Pianist
Born in Oporto, Maria Jose Souza Guedes was a piano student of Ernestina da Silva Monteiro and Fernanda Wandschneider, in whose class she graduated at the Oporto Conservatoire with "Honours".
Prize winner at several National Competitions, she received a scholarship from Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation to proceed her piano studies in Vienna, with Hans Graf. She also studied in Portugal with Sequeira Costa and attended several masterclasses given by Vlado Perlemuter and Jorg Demus, among others.
Since 1981 she has been keping a permanent career as a soloist and as a chamber pianist in most European countries, as guest of many Festivals, winning high praises from the international press.
She was a soloist of the Oporto and Lisbon Symphony Orquestras, the Oporto National Orquestra, the Szczecin Philarmonic Orquestra, the Silesian Chamber Orquestra and the Cazachistan Chamber Orquestra.
She was a member of Jury of IV "Carlo Soliva" International Competition (Italy), XVII Oporto International Piano Competition , III Gnessin International Competition ( Moskow), IV International Piano Competition Inter-Fest Bitola, Macedonia and of several national competitions.
She made recordings for Radio and Television Broadcasts in Poertugal, Spain, Greece and Hungary
Several well-known Portuguese composers dedicated works to her, wich she performed as world premi`eres.
She recorded three piano CDs and another three for flute and piano, with her husband, Luis Meireles.
She has been teaching at the Oporto Conservatoire since 1982.
She is musical adviser of the International Music festival of Palacio da Bolsa (Oporto), desde 1994.
