Harpsichordist Rafaela Salgado began her harpsichord studies at the age of eight in Braga. She later earned her degree from the Early Music Department of the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague, studying with Jacques Ogg (harpsichord) and Patrick Ayrton (basso continuo and improvisation).

In 2020, she moved to Basel to continue her studies at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, completing a Master’s in Performance under Andrea Marcon. In 2024, she earned a Master’s in Generalbass und Ensembleleitung in the class of Jörg-Andreas Bötticher.

Rafaela collaborates regularly with various ensembles and orchestras, including the Orquestra Barroca Casa da Música, Collegium Marianum (Prague), Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto Casa da Música, Orquestra Metropolitana de Lisboa, and the Orquestra de Câmara Portuguesa, under the direction of conductors such as Laurence Cummings, Christian Zacharias, and Nils Schweckendiek, among others.

Her concert activity has led her to perform at numerous major early music festivals across Europe, including the Resonanzen Festival at the Wiener Konzerthaus, the MA Festival Brugge, the Bachfest Leipzig, and the Innsbrucker Festwochen der Alten Musik.

In 2024, she won the Prémio Jovens Músicos in the Baroque Music category, having previously been awarded the First Prize in the Harpsichord category (advanced level) in 2018. She has been recognized in various international competitions, including the Van Wassenaer Competition at the prestigious Utrecht Early Music Festival, where she received the Second and Third Prizes, as well as the Festival Tour Prize.