Carlos Damas


Carlos Damas is a leading Portuguese classical violinist and recording artist for,, and . He is particularly known for his Fritz Kreisler interpretations and world premiere recordings of works by the Portuguese composers António Fragoso, Luís de Freitas Branco, Fernando Lopes-Graça and Sérgio Azevedo.
Carlos Damas is widely regarded as the most significant Portuguese violinist currently before the public, with a brilliant international career encompassing the great masterpieces to contemporary works, attested by an impressive international discography. He has often been compared by international critics to such masters as Thomas Zehetmair, Gidon Kremer and Henryk Szeryng.
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Life and career

Carlos Damas was born in Coimbra on April 8. He began his musical education at the age of three at the Coimbra Conservatory. At six, he moved with his family to Lisbon, where he continued his violin studies under Vasco Broco, Leonor Prado, and Alexandra Mendes.
At the age of 15, Damas made his solo debut performing with the Portuguese Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Joaquim da Silva Pereira. He later pursued advanced studies at the Paris Conservatory with Jacqueline Lefèvre and Ivry Gitlis, and received mentorship from violinist Yehudi Menuhin during his time in Paris.
In 1993, Damas premiered the Violin Concerto by Luís de Freitas Branco in Paris. Portuguese composer Sérgio Azevedo composed and dedicated the piece Reflections on a Portuguese Lullaby for solo violin and string orchestra specifically to Damas.
Damas has appeared as a soloist with several orchestras, including the, Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, Camerata de St. Severin, Camerata da Madeira, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, St. Luke's Orchestra, and the . Since 1997, he has performed regularly in Macao with the . He has also taken part in concerts organized by the Melody for Dialogue Among Civilizations Association in partnership with UNESCO, including a 2007 performance of Bach’s Double Violin Concerto at Lincoln Center in New York City.
He has performed in major concert venues such as Salle Gaveau and Salle Cortot, the Dom Pedro V Theatre, UNESCO Grand Auditorium, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, São Luiz Theater, Belém Cultural Center, Lee Hysan Concert Hall, Ville Louvigny, the Shanghai Oriental Art Center, and the Lisinski Concert Hall in Zagreb.
Carlos Damas holds a PhD in Music Education and Psychology and serves as a violin professor at the University of Évora. He performs on a Giovanni Battista Gabrielli violin, the "ex-Isham", dated circa 1767.

Recordings

Carlos Damas made the first world recordings of several Portuguese composers music, recorded for the labels Dux, Brilliant Classics, and Naxos: