Teatro das Figuras: Os Descobrimentos
Second part of the concert cycle “Era uma vez ... Portugal“ in the municipal theatre of Faro
Sunday, 28 February 2016 | Culture
The cycle of concerts “Era uma vez ... Portugal”, (Once upon a time ... Portugal) is performed by the Orquestra Classica do Sul in the municipal theatre of Faro (Teatro das Figuras) The concerts are called promenade concerts because they take place at a Sunday noon to allow families with younger kids to participate.
The cycle, intending to set to music the history of Portugal, consists of 4 concerts:
- As Conquistas (The Conquests) - January 31
- Os Descobrimentos (The Discoveries) - February 28
- A Independência (The Independence) - March 20
- A Atualidade (Present Age) - April 17
As prelude to the general theme of this concert, the Age of Portuguese Discoveries, the orchestra played the overture of Mozart’s “The Abduction from the Seraglio”, “Fingal's Cave” by Felix Mendelssohn and „Mourão“, a composition of the contemporary Brazilian musician César Guerra-Peixe. Jorge Serafim, a stand-up comedian well known to a larger public from his many TV appearances, humorously introduced each of the melodies.
The second part of the performance was dedicated to the glorious history of the Portuguese Discoveries. Jorge Serafim vividly narrated the story of bold navigators, searching a maritime route from Europe to India and detecting Angola, Mozambique, Goa on the western shore of India and Macao in China. The music of the Orquestra Classica do Sul, conducted by Maestro Rui Pinheiro, accompanied the various episodes and culminated in Samba rhythms when finally Brazil was reached.
Narrator: JOrge Serafim
Conductor: Rui Perreiro