zmien meta dawn id-drawwiet kienu jfissru l-hajja ta’ kuljum, joffri wkoll tieqa ta’ opportunità biex min ma jiftakarx dawn it-tradizzjoni tal-imghoddi, jkun jista’ jgawdihom u japprezzahom waqt il-festival.
(retrieved on the 3rd October, 2009, from the Maltarightnow portal)
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QIFF 2009 - Flyer is now available. Click here to view. QIFF 2009 - Downloadable poster. Click here to view.
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The Festival is orgainised by the Qala Local Council and the Menhir Qala Folk Group. This takes for 3days which has got a mix of traditional Gozitan and Maltese folk music, song and dance. Performances are given by both local and foreign folk groups and bands, including instrumental and brass. In 2008’s edition a special attraction was that of It-Tieg-fl-Antik (a traditional Maltese wedding). It commenced at 11am and was a complete re-enactment of a Maltese wedding. Starting at Imgarr Road then moved in procession towards St Josephs Square. The wedding was concluded with a small ’festin’ serving traditional wedding delicacies. Immediately after the wedding festivities there was the opening of the local Gozitan and Maltese traditional hand-crafts exhibition. (Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qala,_Malta#International_Folk_Festival)
Mr Buttigieg explained the main aim of this festival, being that of exposing old practices and folkloristic traditions connected both with the locality of Qala as well as with the island of Gozo. A relatively slow weekend was also chosen for this event in order for it to serve as an added attraction for Maltese and foreign tourists to visit the island. This aspect was an important element for the organisers to benefit from the Gozo Attractions Incentive Scheme, set up through the initiative of the Ministry for Gozo with the collaboration of the Ministry for Fiannce, Economy and Investment mainly though the National Lotteries Good Causes Fund. The organisers were also eligible for EU funds through a programme promoting cultural exchanges. This made possible the inclusion of two European folk groups, one from Serbia and one from Portugal, who together with the Menhir Qala Folk Group and another three Gozitan folk groups will be participating in this year’s edition of this festival. These folk groups will also be giving shows in Qawra and St. Julians in Malta, on Friday 26th September, through the collaboration of the respective Local Councils of these localities, that both enjoy twinning agreements with the Qala Local Council. The festival will also include a concert by The Versatile Brass ensemble and the participation of the Ide at Joseph Band of Qala and the Ta’ Seguna Instrumental Group. Apart from folk music and dance, the Qala International Folk Festival will also feature a live exhibition of traditional artisan work which includes lace making, canework, stained glass, woodwork, stone decorating and pottery. Moreover it will include an exhibiton of various antique objects and costumes that were used by Gozitan generations during the last four centuries. The Local Gastronomy section providing typical Gozitan food and wine will surely prove to be a special attraction. The festival will come to an end on Sunday. The activities on this day will start at 10.00a.m. with a unique re-enactment of a traditional Gozitan wedding. The community of Qala will be involved in the celebration of this wedding, wearing traditional costumes and serving typical food which used to be served at similar events in olde times. The Minister for Gozo praised the initiative of the Qala Local Council together with the various volunteers, through whose contribution and participation, this festival has gained popularity and has become established as an annual event in Gozo’s Cultural Calendar. This also demonstrates the commitment of this locality which has proved itself as a dynamic locality both in cultural as well as in infrastructural aspects. The involvement of the local community in such events translates into the participation of children, youths and older generations, and thus ensures that inherited authentic typical traditions will be kept alive and passed on to future generations. The Ministry for Gozo supports such initiatives since, besides generating economic activity, they are also an effective means of increasing awareness of the Gozitan cultural heritage among Gozitan society as well as the local and foreign tourists who visit Gozo. Moreover the participation of foreign groups also creates the opportunity of cultural exchanges resulting in an added marketing tool through which Gozo may be promoted as a distinct tourist destination, both within the domestic and the foreign markets. (Retrieved from http://www.doi.gov.mt/EN/press_releases/2008/09/pr1287E.asp)
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Following the success of the first two editions of the Qala International Folk Festival, the Qala Local Council together with the Menhir Qala Folk Group, are again organising another edition of this folkloristic festival. This is going to be held in Qala between the 25th and 28th September 2008, with participation in another two localities in Malta. Details regarding this year’s edition were given during a press conference held at the Ministry for Gozo by Minister for Gozo the Hon. Giovanna Debono together with Qala Mayor, Mr Paul Buttigieg and other members of the organising committee.
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