Reviews

“I am particularly taken with the Duo’s poise and taste. Their interpretive insights yiels music in the purest, least cluttered sense of the word…they play with a singleness of mind that both illuminates and delights. There is nothing the least bit routine about this pair.”
– Fanfare

“One of the greatest guitars duos of the century”
– Leo Brouwer

Critic’s Choice 1990 – ARG
Danzas and More
“Castellani and Andriaccio just bristle with energy…the Duo’s playing so invigorates that the only apt word for their delivery is ‘visual’. (They) pack a powerful punch in this piece (Piazzolla, Tango Suite) sounding at times more Argentinean than Piazzolla’s own New Tango Quintet… exhilarating stuff.”

(1685 – A Glorious Trilogy; Bach, Handel, Scarlatti) “The Castellani-Andriaccio Duo gave us some of the best of 1990 with their “Danzas and More” disc… and they continue to impress with their impeccable musicianship in this, all baroque collection. Their taste in ornamentation, their outstanding intonation and felt tempos, and their great skill in selectivity mark them as great communicators on their instrument t, and I would argue, the premiere duo in the field today…full of vitality and intellectual drama”
– American Record Guide

“This is an album of baroque guitar that is not to be ignored – beautifully performed and carefully recorded, it is a pleasant surprise from a small label.”
– Online Digital Music Review

“The Castellani-Andriaccio Duo perform eloquently…with breathless dexterity. The Duo’s tempos are rock solid and their use of instrumental color varied and tasteful…at times, dramatic and powerful, at others sweetly tender. This is a tour de force effort by the Castellani-Andriaccio Duo. 1685- A Glorious Trilogy is a delightfully well executed recording by two highly accomplished musicians.”
–ArtVoice

“The Duo plays with its usual coherent and cohesive point of view, its impeccable ensemble, and a sense of musical line so exceptionally fluid that it tends to make the highly polished technique sound effortless and easy.”
– The Buffalo News

“A Guitar Duo Worth Hearing Time and Time Again.” (Headline)
– The San Juan Star

“As fine and example of duo playing as can be imagined…Their style is never overstated and their attention to detail meticulous, while balance, technical execution and ensemble are flawless.”
– Guitar Magazine (London)

“Throughout the program, the duo’s playing was superbly elegant and refined, their ensemble virtually flawless, the technique deceptively brilliant…Joanne Castellani and Michael Andriaccio are among the world leaders in this esoteric art.”
— The Buffalo News

“First rate and a pleasure to hear.  The performances were consistently fine, the rapport between the two just about perfect. The concert was admirable.”
— The New York Times

“The Duo performed with a calmness and balance that implied a thorough understanding of the work….their playing was precise, their execution faultless. It’s as if the Duo had taken Sierra’s language, his driving rhythms and elegant melodic lines, as well as his gift of resolving tension, not only as food for thought, but for feeling too…The audience was in excess of four thousand, and if that night’s reception was an indication of the concerto’s success, we can expect to hear it again and again.”
– Soundboard Magazine

“To have artists of this caliber working with the young is a real gift.”
— American Record Guide

“The duo plays with a singleness of mind that both unifies and delights, they play with exquisite poise and taste. There is nothing routine about this pair.”
— Fanfare Magazine

“The soloist, Michael Andriaccio, is a master of subtle nuances, dashing flourishes and poetic phrasing.”
– Gramophone Magazine

“Andriaccio is an experienced guitarist and plays purely. This music is presented very rhythmically so that one feels the effortless lightness of the samba.  Very well done.”
— Staccato Magazine (Germany)

“Glorious, exquisite playing. I feel as if I’m getting a kindred spirit to play my music. Someone who brings an authentic Latin/Mediterranean understanding of thes e melodies and harmonies.  I couldn’t be happier.”
— Michael Dalmau Colina (ACE Award andThree-time Grammy winning composer)

“The elegant poetry of two musicians playing as a seamless unit…the Castellani Andriaccio Duo spin a glistening sonic web…as if ot were being played on a single instrument. Both Joanne and Michael employ a round, robust tone, and manage like magic, to control the emotional ebb and flow in almost perfect sympathy.
The electricity of the Castellani Andriaccio Duo comes from the interplay between their remarkably tight, well orchestrated control and educated interpretive skills.”
— Audio Magazine

“Always a pleasure when the Castellani Andriaccio Duo releases a new disc!
Castellani and Andriaccio join the Presti and Lagoya in an elite company of duos who have something to say when it comes to Albeniz and Granados. The colorful hues C-A evoke in Albeniz’s Cordoba couldn’t be more post-card perfect… This duo speaks the Latin lingo with the best of them. Everywhere the playing is light and sensuous. What Segovia and Barrueco are to understanding this music solo, so are Castellani and Andriaccio as a duo.”
— American Record Guide

“The Granados Oriental, in a transcription by the artists themselves, plays so beautifully to this particular duo’s greatest performance strength of elegance delicacy of line and variety of tonal coloration.”
— The Buffalo News

“Their tightness of ensemble and their general musicianship illustrate perfectly just how elegant and attractive music for two guitars can be…two superb artists.”
— Classical Guitar Magazine

“I found this to be one of the most enjoyable classical guitar recordings I have heard in quite a while.”
— Audiophile Audition

“Let me make this perfectly clear. The Castellani-Andriaccio Duo, guest soloists with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra and Uriel Segal on Friday evening, rank among the elite guitar ensembles in the world today.”
— The Chautauquan Daily