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Artists' Biographies

JOSÉ LUÍS IGLÉSIAS (vocals, guitar, mandolin)
A native of Coimbra, in central Portugal, José Luís began his music career in “Fado” bands. He has worked with the Portuguese artists José Afonso, Fausto, Vitorino, Pedro Barroso, Janita Salomé, and Luís Portugal. José Luís studied music at Rutgers University and directs the music group "Companhia das Músicas" for about 8 years, and composes for theater and television.

ROMI SANTOS (vocals, accordion, "adufe")
A native of Coimbra in central Portugal, Romi studied piano in Portugal and has recorded with the late singer José Afonso. She has participated in the traditional singing group "Borda D'Água" and in the theater group "Teatro de Cordel", and is one of the founding members of "Companhia das Músicas."

ALEXANDRE VALADARES (vocals, percussion, recorder, ukelele, guitar )
A native of Parede, Cascais in central Portugal, Alexandre has sung in choirs in Portugal for many years and also studied guitar and percussion. He is also a singer of the unique Portuguese folk song style of "fado" and has been a member of "Companhia das Músicas" since 1995.

LUIS MANUEL (vocals, percussion, guitar)
A native of Benedita, Alcobaça, in central Portugal, Luis began singing with the choral group of East Side High School in Newark, NJ. He has been a member of "Companhia das Músicas" since 1996. He studied percussion, classical guitar and studied flamenco guitar at the American Institute of Guitar in New York.