Renowned jazz artist Sei Miguel has passed away at the age of 64. The news was announced on Tuesday night by bassist Hernâni Faustino and Rui Pedro Dâmaso, the organizer of the Out Fest festival.
Many have taken to social media to express their grief over his untimely passing, including musician João Peste Guerreiro.
“I am shocked and saddened by the death of Sei Miguel, a trumpet player friend, companion in music, and comrade in long (and always intelligent) conversations. He was an artist of Ama Romanta, with which he released three albums. He performed live with me and Pop Dell’Arte, both in the studio and live, and participated in several Pop Dell’Arte records, notably for his collaboration on tracks like ‘All You Need is Money’ on Sex Symbol and ‘2002’ on ‘Ready Made’, among others. His death is a great loss to all of his family and friends, to whom I offer my sincere condolences, but also an immeasurable human loss in a historical moment where special people are truly the most valuable we have to resist what some want to do to the World. His premature departure creates a huge gap in the art, culture, and music made in Portugal, a country where very few recognized his genius and the true value of his work. Sei Miguel was not a jellyfish, a Portuguese Man of War, but a ‘Portuguese man of war’ who always fought for music, culture, intelligence, dignity, elegance, and the charm he said moved mountains! And yes, his charm moved mountains and even oceans and people… R.I.P. Sei Mimi,” the artist wrote, sharing several photos of Sei Miguel in the post.
Born in Paris, Sei Miguel grew up in Brazil before moving to Portugal in the 1980s. He made his mark as a trumpeter in the jazz genre, where he found success.
He became known for the album Breaker, as well as The Blue Record, The Portuguese Man of War, and Ra Clock. His most recent work was Panorama, released in 2024.
