Hugo Ferreira is the only Portuguese guitarist at the Tübingen guitar festival final
Guitarist Hugo Ferreira is the only Portuguese player in the final of the Tübingen International Guitar Festival competition, which takes place on November 10 in Germany.
Hugo Ferreira, 24, is from Leiria and was selected for the contest dedicated to Mexican composer Manuel Ponce, along with performers from South Korea, United Kingdom, Israel, Thailand, Germany, China and Serbia.
Currently finishing the master’s degree in music at the Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt in Weimar, Germany, the guitarist faces participation in the contest with high expectations.
“On the one hand, there is a will and, in a way, a great pressure to achieve the best possible result. On the other hand, I know that the result of the contest is due to the 20 minutes in which I will play for the jury in the final during those 20 minutes can always happen faults that did not count, “he said.
For the musician, the preparation period for the contest, which he assumes, is “much more critical” with himself, reveals itself as “a benefit” in addition to a possible prize.
Hugo Ferreira’s selection for the Tübingen International Festival competition comes in a context in which Portugal “is very well rated internationally in terms of guitarists”.
“Just watch the guitar classes of the most prestigious European universities and see the number of Portuguese who are part of them, some of which are well recognized”, notes the musician.
This fact, he adds, is due to “the good guitar pedagogues that we have in our country and the number of festivals dedicated to the instrument that has arisen in recent years.”
Hugo Ferreira won the first prizes of the II International Guitar Competition ‘Cidade de Guimarães’, VI Leiria National Competition and the Young Talents Contest of Orfeão de Leiria, where he started his guitar studies. Later, I’m at the top level in Vigo, Spain, with guitarist Margarita Escarpa.