CC Duo

Performing under the name CC Duo, Adam Cicchillitti and Steve Cowan are reshaping the guitar duo landscape through high-level artistry and a forward-thinking approach to programming. Together, they placed second (2023) and third (2021) in the prestigious Guitar Foundation of America International Ensemble Competition.

Their debut album of Canadian music, Focus, was awarded Classical Recording of the Year at the 2021 East Coast Music Awards and was praised by American Record Guide for its “sensitive and authoritative interpretations.” Their follow-up album, Intimate Impressions—featuring original arrangements of 19th- and 20th-century piano music—was nominated in 2022. Their next release, Lyrique, is scheduled for September 2025 on the Analekta label.

Since 2020, the duo has commissioned over 20 new works, with a particular focus on collaboration and genre expansion. In 2021, they premiered nine electroacoustic pieces by members of ICEBERG New Music, a New York-based composer collective, at the 21st Century Guitar Conference in Ottawa. In 2022, they launched a major orchestral commissioning project funded by the Canada Council for the Arts and the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. Six new works for two guitars and orchestra were premiered with Thirteen Strings and later recorded with collectif9 for Leaf Music.

Touring remains central to their artistic mission. Highlights include national tours with Début Atlantic and Prairie Debut, regional performances in British Columbia and Texas, and an upcoming East Coast U.S. tour in October 2025. Cicchillitti is Lecturer of Guitar at Mount Allison University in New Brunswick, while Cowan holds the same position at McGill University in Montreal.

Photo by Brent Calis.