Gjorgji Cuckovski triumphs at Due Siciliae festival in Sicily
Macedonian tenor performed on 2–3 October with Vincenzo Scontrino orchestra, receiving frenzied ovations and two encores.
Tenor Gjorgji Cuckovski received standing ovations and was recalled twice for encores after two concert nights at the Due Siciliae festival in Sicily, where he performed arias from Tosca, Werther and Turandot.
The concerts took place on 2 and 3 October during the closing weekend of the festival’s second edition. Cuckovski sang first at the Angelo Musco auditorium in Gravina di Catania and the following night in the atmospheric Sant'Andrea church in Milo, winning enthusiastic responses from an audience in a country long regarded as opera’s homeland.
Orchestral partners and a cross-genre collaboration
On both evenings he appeared with the Vincenzo Scontrino orchestra under the baton of maestro Davide Galaverna. The programs also featured saxophonist Gianfranco Brundo as a guest soloist, blending operatic voice, symphonic textures and jazz-inflected color.
Italian audiences rewarded his vocal power, emotional delivery and warm timbre with open-stage applause and frenzied ovations; he was brought back for two encores. The engagement adds another milestone to Cuckovski’s international career and raises the visibility of Macedonian opera on major European stages.
Reflecting on the concerts, Cuckovski said: "I am happy and satisfied with these performances. The reception from the audience gave me a sense of recognition and confirmation for my work in front of a European audience with high standards and deep knowledge of opera. It is always a great pleasure to represent your country abroad, especially in front of an audience for whom opera is part of cultural identity, almost like folklore. When a performance is rewarded with thunderous ovations, it confirms that Macedonian artists stand shoulder to shoulder with the world and that we really have reasons to be proud."
The Due Siciliae festival closed its second edition on 4 October. Cuckovski’s appearances in Catania and Milo underline his ongoing activity across Europe and the renewed interest in bringing North Macedonian operatic talent to international audiences.
Photo: press material from the event
