Classic BRIT Award winner Miloš Karadaglic is one of the world’s finest classical guitarists. Having last performed at Birmingham Town Hall in 2020, Montenegro-born Miloš is looking forward to returning to the venue this spring, when he’ll pay tribute to Spanish classical guitarist Andrés Segovia...

Miloš Karadaglic left his home country of Montenegro as a teenager to pursue his passion for classical guitar. 
After studying at the prestigious Royal Academy of Music in London, he secured an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon in 2010. Solo performances with international orchestras followed, as did five studio albums.

Miloš plays Birmingham Town Hall in May, presenting a tribute to Spanish classical guitarist Andrés Segovia.

“I was incredibly impressed by Town Hall when I played there in 2020,” he says. “It’s such an amazing space and the acoustics are stunning. This incredible hall is a godsend for an instrument like the guitar. I remember an incredibly warm atmosphere, and I can't wait to return and re-establish that connection with the audience after everything we've been through.”

How much did you miss live performance during lockdown, Miloš?
Feeling a connection with an audience after so long has been incredibly rewarding. I’m very lucky that I’ve remained healthy and well through this time, and that I was able to use lockdown as an opportunity to grow both as a person and artistically. When the time came to go back on stage after many months, it was amazing. Everybody was missing the experience of live performance, being in front of a performer and being with them on their journey. It's one of those unique things in life. 

What can your audience at Town Hall expect?
This programme is in tribute to one of my heroes. Andrés Segovia was a true pioneer of the instrument, and we guitarists of today owe him a lot because he put us on the map. The programme is a collection of some of the most important pieces in his repertoire, but also pieces that I personally feel a strong connection with. At the end of the programme, I will be premiering a new piece by French composer Mathias Duplessy that is also a homage to Segovia. I think it's a collision of different worlds. I'm really excited to be performing this piece to the audience in Birmingham. 

Homage To Segovia will also be livestreamed. How have you found the experience of livestream performances?
Livestreams turn a concert into a very different thing, as they take it out of its essence and core and onto the internet. Psychologically, it's a very different starting and finishing line for a musician. I personally think it's our role as musicians to connect with our audience in any way possible. We acknowledge what's going on, and we do everything we can to make it work. I'm really excited about this livestream. In many ways, livestreams are not much different than a concert being recorded or filmed, so I feel very well prepared and versed.  

What else does 2022 have in store for you?
A couple of interesting collaborative projects. I’ve been working with the great Israeli mandolinist, Avi Avital. It's a wonderful feeling of union between our two instruments, and we've created a beautiful programme of music. One thing that the pandemic did was remind me, and a lot of my colleagues, of what it is we love doing the most. For me, I’ve always had a lack of time to collaborate with musicians and people who I admire. During lockdown, I set up a couple of beautiful collaborations that I really want to take off at concerts in the coming months. One is with Avital, and another is with one of my best friends, the accordionist Ksenija Sidorova. It’s incredibly rewarding to share the stage with other musicians. 

It's been over six years since the release of your acclaimed Blackbird: The Beatles Album. How do you look back on the experience of covering The Beatles?
That project was incredibly satisfying. It brought me to so many places and opened me up to a very different audience. It was the right sort of challenge, because it was a repertoire I knew nothing about and which I had to learn. After many months of hard work, we came up with this incredible collection of pieces and arrangements, and when it was released, people loved it. I've played it numerous times on tours and programmes since, and it’s been amazing to see the response - not just in the UK but almost everywhere else. The last time I performed it was back in September at Cadogan Hall in London during one of my biggest concerts post-lockdown. It was absolutely amazing, and I was reminded how brilliant it was to play The Beatles. But right now, I'm focused on more core and very classical repertoire. 

Miloš Karadaglic presents Homage To Segovia at Birmingham Town Hall on Saturday 28 May. The concert will also be livestreamed from the venue.