Antonello Venditti to perform at Ta’ Qali

Vendetti will be supported by local band Winter Moods, in a concert organised by Standout Events, who were at the helm of last summer's Zucchero concert.

Speaking at a press conference announcing the concert last Friday, Venditti - who had performed in Malta in 2001 - described the island as being "one of the most important countries in the world".

"You can speak any language in the world when you're in Malta, and you'll be understood. It's a magical place, and it's a place where people can live well - which is rare, because out in the world, people aren't living well," he said, adding that he has a good relationship with his supporting act, Winter Moods.

"They're a great band, and we're good friends. In them I see a joie de vivre that seems typical of Malta, a willingness to express solidarity."

Meanwhile, lead singer of Winter Moods, Ivan Grech, said that being given the opportunity to perform with Venditti was a "dream come true".

Venditti also divulged that unlike his 2001 concert, which was more orchestral-based, the upcoming gig will be a rock performance.

"But there will be various elements on display... my aim is to go all-out, and not compromise on my sound in any way," Venditti said, adding that the rock genre is a humbling music style in and of itself.

"I hate the word 'maestro' and I find it inappropriate when people refer to me by that title. If anything I'm a student of music. And that's the difference between classical music and rock. With classical music there are defined stages you get to follow through... in this sense it's a lot like achieving a doctorate at university, so it would make sense to use the 'maestro' tag there. But that's not the case with rock, with rock music you're constantly re-inventing myself. So no, I'm not a maestro yet. Maybe I will be, after I'm dead..."

Boasting of a long career which began in the early 70s, Antonello Venditti can boast of a multi-generational fan base, partly thanks to his perceptive satirical lyrics which express a love-hate relationship with his country of origin, and particularly his birth city: Rome.

In fact, it was a song with that title that proved to be a breakthrough hit for the singer. Arriving after Vendetti already had two full-length albums under his belt, the 1974 song - a declaration of love for the titular city - was followed by the album Lilly, which rapidly climbed to the number one spot of the Italian charts in 1975. In 1982, Vendetti forged a professional relationship that was to last to this very day, when his album Sotto la Pioggia was produced by Alessandro Colombini of Heinz Music.

Since then he has garnered an international following, and in 2009 he was awarded the prestigious National Italian American Foundation Special Achievement Award in Music for his contribution to Italian musical culture.

Prior to launching into the Unica 2012 tour, Venditti released the album Only, with a single of the same name following soon after.

Antonello Venditti will be visiting Malta as part of his 'Unica 2012' tour. For more information log on to http://www.standoutevents.com.mt/.