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‘Viva Malta’: national unity, loyalty and the familiar in a post-independence Maltese song

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 January 2022

Philip Ciantar Open the ORCID record for Philip Ciantar [Opens in a new window]  and
Renè Mamo
Philip Ciantar
Affiliation:
Department of Music Studies, School of Performing Arts, University of Malta, Room 125 (OH), Msida MSD 2080, Malta Malta College of Arts Science and Technology, Institute of Creative Arts, Mosta, MST1735,Malta E-mail: philip.ciantar@um.edu.mt; rene.mamo@mcast.edu.mt
Renè Mamo
Affiliation:
Department of Music Studies, School of Performing Arts, University of Malta, Room 125 (OH), Msida MSD 2080, Malta Malta College of Arts Science and Technology, Institute of Creative Arts, Mosta, MST1735,Malta E-mail: philip.ciantar@um.edu.mt; rene.mamo@mcast.edu.mt
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Abstract

In the years following its independence from Britain in 1964, Malta experienced several changes socially, politically, economically and culturally. In part, these arose from the fact that after independence Malta, as a small Mediterranean island-country, had to take full control of its own destiny, including its economy and politics. At approximately the same time a band called The Malta Bums was set up and eventually gained popularity both locally and further afield. Their 1967 release of ‘Viva Malta’ achieved unprecedented success and is still hugely popular today. This article analyses this song in its historical, cultural and social context. It discusses how and why this track became so popular at that time and is still popular nowadays. For that purpose, it scrutinises its music and lyrics, as well as the production process and how each one of these built on the familiar to convey sentiments of national unity central to the loyalty that the lyrics call for.

Type
Article
Information
Popular Music , Volume 40 , Issue 3-4 , December 2021 , pp. 364 - 387
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

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