Biography
The Portuguese violinist Francisca Portugal was born and raised in the sea village of Paço de Arcos (Lisbon) in 1998. Her passion for music manifested at a very young age while singing and dancing to traditional Portuguese songs, leading her parents to sign her up for a local music school at the age of 6.
While attending an orchestral showcase where "Peter and the Wolf" by S. Prokofiev was performed, Francisca would choose the instrument that would accompany her throughout the years. Since that day, she was placed in the Suzuki group "Os Pequenos Violinos da Metropolitana", where she experienced the joy of sharing music with others. Simultaneously, she worked together with Rosa Sá to prepare for the group rehearsals. After two years of touring with the group all over Portugal, Francisca moved to the north of the country in 2006, which would, unknowingly to her, bring her new opportunities.
During the following years, Francisca studied at the Conservatório de Música de Paredes, and it was there that she decided to become a professional musician. In 2010 she successfully won the audition to become a student at the Escola Profissional de Música do Vale do Ave (Artave), where she was accepted into the class of pedagogue Nuno Meira, with whom she studied for the next 6 years. In those years, Francisca was awarded in several national and international violin competitions, which led her to perform in the most emblematic halls in Portugal and abroad.
In the final year of her studies at Artave, she came across a beautiful recording of R. Wagner's "Albumblatt," performed by Liviu Prunaru in Romania. Much to her surprise, Liviu Prunaru was giving a masterclass in Lisbon that same year. Francisca decided to apply for it out of curiosity, and she instantly knew this would be the teacher with whom she wanted to continue her studies. For that reason, she auditioned at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, where she was accepted into Liviu Prunaru's class in 2016, with whom she went on to obtain both her Bachelor's and Master´s degree.
Next to her solo career, Francisca is involved in multiple chamber music ensembles and orchestras. Together with Czech violinist Natálie Kulina, she founded Grimm Duette, a violin duo that focuses on bringing big orchestra classics to all types of audiences with their own arrangements, as well as commissioned new works to be performed in their concerts. Francisca has also been part of many Portuguese orchestras, including Orquestra XXI and Portuguese Chamber Orchestra, as well as new music ensembles, such as Ensemble MPMP. Recently, Francisca was appointed as 1st violin in the Residentie Orkest, Den Haag. For more information please check the simplified CV.
