João Castro Pinto (b. 1977) started his music studies in 1986 with private piano lessons. In the early 1990s, he dedicated himself to the guitar (in an autodidact way). He performed in several bands and musical projects within the context of the independent rock scene, having given some concerts in Lisbon. João Castro Pinto started his activity as a composer/performer of experimental music and as a sound and intermedia artist in the second half of the 1990s. His production comprehends the domains of soundscape composition, live electronics improvisation (solo and with instrumentalists), electroacoustic/acousmatic music and radio art.
Between 2002 and 2005, João Castro Pinto was the artistic director/producer of the Hertzoscópio – Experimental and Transdisciplinary Arts Festival (2003 & 2004) and of the Hertz_extend # 1 – Experimental and Transdisciplinary Art Encounters (2005) – events that have contributed to disseminating work by established and emerging, national and international artists in a logic of experimental and transdisciplinary encounter between various artistic expressions (music, intermedia, video art, installations).
João Castro Pinto’s academic path is reflected in his work to the extent that it suggests his artistic concerns and aesthetic interests. He graduated with a degree in philosophy from the F.C.S.H. at the New University of Lisbon and is currently focused on the completion of his PhD studies in science and technology of the arts (computer music – soundscape composition) at the Catholic University of Portugal – C.I.T.A.R.(Research Center for Science and Technology of the Arts), where he is a researcher.
Between 1999 and 2016, he attended masterclasses, lectures and courses in the field of electroacoustic composition organized by the Miso Music Portugal with the following composers: Bernard Parmegiani, François Bayle, Francis Dhomont, John Chowning, Trevor Wishart, Morton Subotnick, Simon Emmerson, Barry Truax, Adrian Moore, Bertrand Dubedout, António de Sousa Dias, Miguel Azguime, etc.