ABOUT US
Two lives. Two guitars.
One artistic journey.
“ It was 12 December 2010 when we met for the first time at the Conservatory — two students, both assistants in the guitar class. The director invited us to give a concert ten days later. Playing together felt easy and natural — and that surprised us.
So on 22 December, our guitars took the stage together for the first time, and from that moment on, we never stopped: degrees, advanced training, master’s programmes, honours, teaching.
Always together. Victories and failures, positive and difficult experiences — the latter as necessary as the former — never frightened us. Together, we have never been afraid to fall.
Today, we are a family ”
About Carmelo and Carmen
Partners in life and art, Carmelo and Carmen are Italian musicians, composers and educators, praised for their brilliant technique, tone quality, passion, ensemble chemistry, and an interpretive approach that bridges philological rigor and contemporary music.
The duo was formed in 2010, refining their chamber music artistry under Maestro Giampaolo Bandini. They are regularly invited to perform at festivals, concert series and musical events across Italy, Europe and Asia, alongside collaborating … Moving away from rigid academic conventions and elitist stereotypes, their approach is rooted in a genuinely contemporary vision of the classical idiom …
Okay guys, STOP!
This isn’t our CV page – you can find that in our EPK.
This page is about Carmelo and Carmen.
Welcome to our journey … Let’s begin!
Chamber Music is ...
“ It is an ongoing dialogue and interaction between us and our guitars — two instruments that describe moods and soundscapes, merging to seek a common identity and diverging to bring light to their own.
An interpretation that understands historical performance practice, yet knows when to step back and offer a contemporary vision of classical language — with a sound rooted in the present, yet capable of evoking the past.”
Our Music
We have never viewed composition as an academic formula or an exercise bound by rules.
For us, the guitar is a living instrument through which we give shape to what words cannot reach. It is a visceral process: it begins with what lies within us and seeks a form through which it can become music.
Take Rainy Sunset: it carries our blood, the scent of sea salt, and the echo of our homeland’s sunsets, all set within an almost cinematic dimension.
In Tears of War, music turns to stone, screams, and wounds: a necessary cry, an indictment of every conflict and act of violence throughout history.
In the end, whether evoking a landscape or delving into the labyrinths of the mind with Whispers, we are always searching for the same thing: to set our egos aside, listen to each other until we become a single breath, and ensure that those who listen are not simply hearing music, but experiencing a piece of our lives.
Collaborations
Music is never a closed room.
For us, performing with other artists is not simply about bringing different professionals together on stage; it is about breaking down boundaries to make space for a shared vision.
Whether collaborating with an ensemble, a flute, or a voice, every partnership begins with listening. It means putting ourselves out there and opening up to the other, creating a language we could never reach alone.
RESEARCH, EDITING AND RECORDING
An edition, a recording, or an album is never, for us, simply a product or a catalogue of notes.
Working with manuscripts, preparing a critical revision, or publishing a work means taking on a profound cultural responsibility towards history and the composers themselves. Every score must be questioned, understood, and brought into the present — combining philological respect with the pulse of a living interpretation.
The same applies to composers of our time: when we publish or record a contemporary piece, we become a bridge between their most intimate inspiration and the hands of those who will play it tomorrow.
This forms the foundation of our editorial choices: giving a voice to works with broad appeal alongside rare or lesser-known repertoire, creating an archive that is, above all, a home for music that deserves to be heard.
Teaching
Teaching, for us, has never meant standing behind a desk and simply imparting rules.
Teaching means entering into a relationship with another person, recognising the uniqueness that every student carries within, and accompanying them in the search for their own sound, rather than teaching them to replicate ours.
It means passing on a profound respect for the instrument, for hard work, and for the beauty of research, while above all teaching that technique is necessary, but must never become a cage: for us, music remains first and foremost an act of freedom.
The goal is not to create a perfect performer, but a musician who knows how to listen to the world.
MULTIDISCIPLINARITY
The truth is, art is never a straight line.
Whether exploring early repertoire, working in theatre, writing a legal essay, or singing soul, the root is always the same: understanding who we are through what we do.
How one-dimensional can an artist’s path truly be?
And how much of everything we encounter — our studies, the people we meet, other art forms, even what seems completely unrelated — ultimately nourishes our work?
We are not “musicians who do too many things.”
We are musicians who have never wanted to fence in our curiosity.
For us, every experience can become music, and every art form opens a new path for exploration.
Carmelo
“Born in Milazzo, I grew up surrounded by drawing, poetry, music, and theatre, approaching my artistic path with a restless curiosity.
A musician, legal scholar, author, and performer, my identity bridges seemingly distant worlds: the rigour of honors degrees, the study of neuroscience, a compulsive drive to write, and a visceral urge to explore how artistic creation intersects with the rules of the music industry.
Whether I’m playing guitar in a duo with Carmen, writing legal essays, training in the boxing ring, or collecting tailored suits, the approach never changes: I reject boundaries and pursue rigorous precision paired with ultimate vitality.
It’s a relentless quest spanning the stage, teaching, consulting, and personal growth — driven by the belief that music is never just aesthetic expression, but a tool for responsibility and change.”
Carmen
“Growing up surrounded by instruments and bands — thanks to my father, a drummer in love with Italian singer-songwriters — I have always experienced music as a complete language that completes me and allows me to express who I am.
Primarily a guitarist, singer, and teacher, but also an author and artistic director, my identity bridges my university studies with the rigour and attention to detail I learned through chamber music.
My degree in Foreign Languages and Literatures, with its quirky thesis on musical-poetic circularity, right through to exploring neuroscience, ultimately shaped my philosophy.
Whether playing classical guitar on stage in a duo or unleashing my voice as a frontwoman, the approach never changes: I reject boundaries, seeking rigorous precision paired with intense expressive energy.
It is a journey spanning the stage, teaching, literature, and a love of flowers, animals, and good food — driven by the belief that music is, above all, an act of love and deep human connection.”