Last Updated on October 31, 2024 by Ellen
Palacio Foz, or Foz Palace, is an 18th century structure with all of the Baroque ornate details you’d expect to see: grand staircases, Corinthian columns, many paintings, etc. The Hall of Mirrors at Foz Palace is open to the public for free concerts every Monday evening at 6:00 p.m. Each week there is a different kind of performance.
It was difficult to find much information about these free shows during our month-long Lisbon stay. But I’m glad I kept searching because we had such a good time on our initial visit, we returned the following Monday evening.
Concerts in Hall of Mirrors at Foz Palace
The first time we saw two string players who are traveling all over Europe to give free shows, and they were excellent. The duo – called ICstrings – played with two local violinists from Lisbon for part of their show to promote how music can bring people together in despite recent turmoil in Europe. The musicians played an interesting range of music from classical to modern.
The second time we went to the Hall of Mirrors at Foz Palace, we saw a gifted pianist from Brazil named Jose Carlos Vasconcellos. Listening to his classical, dramatic performance put me in a happy zone.
There are different performers each week, although it seems a majority are classical artists. Since this post was first published, concert information now appears to be on the Palace’s Facebook page, which is here.
Doors opened at 5:30 p.m. We arrived about 5:00 p.m. for the first show with ICstrings, and I’m glad we did. The line quickly grew and some people were turned away because seating is on a first-come, first-serve basis. The half-hour wait outside on the queue went by quickly, because in typical Tedly fashion, he goofed around with a small group of women ahead of us.
These free concerts seemed to be more popular with locals than with tourists. Perhaps that is a reason there are not as many pictures of the Hall of Mirrors online as other beautiful sites in Lisbon. Here are some inside images of the Hall and the area just outside of it, starting with a panorama.
Final note on Foz Palace
Visitors can tour Palacio Foz with advance arrangements and a fee. We did not take any official tours, so we only saw the Hall of Mirrors and the stairway and galley leading to the hall.
There are a few areas in the front of the palace that have been converted for modern use, such as a Lisbon visitor center, which is separate from any tour or free concerts run by the palace.
A few words about ICstrings
“Europe has its problems, and we hope to connect people with music.”
And with that, ICstrings made beautiful music. The duo had a viola and a cello during their first song. For all other songs they formed a quartet with with two violinists from Lisbon. My heart and soul felt moved and lightened by their music.
From their website: Playing on their 250 year old master instruments… The goal of ICstrings is to make everyone realize the joy and passion music can bring to their lives.
At each stop, ICstrings plays with local musicians to demonstrate how music can bring people together. In the Hall of Mirrors at Foz Palace, they played a range of classical music, and also contemporary songs from musicians such as ABBA and John Lennon.
They end their show with John Lennon’s Imagine. “We will make a video of John Lennon’s IMAGINE together with artists from each country to connect all of them in one song,” says their website. Video cameras around the hall recorded the entire show.
However, the concert we saw in Lisbon won’t be on that video of Imagine. Someone broke into their van that night and stole their equipment — so all video from their Lisbon performance is gone.
They held an impromptu concert just outside Lisbon a few nights later to make up the video loss. Luckily, their 250-year old instruments were spared from the burglary.
Visit the official ICstrings website here. However, as of September 2019, they had not updated their event map or blog in about one year.
A friend of mine saw that I was mentioned in this fine text and told me to visit your Website. I got very happy to read your kind reference to my recital in Foz Palace in Lisbon. Thank you very much!
Best regards from Brazil!
You are so talented and it was my good fortune to see you! Perhaps our paths will cross again one day. Best wishes!
Yes, someday, somewhere, our paths will certainly cross again! 🙂 Thank you!
Really love all the music you continue to find.
Glad you enjoyed this. Sounds great!