Ricardo Mendes began his musical studies at the age of 12 at the Escola Profissional de Música de Évora, where he studied violin with Professor Nikolay Lalov.

In 1999, he was selected to take part in the first national orchestral course bringing together all Portuguese professional music schools (Aproarte), conducted by Ernest Chell. That same year, he was a prizewinner at the Prémio Jovens Músicos da RDP - Antena 2 and completed his professional violin course with the highest distinction.

During the 1999/2000 biennium, he was awarded a scholarship by the Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian as part of the Prémio Jovens Músicos programme.

In 2000, he successfully auditioned for the Orquestra de Câmara de Cascais e Oeiras, joining as a trainee for two years and performing in numerous concerts in Portugal and Brussels. In the same year, he participated in a recording with the Orquestra Gulbenkian under the direction of Muhai Tang.

In January 2004, he appeared as a soloist with the Escola Superior de Música de Lisboa Orchestra, performing the Violin Concerto by Jean Sibelius. That same year, having achieved the highest violin grade at the institution, he was awarded an Erasmus scholarship to study at the Leipzig Conservatory (Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Conservatory) in Leipzig, Germany, in the class of Professor Roland Baldini.

He frequently collaborates with the Orquestra Sinfonietta de Lisboa under the direction of Maestro Vasco Azevedo, as well as with the Orquestra Gulbenkian, a collaboration that began in 2000.

In 2004, he completed his Bachelor’s degree in Violin Performance, concluding his final recital with a mark of 19 out of 20 in both Instrument and Chamber Music.

Since 2008, he has been a violin teacher at the Conservatório de Música de Cascais.

He is currently a permanent member of the Orquestra de Câmara de Cascais e Oeiras, serving as concertmaster, and also appears regularly as a soloist in recitals and concerts. He is co-founder of the Capdeville Ensemble and of the Creative, Music & Arts School, where he teaches violin and chamber music.

Ricardo Mendes performs on a 1750 violin by Louis Guersan.