Joana Sá is a Portuguese saxophonist and conductor. In parallel to her performing activity, she teaches saxophone, youth orchestra and music for preschoolers.
Born in 1998, in Caldas da Rainha, Portugal , Joana holds a Master’s Degree in Music Education (Saxophone and Chamber Music) and a Bachelor’s Degree in Music (Saxophone Performance) from Escola Superior de Música de Lisboa.
Joana has a Postgraduation Degree in Wind Band Conducting, from Escola Superior de Educação e Ciências Sociais de Leiria.
At the moment, Joana Sá is the Artistic Director and Conductor of Sociedade Musical e Recreativa Obidense and teaches Saxophone and Orchestra at Conservatório de Música de Santarém.
Joana attended conducting masterclasses with national and international conductors, among others, Felix Hauswirth, Andreja Šolar, André Granjo, José Eduardo Gomes, Tiago Alves and João Malha; and saxophone masterclasses with Vincent David, Timothy McAllister, Marie-Bernadette Charrier, Rob Buckland, Kenneth Tse, Mario Marzi, Gerard McChrystal, Preston Duncan, Albert Juliá, Nicolas Prost, Fabrice Moretti, Yiannis Miralis, Joaquín Franco, Mário Marques, and Fernando Ramos.
Joana regularly collaborates with wind orchestras and various chamber formations, covering classical, contemporary, and improvised music repertoire. Notable collaborations include the Lisbon Underground Music Ensemble, Variable Geometry Orchestra, and IKB Ensemble.
With IKB Ensemble, Joana Sá recorded, on the soprano saxophone, the albums “Hippocampus guttulatus” and “Titanus giganteus”. In a more intimate format, in 2021, she recorded “MELT,” and in 2022, “Spur,” a collection of improvised dialogues in quartet and septet, respectively.
She is a founding member of the saxophone and cello duo Solar Plexus Duo, with which she premiered several works for the formation, working directly with various composers.
Joana participates at several music and contemporary art festivals, including The Midwest Clinic (Chicago, USA); Douro Jazz; FOLIO – Festival Internacional de Literatura de Óbidos; FEM BANDA – International Band Festival Lleida (Spain); Guimarães Noc Noc; BoCA – Biennial of Contemporary Arts; Creative Fest; SpectraLX; Festival Música Viva; Festival DME – Dias de Música Eletroacústica; Reencontros de Música Contemporânea; Festival Internacional de Saxofone de Palmela; MWood’Art Festival Internacional de Madeiras and Cistermúsica.
Joana Sá 