Programme: etno, jazz, classic

The concert has been supported by: Institut français de Serbie

Tickets are available at: Musical Youth of Novi Sad (Katolicka porta street 2, tel. 021/452-344).
Buy on-line tickets here

MEDUOTERAN DUO, ethno jazz band, Switzerland
Thanks to interpretation authenticity and innovation a similar small ensemble, almost reduced by its composition but also very unusual and highly flexible and mobile, can only seldom be heard at the current music scene. Taylan Arikan and Srdjan Vukašinović perform their compositions on two instruments and create new worlds of sound in their originally shaped combination of the baglama (Anatolian lute) and accordion. The duo’s debut album “Horon” is their first collection of classical, jazz and ethno music.
Taylan Arikan was raised in Istanbul and began to play the Turkish string instrument baglama at the age of 16. Later on he continued learning to play the guitar and studied with Prof. Jury Clormann at the Zurich University of Arts. He took composition lessons with Matthias Steinauer, Carlo Filaffero and Theodor Kapilidis and took part in master classes with Smith Hopkinson.
One of the leading world artists on accordion of Serbian origin, a 35-year old Srdjan Vukašinović is known after a fresh and original approach to music and the desire to attract different layers of audience. His always new ideas and methods and steps forward in interpretation are based on improvisation and combining of different musical genres with jazz and “world music”. He is also acclaimed as important performer of classical and contemporary repertoire of art music. It was in that field that he became the Best World Accordionist at the World-Trophy Competition in Spain in 1999 at the age of 16 already (although he started playing the piano as a child) thanks to his explosive energy, virtuosity and powerful expression. Being the today’s most demanded soloist, chamber musician and member of versatile instrumental ensembles and orchestras, and since 2005 the professor of Balkan Music at the Zuricher Hochschule der Kunste, the inventor of the first quarter tone and the lightest accordion in the world of Carboneon brand, participant of many music festivals (we will mention only the only in Kronberg), but also the art director of the Meldoyaarau Festival in Arau, Vukašinović co-operates with the world famous instrumentalists such as the legendary French violinist Gilles Apap, Turkish pianist Fazil Say (who also performed at Nomus several years ago), and jazz bassist Carles Benavent, and in particular, with great affection, with Taylan Arikan with who he formed a unique Duo Meduoteran that is specialised in “world music”.

GILLES APAP, violin, France
Hailed as “a true violinist of the 21st century”, as his great older colleague Yehudi Menuhin called him, he is “known for his virtuosity, unique approach to music and the skill to bring joy to every concert hall”. This musician with classical education, who is also highly demanded as soloist with orchestras all around the world (Gewandhaus Orchestra, Israel, Dresden, and Boston Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, Hungarian Symphony Orchestra and many other great chamber ensembles), but also due to his extraordinary ability to integrate a variety of musical genres, was awarded the Contemporary Music Prize in 1985 by Lord Menuhin at the prestigious International Competition named after him. After that Gilles Apap accepted his invitation to play in Berlin at the Philharmonie Hall for the Enescu Foundation. The long-term friendship and co-operation established between the two artists resulted with Apap’s legendary cadenza for Mozart’s Violin Concerto no. 3 in G- major, K.216. Crossing the borderlines from the beginning of his career, namely merging the music of the most diverse origin, thanks to his talent he has managed to incorporate the styles of the Irish, American and Gypsy violin masters with standard classical repertoire combining them also with genres such as jazz and folk music from different parts of the world. Born in Algeria, Apap moved later on to Nice where his violin studies commenced (Prof. Andre Robert). He continued his education at the Conservatoire de Musique de Nice (Prof. Gustave Gaglio), and then at the Conservatoire National Superieur de Lyon (Prof. Veda Reynolds). When he enrolled the Curtis Institute of Music he decided to live in California, where he still resides. After that he got his professional engagement at the Santa Barbara Symphony Orchestra where he acted as the concertmaster for more than ten years. With his first ensemble (The Transylvanian Mountain Boys) Gilles Apap shook the classical music scene with his unparalleled interpretations of classical works arranged for violin, viola, guitar and double-bass, “interspersed” with traditional folk tunes. In 2006 he established co-operation with the world famous Irish fiddler Kevine Burke at an American tour of the Celtic Fiddle Festival. He also worked with the Indian classical violinist Dr. L. Subramanian, Hungarian virtuoso Roby Lakatos, jazz violinist Didier Lockwood, and flamenco dancer Belen Maya, continuing to bridge the gap between classical and folk music.
Within his rich career we could single out his recent performances in Berlin (Konzerthaus), Brussels (Bozar), London and Paris Philharmonic. The latest discographic issue we could mention is that with Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D-minor recorded with the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra and performed at their Swedish tour during May and October 2017. Gilles Apap is also involved in pedagogical work at master workshops and educational programmes all over Europe, including the Menuhin Academy Gstaad (Switzerland), Kronberg Academy and Paris Philharmonic. Among the latest successes of Apap’s versatile activities we could single out his guest performance in China (December, 2017) with his unique arrangements of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons violin concerts, which he also presented with Ibrahim Malouf at Le Festival de Saint-Denis, as well as his performances with Basel Symphony Orchestra and Brussels Chamber Orchestra. His recitals at the Salle Gaveau in Paris, Salle Molier in Lyon, Musikverein in Vienna, and Kuhmo Festival in Finland. Documentary films about Gilles Apap are shown regularly at television stations in the USA and in other countries presenting his commitment to music he performs “with the greatest possible purity”.