Miloš Milivojević

“A hurricane of imaginative invention” Hilary Finch, The Times

"Milivojevic's artistry on the humble button accordion took the breath away – indeed, his coruscating transcription of an organ chorale by Mendelssohn made one almost wonder whether we actually need those thundering giants." Michael Church, The Independent

"As the classical accordion has two sets of buttons, it’s possible to play separate lines of a piece simultaneously, Milivojevic explained. He demonstrated this to stunning effect in the chorale and variations from Mendelssohn’s Organ Sonata no 6. Milivojevic built up the sound exactly as you would on an organ, leaving no doubt that the sonata was strongly influenced by Bach: the decorated and skittish variations translated to the accordion particularly well." The Oxford Times

Award-winning Serbian born Miloš Milivojević has been described as "A hurricane of imaginative invention” by Hilary Finch, The Times. His versatility as a musician performing different genres including classical, tango and world music, has ensured he is in demand internationally. Miloš is a first prizewinner at international accordion competitions in Germany (Klingental), France (Grand Prix), Italy (Castelfidardo) and Denmark (Diremose Prisen).

Miloš studied with Vojin Vasović and Radomir Tomić in Serbia and was awarded a full scholarship from the Royal Academy of Music (RAM) for Undergraduate, Postgraduate and Master degrees studying with Professor Owen Murray. During his studies, Miloš became the first accordionist ever to win the RAM Club Prize open to all instrumentalists and was the winner of the prestigious Derek Butler London Prize at the Wigmore Hall, contested by students from all four of the London conservatoires. At graduation, Miloš was awarded a Distinction and the Vice Principal’s Special Prize at the Royal Academy of Music.

Miloš has performed at venues including the Royal Albert Hall, Wembley Arena, Birmingham Symphony Hall, Sydney Opera House, Muziekgebouw, Wigmore Hall, Cadogan Hall, Kings Place, Purcell Room, Snape Maltings and as soloist at the RAM Foundation Day Awards Ceremony before HRH The Princess Royal. He has given recitals at many prestigious classical and world music festivals across the UK, Russia, Slovenia, Hungary, Italy, Iceland, Montenegro, Spain, Portugal, Canary Islands, Netherlands, Malta, Cuba, Australia and New Zealand.

In addition to his work as a recital and chamber artist, Miloš is in demand as a performer with opera companies and orchestras. He performed with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra for Classic FM Live at the Royal Albert Hall (broadcast on Classic FM) and he joined composer/songwriter Danny Elfman and special guests in the BBC Concert Orchestra performance of Tim Burton’s Disney classic film ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’, a live cine-concert production presented to a packed Wembley Arena. In 2023 he was selected to work with the London Symphony Orchestra for their Jerwood Composer + Showcase. This season he works with orchestras including London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. He features in the Orchestra of the Swan production ‘A Beautiful Thread’ - Thomas Hardy in words and music with actor Anton Lesser on tour and was selected to be in the small ensemble for a filmed performance of Will Todd’s ‘Angels on the Underground’ for The Sixteen.

Miloš regularly works with leading opera companies including Opera North, Royal Opera House and Opera Holland Park. He performed Brett Dean’s new opera of Shakespeare’s great tragedy, Hamlet, with Glyndebourne Opera’s touring production and in 2022, Miloš performed in Graeae Theatre and the BBC Concert Orchestra’s production of Errollyn Wallen’s ground-breaking opera ‘The Paradis Files’ which was recorded for BBC Radio 3.

Miloš has appeared with the London Mozart Players, Russian Virtuosi, London Sinfonietta, Filharmonika Orchestra, Chroma Ensemble, Chorus of Opera North, BBC Singers and the German choir Rias Kammerchor. He has performed the Piazzolla Double Concerto with guitarist Craig Ogden and the Orchestra of the Swan and he gave the London premiere of the Jonathan Dove Accordion Concerto ‘Northern Lights’ with St Paul’s Sinfonia, London. Live broadcasts include BBC Radio, Classic FM, ABC and the Serbian national radio and television networks and he has given accordion masterclasses in Serbia, Portugal and Scotland. Miloš is a member of the London Tango Quintet, Kosmos Ensemble, Classical Kicks Ensemble, AccordDuo and the Balkan group Paprika and he regularly performs with guitarist Craig Ogden and violinists David Juritz and Lizzie Ball.

Miloš has premiered works and collaborated with British composers including Anthony Gilbert, Howard Skempton, Elena Firsova, Patrick Nunn, Ben Foskett, Julian Philips, Anna Meredith, Philip Venables, Bushra El-Turk, Errollyn Wallen and gave the UK premiere of Sequenza No.13 by Luciano Berio. His playing is featured on the award-winning Bollywood movie 'Barfi' and he has performed tango live in front of millions on the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing TV programme.

In 2014, Miloš was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music ARAM for his contribution to music and has been appointed as an external examiner for the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. He is an official artist and exclusively performs on Pigini Accordions.

Miloš’s debut solo CD “Accord for Life” is available on the Nimbus label. The track Sonata in F Sharp Minor K.25 (Domenico Scarlatti) was licensed for use in the film ‘Die Niere’ (Austrian Film Institute).

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