Ernesto Baptista Serrão

Abstract:
[Funchal, Madeira 19/01/1898 – Funchal, Madeira 16/07/1937]
Ernesto Baptista Serrão was a composer, instrumentalist, regent of several groups and a music teacher with a great musical awareness. Musician and military, with the rank of Sergeant, he also integrated the Banda Militar da Madeira.

Biography:
Ernesto Baptista Serrão was born in Funchal, January 1898. With seventeen years enlisted in the army, as a volunteer, to be incorporated in Regimento de Infantaria N.º 27, Funchal.
The young musician attended the Army Music School, where he was considered a brilliant student. During his training he learned to play double bass, distinguished with 17 values ​​in the instrumental performance class. In 1922 he entered the competition for sergeant musician, in which obtained the classification of 20 values, as a baritone saxofone performer.
In addition to his activity as sergeant-musician in the Banda Militar da Madeira, which he always kept, Ernesto Serrão was also regent of the Banda Filarmónica da Polícia de Segurança Pública do Funchal, founded by the commander Orlando Luís de Oliveira and by the Chief Óscar Maria França Dória.
About the launching of his career beyond the army, Ernesto Serrão took the first steps as regent of Grémio Musical group on June 10, 1920, with the denomination of his foundation. The musical group was based in the city of Santa Maria Maior and integrated a tuna of mandolins governed by Ernesto Serrão. However, the musician asked for his resignation and abandoned this project in November 1920.
During the 1920’s Ernesto Serrão became a composer par excellence, idolized Wagner and was highly regarded as an orchestrator.
Ernesto Serrão made several musical arrangements for harmonies and orchestras in the popular genre, being in his repertoire songs, small accompanying songs for theatrical plays, small classical dance pieces and marches for harmony orchestra.
In 1924 Ernesto Serrão was invited for artistic director of the Associação Recreio Musical União da Mocidade, where he played the role of musical tester, between 1925 and 1935. Due to its presence the history of the Associação Recreio Musical União da Mocidade is divided into two phases: before and after Ernesto Serrão.
The invitations for the regency and artistic direction of the harmonies continued to fill the professional life of the sergeant-musician: he was artistic director of the Tuna of Bandolins of S. Roque, currently Orquestra of Bandolins da Madeira; and regent of Grupo Musical Artístico Recreio Operário, also known by Sociedade Musical da Levada.
In the final of the 1920’s Ernesto Serrão governed the Grupo Musical 10 de Junho de 1929. And in 1933 integrated the artistic direction of Grupo Musical 24 de junho de 1933, also known as Grupo Musical da Cancela.
The work of Ernesto Baptista Serrão marked popular music for harmonies and orchestras.
In the 82nd anniversary of the Banda Filarmónica Recreio Musical da Mocidade, on February 18, 1995, a concert was performed in the auditorium of RTP Madeira, with themes by the author Ernesto Serrão.
In 1996 the tribute emerged by the Orquestra de Palheta of the Associação Recreio Musical União da Mocidade, in which the musician was mentor and currently known by Orquestra de Bandolins da Madeira. The orchestra has recorded a CD with works by Ernesto Serrão, where there are original musics and arrangements in the works of other authors.
The same orchestra reported the centenary of birth of the musician sergeant, with a concert performed on January 11, 1998, in the hall of the Municipal Assembly of the City Council of Funchal. A show that, according to the Diário de Notícias published, has been filled with the works of the honored, Vivaldi and Brahms.

Authors:
Camacho, Rui (2008). “Ernesto Baptista Serrão”. In 50 Histórias de Músicos na Madeira. Funchal: 50 Histórias de Músicos da Madeira.

Update:
Ventura, Ana (2011). “Ernesto Baptista Serrão”. In Dicionário Online de Músicos na Madeira. Funchal: Divisão de Investigação e Documentação, Gabinete Coordenador de Educação Artística, atualizado em 21/06/2011.

Bibliography:
Camacho, R. (2008). “Ernesto Baptista Serrão”. In 50 Histórias de Músicos na Madeira. Funchal: Associação de Amigos do Gabinete Coordenador de Educação Artística, p. 67.
Diário de Notícias (1876 – ). “Coleção de Jornais”. In Biblioteca do Arquivo Regional da Madeira [s.n. recurso digitalizado]. Funchal: Publicado em 01/01/1898, p. 1.
Diário de Notícias (1876 – ). “Coleção de Jornais”. In Biblioteca do Arquivo Regional da Madeira [s.n. recurso digitalizado]. Funchal: Publicado em 16/02/1995, p. 29.
Diário de Notícias (1876 – ). “Coleção de Jornais”. In Biblioteca do Arquivo Regional da Madeira [s.n. recurso digitalizado]. Funchal: publicado em 10/01/98, p. 22.
Morais, M. (coord.) (2008). A Madeira e a Música: Estudos (c.1508-c.1974). Funchal: Empresa Municipal “Funchal 500 Anos”, pp. 421, 426-427.
Morais, M. (coord.) (2008). A Madeira e a Música: Estudos (c.1508-c.1974). Funchal: Empresa Municipal “Funchal 500 Anos”, pp. 443-444.
Freitas, M. P. (2008). A Madeira e a Música: Estudos (c.1508-c.1974). Funchal: Empresa Municipal “Funchal 500 Anos”, p. 494.
Freitas, M. P. (2005). Revista de Temas Culturais do Concelho de Câmara de Lobos. Câmara de Lobos: Revista Girão (1ºSemestre de 2005), Vol. II, Nº4.