Il-Bandist

A breath of brass and village pride,
Notes rising where traditions abide.
In uniform calm and rhythm divine,
He plays the soul of Malta, line by line.

“Il-Bandist” belongs to the genre of Realist portraiture with ethnographic undertones, capturing cultural identity.
Executed in watercolour on paper, it displays gentle washes and layered transparency, lending softness to form and light.
The attention to tonal variation and reflective surface of the tuba enhances the lifelike presence of the band member.
It is both a tribute and a documentation of local musical heritage, rendered with sincerity and care.