BIOGRAPHY
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One of the most promising Portuguese Canadian clarinetists of his generation. Distinguishing himself with his sensitive playing, David maintains an international schedule as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral player.
Born in Montreal, Canada, David was raised by a Portuguese family, before they moved back to Portugal, where he started his musical education. He studied at the Escola Professional de Música de Viana do Castelo and at the Escola Superior de Música e Artes do Espectáculo of Porto, with Professors Iva Barbosa and Antonio Saiote. David holds a Master of Music in Performance and a Soloist Diploma from the Musik Akademie der Stadt Basel (Switzerland), under the tutelage of Francois Benda, in addition to an Artist Diploma from the Schulich School of Music at McGill University in Montreal, in the clarinet classes of Jean-François Normand and Alain Desgagné.
A grand-prize winner of both the “Prix d’Europe” and Canadian Music Competition’s “Stepping Stone” in 2016 in Canada, he has earned many other distinctions, including 1st prizes at “Kiefer Hablitzel” Competition, Bern (Switzerland), "Fernando Raínho Valente" Competition, Aveiro (Portugal), International Young Artist Competition, Vancouver (Canada), “Terras de La Salette” Competition, Oliveira de Azeméis (Portugal), II National Clarinet Competition "Paços Premium”, Paços de Brandão (Portugal), 2nd prize at “Concours National d’Exécution Musicale”, Riddes (Switzerland), among many others.
David was part and is regularly invited to perform orchestrally with several orchestras, most notably with the Hyogo Performing Center Orchestra (Japan), Macau Symphonic Orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal, Portuguese Chamber Orchestra, Gulbenkian Orchestra (Portugal), Camerata Zurich, Musikkollegium Winterthur Orchestra and Basler Festival Orchester (Switzerland). He was contracted as solo clarinet during the seasons of 2015 to 2018 with Sinfonieorchester Basel and very recently he is the new co-principal clarinet at the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra.
As a soloist, he has performed with the Orchestre National des Jeunes de Montreal, Orchestre Metropolitain de Montreal, Orchestre Symphonique de Drummondville, Edmonton Symphonic Orchestra (Canada), Sinfonieorchester Basel, Kammerorchester Basel, among others. He was a member of the Schweizer Jugend Sinfonie Orchester and the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, he is a Jeunesse Musicale Canada artist and was also a guest artist at Musikdorf Ernen Festival, Switzerland.
BIOGRAPHY
CURIOSITY
In addition to his erudite standard classical concerts, David also participates in theatrical performances as a musician-actor, where the music, the dance and the theatre combine together in one unique voice. He has performed in Karlheinz Stockhausen’s renowned opera “Donnertstag aus Licht” at the Basel Theater, in the production of “Rei Édipo” at the Teatro Nacional D. Maria II in Lisbon, as well as numerous performances of Anders Hillborg’s dramatic Clarinet Concerto, “Peacock Tales”, and recently a theatrical show named “Alice Trough the Looking Glass” at the Dewan Philharmonic Petronas, Malaysia.
NEWS
Mai 2019
1st prize from the OPUS 130 Chamber Music Competition in Joliette, Quebec (Canada) with the ensemble “Made in Trio”.
January 2020
Release of his first album with the label Analekta with “Philon Trio” ensemble including the eight pieces op. 83 by Max Bruch.
September 2020
Recording of the Beethoven Symphonies from the 4th to the 8th with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, released on streaming platforms.
Mai 2021
Second tournée released with “Made in Trio” ensemble in Canada, trough the provinces of Ontario and Quebec, following in October in Portugal.