Meet Filipe Sousa, our music leader for Other Lands Other Sounds 2018, as he tells us more about his practice and his plans for the workshop. (With amazing jumper made by Curiosa alumna and composer Geoffa Fells)
Filipe Sousa is a UK based Portuguese pianist, composer and workshop leader with experience in varied social contexts in the UK and across the World. He specialises in collaborative and participatory work with artists and communities across a range of ages, abilities and backgrounds. He has been commissioned to create sound installations and write for music ensembles, theatre, film and dance. Filipe founded Quest Ensemble, a contemporary classical piano trio who devise their own music. He is currently teaching on the Developing Artist modules at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, London, as well as teaching workshop leading and collaborative skills at Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
As a composer and performer, Filipe's music is often concerned with motion and movement, driven by a strong sense of rhythm. His background is in classical and jazz piano, but his interest in the details and minutiae of sound has taken him into the realms of sound art, sound design and composition. Passionate about collaboration he often works with choreographers, visual artists and theatre directors. Filipe is interested in performance as experience and in generating immersive sound environments. Whether he is writing a piano piece, a multichannel installation, a cross-arts piece, or in a participatory devised project, his aim is to take the listener or participants on a journey to a place that challenges and surprises them.
Filipe holds a degree and professional experience in architecture. He trained in classical piano and singing at the Lisbon Gregorian Institute, continuing through the Hot Club Portugal, where he studied jazz piano and composition. He then relocated to London in 2008 to dedicate himself exclusively to sound and music, receiving a MMus in Leadership from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama followed by a fellowship.
http://filipesousamusic.com/