Adam May is a Melbourne based musician with a PhD (Music Performance) and a Master of Music (ethnomusicology/musicology) from The University of Melbourne. A Brazilian music expert, Adam is a founding member of two of Melbourne’s premier Brazilian ensembles, ‘Trio Agogo’ and ‘AgoBloco’, in which he plays Brazilian seven-string guitar and cavaquinho (Brazilian soprano guitar).

Current activities include performing and recording with his various ensembles, including DUO AGOGO, Trio Agogo, AgoBloco and the Yarra Guitar Quartet. In 2017 Adam performed in Lisbon and recorded in Madeira, Portugal, and in 2018 he recorded in Yogyakarta, Indonesia with local Kroncong musicians. In July 2019 Adam returned from a field-trip and recording project in Brazil as part of his PhD research.

Adam has presented academic research papers and a lecture-recitals about Brazilian Guitar music at international  music conferences including International Guitar Research Centre in Surrey, U.K (2016), Guitar: The Instrument of Change, The University of Melbourne (2016) Hong Kong Altamira Symposium (2018)The Guitar Century 1880-1980, The University of Melbourne (2019).

From 2006 to 2008, Adam lived and travelled throughout Brazil researching and performing national and regional styles of music. He has performed alongside prominent Brazilian musicians Roberta Valente, Marcio Bahia and Zé Barbeiro.

In March 2015 Adam’s guitar duo,‘DUO AGOGO’ became the first Australian guitarists to be invited to perform at the Zihuatanejo International Guitar Festival in Mexico.