Carlos Ferreira

Portuguese-born clarinetist Carlos Ferreira, celebrated by The Arts Desk as “marvellous,” with “rich and resonant” playing, is enjoying an extensive career as a soloist and chamber musician. Renowned for his technical ease, colouristic range, and charismatic stage presence, he performs regularly at major venues and festivals worldwide. Ferreira serves as Principal Clarinet of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, having been appointed by Klaus Mäkelä.

A centrepiece of Ferreira’s summer 2026 is the world premiere of Pedro Emanuel Pereira’s Clarinet Concerto, which he gives at California’s Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, conducted by Cristian Măcelaru. Further highlights of Ferreira’s 2026/27 season include orchestral debuts with Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, performing Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto under Jac van Steen, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, Orquesta Sinfónica del Vallès at Barcelona’s Palau de la Música Catalana, and Orquesta Sinfónica del Principado de Asturias.

An avid chamber musician, Ferreira appears at Zwischentöne Festival and Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw Kleine Zaal with the Goya Quartet this season, after having performed at Denmark’s iconic Louisiana Museum of Modern Art last season. His chamber music partners in previous seasons include Hilary Hahn, Alice Sara Ott, Emmanuel Pahud, Karen Gomyo, Timothy Ridout, Frank Dupree, Eric Le Sage, and Julia Hagen.

Recent seasons have seen Ferreira tour Germany with the Prague Philharmonia, performing Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto, Crusell’s Clarinet Concerto No. 2, and Schumann’s Abendlied, and appear with the Württembergisches Kammerorchester Heilbronn at the Rheingau Musik Festival. He has performed as soloist with the Orchestre National de France, Münchener Rundfunkorchester, National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, Orquestra Filarmónica Portuguesa, Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto Casa da Música, Münchener Kammerorchester, Orchestre de Chambre de Genève, and Collegium Musicum Basel, collaborating with conductors such as Cristian Măcelaru, Lorenzo Viotti, Nuno Coelho, Valentin Uryupin, Gabriel Bebeșelea, and Pierre Bleuse.

Named a European Concert Hall Organisation (ECHO) Rising Star for the 2024/25 season, Ferreira was showcased at some of Europe’s most distinguished concert venues, including Philharmonie de Paris, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Barbican Centre, Bozar Brussels, Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, and The Glasshouse International. His accolades also include prizes at the ARD International Music Competition in Munich and the Geneva International Competition, as well as the WEMAG Soloist Prize at the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

His first joint album with pianist and composer Pedro Emanuel Pereira, XX–XXI, was released in November 2022. The recording features cornerstone works of the 20th-century clarinet repertoire alongside the world premiere of Pereira’s suite Duas Igrejas, Op. 7, written especially for the project.

Ferreira previously held principal clarinet positions with the Orchestre National de France, Philharmonia Orchestra, and Orchestre National de Lille.

Born in Paredes, Portugal, Ferreira trained at the Reina Sofía School of Music in Madrid with Michel Arrignon and Enrique Pérez Piquer, continuing his studies at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam with Arno Piters, and later at the HEMU Lausanne with Florent Héau. His early musical education took place in Portugal at the José Atalaya Music Academy, ARTAVE, and the Porto Superior School of Music and Performing Arts (ESMAE) with Nuno Pinto. After participating in the Concertgebouw Orchestra Academy, he began his professional orchestral career as Principal E-flat Clarinet of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo.

Ferreira is a Buffet Crampon Artist.