Rodrigo Pires de Lima

Rodrigo Pires de Lima completed his Doctoral Degree at the University of Minnesota (USA) in May 2019. He also holds a Specialization in 21st Century Music for Saxophone from the Conservatory of Strasbourg (France), a Master’s Degree in Music Education, a Master’s in Music, and a degree in Music-Saxophone from the Lisbon Superior School of Music.

His doctoral project, "The use of human echolocation in music," was the first musical piece for people with visual impairment that did not rely on Braille as a reading aid. This work gained significant attention in media outlets such as Público, RTP Notícias, Diário de Notícias, The World News, PORTUGALINEWS.EU, Notíciasoaminuto.com, Brazil.Shafaqna.com, CLA.UMN.EDU, Agência Lusa, Rádio Renascença, DESTAK.PT, Porto Canal, and Tutti Magazine USA.

Currently, Pires de Lima serves as a Saxophone professor at the Lisbon Superior School of Music and teaches Improvisation in Music Therapy and Culture and Repertory in Music Therapy at Lusíada University. Since 2003, he has given masterclasses at various conservatories and festivals, including Pražská konzervatoř (Czech Republic), Conservatório Regional de Ponta Delgada, Academia de Artes de Chaves, Conservatório d’Artes de Loures, Orfeão de Leiria Conservatório de Artes, University of Minnesota (USA), and Sax@Sul Fest, among others.

As a freelancer, Pires de Lima has collaborated with numerous ensembles and musicians, including the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Orchestra, Lisbon Metropolitan Orchestra, Portuguese Symphonic Orchestra, Clássica do Sul Orchestra, Saxofínia Saxophone Quartet, and Tora Tora Big Band. He was also a Saxophone Soloist with the Lisbon National Guard Symphonic Band from 2004 to 2019 and taught at several conservatories, including Silva Marques and Lisbon Metropolitan.

In chamber music, he has performed as Duo 152 with Czech pianist and composer Zdenka Kosnarova, touring Europe with recitals that included original compositions. In 2017, he launched ELECTROVILLE JUKEBOX, a project blending improvisation, contemporary music, world music, electronic music, and works by Portuguese composers. In 2018, he formed the "Trio" with Preston Duncan (saxophone) and Casey Rafn (piano), focusing on Portuguese and American composers, concluding the year with recitals in New York at the Manhattan School of Music and Buffet Showroom in Times Square.

Pires de Lima has premiered several solo and chamber music works, including “Sarabande” by Isadora White, “ZOLA” by Luis Cardoso, “Safari” by Ben Osterhouse, “Weiss (442Hz-453hHz)” and “Daniela 3.0” by himself, and “Primavera III” and “Venio Domine” by Zdenka Kosnarova. He maintains an active career as a soloist, performing concerts across Portugal and internationally, and recording premieres for saxophone and orchestra.

In recent years, he has focused on composing for saxophone, creating works such as “Weiss (442Hz-453hHz)” for alto saxophone solo (2013), “Daniela 3.0” for baritone saxophone, electric guitar, percussion, and electronics (2017), and “Oak Grove” for saxophone quartet (2019).

Rodrigo Pires de Lima is a BUFFET CRAMPON and Eugene Rousseau Mouthpieces artist, recognized for his contributions to saxophone performance, education, and composition.