01/10/2026
Four Voices, One Language: The Funchal Guitar Quartet
On a balmy September evening, the church filled with the murmur of many nations, conversations in a dozen languages drifting between the pews as visitors and locals alike settled in, after being greeted with a welcoming glass of Madeira w**e. Every seat was taken.
And then the guitars began, and all those voices gave way to just four.
The Funchal Guitar Quartet opened with Rossini's Barber of Seville Overture, an ambitious choice for four guitars that they carried off with wit and sparkle, the familiar orchestral flourishes translated into something lighter and more intimate.
From there the programme travelled south to Argentina, with a Milonga and Piazzolla's Libertango bringing smouldering tango rhythms into the cool stone of the church. Bossa Fantasia added a sunny Brazilian lilt before Albéniz's Asturias delivered the evening's great Spanish showpiece, all fire and drama.
The second half turned closer to home. Variações em Mi Menor and Hommage to Madeira were a fitting tribute to the island, played with evident affection, before Africa broadened the horizons once more.
The audience wouldn't let them go without an encore, and they obliged with Brubeck's Take Five, a playful, swinging close that had feet tapping throughout the church.
What stays with you is the range: Opera, Tango, Bossa Nova, Spanish Romanticism, Portuguese Tradition and Cool Jazz, all held together by four musicians who clearly listen to one another as closely as the audience listened to them.
In the end it all came down to four voices, those wonderful guitars, and on this night they spoke a language everyone in the room understood.
Highly recommended if you're in Funchal and they're playing. The venue is St. Andrews Church in the centre of Funchal and they play every Tuesday & Thursday.
Please note that this is a report of Kate’s attendance at their concert of 22nd September – their repertoire changes regularly
You can book on-line at www.madeiraguitarnights.com
