Filipe Faria
Managing Artistic Director

Filipe Faria was born in Lisbon in 1976. A father, musician, composer, photographer, author, programmer, filmmaker, producer, and researcher, he graduated in Musical Sciences from the Faculty of Social and Human Sciences at the Universidade Nova de Lisboa in 1998. In 2000, he completed a postgraduate degree in Musicology at the Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa, followed by a Master's Specialisation in Documental Sciences at the University of Évora in 2002, and in 2004, a Master's Postgraduate programme in Art, Heritage, and Restoration Theory at the University of Lisbon/Faculty of Arts/Institute of Art History. He co-founded and co-coordinated the graduate and postgraduate programme in Musicology at UAL (1999–2001) and founded and coordinated the graduate programme in Music Education at ISCE (2008–2009).

In 2000, he established the production company and publisher/label Arte das Musas, where he serves as managing artistic director. Through this company, he develops original projects and national and international partnerships in music, dance, sound art, documentary film, ethnography, visual arts, photography, publishing, and programming.

In 2003, he founded the Terras sem Sombra – Sacred Music Festival in Baixo Alentejo, acting as its managing artistic director until 2010. In 2012, he created the Fora do Lugar – International Early Musics Festival in Idanha-a-Nova (a UNESCO City of Music), where he continues as its managing artistic director.

From 1998 to 2013, he was a member of the Gulbenkian Choir, touring extensively in Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, China, the United States, Malta, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, England, Japan, Israel, and other countries. During the same period, he also performed as a freelance musician with national early music ensembles.

In 1999, he founded the early and contemporary music consort Sete Lágrimas, which he co-directs, with a discography of 15 titles: “Lachrimæ #1” (2007), “Kleine Musik” (2008), “Diaspora.pt: Diáspora, vol.1” (2008), “Silêncio” (2009), “Pedra Irregular” (2010), “Vento” (2010), “Terra: Diáspora, vol.2” (2011), “En tus brazos una noche” (2012), “Península: Diáspora, vol.3” (2013), “Cantiga” (2014), “Um dia normal” (2015), “Missa Mínima”, composed by him and Sérgio Peixoto (2016), “Twentie Yeares in Seaven Teares” (2021), “Loa – André Dias de Escobar (c.1348-1450/51) and his Laudas e cantigas spirituaaes (…)” from 1435. A dialogue with the Laudario di Cortona (13th c.) and the Laudario di Firenze (14th c.)” (2023), and “Folia Nova,” New Early Music composed by him and Sérgio Peixoto based on Portuguese poetry from the 15th and 16th centuries (2023). The consort’s career spans festivals and cultural centers across Europe and Asia, including Portugal, Bulgaria, Italy, Malta, Spain, China, Sweden, France, Belgium, Norway, Luxembourg, Germany, Czech Republic and Croatia.

In 2012, he founded the early music ensemble Noa Noa, with a discography of four titles: “Língua, vol. 1” (2014), “Língua, vol. 2” (2015), “De la mar” (2016), and “Palavricas d’amor” (2017). His career with the ensemble includes performances at festivals and cultural centers in Portugal, France, Belgium, and Japan.

In 2015, he published his first book, a graphic poem titled *Um dia normal*.

In 2016 and 2017, he created the multidisciplinary projects “Todas as noutes passadas” (All of the nights gone by) (with Pedro Castro and Carla Albuquerque) and “Como dormirão meus olhos?” (with Pedro Castro), both commissioned by the Centro Cultural de Belém/Fábrica das Artes in partnership with Zonzo Compagnie (Belgium) and funded by the European Union’s Creative Europe program. In 2018, he released a CD of original music (co-written with Pedro Castro) for “Todas as noutes passadas” and collaborated with Mara Maravilha on creating and performing the soundtrack for the project “Isto não é uma nuvem” presented at the Dias da Música festival at the CCB.

Between 2018 and 2019, he developed the project “Paisagem Sonora #1 to #6: Biofonias, Geofonias e Antropofonias” in Proença-a-Nova, Vila Velha de Ródão, Oleiros, Penamacor, Castelo Branco, and Idanha-a-Nova. These soundscapes premiered in these cities, in dialogue with photographers Valter Vinagre and Pedro Martins. In 2020, he was invited by the Projeto Cinco to develop a soundscape project in Águeda, Idanha-a-Nova, Lousã, Óbidos, and S. Pedro do Sul, resulting in “Cinco sopros para uma paisagem”. This outdoor public sound installation premiered simultaneously in these cities and was adapted into a performance honoring anthropologist Benjamin Pereira (1928–2019), debuted at the Centro Cultural Raiano.

In 2020, he created the Museu dos Sons Perdidos project – photographic essays and soundscapes. Published as a book series and premiered in exhibitions at the Centro Cultural Raiano, the volumes include “Antes dela dormir” (Vol. 1, 2022), “Aqui estão as palavras todas” (Vol. 2, 2022), and “As cantigas são tantas que a mim até se mudam” (Vol. 3, 2023) and “A minha vida foi essa toda” (Vol. 4, 2024).

In 2018, he initiated the Etno Series, developing projects such as “Do ramo de uma árvore” (2018) – a reinterpretation of José dos Reis’ (Monsanto, 1911–1996) eight-hole reed instrument, in partnership with Pedro Castro, master builders Mário Estanislau and Vítor Félix, and the Ethnomusicology Institute (INET-md, FCSH/UNL) – and “Na matéria do diálogo” (2023) – a reinterpretation of Manuel Moreira's Beiroa guitar (Penha Garcia, 1891–1970) in dialogue with Belchior Dias’ hand guitar (Lisbon, 1581), in collaboration with luthier Orlando Trindade and INET-md. Both projects culminated in books and documentaries authored by him.

In 2020, he released a solo CD, “Inselberg Partita, No. 2”, for Man and Solo Land.

In 2022, he published the photography book “Risco Branco Risco”, a North-South journey through Portugal along the iconic N2 road, and directed a documentary with the same title.

In 2023, he released the photographic essay “Flow”, inspired by John Dowland’s song “Flow My Tears” (c. 1563–1626).

In 2023, he created the Guardados project – a photographic and audiovisual essay – published in book as Guardados 001 (2023) and Guardados 002 (2024) and exhibited at the Centro Cultural Raiano.

His 2021 film “Olha para mim, que pode não ser verdade amanhã” was selected for the official program of the Festival du Cinéma et des Cultures Européennes de Strasbourg (France), organized by MESA - Maison de l’Europe Strasbourg-Alsace, and in 2024 for the official program of the Salva a Terra Ecofestival.

Between 2020 and 2021, he collaborated with dancer, choreographer, and filmmaker Winnie Dias (Brazil) on the project “Se chovesse um oceano” (If It Rained an Ocean), which included 14 video-dance pieces, music, performance, and photography. Filmed in Germany (Berlin, Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Wuppertal), Switzerland (Zürich), and Portugal (Idanha-a-Velha), it featured dancers Futaba Ishizaki (Japan), Naomi Brito (Brazil), Rafaela Bosi (Brazil), Rafaelle Queiroz (Brazil), Fuyumi Hamashima (Japan), Isabella Heylmann (Australia), Hayley Page (Australia), and Borja Bermudez (Spain). The project was part of the official selections of various international festivals, including MiMo (Italy, 2022) – Winner: Best Music Video; Super9 (Portugal, 2022) – Winner: Best Mobile Experimental; IMARP (Brazil, 2022); Flatlands Dance Film Festival (Nevada, USA, 2023) – Quarter-finalist; Lift-Off Film Festival (London, 2023); Athens International Art Film Festival (Greece, 2023) – Winner + Honorable Mention (Top 3); InShadow – Lisbon Screendance Festival (Portugal, 2022) – Video Installation + Shortlist for Rising National Artist ETIC Award; FIVC – International Screendance Festival (Chile, 2022) – Semi-finalist + Finalist, and Salva a Terra Ecofestival (Portugal, 2024) — Video Installation. The project premiered as an exhibition at the Centro Cultural Raiano in 2021, along with a live performance featuring Winnie Dias.

As a photographer, his works are included in the Centro Cultural Raiano’s collection, featuring “Antes dela dormir” (Vol. 1, 2022), “Aqui estão as palavras todas” (Vol. 2, 2022), “As cantigas são tantas que a mim até se mudam” (Vol. 3, 2023), “A minha vida foi essa toda” (Vol. 4, 2024), Guardados 001 (2023), Guardados 002 (2024), “Se chovesse um oceano” (2021/22), and “Um dia normal” (2023). He has also been featured in group exhibitions such as “Close-up” and “Forgotten Places”, with works like “Light II,” “Hand,” and “Untitled” at the Milepiani Gallery (Rome, Italy, 2023).

He completed the General Course at the National Conservatory in 1992, the Complementary Violin Course at the Lisbon National Conservatory/FMAC in 1997, the Photography Course at Ar.Co – Center for Art and Visual Communication – under photographer Roger Meintjes in 1995, and the Painting Course at the National Society of Fine Arts (SNBA) between 2001 and 2005 with painters Paiva Raposo and Mário Rita. In 2005, he was invited to the Free Painting Atelier at SNBA under painter Jaime Silva.

In 2014, he was invited to join the Application Committee for Idanha-a-Nova’s candidacy to the UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the Music category, approved by UNESCO in 2015. Since 2015, he has represented Idanha-a-Nova as a stakeholder at UNESCO International Meetings in Sweden (Östersund), Japan (Hamamatsu), Italy (Fabriano), Poland (Katowice), WOMEX 2017 (Poland, Katowice), the European Congress of Local Governments/Institute for Eastern Studies/Economic Forum (Poland, Kraków), as a speaker, among other roles.

Arte das Musas and Festival Fora do Lugar in Idanha-a-Nova have been supported since 2003 by the Ministry of Culture/Direção-Geral das Artes and, since 2020, are full members of REMA - Réseau Européen de Musique Ancienne/Early Music European Network.