Għana (folk music)
Ciantar (2000), in his article 'From the Bar to the Stage' puts together the writings of a number of foreign and Maltese scholars who make the claim early għana instances represents both the "simple life of the Maltese peasant life", and the "intact natural environment of the island".
Such a description by the scholar Aquilina (1931), for instance, emphasises this link between the people and għana: How lovely it is, to hear from a remote and abandoned village amidst our island's hills, during a moonlit evening, while the cricket is hidden among the tomato plants, breaking the evening's silence, a handsome and healthy young man, swarthy as our country makes him, singing his għana ceaselessly.
Ciantar argues that these songs evoke the very roots of Maltese poetry and literature, a claim that is also supported by 'Dun' Karm Psaila, Malta's national poet.
In an article on the origin of Maltese poetry, Psaila goes on to link għana to the modest recreation and aspirations of the common people.
Youths used to sing għana love-songs in the open country, or the streets, or in houses during work-time even at bars such as "Viva iz-zejza".
In particular, għana was practiced by the women singing on roof tops or in old communal wash houses, known as the għajn tal-ħasselin ("spring of the washers").
So essentially, there existed a pseudo community across the skyline of residential Malta, one in which women often took part in informal and unaccompanied għana sessions.
Bormliża singing requires males to reach into extraordinarily high soprano ranges without breaking into falsetto.
This melancholic ballad style involves one għannej recounting a story about well known local identities, events or recent interesting or humorous, Maltese folktales and legends.
Other types of għana are: bil-Qasma and Makjetta In Spirtu Pront sessions, two or more għannejja (singers) are paired together and take part in an improvised song duel that demonstrates their knowledge of a wide range of social topics as well as their command of the Maltese language.
The għannejja are the living poets of the Maltese language, singing in a highly expressive, free flowing style.
It is highly elaborate making use of wit and double-entendre, and drawing on the many Maltese proverbs and idiomatic phrases.
In most cases, the għannejja would be shaking hands with their opponent, similar to a sporting match, showing that what they are saying is only for entertainment and they do not mean to cause any offence.
As soon as the former completes his improvisation he joins the other guitarists in the accompaniment based on the tonic and dominant of the established key.
The frequent use of syncopation and descending melodic movements, for instance, form part of the formal structure of both the singing and instrumental soloing in the spirtu pront; these are structural elements announced in the introductory section as to establish the style of both għana singing and playing.
