Project developed in partnership with the Municipality of Mafra places music at the heart of a centre for research, education, innovation and artistic creation, strengthening NOVA’s presence across the Lisbon Metropolitan Area.
On 10 September, NOVA University Lisbon will inaugurate the NOVA Mafra Hub – Music, Art and Technology, a new centre for research, education, technological innovation and artistic creation, established in a territory of exceptional heritage value where music holds a unique place.
Bringing together research, heritage, education, artistic creation and technology, the Hub embodies NOVA’s vision as a metropolitan university: an institution that regards the Lisbon Metropolitan Area as a territory of knowledge, culture, innovation and engagement, building lasting relationships with its places, institutions and communities.
Developed in partnership with the Municipality of Mafra, the Hub is founded on music as its core focus. Music is understood both as a field of research, innovation and creation, and as a form of tangible and intangible heritage embedded in monuments, archives, repertoires, practices, spaces and sonic memory.
Located in the South Tower of the Mafra National Palace, part of the Royal Building of Mafra, which has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2019, the Hub benefits from a unique heritage setting. The installation of the National Museum of Music in the same building and the planned relocation of the National Sound Archive to Mafra create particularly favourable conditions for collaboration between the University and heritage institutions in the fields of research, innovation and artistic creation.
The Hub operates within NOVA University’s Institute of Art and Technology (IAT), a space where the arts, humanities, science and technology converge. The project originated from CESEM – Centre for the Study of the Sociology and Aesthetics of Music and INET-md – Institute of Ethnomusicology, Centre for Music and Dance Studies, two NOVA FCSH research centres dedicated to music studies. In Mafra, these centres will develop scientific and laboratory activities including the Musical Acoustics Laboratory and the Music Informatics Laboratory, integrating research, experimentation, specialised training, technological development and artistic practice.
These facilities will be complemented by the HEDGE Lab, linked to an IAT programme jointly developed by NOVA FCT and NOVA FCSH. Dedicated to the application of digital technologies to the documentation, preservation and enhancement of cultural heritage, HEDGE Lab will establish a Digital Heritage Laboratory in Mafra.
The presence, within the same space, of expertise in music, sound and digital heritage will make it possible to combine research and scientific laboratories with courses, workshops, masterclasses and other forms of specialised training, as well as cultural programming open to society.
With the NOVA Mafra Hub, NOVA’s ambition is not merely to expand geographically, but to build lasting and reciprocal relationships with the territories of the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, placing research, education, culture and innovation in direct connection with scientific, cultural and social development. The inauguration marks the beginning of the Hub’s activities, to be followed by the progressive development of scientific and artistic projects, new national and international partnerships, and stronger engagement with institutions and communities across the region.
The NOVA Mafra Hub – Music, Art and Technology aims to establish itself as a meeting place for music and heritage, past and future, research and creation, science and art, and the University and society.
Paulo Pereira, Rector of NOVA University Lisbon
“Within the Royal Building of Mafra, a heritage site with centuries of history is finding new ways to be studied, preserved, listened to and reimagined. Music is both heritage and creation. Here, we seek not only to study and preserve that heritage, but also to educate, experiment, innovate and create from it. This ability to connect knowledge with society and with places reflects our vision of NOVA as a truly metropolitan university.”
Hugo Moreira Luís, Mayor of Mafra
“This project with NOVA University Lisbon is a strategic step that honours Mafra’s historic identity as a municipality deeply connected to music. By bringing together our rich musical heritage, expressed through our historic organs, carillons and the remarkable tradition of our philharmonic bands, with digital innovation and scientific research, we are elevating Mafra’s musical heritage to a new dimension, generating a cultural and educational impact that enriches the whole of our territory.”