At 37, four-time Grammy-nominated New York composer and alto saxophonist Remy Le Boeuf has sometimes been mentioned in the same breath as Wayne Shorter, John Coltrane and other masters of the instrument, and listening to him headline this year’s Sydney Conservatorium Jazz Festival, it is easy to see why.

There’s a grace and elegance to his compositions which are filled with memorable melodies and solos that climb to joyful heights.

Remy Le Boeuf (left) and Tim Firth. Photo © ABC Jazz

Le Boeuf is equally at home leading orchestras and big bands, but the smaller format suits his likeable stage persona and draws the listener into an intimate world where the boundary-shifting mood of In Praise of Shadows, which opened the set, gives way to the Erik Satie-like clarity and serenity of Oblique Twostep, or the charm of Gaia, dedicated to his chocolate-loving son of the same name.

His songs are full of wonderful little episodes which illuminate the skills of his crack sidemen, which for this concert drew on local talent. Sydney pianist Steve Barry showed all the nuanced telepathy that Remy would expect from his regular collaborator, brother Pascal, while...