Manuel Toucinho

Manuel Salgueiro Mendes Toucinho began his musical studies at the age of 6 with his father. At the age of 8, he joined the preparatory guitar course at the Academia de Música e Dança do Fundão, under the guidance of Professor Pedro Rufino, where he completed the articulated secondary guitar course in 2017.

In 2018, he began his studies at the University of Évora in the guitar class of Professor Dejan Ivanovich, where he achieved the highest grade.

In 2021, he started his master’s degree in musical performance at the Geneva Haute École de Musique in the class of Professor Judicael Perroy, where he achieved the highest grade. He continued his academic path by starting a master’s in pedagogy at the same university in 2024. During this time, he participated in several masterclasses with guitarists such as Francisco Franco, Pedro Rodrigues, Marcin Dylla, Dejan Ivanovich, Laura Young, Alex Garrobé, Judicael Perroy, Carlo Marchione, Petra Poláckova, Fábio Zanon, Otto Tolonen, and Gabriel Bianco.

He has won 31 prizes in guitar competitions, including a third prize at the prestigious Guitar Foundation of America competition, widely regarded as the most important in the world.

He plays on guitars made by Zbigniew Gnatek and is sponsored by the Savarez brand.