Hot Club Valletta
Swing in the tradition of the Quintette du Hot Club de France. Long-time regulars at Café Cordina, The Gut and Manouche Bistro.
Josh Luke Bray
Gypsy jazz guitar. Born in London, playing Malta since 2015.
Upcoming shows
Dates are added here first. Most shows are free entry.
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Regular nights
- Rootz Weekly, Friday or Saturday
- The Felice Sunday afternoons
- Babel Bar, Valletta Weekly
About Josh
Josh Luke Bray is a guitarist from London who has spent the last decade playing gypsy jazz across Malta, from Valletta's bars to its festival stages.
He started on classical guitar at six and took up the clarinet at nine. As a teenager he studied with Guthrie Govan, and at seventeen he reached the final of Young Guitarist of the Year, where one reviewer compared his playing to Joe Satriani's.
Gypsy jazz came later, and from closer to home: his mother always had Stéphane Grappelli playing. The music of the Hot Club, with its driving rhythm guitar and fast, singing lines, has been the centre of his playing ever since.
He has played The Scala in King's Cross and the Royal Theatre in Valletta, held long-running residencies across Malta, and played Notte Bianca, the Farsons Beer Festival and the Malta Jazz Festival fringe.
Bands
Line-ups from a duo to a six-piece, depending on the room.
Swing Nuages
Gypsy jazz for weddings, parties and dance floors, from a trio up to a six-piece for swing dancers.
Stretta Swing
Swing and jazz standards, often heard around Strait Street and Babel Bar. strettaswing.com
Dixie Strings
Early jazz and Dixieland on strings, played at Café Riche, Balzunetta and Babel.
Excelsior Quartet
A quartet formed in 2025.
Josh has also played with Larissa Borg, Change Reaction and Xismu.
Where he's played
More than a thousand gigs since 2015: residencies, festivals, theatres, weddings and private events.
The Scala, London Royal Theatre, Valletta Manoel Theatre Yard 32 Corks, Balluta Bay The Gut Café Cordina Notte Bianca La Tartine Babel Bar Rootz Farsons Beer Festival Manouche Bistro Black Pearl The Storeroom Earth Garden Grokk Upper Barrakka Malta Jazz Festival The Felice Phoenicia Palazzo Parisio Villa Bologna Marsovin Wine Festival Grand Hotel Excelsior Citadella, Gozo Ta' Betta Wine Estate Django Jazz Bar Corinthia Palace Science in the City Vortex Hastings Gardens
Book Josh
For weddings, private parties, corporate events and venues in Malta and Gozo. Tell him the date, the place and roughly what you have in mind, and he'll reply with availability and line-up options.
