José Melo Music Productions & Management is a booking agency based in Amsterdam, working since 1998 at artistic and cultural music development all over the world.
We look for a good relationship with theatres and festivals worldwide. Our acts can be found spread from clubs, to great halls and festivals.
We also work as advisors on current trends in music from Portugal and the Portuguese diaspora.
Use our bookingoffice to book one of our artists. On our site you can find all artist information like biography, discography and photography. You can listen to the music of our artists and also buy online.
Born in 1950 in the city of Lisboa, Pedro Caldeira Cabral is a world reference on the study of traditional, early music and its instruments. He founded La Batalla and Concerto Atlântico, two portuguese ensembles dedicated to early music.
His sapience regarding the misteries of european early music resulted in several invitations to conferences in countries like France, Germany, England, Sweeden, Turkey, Switzerland or the USA. As a musician he performed all across Europe, Macau, Brazil and USA territories. He was also invited to perform in several television networks like RTP (Portugal), WDR, ZDF e NDR (Germany), BBC and Granada TV (United Kingdom), ORTF (France), VPRO (Holland), TV Globo and TV Cultura (Brazil).
Pedro Caldeira Cabral is also familiaried with contemporary music, having worked with several composers such as Karel Goyvaerts, Constança Capdeville, José Alberto Gil or Jorge Peixinho.
Bio
He plays beautiful music on a beautiful instrument, and if that doesn't make a person happy, then what could? He certainly looks pretty happy on the back cover of his CD Varioces, holding his petite Portugese guitar and beaming benevolently. He has become one of the world's masters of an instrument that developed as a hybrid centuries ago, and has composed a body of work for the Portugese guitar that has been collected on a series of wonderful recordings. Because of the historical development of the genre of music he eventually became immersed in, he represents an interesting blend of both classical and traditional approaches to both learning and making music. At first listen, one would think his music would belong directly to the classical tradition, as it sounds something like classical guitar music and within it has references to Italian, Flemish, and English classical music. However, the actual development of music for the Portugese guitar is considered a particular type of urban folk music and as a result there is no standard, established classical tradition of learning the instrument as there is with the standard or Spanish guitar.
So, Pedro Caldeira Cabral is the rare musician who is both self-taught and classically trained. He began with the latter and so-called legitimate study of guitar, recorder, flute, and viola from the age of ten. His home was a hotbed of classical record spinning, the most common sounds playing being the German romantics and Baroque pieces. This is what he listened to and practiced until he was 15. Then a bug got in his ear, something like one might pick up in the older parts of town. It was the Portugese guitar, a combination of the Renaissance zither, which was introduced to Portugal in the 16th century, and the guitar as we know it today, which came along roughly 200 years later. In the attempt to combine the sweet, high, ringing sound of the zither with the flexibility of the guitar, the Portugese craftsmen came up with what is arguably a much better version of what was created in the 12-string guitar. The Portugese model also has a dozen strings, tuned in octaves, but because of its design and smaller size, doesn't have the problem of more than 10,000 extra pounds of pressure on the neck. He began composing for the instrument when he had learned enough to be able to perform his works. Several periods exist within his compositional development, the first being straightforward copying of the types of pieces other Portugese guitarists were playing in the saloons. This time around he was learning a kind of music where he had no choice but to go and listen to the players and copy what they were doing by ear and eye. There was no school of Portugese guitar or acknowledged maestro offering an instruction course. By 20, his experience with the traditional music was deep enough that he could serve as the conductor of several ensembles that specialized in early music, Lucitani Musici and La Batalla. In the next stage of more intricately conceived pieces, he began adding the influences of the classical music he had studied when he was young. For most of his pieces, he is accompanied by a nylon string classical guitarist, bringing out the hearty sound of this instrument's bass strings. He performs with guitarist Francisco Perez on the previously mentioned World Network recording. His debut recording was the 1971 Guitarres de Portugal, and the 1982 Encontros is a favorite of many guitar listeners. Recordings from the late '80s and the 1994 Momentos de Guitara Portugese glow with his more developed compositional approach. He continues to maintain a fascinating open mindedness and as a result, creates a music that seems limitless in its possibilities. As a result, he is highly in demand in several fields related to his speciality. He has performed solo all over the world, including concerts in Europe, the United States, China, and Brazil. There have been commissions to create pieces for film and theater, and he has also created opportunities for himself as a lecturer and teacher in various aspects of traditional Portugese music. This country's fado styles combine the Portugese guitar with mournful laments, and enough vocalists in this style to cause a small traffic jam have called on Cabral to be in their accompanying group. He went on to learn many other instruments that are used in Portugese music, including the cavaquinho, viola braguesa, and viola alentejana. The viola is also a regular feature of fado music, often played in tandem by a pair of violists. He can't seem to get enough of musical instruments and has also gotten involved as an instrument builder and restorer.
Eugene Chadbourne, All Music Guide
Bio
Pedro Caldeira Cabral (Lissabon 1950) begint al als kind met de studie van zowel Portugese en klassieke gitaar als blokfluit. Later studeert hij contrapunt en harmonieleer bij Prof. Artur Santos aan het Nationale Conservatorium in Lissabon. In 1970 begint hij een studie in luit, violen en andere oude muziekinstrumenten, alsook blaasinstrumenten.
Hij is oprichter en dirigent van de groepen La Batalla en Concerto Atlântico, die zich toeleggen op resp. Middeleeuwse en Renaissance muziek op instrumenten uit die tijd. Deze 'oude' instrumenten worden deels in zijn eigen werkplaats gereconstrueerd. Beide gezelschappen hebben een grote nationale en internationale reputatie.
Als componist ontwikkelt Cabral een geheel eigen stijl, gebaseerd op de sologitaar traditie, waarbij hij naast originele technieken ook elementen vanuit zijn bestudering van zowel oude traditionele instrumenten als populaire muziekvormen uit het mediterrane gebied incorporeert.
Als uitvoerder breidt hij het repertoire voor de Portugese gitaar uit met transcripties van het werk van o.a. Bach, Weiss, De Visée, Gaspar Sanz, Scarlatti, Sor en Seixas. Ook geeft hij vele eerste uitvoeringen van originele werken van andere eigentijdse componisten.
Als onderzoeker doet hij onderzoek naar de traditionele muziek (musical organology) van Portugal and werkt hij met Dr. Ernesto Veiga de Oliveira aan de 2e en 3e editie van het boek “Instrumentes Musicais Populares Portugueses” (uitg.: Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, Lissabon, 1982/2000.). Op hetzelfde terrein maakt hij de complete inventarisatie en classificatie van de grote collectie veldopnamen van Michel Giacometti (Portugal’s belangrijkste etnomusicoloog) voor het Muziekmuseum van Cascais die deze beheert. In 1987 richt hij het Centrum voor Oude Muziek Studies CEDMA op, waarvan hij thans directeur is. CEDMA organiseert tentoonstellingen, conferenties, concerten op scholen en verzorgt muzikale programma’s voor verschillende klassieke groepen, die zowel de Middeleeuwse, Renaissance, Barok als de Romantische periode bestrijken.
Zijn boek “A Guitarra Portuguesa” (uitg.: Ediclube, Lissabon 1999) is de eerste monografie gewijd aan Portugal’s nationale instrument; het beschrijft herkomst, historische ontwikkeling, bouwwijzen, iconografie, en repertoire. Het geldt als het standaardwerk over dit instrument.
Sinds 1969 componeert hij originele muziek voor theater, film, TV series en ballet en toert als bespeler van de Portugese gitaar intensief langs internationale festivals in Europa, Azië en de Verenigde Staten. Daarbij bezoekt hij diverse malen de Lage Landen. Hij treedt op bij verschillende TV stations, waaronder RTP (Portugal), WDR, ZDF en NDR (Duitsland), BBC en Granada TV (Engeland), ORTF (Frankrijk), VPRO (Nederland), TV Globo en TV Cultura de São Paulo (Brazilië). Ook is hij o.a. artistiek leider van het International Portuguese Guitar Festival op de World Expo 98 in Lissabon.
Zijn CD 'Variações' won de Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik.
Pedro Caldeira Cabral: Discography
Pedro Caldeira CabralBiografia da Guitarra
Publisher
Year
EMI
2005
Pedro Caldeira CabralMemórias da Guitarra Portuguesa & A Guitarra do Século XVIII (2-CD)
Publisher
Year
Tradisom
2003
Pedro Caldeira CabralSons da terra Quente
Publisher
Year
Foco Musical
2000
Pedro Caldeira CabralMúsica de Guitarra Inglesa
Publisher
Year
BMG/RCA Classics
1998
Pedro Caldeira CabralVariações
Publisher
Year
World Network/WDR
1993
Pedro Caldeira CabralMomentos da Guitarra
Publisher
Year
Fenn Music
1992
Pedro Caldeira CabralGuitarra Portuguesa
Publisher
Year
GHA
1991
Track
Time
Detail
-Retorno, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Variaçoes in A minor, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Entrada, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
00:45
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
00:30
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Melodia dum inverno, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Cançao de Alcipe, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Fado Varela, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Miscelânea, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Variaçoes sobre "Fado Lopes," for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Vira de Frielas, for guitar
-
Composed by Jose Nunes
-Jardim dos Biscaínhos, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Verso a um sorriso mágico, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Momentos e fragmentos, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
-Monstra deliciosa, for guitar
-
Composed by Pedro Caldeira Cabral
Detail
This is a great CD, where you get to know some of the standards for Portuguese Guitar, as well as some great compositions by this great player. It's a great experience for those music lovers who enjoy virtuous playing. It's a must.
Pedro Caldeira CabralDuas Faces
Publisher
Year
EMI
1987
Pedro Caldeira CabralPedro Caldeira Cabral
Publisher
Year
EMI
1985
Pedro Caldeira CabralA Guitarra nos Salões do Século XVIII
Publisher
Year
Orfeu
1983
Pedro Caldeira CabralEncontros
Publisher
Year
Orfeu
1982
Pedro Caldeira CabralGuitarras de Portugal
Publisher
Year
Tecla
1971
Pedro Caldeira Cabral: Press
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Pers
Pedro Caldeira Cabral... Der berühmteste Virtuose der portugiesischen Gitarre. Sein Genius eröffnet die "Schönheit, den intelligenten Charme und die widersprüchliche Gefühlswelt dieses zutiefst portugiesischen Instruments.
Klaus Frederking, NDR, Hamburg
Pedro Caldeira Cabral (...) a stunning virtuoso player of the Guitarra Portuguesa.
Andy Jackson, Classical Guitar, Londen
Pedro Caldeira Cabral's virtuoso solos on the guitarra were spellbinding, as the audience rose to give them the standing ovation, they deserved boxes of fresh flowers... A night etched in the memory!
Jan Fairley, The Scotsman, Edinburg
Als Carlos Paredes’ muziek Portugal’s ziel vertegenwoordigt, dan vertegenwoordigt de muziek van Pedro Caldeira Cabral de universele oceaan waarop die ziel zeilt.
Fernando Magalhães, O Público, Lissabon
Alles is mogelijk met Pedro Caldeira Cabral’s Portugese gitaar, van kamermuziek tot fusion experimenten met jazzmuzikanten.
Alejandro Erlich-Oliva, A Capital, Lissabon
In dit concert presenteert Pedro Caldeira Cabral een ware geïllustreerde historie van de Portugese gitaar.
24 horas, Lissabon
Pedro Caldeira Cabral’s optreden was smaakvol, emotioneel en opvallend. Dat is hoe artiesten zijn. Enkele van hen.
Rita Ferro, Diário de Notícias, Lissabon
Hoe kunnen zes eeuwen historie van de Portugese gitaar worden samengevat in anderhalf uur? Pedro Caldeira Cabral laat zien hoe dat te doen.
Diário de Notícias, Lissabon
Toen Pedro Caldeira Cabral optrad op het San Tirso gitaar festival, werd de jury verrast: hij speelde klassieke muziek op de Portugese gitaar!
Pedro Vila-Chã, Jornal de Notícias, Lissabon
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Pedro Caldeira Cabral: Images
Detail
Author
Year
Live
Pedro Caldeira Cabral in Centro Cultural Belém, Lissabon
