Miloš's album cover features his name at the top, placed over an image of him holding a guitar and gazing into the distance. He is sitting on a large tree branch, and behind him, a lush forest.
NACO Recordings

The Moon & The Forest

Released April 26, 2021

Composers:  Howard Shore, Joby Talbot, Einaudi arr. Michael Lewin, R. Schumann arr. Michael Lewin 
Performers: MILOŠ,  National Arts Centre Orchestra conducted by Music Director Alexander Shelley,  BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Ben Gernon 
Periods: Contemporary, Romantic
Genres: Classical Guitar

“At turns elegiac, wistful, tuneful and virtuosic, The Forest is a fabulous work in the tradition of Rodrigo’s ‘Aranjuez’ …” – Alexander Shelley 

The NAC Orchestra is proud to be featured on superstar and bona fide “Classical Guitar God” (The Times) MILOŠ’s new album, The Moon & The Forest, released on April 30, 2021. This album marks a decade of his incredible music-making with Universal, and includes two outstanding original concertos, both specially commissioned for the star musician – a testament to his outstanding musicianship and pioneering spirit, showcasing new guitar repertoire on the world stage.  

The NAC Orchestra is featured on award-winning Canadian composer Howard Shore’s Guitar Concerto – The Forest – commissioned by Alexander Shelley and the NAC Orchestra especially for the superstar Montenegrin guitarist. The work premiered at the National Arts Centre on May 1, 2019. 

“The first time I heard the piece, I was moved by the honest simplicity of its harmonies, idiomatic writing and incredibly programmatic nature that makes you instantly dream up so many colours and sceneries in your head. The work is magical, just like the enchanted forest Howard wanted to paint with his unique musical brushstrokes.” – MILOŠ  

Best known for his dreamy scores to the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit franchise, Howard Shore’s first guitar concerto The Forest partially deviates from his works on the screen, drawing instead from the symbiotic relationship between people and the earth. Montenegro and its dark forests have been an inspiration to Howard and MILOŠ from the beginning. 

The Moon & The Forest also includes Ink Dark Moon, a work by Joby Talbot (The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Winter’s Tale) featuring the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Ben Gernon, and innovative new arrangements for solo guitar of Ludovico Einaudi’s ‘Full Moon’ and Robert Schumann’s ‘Träumerei’ – two moving pieces from the Romantic and Modern classical repertoire.  

This newest release follows last year’s Clara – Robert – Johannes: Darlings of the Muses (2020), the first of a 4-part recording cycle that explores the closely intertwined personal and artistic connections between three musical giants: Clara Schumann, Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms.