Herceg Novi Beogradu, Beograd Herceg Novom

Slobodanka Bobana Dabović Đurić 
Na pragu vjekova

Darko Nikčević i Srđan Bulatović
The Secret, Fantasia concertante, za dve gitare i orkestar

Aleksandar Simić
While you're Making Other Plans

OPIS PROGRAMA / PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

Slobodanka Bobana Dabović Đurić 
Na pragu vjekova

Na pragu vjekova (2025) je komad pisan za orkestar u kojem se susreću drevni tragovi i savremeni zvuk. Tradicionalni motivi pojavljuju se u naznakama, prelamajući se kroz dodekafonijski izraz i gustu orkestarsku teksturu. Ekspresivni tok muzike priziva osjećaj mita – ne kao pripovijest, već kao nasljeđe koje se stalno preoblikuje. Prošlost i sadašnjost koegzistiraju u zvuku na mjestu gdje vrijeme gubi svoje granice.

Na pragu vjekova (2025) is a piece for orchestra where ancient traces meet contemporary sound. Traditional motifs appear as subtle hints, refracted through dodecaphonic expression and a dense orchestral texture. The expressive flow of the music evokes a sense of myth – not as a narrative, but as a heritage in a state of constant reshaping. Past and present coexist in a sonic space where time loses its boundaries.

Darko Nikčević i Srđan Bulatović
The Secret, Fantasia concertante, za dve gitare i orkestar

Naziv The Secret (Tajna) odnosi se na nedokučivost porijekla muzičke ideje: na istraživanje njenog nastanka, izvora inspiracije i unutrašnjeg puta kojim prolazimo tokom stvaranja djela. U ovom slučaju, polazište je želja za boljim i pravednijim svijetom.

Djelo započinje dijelom „Od tame ka svjetlu“, simbolom rađanja i ličnog razvoja ka boljem i svjesnijem sebi, nastavlja se „Metamorfozom“ kao slikom duhovnog rasta, a u drugom stavu kroz „Ulazak u vječnost“ i „Beskonačnost“ izražava čežnju za smislom i savršenstvom. Treći stav, kroz „Geometriju“ i završnicu „Od ruku ka srcima“, podsjeća da se istinska vrijednost i snaga nalaze u humanosti i prevazilaženju materijalnog.

Koncert je nastao kao rezultat višegodišnjeg rada i objedinjavanja šest kompatibilnih kompozicija u jedinstvenu cjelinu, maestralno orkestriranu od strane Klaudija Ianija. Djelo je objavljeno na albumu EUROPE SYMPHONY & THE SECRET – TWO ORCHESTRAL WORKS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY u izdanju američke izdavačke kuće Navona Records, 20. februara 2026. godine.

The title The Secret refers to the elusive origin of a musical idea: an exploration of its inception, its source of inspiration, and the inner journey we undertake during the creation of a work. In this case, the starting point is the desire for a better and more just world.

The piece begins with the section "From Darkness to Light," a symbol of birth and personal development toward a better, more conscious self. It continues with "Metamorphosis" as an image of spiritual growth, while the second movement, through "Entry to Eternity" and "Infinity," expresses a longing for meaning and perfection. The third movement, through "Geometry" and the finale "From Hands to Hearts," serves as a reminder that true value and strength are found in humanity and the transcendence of the material.

The concerto is the result of years of work, unifying six compatible compositions into a single, cohesive whole, masterfully orchestrated by Claudio Ianni. The work was released on the album EUROPE SYMPHONY & THE SECRET – TWO ORCHESTRAL WORKS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY by the American record label Navona Records on February 20, 2026.

Aleksandar Simić
While you're Making Other Plans

Postoji mnogo divnih i milijardu puta korišćenih, a često i zlorabljenih, da ne kažem nemilosrdno šerovanih citata na temu života i njegovog značenja - od Marka Tvena, preko Ralfa Emersona i Helen Keler, pa sve do glumice Me Vest.

Ipak, verovatno najčešće citirana definicija života, došla je iz pera pesnika i kompozitora Džona Lenona i glasi: Life is what happens, while you're busy making other plans; i zaista - ma koliko pažljivo i predano unapred planirali svoje živote, na kraju je, od onoga što smo mi zamislili, mnogo bitnije šta je isplanirao Univerzum. Prihvatanje te nepobitne činjenice nikako nije defetističko, nego je zapravo put ka zahvalnosti na dragocenom daru života i rešavanju konflikta između onoga što mislimo da nam bespogovorno pripada i realnosti.

U tom smislu, naslov muzike koja se nalazi pred Vama, su mnogo više od neke unapred zadate programske potke, odredile okolnosti u kojima sam proveo proteklih par meseci, baveći se ovim delom, koje je nastalo kao porudžbina Gitar Art festivala i zamišljeno kao završnica ovog koncerta u kojoj će se na sceni zajedno pojaviti svo četvoro solista u čijem muziciranju ste imali prilike da uživate tokom večeri.

Tu su utkane i moje lične, vrlo privatne okolnosti - da ne kažem neke divne, a katkad i vrlo teške stvari koja mi se trenutno i već duže vreme dešavaju, a i one okolnosti, za koje mogu slobodno da kažem da su posledica istorijskog trenutka u kome živimo, a koji je često jako teško razumeti i još teže prihvatiti.

Zato nas Lenonovo kratko "uputstvo" za korišćenje i razumevanje života jako precizno podseća na to da se sva lepota i veličanstvenost "dara sa ograničenim vremenskim trajanjem" krije u njegovoj neverovatnoj, zastrašujućoj i fascinantnoj neizvesnosti - na onaj način na koji u judeo-hrišćanskoj apokrifiji Božiji Anđeli predstavljaju misterioznu sintezu apsolutno prelepog i potpuno užasavajućeg.

Opet, ja snažno verujem da pored ovog, treba imati u vidu još jedan genijalni i nadvremensko istiniti Lenonov citat:

Sve će biti ok na kraju...ako nije ok...znači da nije kraj

As you know well enough, there is a whole plethora of quotes on Life and its meaning - many of them often turned into meaningless clichés by endless quasi-philosophical abuse, facilitated by digital technologies and social networks - great quotes from Mark Twain, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Helen Keller to Mae West.

Yet, probably the most quoted definition of life is the one that comes from the pen of the composer and poet John Lennon, reminding us that Life is what happens, while you're busy making other plans; and seriously, no matter how meticulously we try and plan our lives ahead, at the end of the day, the ultimate course of our faith is decided by what the Universe has had in mind for us; and I genuinely believe that there is nothing defeatist in the acceptance of this as a fact, but that embracing it is actually a first step towards genuine gratitude for the immense and precious gift of life, and a first step in resolving an unnecessary conflict between what we think we are entitled to and what reality often teaches us can and cannot be taken for granted.

This is why the title of the music which we present tonight for the first time does not derive from some sort of a programmatic plot or a story, but much more from the circumstances encompassing the period of the past two months, which is how long it took me to start and complete this piece, commissioned by the Guitar Art Festival, and conceived as a climactic finale to the entire program - one featuring all four of the soloists, which you head the pleasure of listening to, in the course of this evening.

These circumstances consist not only of a number of very personal and private intricacies, which have lately become an integral part of my life - some harsh and some absolutely marvelous, but also of those which I would dare to say are a direct and very blunt consequence of the historical turmoil we are experiencing - one which we find very hard to wrap our heads around, let alone accept and come to terms with. 

Lennon's very brief direction on how to fathom and possibly navigate our lives is also a stern and precise reminder of the fact that all the beauty and magnificence of this "gift with an imminent expiration date" comes from its unbelievable, terrifying  and fascinating unpredictability - somewhat similar to the dualistic nature of Angels in the Judeo-Christian apocryphal literature - embodied by the synthesis of divinely beautiful and utterly horrifying.

On the other hand, I also strongly believe that besides this particular quote, which, as it turned out named our last piece in the program, one should have in mind another pearl of wisdom by the same author - the timeless and sublime John Lennon:

Everything will be ok in the end. If it's not ok, it's not the end