BIO

Nuno Cristo musician, composer, instrument maker

I've spent most of my life learning about musical instruments, how they're built and how they can be played. As an instrument-maker, I can get inside an instrument to understand its every nuance and discover new ways to produce sound. This is the foundation of my work as a composer and musician. I add another dimension by creating an acoustic ambience for my songs, composing soundscapes as I've done extensively for live theatre. My music rests on these bedrocks of sound, built from non-musical sources like the curling surf or complacent sheep.

I also enjoy combining sounds from various cultures to explore the historical interchanges and cross-cultural influences of different peoples. Because of my Portuguese background, I tend to play instruments from the Lusofonia, the Portuguese-speaking cultures of the world. These include the rich and exciting heritage of African, Afro-American, East-Indian and West-European musical art. As far as being influenced by specific artists and movements, I celebrate the innovative style of the late Portuguese singer-songwriter José Afonso and the revival of traditional Portuguese music that followed the 1974 Revolution of the Carnations. As a musician, my homeland is a place where different sounds combine and past experiences are revisited.

I have self-produced two CDs, collaborated with Nelly Furtado, Béla and others, recorded live for CBC radio, and played internationally in the USA, Macao (China) and Portugal. Since 1992, I’ve focus my work on the construction and performance of the Portuguese Guitar as a solo artist and playing fado the ensembles Banza Duo and Anima Fado. I’ve been a recipient of various grants from the Toronto Arts Council, the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts and I’m doing my Master’s degree in Music at York University.