Quarteto Contratempus

A common place that belongs to everyone, with female voices speaking in a hushed tone of their most intimate cries, with instruments we have in common and make our days less common, with words dealt without cutting or shuffling. Opera has been a long conversation with men who seem to not even listen to their cries. Opera carries with it distant female high-pitched sounds since the time when it was not even known they existed. Either that or we’ve gotten so used to listening to them that they’ve become commonplace.

Mudando o que tem de ser mudado [Changing what needs to be changed]
Art in the prevention and awareness of the problem of violence against women/domestic violence. Opera as an element of change. During 36 months, collaborators in the social area, artists and vulnerable audiences came together to deconstruct concepts and scenarios of violence against women with the construction of 25 art fragments that converged in a final opera performance, the opera Lugar Comum. Promoted by Misericórdia do Porto, this project to prevent violence against women involved several groups of users of its social responses, namely: children and young people, people with disabilities and/or incapacity, the elderly, victims of domestic violence and people in of social emergency. Nothing of us without us, configures a powerful strategy of empowerment and inclusion.

Established in 1499 in the Canon Law Order, the Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Porto is a charity and social assistance institution, with philanthropic purposes and public utility. Its action is based on the areas of Social, Health, Education, Special Education, Culture and Worship, Environment and Special Projects. The significant and comprehensive impact of its activity, its vast and valuable heritage and its outstanding history, positions Misericórdia do Porto in a prominent place at national and international level.

The Quarteto Contratempus was founded in 2008, presenting itself as a formation composed of soprano, clarinet, cello and piano. It's dedicated to the interpretation and dissemination of contemporary music, and the creation of contemporary multimedia opera. The unusual formation of the Quartet – which represents the voice, winds, strings and the large orchestra, thus presenting the possibility of a wide play of colors provided by the contrasting timbres of the instruments, makes it a special formation. The Quartet was awarded the 3rd National Prize for Creative Industries 2018 (promoted by the Super Bock / Serralves Group), as well as the BfK Prize (promoted by the Innovation Agency) for its creative work in the field of Multimedia Camera Opera. In 2021, the QC SPACE opens, a place for rehearsals, residencies, training, laboratories and informal presentations. In it, the Contrapartirturas - Laboratory of Music on the Scene appears, the first experience in programming of the group. At the moment, the Quartet has a production and technical team in its core team, as well as the regular collaboration of some creators and musicians.