DUO NÁCAR
Chamber music for flute and Guitar
Nácar is a mesmerising material extracted from the inner layer of certain mollusc shells, such as oysters and abalone. Its exquisite beauty lies in its vibrant colours, delicate patterns and lustrous sheen. It is a striking combination of strength and elegance, with a natural iridescence and timeless charm. Formed at the rhythm of nature, it seems as if the waves, the light filtering through the sea and the vibrant colors hidden underwater have been secretly captured within the shells. Nácar is the source of inspiration to create colorful chamber music concerts for flute and guitar, offering landscapes of Latinamerican classical music. A fresh and charming program with pieces by composers such as Piazzolla, Villalobos, Lacerda and Assad among others.
About
Panos Megarchiotis is a guitarist from Greece, based in Zurich, Switzerland. A graduate of the State Conservatory of Thessaloniki in Greece and the Zurich University of Arts (ZHdK) where he studied with Prof. Anders Miolin and completed two Master Degrees in Music Performance and Music Pedagogy. He also has studied Musicology at the University of Fine Arts in Thessaloniki. Throughout the years Panos won prizes in various competitions and guitar festivals such as the Hermoupolis Guitar Festival (1st prize), the Volos Winter Guitar Festival (1st prize), Competition for Contemprorary Music (ZHdK) (1st prize), Patras Guitar Festival and Velingrad Guitar Festival (2nd prize).
His repertoire is very wide and extends from Renessaince to Contemporary music. In 2014 he premiered Karin Wetzel’s piece Amorphose II for guitar and live electronics. More performances of the piece followed, including performances at “Tage Neuer Musik” in Weimar, Germany and “Archipel” in Geneve. He has also participated in important contemporary music projects organised by ZHdK, such as Arc ‘n’ ciel and the “Musik aus Südamerika. Werke von Flo Menezes und German Toro-Perez” where he performed “Quaderno” for marimba, guitar and live electronics by Flo Menezes. In 2021 his album “Violão Brasileiro” was published by Da Vinci Classics and received very positive reviews from different guitar magazines, between them the Gendai Guitar Magazine.
Praised by her refined musicality and deep expression, flutist Ana Laura Dominguez has developed her style embracing diverse musical landscapes from the classical music repertoire to Latin-American rhythms. Her focus lays on the search for depth of expression through the rich tones of the Alto flute, C flute and piccolo. A versatile musician, her driven nature has taken her to perform on stages in Buenos Aires, Zurich, Boston and New York. Ana Laura performs on chamber music and orchestral projects on a regular basis in Switzeland and abroad; in Boston with the Boston Philharmonic, Boston Chamber Symphony, Cape Code Chamber Orchestra and Boston Civic Symphony.
Performing in venues such as the beautiful Jordan Hall in Boston and previously in the famous Isaac Stern Auditorium in Carnegie Hall, New York are highlights of her career. She also engages in fusion projects, such as her collaboration on the recording of a music album of Latin-American roots named "Ocean Avenue" by Juana Luna, recorded in Brooklyn, New York. She has recently recorded for Universal Music Group part of an album as a soloist dedicated to the music of Mozart, in Vienna.
Ana Laura graduated from the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste (ZHdK) with two Masters degrees in Flute Performance and Flute Pedagogy under the guidance of Swiss flutist Philippe Racine. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance from Universidad Nacional de Cuyo, Argentina. She completed her education at the Internationale Sommerakademie Universität Mozarteum Salzburg (Austria) with Peter-Lukas Graf; at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh (USA) with renowned American flutists. Currently back in Zurich, Ana Laura enjoys a versatile career as a concert flutist, chamber musician and holds teaching positions at various music schools in Switzerland.