Duo with Darina Ablogina

Sounds of Romanticism

The duo “Sounds of Romanticism”, featuring Darina Ablogina (keyed flute) and Peter Croton (romantic guitar), is dedicated to the sound world of the early 19th century. Their carefully curated program blends original works, historical arrangements, and rarely heard compositions by women composers. Both an artistic and scholarly journey, this program offers audiences an intimate encounter with the richness and emotional depth of early Romantic music.

This program highlights original works for flute and guitar, a popular combination in its time but now seldom performed, alongside historical arrangements, a practice that was widespread in the early 19th century. Arrangements were an important way of making music accessible to smaller ensembles and to domestic salons. In this spirit, the program revives works originally conceived for different settings and reimagines them in new colors.

Another key focus is the rediscovery of women composers such as Maria Szymanowska (1789–1831) and Emilia Giuliani-Guglielmi (1813–1850), Catharina Josepha Pratten (1824 –1895) whose contributions represent a vital but often overlooked part of the Romantic repertoire. Their works add unique colors and depth to the program, showcasing the creative diversity of the era. By featuring their music, Darina and Peter aim to raise awareness of the stylistic richness and emotional power of these composers, bringing forgotten female voices back into the public ear.

Alongside these rediscoveries, the program features original works by celebrated virtuosi such as Mauro Giuliani and J. K. Mertz. Pieces like Carulli’s serenades or Giuliani’s Grand Duo Concertant illustrate the refinement of chamber music for flute and guitar, an ensemble that enjoyed great popularity in the early Romantic period. The goal is not only to present musical rarities, but also to convey a vivid impression of an age defined by longing, tenderness, passion, and innovation. The duo format of flute and guitar creates an ideal medium for close, warm, and authentic concert experiences.

Contact: darina.smeshinka(at)gmail.com or petercroton(at)gmail.com

Darina Ablogina is a traverso player, teacher, and curator based in Basel, specializing in historical flutes from the Renaissance to the early Romantic period. A graduate of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis and the Moscow State Conservatory, she performs internationally as a soloist and chamber musician and collaborates regularly with ensembles and festivals across Europe.

Alongside her concert activities, she is the founder and host of the early music podcast (In)Sight-Reading Enlightenment, dedicated to historically informed performance and contemporary perspectives on early music culture. Her artistic work combines historical research, chamber music, and creative curatorial approaches, with a particular interest in forgotten repertoire, female composers, and historically informed performance practice.

She currently serves as principal flute of Orkester Nord. She has won prizes at international competitions in Bulgaria, Lithuania, and the Netherlands, and received the Early Music America Summer Scholarship. She has studied with leading musicians including Barthold Kuijken, Andreas Scholl, and Felix Renggli, and has performed with ensembles such as the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Trondheim Barokk, Nordic Baroque Orchestra, and Studio for New Music. Recent highlights include performances at the Reykjavík Early Music Festival and Harpa Concert Hall, a duo recital with soprano Herdís Anna Jónasdóttir and guitarist Peter Croton spotlighting overlooked women composers, chamber music with Avventura Barocca, and a flute duo concert in Basel’s Elisabethenkirche.

Her artistic work is defined by curiosity, versatility, and a deep commitment to historical authenticity.

Peter Croton is an award-winning lutenist and romantic guitarist, renowned for his captivating performances and recordings as both a soloist and accompanist. Praised by critics as a “lyric poet of the lute” with “breathtaking virtuosity” and an “astonishing range of tone colors and dynamics”, he has made significant contributions to the world of early music.

He pursued lute studies at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Switzerland. In 1984, he won first prize at the Erwin Bodky Competition for Early Music in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has recorded numerous CDs, appeared on television and radio as soloist and chamber musician. and has appeared at many international festivals.

Peter's versatility spans a wide repertoire, from Renaissance and Baroque masterpieces to his own contemporary compositions.

As an educator, Peter imparts his passion for lute & early music to students at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis and the Conservatories of Basel and Bern, where he teaches lute, romantic guitar, continuo, and historical performance practice. He has written books regarding historical performance practice on the lute and classical guitar, as well as method books for the Renaissance and Baroque Lute.

Beyond his teaching and performance career, Peter is the President of the German Lute Society (Deutsche Lautengesellschaft) and the initiator and artistic director of BASEL PLUCKS, a festival dedicated to lute and guitar.

PETER CROTON

DARINA ABLOGINA & PETER CROTON

Videos

Ferdinando Carulli, Sérénade pour Guitarre et Flûte Op.109, No.3 in C major: Largo

Reflections of the Romantic Spirit: A Concert of Early 19th-Century Gems