In March the MIC.PT In Focus section is dedicated to António Pinho Vargas, composer, pianist, teacher and researcher, whose 70th anniversary is celebrated in 2021.
His catalogue of works includes four operas, three oratorios, 12 works for orchestra, eight works for ensemble, 20 chamber works, nine solo pieces and music for five films. The list of his most important recent compositions includes: Requiem (2012), Magnificat (2013), De Profundis (2014), Concerto for Violin (2015), Concerto for Viola (2016), Memorial (2018) and Sinfonia (subjetiva) (2019).
António Pinho Vargas is an author of various books on music, including his Doctoral Thesis concluded in 2010 – Music and Power: for a sociology of absence of Portuguese music in the European context (Almedina, 2011). As a pianist/ composer he has released 10 jazz records, including the double CDs – Solo (2008), Solo II (2009) and Improvisations (2011). His works are published by Naxos [Requiem & Judas (2014); rerelease of: Os Dias Levantados and Verses and Nocturnes (2015)], Warner [rerelease of Monodia (2017) and Magnificat – De Profundis] and MPMP [Concerto for Violin (2017)], among various other labels.
This month visit the MIC.PT In Focus section with and new Interview to António Pinho Vargas, composer published by the MIC.PT.

The work Canção I – «I Ascolta» (2020) for saxophone and percussion by João Quinteiro, composer published by the MIC.PT, is included in the programme of the concert by the Vertixe Sonora Ensemble [Jorge López (clarinet), Pablo Coello (saxophone), Aglaya González (viola), Guilherme Lapa (electric bass), Diego Ventoso (percussion) and Iván Ferrer (electronics)], which will take place on March 21 in Lugo (Spain). «This piece has been written in homage to Luigi Nono. It's also a manifestation of acknowledgement to Nuria Schoenberg and, by coincidence or chaos, it integrates this concert entitled Lost Memories, in a time when the Fondazione Archivio Luigi Nono lacks substantial support for its rigorous and generous mission of heritage preservation» – emphasises João Quinteiro. The concert Memorias Perdidas (Lost Memories), which in the programme also includes the music by Fernando Garnero, Mauricio Pauly and Pedro García Velasquez, constitutes a reflection on the isolation and disconnection from the past of the contemporary societies.

Anticatacresofonia is a seminar project dedicated to contemporary music, conceived and produced by the Interferência – Association for Intervention in Artistic Practice, with artistic and pedagogical direction by Manuel Brásio, composer published by the MIC.PT, as well as José Tiago Baptista and Ricardo M. Vieira. «Anticatacresofonia is an extracurricular project developed at schools specialising in artistic musical education. Its aim is to spread the knowledge on new sonorities, practices and techniques, developed in the framework of new music. Based on an exploratory, creative, cooperative and interactive musical practice, these seminars are conceived to disseminate a theoretical knowledge on 20th and 21st century music» – reveal the project's creators. The first seminar will be taking place between March 23 an 25 at the Professional Artistic School of Alto Minho, in Viana do Castelo. Until October 2021, the Anticatacresofonia project will visit various schools specialising in artistic musical education, all around Portugal.

João Pedro Oliveira's work In Tempore for piano and electronics (version with video), is included in the official selection of the Palm Beach International Music Awards – a global hub for music and video art, enabling the discovery of the best pieces by each of the awarded artists, within the multiplicity of the audiovisual works emerging in the international space on a daily basis. Additionally, João Pedro Oliveira's work Tesseract (video & electronics; 2017) makes part of the concert, Lumínico, which will take place on March 5 at the Universidad Austral de Chile; the piece Heavy Metals (2016) for bassoon & electronics is included in the programme of the USF International New Music Festival (>> on-line event); and the work Storms (video & electronics; 2018) by this composer published by the MIC.PT, will be presented at the TAma Music & Arts Festival 2021 (March 20 & 21, Japan; >> on-line event). Lastly, his piece Timshel (2007) for ensemble & electronics will be studied during the Workshop by the Sond'Ar-te Electric Ensemble – To Explore and to Perform the Music of Today (March/ April, O'culto da Ajuda in Lisbon).

In the final of February Miguel Azguime, composer published by the MIC.PT, has released on his >> YouTube Channel two new video-recordings of his works, realised on December 15 at the Belém Arts Centre in Lisbon, in the framework of the concert entitled Utopia performed by Nuno Pinto (clarinet), Elsa Silva (piano), Filipe Quaresma (cello), Pedro Neves (musical direction) and the Camerata Alma Mater. The new videos are: >> ConCordas for 13 solo strings (2016) and >> Triple Concerto for clarinet, cello, piano and string orchestra (2020). Additionally, Miguel Azguime's work for ensemble and electronics De Part et d’Autre (2010-11) is included in the Workshop, To Explore and to Perform the Music of Today, which will be conducted by the musicians of the Sond'Ar-te Electric Ensemble and maestro Pedro Neves. The first part of this initiative directed to the students of the 7th, 8th and superior instrumental levels, will take place between March 27 and 29 at the O'culto da Ajuda in Lisbon. The second session of the Workshop, as well as the final public concert, are scheduled for the April 22, 23, 24 and 25.

Two composers published by the MIC.PT – Jaime Reis and João Pedro Oliveira –, as well as Annette Vande Gorne (Belgium), Flo Menezes (Brazil) and Keita Matsumiya (Japan), integrate the jury of the 3rd edition of the Musa Prize, an initiative organised by the MPMP – Patrimonial Movement for Portuguese Music, in partnership with the Lisboa Incomum and the PANaroma Studio (São Paulo State University). The Musa Prize has been created with the aim to distinguish the musical excellence in contemporary composition within the Western classical tradition and, in this context, to promote Portuguese language as an expressive vehicle. It is open to composers of any age and nationality. In 2021 the competition works – solo acousmatic, stereo or multichannel –, should conceptually refer to Clarice Lispector's literary work. The deadline for works' submission is September 15, 2021.

The first session of the Workshop by the Sond'Ar-te Electric Ensemble – To Explore and to Perform the Music of Today –, dedicated to students of the 7th, 8th and superior instrumental levels, will be taking place between March 27 and 29 at the O'culto da Ajuda in Lisbon. The repertoire chosen to work at the Workshop includes nine pieces by the composers published by the MIC.PT: Untitled#2 (2021; avant-première) by Ângela da Ponte, Ressonâncias-Memórias (2003) by António de Sousa Dias, but I have many friends and some of them are with me (2012) by Bruno Gabirro, Gestos-Circus-Círculos (2000-01) by Cândido Lima, Timshel (2007) by João Pedro Oliveira, De Part et d’Autre (2010-11) by Miguel Azguime, In Limine (2011) by Ricardo Ribeiro, Pendulum (2012) by Rui Penha and Um silêncio a somar-se ao silêncio (2010) by Tiago Cutileiro; as well as O Silêncio e as Pedras (2008) by Luís Tinoco. In the context of this Workshop the Sond'Ar-te Electric Ensemble and the maestro Pedro Neves provide a new and unique programme for all the music students who wish to explore, decipher and perform the music of our time, becoming involved in the discovery of a stimulating, contemporary repertoire. The second session of the Workshop and the final public concert, will take place between April 22 and 25.

Lino Guerreiro (LGuer0005)
Pulsar (2019) · wind quintet

Miguel Resende Bastos (MRBas0001)
Ogh Nohlerr (2015) · orchestra

Miguel Resende Bastos (MRBas0002)
A Soldier's Cemetery (2016) · choir

Miguel Resende Bastos (MRBas0003)
Fantasia (2019) · instrumental ensemble

In February the young composer Miguel Resende Bastos has joined the group of Composers Published by the MIC.PT. Presently the Catalogue of Scores Published by the MIC.PT includes two of his works: Ogh Nohlerr (MRBas0001; 2015) for orchestra, A Soldier's Cemetery (MRBas0002; 2016) for SATB choir and Fantasia (MRBas0003; 2019) for instrumental ensemble. In the following months the MIC.PT Catalogue will be enriched with various other scores by Miguel Resende Bastos, a composer who's currently based in Germany and whose music draws the main influences from the artistic currents and the great composers from the second half of the 20th century and from the 21st century.
Last month the MIC.PT also released one more score, by Lino Guerreiro – Pulsar (LGuer0005; 2019) for wind quintet. Presently the MIC.PT Catalogue includes 1073 scores by 71 Portuguese composers.

In February Pedro M. Santos, professor, composer and critic, has joined the group of the New Music Review Lounge regular collaborators. His text about the new CD with the music by João Madureira performed by Ana Telles (piano), Estudos Literários – Retratos, is already available on-line (only in Portuguese). Released in the final of 2020 by the MPMP – Patrimonial Movement for Portuguese Music within the melographia portugueza collection (no. 25), this album includes, among other works, the series Estudos Literários – Retratos, a set of pieces composed in response to the suggestion by Ana Telles. The pianist challenged João Madureira to write a series of studies for piano, one century after the Études-Tableaux op. 33 by Rachmaninoff. To this challenge João Madureira added his own idea – to create «portraits» (retratos) of various people, friends or artists who he particulalry admires.

The riZoma · Portuguese Platform of Intervention and Research for New Music was created in the context of the various on-line Meetings · Portuguese Music Perspectives · Network Cooperation, promoted since last year by the Portuguese Music Research & Information Centre – MIC.PT and which assembled 40 participants – including the representatives of 27 Entities from the new music milieu in Portugal, as well as the members of the MIC.PT Scientific Council. Among various aims, this new network of music organisations intends to foment the approximation with the audience, to stimulate a critical mass for intervention, to create dialogue with the trusteeship and to defend the richness and vitality of the contemporary-classical-music creation and practice. riZoma is a platform to give evidence to the richness and vitality of this music milieu in Portugal, as well as to debate proposals and solutions that will improve in mid and long-term the situation of this music and consequently of its active agents; creators, performers, pedagogues, programmers and promoters. Stay tuned for more information on the activities developed by the riZoma.
All the Entities from this music area in Portugal, which would like to integrate the riZoma, can communicate their interest via the following e-mail: mic[at]mic.pt.

The Invention and Research Music radio programme, produced by the MIC.PT and the Miso Music Portugal for the >> Antena 2, initiates a brand new cycle, At First Hand, challenging the composers to describe, contextualise and analyse their works. The new cycle allows to immerse oneself in the universe of the composers, letting them unveil the way in which they conceive and work with the sonic material and the music form, until reaching the final work to which we can listen. At First Hand is a cycle intending to contribute for the approximation between the composers and the public, spreading an "inside" knowledge on contemporary music, in order for it to be better understood, appreciated and enjoyed. The first participant of this cycle (March 5 and 19) is the composer, professor and conductor, Christopher Bochmann.

As the Portuguese Federation of the International Confederation of Electroacoustic Music (CIME/ ICEM), the Miso Music Portugal/ MIC.PT promotes the PRIX CIME 2021 – International Electroacoustic Music Competition, a biannual initiative of the CIME/ ICEM. This year the Competition is divided into two categories: Prix CIME, open to all composers regardless of age and nationality and Residency Prix CIME, open to all composers regardless of nationality and born after December 31, 1986. The deadline for works submission is May 31, 2021. The submissions will be evaluated by the nine-member jury: Emmanuel Blanco, Francis Dhomont, Marcelo Espíndola, Annette Vande Gorne, Martyna Kosecka, Andreas Mniestris, Jon Nelson, Elzbieta Sikora and Barry Truax.

Since January, three new In the 1st Person Interviews (in Portuguese) – with the composers Pedro Amaral, Vítor Rua and Miguel Azguime (in three parts) –, are available on the >> MIC.PT YouTube Channel.
Presently the >> MIC.PT YouTube Channel contains 18 New Interviews to composers residing in Portugal, realised since 2019; as well as eight Interviews from the MIC.PT Archive, realised between 2003 and 2005.
The New Interviews were filmed at the O'culto da Ajuda in Lisbon and realised in the context of the In the 1st Person cycle of the Música Hoje radio broadcast, produced by the MIC.PT and Miso Music Portugal for the >> Antena 2. They constitute a (re)visit to the creative universe of various composers published by the MIC.PT, following the Historical Interviews recorded by the MIC.PT more than 15 years ago. Today they are unique registers of the artistic evolution of each interviewed composer.
In order to access the Interviews (in Portuguese) follow the links below or visit the >> MIC.PT YouTube Channel, which during the following months will be regularly updated with new videos.