Valley Stream, NY -- (SBWire) -- 07/13/2015 --When it comes to guitar playing, Jimi Durso of Valley Stream, N.Y., does it all. Rock, jazz, reggae, ska, funk, salsa and classical. He's been playing and teaching for more than 20 years and is now engrossed in his most ambitious project ever.

Durso is taking selections from Hungarian composer Bela Bartok's collection of piano pieces and reworking them for classical guitar. Bartok, a Hungarian composer and pianist who lived from 1881-1945, is considered to be one of the most important composers of the 20th century.

These selections will be taken from Bartok's Mikrokosmos, a six-volume collection of graded piano pieces.

"If you're a fan of Bela Bartok, classical guitar or both, you're really going to enjoy this," he says. "It's also going to expand the repertoire of modern music available for beginning and intermediate classical guitar."

Through this project, Durso is going to record these reworked pieces and also make them available as sheet music.

"When I was in college, I was studying classical guitar and always looking for more modern pieces to perform," explains Durso. "I found that much of Bartok's Mikrokosmos translates very well to classical guitar, even though these pieces were originally intended for piano students.

"The pieces are not only wonderful but also address some things not often found in student pieces, like odd time signatures and unusual modes."

So far, he has transformed 12 pieces. "Transcribing, learning and recording these pieces is a long process," says Durso. "And even though I'll be recording them myself, there are additional expenses involved."

He estimates the minimum cost to be around $3,000. This would cover CD duplication, advertising, book printing, artwork, mastering and on-line distribution.

In order to generate this funding, Durso has launched a Kickstarter campaign, which can be viewed at
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1185977168/bela-bartoks-mikrokosmos-for-classical-guitar

The Kickstarter page includes Durso performing some Bartok pieces.

Donations of any amount are welcome. For a $7 contribution, backers will receive a digital download of the entire album. A $12 pledge is good for a physical CD of the album plus the digital download.

For $27, you can get the CD plus the music book.

"Backers are welcome to suggest pieces they'd like to hear," Durso says. "I can't make any promises but I'll try my best to include them in the CD."

For additional information, visit https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1185977168/bela-bartoks-mikrokosmos-for-classical-guitar ; Durso's website; http://www.jimidurso.com ; or his Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/pages/Twang/249635398380214

Durso can be reached directly at jimidurso@yahoo.com

Contact Name: Jimi Durso
Company Name: Bela Bartok's "Mikrokosmos" for Classical Guitar
Email Address: jimidurso@yahoo.com
Website URL: http://www.jimidurso.com
City: Valley Stream
State: NY
Zip Code: 11580
Country: USA
Phone Number: 516-972-3244