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The pairing of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony with the Violin Concerto of Brahms felt conspicuously like a calling card from an orchestra that sees itself as a contender for wider recognition, on this showing with good reason.

The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, with their Dutch-Maltese conductor Lawrence Renes and the British soprano Emma Bell, embrace the cause of Wagner and Bruckner in the heart of the Mediterranean.

As Valletta celebrates its title as 2018 European Capital of Culture, the Malta Philharmonic gave an enthusiastic national premiere of Strauss' Ein Heldenleben.