2017 was marked by the start of my latest project, which I called “MAKEDONISSIMO”, meaning “very Macedonian”, dedicated to my Macedonian people. It is a project of Macedonian music which I have been looking forward to and have worked on this project in my head for a long time. The indescribable power of the “beat” of our music is part of my everyday life and brings with it many memories, starting from my childhood with my parents, my brother, my sister, and my grandparents. Family gatherings were full of joy and happiness, today I pass on this timeless tradition to my children. I have never had the opportunity to make this recording a reality, so I’m overjoyed that it has finally happened.

This project had its world premiere on 18 May 2017, at Ludwigsburg Festival, Germany, which at the same time marked the 10th anniversary of my successful cooperation with KulturOp – Association for Culture and Art, a group of music enthusiasts from various professions.

I previously opened the Ludwigsburg Festival in 2016, together with the Finnish conductor Pietari Inkinen. The audience was thrilled and after the festival’s very spontaneous invitation for me to come back again I suggested I return with MAKEDONISSIMO, which they welcomed. I was very grateful for that.

This project includes plaits of Macedonian dances with several songs bringing charm to the entire instrumental dimension of this project. I personally selected these Plaits, while consulting with professionals from the “Marko Cepenkov” Institute of Folklore and the Ensemble for folk dances and songs “Tanec”. I am sincerely grateful for their professional contribution, advice, information, and materials.

This project also represented another extraordinary opportunity to collaborate with Macedonian composer Pande Shahov. He transcribed these wonderful musical works and brought with him his great enthusiasm to this huge project of 80 minutes of music.

The project involves a quintet, a chamber view of our music, that includes piano, violin, cello, clarinet, saxophone, kaval, and a set of percussions. It has been successfully presented in several countries, including France, Germany, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, and South Korea where it was broadcast live on YouTube.

I am thrilled about our collaboration with Linn Records and the release of this recording which I sincerely hope will bring warmth and joy to audiences all over the world.

I am grateful to my management VRAM, CM Artists and MKI Artists for the special support and respect for my ideas and my Macedonian music.

I sincerely look forward to every future performance of this project and I hope that it will have a good reception with the audience around the world!