Ljubica Damčević obtained her primary and secondary music education at the "Dr. Vojislav Vučković" music school in Belgrade under the guidance of professor Biljana Jakšić-Nikolić. She completed her Master's Degree in violin at the Faculty of Music in Belgrade, studying under professor Marija Špengler. Additionally, she graduated from the "Josif Marinković" Music High School in the solo singing department under the instruction of professor Kristina Ašković. Throughout her education, she achieved significant success in competitions and performed numerous concerts. She furthered her skills with various violinists and pedagogues, including Dejan Mihailović, Vesna Stanković, Mincho Minchev, Dejan Bogdanović, Gordan Nikolić, David Takeno and Stefan Milenković. She has received numerous awards at both national and international competitions.
After completing her studies, she began her career in the theater as a composer, violinist, performer and actress. She was engaged with various theater groups, such as Mimart, Hleb teatar, Tri groša, Le studio, Madlenianum with a notable contribution to DAH theater. She composed music for plays, films, TV series and played significant roles in productions like "Chicago", "Words of Stone", "For Your Own Good" and "Terra". Particularly noteworthy is her role in Astor Piazzolla's operetta "Maria de Buenos Aires".
In 2013, she became a member of the "Tanguango" quintet. The same year, she and pianist Katarina Ranković founded the "Katarina and Ljubica" duo. In addition to her pedagogical work at the "Dr. Vojislav Vučković" music school, she is active as an orchestral musician. She is a member of the Zemun Chamber Orchestra, and since 2018, she has been a member of the "Balint Kasza Verdi Orchestra" based in Graz, Austria.
Nikola Vidojević started playing the piano at the age of 6. He completed his primary and secondary education at the "Dr. Vojislav Vučković” music school in Belgrade under the guidance of professor Svetlana Kostić. He continued his studies at the Belgorod State Institute of Arts and Culture (Russia), where he obtained his Bachelor's and Master's Degree in the class of professor Lyubov Semerenko. Currently, he is a teaching assistant and piano collaborator at the prestigious Moscow Conservatory "Tchaikovsky" in Moscow in the class of professor Denis Chefanov (piano department).
He has participated in an enormous number of competitions, concerts, festivals, masterclasses, and music workshops in Serbia and abroad. Notable performances include his appearance at the grand opening of the "Harmony" festival at the Belgorod Philharmonic in 2017 (playing Rachmaninoff's 2nd Piano Concerto) and being awarded the Laureate title at the "Bartolomeo Cristofori" competition (St. Petersburg - Russia 2018) and the "Prohorovskoe Polye" competition (Belgorod - Russia 2021). In addition to his solo career, he has performed as a soloist with symphony and chamber orchestras, as well as a chamber musician and piano collaborator in a large number of ensembles. Apart from significant venues in Serbia, he has performed throughout Europe (Russia, Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Slovenia and many others). He has collaborated with a large number of soloists, orchestras, professors and conductors. Some of the most significant collaborations include Nikolay Luganski, Eliso Virsaladze, Ekaterina Mechetina, Vadim Rudenko, Nataliya Trull, Michele Rossetti, Dmitry Filatov, Bernard Parz and Oxana Yablonskaya. He is the recipient of many awards, recognitions and scholarships, including "Dositeja", "Vidovdan Award for Youth Creativity", "Best Student Award" and the "Russia Study" full tuition scholarship for free studies in Russia.
In 2023, Ljubica Damčević and Nikola Vidojević founded the chamber ensemble “Le Duo”. In a short period of time, the duo has given numerous performances in Serbia (Cultural Station Eđšeg – Novi Sad, Cultural Center of Pančevo, Cultural Center of Novi Sad, “Živorad Grbić” Music School in Valjevo, and a promenade concert in the Grand Hall of Kolarac Endowment), as well as abroad (Gozo – Malta, Winterwerft Festival in Frankfurt, and the Museum of Herzegovina in Trebinje). In collaboration with the Italian Institute of Culture and baritone Giacomo Medici, they held the concert series “Ciudades” (Cultural Center of Smederevo, Cultural Center of Ruma and Cultural Station Eđšeg, Novi Sad) supported by the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Serbia. Together with flutist Miloš Miketić, they founded “Le Trio”, with whom they have performed at the Cultural Center of Vojvodina “Miloš Crnjanski”. They have shown strong interest in appliedmusic, taking part in the poetry recital “Poezija živa” alongside actor Nebojša Milovanović. “Le Duo” is deeply committed to contemporary music, with particular focus on Serbian composers. In the upcoming period, they are preparing a series of ten concerts supported by SOKOJ: “Sounds of the Theater” with flutist Miloš Miketić, and the continuation of the project “Dancer on a tightrope”, dedicated to Serbian composers. One of their main artistic goals is the pursuit of new sonic landscapes and innovative forms of expression.
Programme:
Edward Elgar: Chanson de matin
Franz von Vecsey: Valse triste
Dejan Despić: Vignettes
Dušan Radić: Song and Dance
Jean Baptiste Lully: Gavotte
György Cziffra: Valse triste
Fritz Kreisler: Midnight Bells
Paul Schoenfield: Tango and Tin Pan Alley
Astor Piazzolla: Cafe 1930
Astor Piazzolla: Le grand tango