The duo consists of Marco Surace (Rome) and Emiliano Verrino (Rome/Berlin), both graduates of renowned music academies in Italy and Germany. The two musicians perform internationally as soloists and chamber musicians while also teaching at important music institutions in Rome and Berlin.
Since 2021, they have presented the project “Pizzicato Italiano,” featuring Italian classical and popular music for guitar duo as well as guitar and mandolin. The program has been performed in Rome, Berlin, and other European cities.
In 2024, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Giacomo Puccini’s death, the duo developed the project “Pucciniana.” The program combines instrumental and vocal music by Puccini in original arrangements for guitar duo and for guitar and mandolin. It also includes the world premiere of a new work by the young composer Gaia Aloisi, conceived as a tribute to Puccini.
“Pucciniana” has already been successfully performed at the Mediterranean Guitar Festival in Spain, as well as in Berlin, Rome, Potsdam, and at the Piceno Guitar Festival. The release of a CD is planned for 2026.
Emiliano Verrino
Emiliano Verrino (born 1996 in Sondalo) began playing guitar at the age of nine. He first studied at the “O. Respighi” Conservatory in Latina and later at the “Santa Cecilia” Conservatory in Rome under Prof. Domenico Ascione, where he completed his Master’s degree with honors.
After winning several national and international competitions, he continued his studies at the Hanns Eisler School of Music in Berlin, earning a second Master’s degree with honors in 2020. In 2024, he completed a postgraduate program at the Mozarteum University Salzburg under Prof. Andrea De Vitis. Since 2025, he has also been studying mandolin at the Cologne University of Music and Dance with Annika Hinsche.
He has performed at venues including the Konzerthaus Berlin, the Salzburg State Theater, the Academy of Arts in Berlin, and in New York. In 2024, he released his debut CD “800 – 19th Century Guitar Music” with Da Vinci Classics. He currently serves as Head of the Plucked String Department at the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg Music School in Berlin. Since 2020, he has been the guitarist and mandolinist of Verace Duo.
Marco Surace
Marco Surace (born 1996 in Rome) studied classical guitar with Prof. Senio Alirio Diaz and Prof. Domenico Ascione at the “Santa Cecilia” Conservatory in Rome, where he completed both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees with honors. As part of the ERASMUS program, he also studied at the Rostock University of Music and Theatre with Prof. Nora Buschmann.
In 2020, he graduated with honors in Musicology from Sapienza University of Rome. As a musicologist, he has published articles for various Italian institutions and academic journals.
In 2024, he earned a Master’s degree in Artistic Research in Music with a research project on fretboard knowledge in classical guitar performance. He is currently pursuing a PhD in music pedagogy and artistic research at the “Giovanni Paisiello” Conservatory in Taranto.
Marco Surace has won numerous international competitions and regularly performs throughout Europe as a soloist and chamber musician. He has published original compositions and arrangements with Da Vinci Publishing and EROM. He currently teaches guitar at the I.C. “Antonio Vivaldi” in Ostia (Rome).
