International Seminar

Benigno Zerafa at the Cathedral of Malta: Music and the Arts in Eighteenth-Century Mdina
(1726-2026)

Academic Hybrid International Half-Day Seminar

This international half-day hybrid seminar explores the rich artistic, musical, liturgical, and devotional culture of eighteenth-century Malta through the lens of Mdina Cathedral and its wider ecclesiastical, social, and Mediterranean contexts. Bringing together both local and international scholars from the fields of musicology, art history, liturgical studies, cultural history, theology, and heritage studies, the seminar will examine how sacred sound, visual culture, ritual practice, and institutional patronage shaped religious experience in Baroque Malta.

Particular attention will be given to the role of music and devotional practice in the creation of sacred soundscapes, as well as to the influence of the Order of St John in shaping artistic identity, spiritual authority, and cultural expression.

The proceedings of the seminar, including additional scholarly contributions, will be published and distributed to participants on the day of the conference.