Dušan Bogdanović’s inspiration behind this project came from writing a compilation of world music pieces for his young son, but after hearing the duo of Antigoni Goni and Eleonora Perretta perform he greatly expanded the idea. The abundant spirit of these folk inspirations is exemplified by their variety – from 17th-century chanson to Irish fiddle jigs; humorous Dalmatian songs to a Sephardic romance; and from the dances of southeastern Iran to Balinese rice-pounding music. To introduce a popular flavour, he has added arrangements of three beloved Neapolitan songs.

Dušan Bogdanović has been called ‘a composer of masterful craft with a genuine clarity and purity of vision’ (Guitar Review). He received the only First Prize at the Geneva Competition and gave a highly acclaimed debut recital at Carnegie Hall in 1977. Over 200 of his compositions – including solo guitar pieces, chamber music, and orchestral works – have been published.

Antigoni Goni and Eleonora Perretta’s musical collaboration is a harmonious symbiosis of different generations, cultural backgrounds and artistic sensibilities. What began as a teacher-student relationship at the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel (KCB) soon developed into a creative artistic partnership fuelled by mutual respect, admiration, artistic exchange and a shared passion for the classical guitar’s boundless expressive potential. It finds its first recorded expression in the works of Dušan Bogdanović, a composer whose bold, genre-transcending music aligns perfectly with the artists’ approach, with their collaboration described by the composer as ‘splendid and glorious’.