Quarteto Contratempus (QC) is an artistic ensemble dedicated to the creation, performance, and dissemination of contemporary multimedia opera. Founded in 2008 at ESMAE, the group originally brought together soprano, clarinet, cello, and piano.
QC’s mission centers on artistic research and experimentation as drivers of innovation and knowledge. Through the integration of technology in multimedia chamber opera and chamber music, the ensemble seeks to engage communities, expand the repertoire of Portuguese composers, and promote contemporary Portuguese music internationally.
In 2018, QC received the 3rd National Prize for Creative Industries (awarded by the Super Bock/Serralves Group), as well as the Born from Knowledge Award (granted by the Agência Nacional de Inovação), in recognition of its work in multimedia chamber opera.
The ensemble works closely in collaborative creative processes with Portuguese writers and composers, including Daniel Moreira, Sérgio Azevedo, Nuno Côrte-Real, Fernando Lapa, Telmo Marques, Jorge Prendas, Sofia Sousa Rocha, Pedro Lima, João Ricardo, Susana Nunes, João Grilo, Diogo Costa Ferreira, Sara Ross, Camila Menino, Xavier Ribeiro, Catarina Ribeiro, and Dimitris Andrikopoulos. It also collaborates regularly with Portuguese stage directors, most notably António Durães. Since its founding, QC has performed in numerous concert halls and festivals across Portugal, Spain, and Brazil, producing over 20 works in opera and chamber music.
Since 2015, QC has developed a strong focus on social engagement through opera. Its projects include Os dilemas dietéticos de uma matrioska do meio, a comic opera involving the training and integration of an amateur theater group; Simplex (2019), a satirical opera addressing the Portuguese government’s Simplex program; Paramos ou morremos (2021), an audio-walk opera reflecting on sustainability; and Lugar comum (2022), a community-based project addressing violence against women.
The project Torre da memória (2021–23), developed in collaboration with the fishing community of Esposende, resulted in an opera of the same name, alongside other projects currently in development. This strand of work reflects QC’s commitment to socially engaged creation, guided by a central question: What do we want to say to the world?
In 2021, QC inaugurated Espaço QC, a space for rehearsals, residencies, training, laboratories, and informal presentations. It also hosts Contrapartituras – Laboratório de Ópera e Música em Cena, a platform for research, creation, and critical inquiry.
Today, QC continues to deepen its engagement with communities and social intervention. Since 2024, it has been a member of the Conselho Local de Ação Social do Porto and the Conselho Social de Freguesia de Campanhã, strengthening its local impact. In the same year, it initiated the development of a Network of Opera Laboratories to foster research, experimentation, and the creation of small-scale opera. QC believes that collaboration and exchange are key to mutual growth and to expanding access to opera.
Furthering its mission to make opera more accessible, QC debuted in 2024 as the programming body behind FIATO – Festival Internacional de Arte e Ópera do Porto, a festival dedicated to bringing opera closer to wider audiences.
Over the years, QC has been supported by Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Bissaya Barreto Foundation, “La Caixa” Foundation, António de Almeida Foundation, Faculty of Engineering – University of Porto, University of Porto, Município do Porto, Junta de Freguesia de Campanhã, Fundação GDA and Direção-Geral das Artes.
