Sónia Pais was born in 1998 and has held the position of Principal Flute of the Orquestra Gulbenkian since 2022.
In parallel, she is pursuing a master’s degree at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München, in the class of Andrea Lieberknecht, and is a member of the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie.

She was an academy member of the Mendelssohn-Orchesterakademie, the academy of the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig (2021/22), during which time she recorded, for Deutsche Grammophon, a CD of Schubert’s Symphonies Nos. 8 and 9 under the direction of Herbert Blomstedt.

Over the course of her career, she has been a member of orchestras such as the Gustav Mahler Academy (2019 and 2020) and the Orquesta Joven de la Sinfónica de Galicia (2016). As a guest musician, she has collaborated with the Dresdner Philharmonie, the Tchaikovsky International Orchestra Ekaterinburg, the Orquestra Clássica de Espinho, and the Orchester der Russisch-Deutsche Musikakademie — a project led by Valery Gergiev in collaboration with the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra.

Among the national and international competitions in which she has participated, notable distinctions include the 1st Prize and the Excellence Prize (Category A) at the Gondomar International Music Competition, and the 3rd Prize at the Tampere Flute Fest – Piccolo Orchestral Competition (Finland).

She began her musical studies at the age of seven at the Sociedade Filarmónica Fraternidade de São João de Areias, in Santa Comba Dão. Two years later, she entered the Conservatório de Música e Artes do Dão, and later studied at the Escola Profissional de Música de Espinho under the guidance of Paulo Barros. 

In 2017, she was admitted to the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin, in the class of Benoît Fromanger, completing her Bachelor’s degree with the highest distinction. During this period, she was awarded the Lucia-Loeser Stipendium for artistic merit.