Paraíso Library promotes the "30 minutes with Music" initiative

For you I now open a new space,
In a twilight silence: the birds fell silent,
To give you back the music of the rain.

M.S Lourenço, An Autumn of Rain

It is the latest initiative organized as part of the Paraíso Library cultural extension. It's called “30 Minutes with Music”, and it starts in March and runs until June. The idea consists of holding a monthly concert lasting 30 minutes (during the lunch period, between 1:30 pm and 2 pm), bringing together the academic community around a contemplative musical moment, and offering a unique aesthetic experience to revitalize everyday routines.

This series of monthly concerts (March 22nd, April 15th and May 24th) will take place at Panorâmico in the MIC Room, which houses the cultural patrimony of maestro Manuel Ivo Cruz. Once a month, it will be possible for teachers, researchers, students, and staff from Universidade Católica Portuguesa, as well as simple music lovers, to come together and share the beauty of listening to live piano works in a magnificent space surrounded by the silence of books and scores, reels and old vinyl records, taking the opportunity, even if just for 30 minutes in the immense whirlwind of everyday life, to admire these extraordinary and perennial pianistic pieces.

Art, culture, history, and sensitivity thus converge in these “30 minutes with Music”, providing all listeners with the University's most significant contributions: the encounter with beauty, the sharing of knowledge, the development of intelligence, the right to cultural excellence, the crossing between expertise. Small concerts will undoubtedly bring great harmony to the spirit of our community, allowing us to discover the fullness of Music.

Access is free and open to both the academic community and the general public, promoting inclusive access to art and culture.