Friday 22 July | 7:45pm

Doors & bar 6:45pm | Concert 7:45pm, ends 9:00pm, no interval

Miloš Milivojević, accordion | Clare O’Connell, cello 

Tickets £22 | £11 (under 25)

BOOK : https://www.staplefordgranary.org.uk/whats-on/events/clare-oconnell-milos-milivojevic

Béla Bartók – Romanian Folk Dances (arr. Luigi Silva)

Astor Piazzolla – Milonga Del Ángel & Muerte del Ángel (arr. Clare O’Connell & Miloš Milivojević)

Victor Vlasov – Five Sights on Country Gulag, for solo accordion

Astor Piazzolla – Libertango & Soledad (arr. Clare O’Connell & Miloš Milivojević)

Franck Angelis – Interieur, for solo accordion

Astor Piazolla – Grand Tango (arr. Elsbeth Moser)

 ‘Miloš Milivojević …a hurricane of imaginative invention’

The Times

The combination of two such physically and expressively different instruments creates a compelling sound-world. It is one which has been embraced by a number of 20th century composers and an even greater numbers of arrangers, driven to generate repertoire for the mesmeric and dramatic pairing of cello and accordion.

From the earthy folkiness of Bartók’s well-known Romanian Folk Dances to the dark, raw beauty of Vlasov’s Five Sights on Country Gulag, this concert showcases the extraordinary versatility of both instruments. Astor Piazzolla – the composer and bandoneón virtuoso who took the tango out of Argentinian dance halls and into the world’s major concert halls – is ever-present, with five of his much-loved works forming the backbone of the programme.

Award-winning Serbian-born Miloš Milivojević performs classical, tango and world music internationally. An ambassador for the classical accordion, he has premiered works by Howard Skempton, Elena Firsova, Julian Philips and Philip Venables and enjoys performing with the London Tango Quintet, Kosmos Ensemble and the Balkan group Paprika. A frequent interviewee and performer on BBC television and radio, his playing is also featured on the award winning Bollywood movie Barfi and he has performed tango live in front of millions on the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing.

Clare O’Connell is a solo cellist and chamber musician whose work extends to writing, arranging and curating her own concert series, Behind The Mirror. She commissions many new works from living composers and makes her own arrangements of a vast array of music for unusual groups of instruments. She is a member of Lontano and the Storytellers Ensemble. Her debut solo album The Isolated Cellist is a deeply personal collection of ancient & modern music for solo and layered cello which was released by Stone Records in April 2021. Clare plays on a cello by Stefan Krattenmacher.