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Officium Ensemble (Officium Coro) has established itself as one of the most prominent Portuguese vocal ensembles dedicated to early music. Since its foundation in 2000 by director Pedro Teixeira, the ensemble has achieved a noted purity of sound; a result of the group’s constant striving for balance, blending, and pure vocal emission. The commitment and expressiveness of this select group of 12 singers has lead Officium Ensemble’s performances to be acclaimed for their vivacity, expressive contour, and responsiveness to the text.
The core repertoire of Officium Ensemble ranges from Renaissance music to the Early Baroque. Music of the Portuguese, Spanish, Franco-Flemish and English Schools is performed, whilst special attention is placed on early music of Portugal and, more specifically to the music of Évora Cathedral.
Concerts by Officium Ensemble are historically informed by musicological research, yet the Ensemble manages to maintain a fresh approach and outlook in its performances. It is precisely this invigorating musical approach which sets Officium ensemble apart from many other vocal groups. Officium Ensemble’s research, lead by Pedro Teixeira in collaboration with leading musicologists, has lead to many modern-day premiers of early music.
Since its inception, Officium Ensemble has given performances in festivals throughout Europe, including the Jornadas Internacionais Escola de Música da Sé de Évora, Festival Música em São Roque, Festival Terras sem Sombra, Dias da Música (CCB), Festival of Music at the Cultural Centre of Belem, Festival de Órgão de Lisboa, Festival Internacional de Música de Marvão, Cistermúsica, Festival AMUZ Laus Polyphoniae in Antwerp, and the Utrecht Early Music Festival - Oude Muziek.
Officium Ensemble’s performances are regularly relayed by Classical Portuguese Radio RDP Antena2, and there have also been broadcasts by Belgian Classical Radio Klara, the television programme "Portuguese music Pathways", and by the Mezzo Channel with the Divino Sospiro Baroque Orchestra.
The ensemble’s formation of twelve singers is malleable according to the repertoire being performed, adding more singers whenever necessary. The work of Officium Ensemble is governed chiefly by its commitment to excellence: the pursuit of beautiful musical and vocal interpretations. Officium Ensemble is dedicated to bringing life to one of the richest periods in the history of Western music, and sharing this passion with new audiences.
In 2018, Officium Ensemble returned to the Utrecht and Antwerp International Early Music Festivals and was part of the program of the Madrid Sacred Art Festival in 2019. In 2021, it returned to the Festival Estoril Lisboa together with the Orquestra Metropolitana de Lisboa, and performed at the Úbeda y Baeza International Early Music Festival in Spain. In 2022 and 2023, it performed again at the Utrecht Oude Muziek Festival, and in 2023 at the Granada International Music and Dance Festival, Spain. Recently, it recorded two albums dedicated to Estêvão de Brito and Lopes Morago, giving voice to previously unrecorded repertoire, as well as works that are new to modern times. |
