More than 20 young guitarists from the GuitarArt Academy and the BeoBallet Choir put on a true musical spectacle in front of the Europe House in Knez Mihailova Street to mark Europe Day. With “Ode to Joy” and many other beautiful pieces, we enjoyed the talent of our young and seasoned artists who created a magical atmosphere!

The Guitar Art Festival is one of the most prominent of its kind in Belgrade and will take place this year from 14 to 18 May, hosting 70 guests from 15 countries. Over the five festival days, twelve concerts featuring classical, jazz, ethno and rock music will be held at various venues across Belgrade. The festival opens on 14 May with a performance by the renowned gypsy jazz ensemble Rosenberg at the Grand Hall of Kolarac Endowment, where they will present their new project and latest album, LA FAMILIA.

The second day of the festival is dedicated to three classical music concerts at the Belgrade Philharmonic Hall. Young Japanese guitarist Toni Harda will give the first concert, followed by acclaimed Italian classical guitarist Carlo Marchione, while the evening will conclude with a concert dedicated to contemporary Serbian guitar music.

The third day of the festival begins with a classical music concert by the Roginjski – Spajić Duo. The world’s best tambura player, Branko Bako Jovanović, will perform on 16 May on the Main Stage of the National Theatre in Belgrade. The fourth festival day, also dedicated to classical music, opens with a concert by Timotej Kosovinac and the Guitar Orchestra of Lyudmila Rus at the Belgrade Philharmonic Hall. The second concert of the evening features Polish guitarist Marcin Dylla, while the Romanian Guitar Trio will perform in Belgrade for the first time.

Belgrade Guitar Day, which brings together 1,000 guitarists, will be held on Sunday, 18 May at Kalemegdan’s Pobednik Plateau as part of the festival’s closing programme. The matinee concert will feature the renowned jazz quintet Andras Parniczky from Hungary, the Grand Orchestra of Classical Guitarists of Serbia conducted by Italian maestro Vito Nicola Paradiso, as well as soloists Vlatko Stefanovski on guitar, Bako Jovanović on tambura, and Aleksandar Nikolić on bandoneon.

Europe Day is celebrated every year as a symbol of peace and unity in Europe. It marks the anniversary of the historic Schuman Declaration, which set out his idea for a new form of political cooperation in Europe that would make war between European nations unthinkable. The Schuman proposal is considered the beginning of what is now the European Union.