The Asociación Cultural y Recreativa de la Banda Marcial do Vale de Santa Maria da Feira, a hundred-year-old philharmonic association, was founded in 1913. Its main facets are the Banda Marcial do Vale, its Music School and the Banda Juvenil do Vale.

In 1980 it was legally established with the name of the Associação de Cultura e Recreio da Banda Marcial do Vale. The first conductor of the Band was Rodrigo Gomes de Oliveira (1889-1918), the son of the association’s founder.

The Banda Marcial do Vale worked with the conductor Frank De Vuyst in May 2008, the composer Jan Van Der Roost in July 2008 and the trumpet player John Aigi Hurn. In 2013, maestro António Saiote gave a master class in conducting at the Association and maestro José Ignácio Petit taught a master class in performance. Since 2015, the Banda Marcial do Vale has offered work experience in conducting and band with maestro Paulo Martins.

Its main activities focus on taking part in processions and festivities all over Portugal, and musical education, carrying out activities to promote territorial cohesion and cultural decentralization. The Band has also taken part in various contests, including: the 2nd and 4th editions of the Concurso Internacional de Bandas “Filarmonia D’Ouro” where they won 1st and 2nd Prize, respectively; the Concurso Internacional de Bandas de Música de Toro – Zamora, where they won 2nd Prize; the 3rd, 4th and 5th editions of the Concurso de Banda Filarmónica de Braga; and the 48th Concurso Internacional de Música Vila d'Altea, where they won 2nd Prize. They recorded their first CD in November 2008 entitled “Caminhos”.

Currently the Banda Marcial do Vale is made up of 76 musicians and the artistic director is maestro Bruno Azevedo.

Bruno Azevedo comes from the parish of Vale in Santa Maria da Feira. He began studying music when he was eight years old at the Escola de Música da Banda Marcial do Vale, and went on to the Conservatório de Música de Fornos in 2002, where he completed grade 8.

In 2011 he became the artistic director and conductor of the Banda Juvenil do Vale, with which he recorded his third record “100 Sons” and won the Tauromaquia prize in the Division Three of the 5th Concurso de Bandas “Ateneu Artístico Vilafranquense”.

In the field of conducting, in April 2013 he attended a conducting course taught by António Saiote and in February 2014 he began studying at the Academia Portuguesa de Banda, taught by Paulo Martins. He has had the opportunity to conduct various bands, such as the Banda Sinfónica ARMAB, the Banda Militar do Porto and the Banda Militar dos Açores, among others.

In September 2014 he was invited to become the Director of the Banda Marcial do Vale, a post he still holds today, together with the position of Director of Studies of the Association’s Music School. With this ensemble he has won prizes in various contests, including 1st Place and 1st Prize in Division Two of the 2nd Concurso Internacional de Bandas Filarmonia D'Ouro in November 2015, and 2nd Prize in Division One of the 3rd Certamen Internacional de Bandas de Música “Armónico Toro (Zamora)” in July 2016. More recently, in 2022, he won 2nd Prize in the Certamen Internacional de Música de Villa de Altea.