The duo of Pasquale Rucco and Douglas James specializes in the guitar literature of the early 19th century performed on authentic instruments of the period. The two first met and became friends at guitar festivals in northern Italy during the early 1990's and have now been performing together for over ten years, charming audiences with their interpretations of music from the first true "golden age" of the guitar. Rucco and James are internationally recognized authorities in the early Romantic style. Combining an historically informed approach with world-class musicianship, they play exclusively on authentic 19th century guitars strung with gut strings. Recent seasons have included concerts throughout the United States, Italy, and Austria. Rucco and James have performed for such prestigious venues as the Oberlin Conservatory, the Cleveland Institute of Music, Early Music Houston, and the Stetson International Guitar Summer Workshop. They have also presented concerts and masterclasses for universities and guitar societies in Georgia, Florida, Texas, Tennessee, Virginia, Mississippi, New Mexico, Ohio, and North and South Carolina. The duo's repertoire features some of the most famous of the early 19th century guitar duo masterpeices as well as seldom heard, newly discovered gems. Concert programs frequently include works by the more familiar composers such as Carulli, Giuliani and Sor combined with their lesser known contemporaries including Filipo Gragnani, François de Fossa, Antoine Baron de Barcó, Frederic Spina, and Antoine de Lloyer. Their debut CD featured works by Gragnani, Fossa and Barco as well as Giuliani's arrangements of Rossini's popular overtures to Il Barbiere di Siviglia and La Gazza Ladra. This critically acclaimed disc was recently followed by A Night at the Opera, an all-Rossini recording featuring 19th century arrangements of many popular opera overtures and the famous La Danza tarantella. "Thinking to Presti-Lagoya duo, Abreu duo and Assad duo, we think that the inseparable Italian/American pair will be successfully on the same line as this important progeny, becoming their filological equivalent." Musica magazine, May 2004. ". . . precise, well-ballanced ensemble . . . charming and discriminating . . . " Jack Dressler, Charleston Post and Courier "Douglas James and Pasquale Rucco played original 19th century guitars with gut strings for a delightful concert of music from the same era. . . " Richard Long, Soundboard The Italian guitarist Pasquale Rucco is the winner of several European guitar competitions, including the 1989 Arturo Toscannini Solo Guitar Competition for the performance of 19thc. music. Since then he has performed regularly in Europe and the United States, both as a soloist and chamber musician specializing in the 19thc. literature played on period instruments. Pasquale Rucco is also the founding director of "A.C.I.F.", a consortium of music academies operating in the greater Naples region. The American guitarist Douglas James has received numerous prizes and awards, including two National Endowment for the Arts Solo Recitalist Fellowships. He performs frequently throughout the United States and in Europe, and has been featured on major classical radio broadcasts including NPR's Performance Today. Douglas James is Director of Guitar Studies and Appalachian Guitar Fest at Appalachian State University. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Arizona, where he studied guitar with Thomas Patterson.