Many concerts have been held at Robert Sammut Hall in Floriana in the years since this former Methodist church was transformed into a cultural venue. But there is little chance this neo-gothic building has ever welcomed as many saxophones and saxophonists on its modest stage as it did two weekends ago.

In the space of two days, the hall hosted three separate performances – all based around the saxophone – essentially rounding off the first edition of the Malta Saxophone Festival.

Further to the Saturday night performance by pianist Christine Zerafa and saxophonists Philip Attard, Joseph Vella, Antonio Mollica and Hayrapet Arakelyan, there was a teatime concert by the students along with their tutors on Sunday afternoon, and a closing performance that same evening dedicated – as was the entire festival, in fact – to the late Maltese artist Val Valente.

One of the best-known saxophonists on the island, Valente grew up embracing his father’s well-groomed musical talents. In turn, he established himself as a popular band leader, artist and all-round entertainer, working prolifically both at home and abroad for many years.

Besides an acclaimed career in music, jazz in particular, Valente was an undisputable beacon of inspiration for many artists, remaining popular not only among his peers, but also with the upcoming generations of jazz musicians lucky enough to have made his acquaintance.

Two years ago, he performed with Big Band Brothers at their One Night Stand concert at the Mediterranean Conference Centre; a meeting that would set the ball rolling for a collaborative performance that Valente was planning to be his official retirement gig. The concert was not to be, however, as Valente passed away suddenly last February.

With a great chunk of work for the planned concert already well under way, and in full knowledge that Valente’s memory would be best served this way, Big Band Brothers decided to go ahead with the concert. What better way to remember a great musician, if not through the very same music that was so dear to his heart; and better still perhaps, a concert to crown the success of a festival he would most certainly have supported and taken part in.

This is the spirit that permeated the From Big Band Brothers to Val Valente concert from start to finish – a programme based around songs that had been picked by Valente himself, along with a couple added later to complete the picture.

The band kicked in with a rousing Sing Sang Sung – an appropriate choice with all the right ingredients to set the tone for this special occasion, brimming with that all-too familiar vibrancy the band has become renowned for. This, however, as emphasised in several press comments by the band, was a concert that would reveal a different side. It gave a more intimate feel, also due to the venue’s cosy space, to the Big Band Brothers as we know them.

This concert successfully bridged a diverse audience most effectively – the music on offer dominantly jazz but executed with enough versatility to appeal to a wider audience

The second number, My Funny Valentine, was clear proof of this. Brooding, poignant and delicate, the song paved the way for the first vocal number of the night, The Lady is a Tramp, of which Daniel Cauchi gave a very fitting rendition.

As expected, the programme largely featured instrumental jazz standards, bringing out the intimacy of the performance rather strongly, with adequate space for several of the band members to perform solos.

Despite not being an all-out jazz aficionado, I love the way the music projects diverse emotions, as the solo pulls away from a tune. The saxophone, in particular, captures this feeling to a tee; fortunately there were several of these moments throughout the concert.

The few vocal numbers in the set blended in well with the flow of the performance, with Cauchi offering a glimpse – particularly on Feeling Good – of what the band is usually like on stage, and Elisa Valente gave a spot-on take of her grandfather’s classic composition Pjazza Reġina.

Another standout feature of the concert was having Sammy Murgo take the stage and add his own magic to the music that was in full swing. A lifelong friend of Valente’s, and another of our leading saxophonists, Murgo is another pillar of the Maltese music scene, with many sides to his musical talent. This, he displayed only too well when accompanying the Big Band Brothers on C Jam Blues and Sweet Georgia Brown, as well as when accompanied only by Alex Manche on piano, when he treated the audience to a couple of cosier stripped-down standards.

Elsewhere during the programme, festival tutors Attard, Vella, Mollica and Arakelyan and pianist Zerafa also made an appearance, treating us to Pedro Itturalde’s Memorias. They then performed Take a Train with the band. The ensemble was expanded again later on, with five of the festival’s participating students, namely Angelo Borg, Daniel Quattromani, Anthony Kitcher, Maria Ellul and Sylvano Mizzi, who came on to accompany the band on Pennsylvania 6-5000. These presented an interesting mix of seasoned and upcoming saxophonists, bonding through a shared love of the instrument.

Before Glenn Miller’s In the Mood closed the concert, footage of Valente singing Pjazza Reġina provided us with a lasting image of the way he will certainly be remembered by most – on stage, with saxophone in hand, a big smile on his face and entertaining the crowd. A fitting memory of a great artist, who I am sure would have been beaming upon seeing such a mixed audience enjoying music that usually only attracts a particular niche.

Despite the limited capacity that Robert Sammut Hall accommodates, this concert successfully bridged a diverse audience most effectively – the music on offer dominantly jazz, but executed with enough versatility to appeal to a wider audience.