The Artists
Jacob Portelli
Musician: Harp, Baroque Cello, Violin, Organ & Psaltery
Jacob Portelli is the resident harpist of the Archdiocese of Malta and has occupied this position since 2020. He is a founding member and violist of the Cordia string quartet that regularly performs at private and state functions. In 2016, Cordia performed for H. M. Queen Elizabeth II during the 2016 Commonwealth Day celebration at Marlborough House, London. Jacob holds an LRSM in harp and violin, and a Diploma in viola. He plays the baroque violin, baroque cello, and is a member and leader of the continuo section of the Valletta International Baroque Ensemble. Jacob released four studio albums in 2020: ‘Kinnor’, ‘Nevel’, ‘The Christmas Song’ and ‘We Three Kings’. Jacob’s lifelong passion for music has led him to perform in various European cities including Athens, Caltagirone, London, and Torino.
Tom Armitage
Tenor
Tom Armitage is a British tenor, composer, and pianist residing in Malta. He works predominantly as a répétiteur and accompanist, with a special interest in the field of contemporary music. His compositions are multi-award winning and his works have been performed in several countries across four continents.
As a singer, Tom is currently studying privately with soprano, Denise Mulholland. Since 2024, he has been a member of the Opera Nova Project — a training programme for young singers in Malta. Prior to this, he studied at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and the University of Malta.
Operatic roles include Tamino (Die Zauberflöte - Mozart); Captain Christian Slütter (Corto Maltese: La Ballata del Mare Salato - Monique Krüs); Benoit (La Boheme - Puccini); The Sailor / The Spirit (Dido & Aeneas - Purcell).
Jeremy Grech
Actor
Jeremy Grech is a local artist and tourist guide who has been passionately performing for almost a decade. His passion for storytelling and history has brought him closer to creating new concepts and is grateful to be doing what he loves. His most notable roles in theatre were in Sette (Teatru Malta), The Bards Farewell (ZiguZajg) and Ellie (Teatru Manoel). In the last couple of years, he created Theatourism which is the beautiful marriage of Theatre and Tourism. This venture has led him to create a memorable theatrical tour at Teatru Manoel, the Mosta Rotunda and other localities. Apart from being a theatre practitioner and guide, Jeremy is also a drama tutor with a passion for the italian form of art Commedia dell' Arte. Il-Pirata, as locally nicknamed, has trained professionally with Teatru Manoel under the tutorship of Denise Mulholland, the Drama Centre with several tutors and quite recently with theatre veteran Narcy Calamatta. His main aim as an artist is to make theatre and history more accessible to a wider audience and also pass on his enthusiasm to the audiences that come to his shows!
