Portuguese composer, conductor and arranger, José Brandão is particulary interested on how he can incorporate elements of rituals into his own work: in rather involved ways, as in is ritual/performance "Sanctuary", or more subdued manners, as in his concert piece "Uma Última Reflexão". He also explores the use of perfect and imperfect processes - ones that are very clearly followed: such as in the piece "Suspenso"; and the others more loosely: like in the piece "Ritual".

He is the conductor of several ensembles and orchestras, such as the HyperLink ensemble and the LEEJO orchestra; where he also works as a composer and arranger.

His work was performed in several international concert halls, such as: Carnegie Hall, Casa da Música, Concertgebouw Bruges, KKL Luzerne and many others. He was distinguished with several prizes, such as first prize in: Musa composition competition 2024, Sayat Nova International Composition Competition 2020, FOLEFEST composition competition 2020; and second prize in SPA/Antena 2 composition competition.

He did his composition master's at KASK & Conservatorium of Gent with Jesse Broekman and Joris Blanckaert. Prior to this, he completed his bachelor's degree at ESMAE (Porto) under the tutelage of Rui Penha, Dimitris Andrikopoulos, and Carlos Azevedo. He followed masterclasses under the tutalage of: Unsuk Chin, João Pedro Oliveira, Daan Janssens, Panayiotis Kokoras, Dieter Ammann and many others.