Carlos Damas (born 1973) is a leading Portuguese classical violinist and recording artist fo
Dux RecordsBrilliant ClassicsEt'cetera Records
an
Naxos
He is particularly known for his Fritz Kreisler interpretations and world premiere recordings of works by the Portuguese composers

António Fragoso António de Lima Fragoso (17 June 1897 – 13 October 1918) was a Portuguese composer and pianist. Biography Fragoso was born in Pocariça, Cantanhede. According to the Biblioteca Municipal de Cantanhede, he was given his earliest music lessons ...

Luís de Freitas Branco Luís Maria da Costa de Freitas Branco (12 October 1890 – 27 November 1955) was a Portuguese composer, musicologist, and professor of music who played a pre-eminent part in the development of Portuguese music in the first half of the 20th centur ...

Fernando Lopes-Graça Fernando Lopes-Graça, GOSE, GCIH (17 December 1906 – 27 November 1994) was a Portuguese composer, conductor and musicologist. Lopes-Graça was born in Tomar, and was influenced by Portuguese popular music, which he also studied, continuing ...

and

Sérgio Azevedo Sergius is a male given name of Ancient Roman origin after the name of the Latin ''gens'' Sergia or Sergii of regal and republican ages. It is a common Christian name, in honor of Saint Sergius, or in Russia, of Saint Sergius of Radonezh, and ...

. Jornal da Madeira. (24 October 2012)
"Violinista Carlos Damas grava compositores portugueses para editoras internacionais"
. Retrieved 13 February 2014 . Carlos Damas is widely regarded as the most significant Portuguese violinist currently before the public, with a brilliant international career encompassing the great masterpieces to contemporary works, attested by an impressive international discography. He has often been compared by international critics to such masters as Thomas Zehetmair, Gidon Kremer and Henryk Szeryng.
Retrieved 14 May 2021

/ref>

Life and career

Damas was born in Coimbra where he began his musical studies at the Coimbra Conservatory at the age of three. When he was six, his family moved to

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

where he continued his violin studies with Vasco Broco, Leonor Prado, and Alexandra Mendes. He made his solo concert debut when he was 15 in a performance with the Portuguese Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Joaquim da Silva Pereira. He then pursued further studies at the Paris Conservatory with Jacqueline Lefèvre and Ivry Gitlis. He premiered

's ''Concert for Violin'' in Paris in 1993.

's ''Reflections on a Portuguese Lullaby'' for solo violin and string orchestra was written for and dedicated to Damas.''

Jornal Tribuna de Macau The ''Jornal Tribuna de Macau'' () is one of three Portuguese-language newspapers in Macau. It is published seven days a week, appearing in the morning, and covers both local and international news. José Rocha Diniz is its director. The ''Jorn ...

'' (29 January 2010)
"Perfil de um virtuouso"
. Retrieved 13 February 2014 . Carlos Damas Portuguese virtuoso Violinist

Damas is a regular soloist wit
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, Camerata de St. Severin, Camerata da Madeira, Winnipeg Symphony, Guanzhou Symphony Orchestra, St. Luke's Orchestra
Mission Chamber Orchestra of San José
He has also performed in Macao with th
Macao Chamber Orchestra
several times since 1997 and has appeared as a soloist in concerts organized by the Melody for Dialogue Among Civilizations Association in conjunction with UNESCO, including a performance of the Bach Double Violin Concerto at Lincoln Center in 2007.Luso (6 June 2012)
"Violinista Carlos Damas atua no sábado em Macau"
'' Diário de Notícias''. Retrieved 13 February 2014 . Carlos Damas has performed as soloist in renowned concert halls, includin
Salle Gaveau
and Salle Cortot (Paris), Tearto D. Pedro V (Macau), Unesco Grand Auditorium (Paris), Calouste de Gulbenkian Foundation, S. Luiz Theater and Belém Cultural Center
Lee Hysan Concert Hall in Hong Kong
Ville Louvigy Orchester Philarmonique du Luxembourg
Oriental Arts Center in ShanghaiLisinski Zagreb concert hall
Giovanni Battista Gabrielli c

Carlos Damas has a PhD in Education and Psychology of Music, and is violin teacher at Évora University. HIs instrument is one Giovanni Battista Gabrielli, the "ex-Isham", dated from c.a. 1767. Carlos Damas is married to Jian Hong (cellist) and has one daughter called Eva Damas.

Recordings

Carlos Damas made the first world recordings of several Portuguese composers music, recorded for the labels Dux, Brilliant Classics, and Naxos: *
Paganini, Wieniavsky, Sarasate, etc.
' - Aprés un Rêve (Etcetera July 2021) *
L. V. Beethoven
' - Complete Violin Sonatas (Etcetera September 2020) *'' Jean Sibelius'' - Works for Violin and Piano (Etcetera September 2016) *''

Frederico de Freitas Frederico Guedes de Freitas (born Lisbon, Portugal; 15 November 1902 – 12 January 1980) was a Portuguese composer, conductor, musicologist, and pedagogue. De Freitas studied at the National Conservatory, winning the Composition Prize in 1926 f ...

'' - Complete Violin Works (Brilliant Classics, 2015) *''

Armando José Fernandes Armando José Fernandes (Lisbon, 26 July 1906 - Lisbon, 3 May 1983) was a neoclassical Portuguese composer; with Jorge Croner de Vasconcelos, Fernando Lopes-Graça, and Pedro do Prado, one of the "group of four" who dominated mid-20th-century P ...

'' (Brilliant Classics, 2014) *''

'' (Brilliant Classics, 2011) *''

'' (Naxos, 2010) *''Fritz Kreisler'' (DUX Records 2009) *''Carlos Damas - Modern Solo Violin Music'', including the first recordings of Lopes-Graça's ''Espçonsais'' and

Azevedo Azevedo is a common surname in the Portuguese language, and thus native to Portugal, Brazil, and other Lusophone nations. The etymology of "Azevedo" is usually connected to the Portuguese word "azevinho" meaning the European holly (Ilex aquifolium). ...

's ''Sonatina No. 1'' (DUX Records 2007) Druce, Duncan (2007). "Review: Modern Solo Violin Music". ''

Gramophone A phonograph, in its later forms also called a gramophone (as a trademark since 1887, as a generic name in the UK since 1910) or since the 1940s called a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogu ...

'', Vol. 85, p, 109. Quote: "The two Portuguese items are both first recordings." *'' Beethoven, Sonatas for violin and piano nº4 & nº5"'' (MasterClassics/Universal 2004) *''Carlos Damas - Violino Solo'' (Numérica 2000) *''Diálogos do Silêncio'' (Tradisom/Sony 1997) *''

Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...

'' (Numérica 1995)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Damas, Carlos Portuguese classical violinists Male classical violinists People from Coimbra 1973 births Living people 21st-century classical violinists 21st-century male musicians