Pillar 03 · Festa & Traditions

Band Clubs of Żejtun: Beland vs Żejtun

Żejtun has two band clubs, and the gentle, generations-deep rivalry between them is the spine of the festa week. This is a guide to Soċjetà Mużikali Beland and Soċjetà Filarmonika Żejtun, what they do, and how to listen to them.

This article is a stub. We’ll keep it carefully neutral on the rivalry while we expand it.

Two clubs, one parish

Maltese band clubs are civic institutions as much as musical ones. They run their own premises (typically with a bar and a hall), train their own musicians, hold concerts through the year, and play the parish festa in full uniform. Beland — Soċjetà Mużikali Beland — and Żejtun — Soċjetà Filarmonika Żejtun — are both well-established and both predate independence. Each has loyal followers among Żejtun families, sometimes going back four or five generations. They alternate the role of the senior band on the feast day on a fixed rotation.

The rivalry is a real but fundamentally affectionate thing — the kind that produces partisan jokes, banner displays, and small distinctions in how each club marches. Visitors don’t need to take sides. [LOCAL FACT — Mattew to confirm founding dates of each club, current premises addresses, and the senior-band rotation.]

How to attend a band club bar

Both band clubs run bars on their own premises, open most evenings of the week and considerably busier during festa week. Visitors are welcome. The right way to attend: walk in, order at the bar (cash mostly, though both increasingly take cards), find a seat, and don’t ask too many partisan questions about the rivalry — locals will tell you what they want you to know. The drinks are cheap. The conversation is in Maltese unless someone takes pity on you and switches to English, which usually happens within ten minutes. Don’t try to choose between the two clubs.

What this article will cover

  • The founding stories of both clubs
  • Where each club’s premises are and how to visit politely
  • The rotation of the senior band on the feast day
  • The musical repertoire — slow marches, festa marches, what to listen for
  • The role of the band clubs outside festa week
  • Etiquette in band club bars for visitors

Read more on this pillar

Part of our Festa & Traditions pillar. Pair with the day-by-day programme, visitor etiquette, and when the festa is.

Mattew Cassar

Resident · Writer

Mattew writes zejtun.com from a flat above his grandfather’s old workshop on Triq San Girgor. He has lived in Żejtun for twenty-three of his thirty-one years.