Francisco de Vasconcelos

Francisco Manuel Vieira de Sousa e Vasconcelos was born in Celeirós do Douro, Sabrosa, on August 27th, 1936. His childhood was guided by the River Douro’s vineyards and olive trees’ rural paces and by the piano his mother played in the family’s living room.

He studied at Liceu D. Manuel II (Porto), where he created the “O Mensageiro” publication, and attended Universidade de Coimbra (1954) where he began his life as a guitar player.

He marries Maria Guilhermina in 1958, and in 1961 is enlisted and deployed in Angola. He was wounded in the war and returned home. A grenade blast pushed him to a long and hard convalescence, and a long struggle against deafness. Music is his anchor in life, and his wife the support for his recovery.

In the early 70’s Francisco publishes “O perfil e a madrugada” and, in 1974, while living in Sintra, meets the guitar manufacturer Gilberto Grácio (Cacém). Along with some former Universidade de Coimbra students he establishes the “Grupo do Vasconcelos”. This group would later become the Grupo Serenata de Coimbra, and release three records.
In the end of the 90’s he suffers a stroke and focuses his recovery upon the Portuguese guitar and the support and friendship of former schoolmates, thus returning to the word, the written word, and the music.

His poetry works were recently enhanced by his book “Poemas Brancos”, and his musical works are encompassed in the double CD “Coimbra, o Fado, e eu”. Both these titles and the biography “À procura de um Fado” were included in his tribute at the XI Grande Noite de Fado Académico (Porto, November 2009), that will be presented at a national level in 2010.

Source:

Grupo de Fados do ISE.PP