Mariza - Listen to Portuguese Music!

Tag: Mariza

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Authentic, stylish Fado singer justly famous around the world. Born in Mozambique just before the Revolution, came with her family to Lisbon at the age of three.

Poems by Fernando Pessoa set to music

By Ian Stobie • Last updated 29 December 2022 •

There is a song of the people
I can't even say if it is a Fado
...
But it is so comforting
This vague and sad song
That my soul no longer cries

Here's Mariza singing the whole song.

Mariza "Há uma musica do Povo"

1. Mariza "Há uma musica do Povo" (There is a song of the people)

Music: Mário Pacheco
Portuguese guitar: Luís Guerreiro

Inevitably Fadistas would like this one. But a whole host of Pessoa's other poems have been set to music, many of them as Fado, but in other styles too. In this post there's a selection.

Here are the words of the poem Mariza is singing in Portuguese, with my English free translation below each verse.

Há uma musica do Povo,
Nem sei dizer se é um fado -
Que ouvindo-a há um chiste novo
No ser que tenho guardado

There is a song of the people,
I can't even say if it's a Fado.
When I hear it it is like a new joke
Played on the me I've been guarding.

Ouvindo-a sou quem seria
Se desejar fosse ser
É uma simples melodia
Das que se aprendem a viver

Listening to it I am who I'd be
If only wishing was enough.
It's a simple melody
Of those who learn to live.

Mas é tão consoladora
A vaga e triste canção
Que a minha alma já não chora
Nem eu tenho coração

But it is so comforting,
This vague and sad song
That my soul no longer cries
Even if I don't have a heart.

Sou uma emoção estrangeira,
Um erro de sonho ido…
Canto de

Ana Moura and Mariza recycle a classic Fado tune

By Ian Stobie • Last updated 17 September 2020 •

Table of contents

Ana Moura "Ninharia"

Ana Moura, pioneer of a modern Fado

How traditional Fado tunes are recycled

Mariza "Boa Noite Solidão"

Earlier version by Fernando Maurício

This tune goes back over 100 years, deep into the history of Fado. It keeps reappearing with different words, as a new song with a new name, coming back to life on the breath of each singer. This is one of the keys to Fado's survival - it's a tradition that keeps reinventing itself for new generations of listeners.

Ana Moura "Ninharia"

Ana Moura "Ninharia" (A trifling matter)

Portuguese guitar: Ângelo Freire
Music: Carlos Da Maia
Words: Maria do Rosário Pedreira
From the 2016 album "Moura". This live performance is from the Coliseu in Porto.

What it's about: Ana has argued with someone about a matter of no importance ("ninharia" - a trifling matter or trifle in English) and now regrets it. Worse, it was her lover. She saw something in their eyes that caused her to throw them out. And, as fate would have it, into the arms of another woman.

Now Ana is alone. But there is nothing she can do about it. Whenever she sees her former lover she realises that the break-up was her own fault, is overcome with emotion and simply can't face approaching them to try and make up. Instead she just howls about her plight.

This is Fado!

Here's an extract from the lyrics in Portuguese, with my English free translation below.

Precipitada, incontida
Expulsei-te da minha vida
Por uma coisa de nada!

Rashly, without restraint
I threw

Who are some of the greatest interpreters of Portuguese Fado?

By Ian Stobie • Last updated 17 September 2020 •

I'll concentrate on singers still performing today. I usually mention the principal guitarist too, particularly if they are playing the high-pitched Portuguese guitar, sometimes called the Fado guitar. This is pretty important, as it often performs almost a duet with the singer, and is a key part of the performance. In other cases an ordinary acoustic guitar can play this role, or even a piano. Or the singer can dominate.

Cuca Roseta "Triste sina"

Cuca Roseta "Triste sina" (Sad fate)

Portuguese guitar: Ângelo Freire

This song is one of many associated with the late Amália Rodrigues, and has had many modern interpreters. Here Cuca Roseta sticks fairly closely to a classic simple, almost stark, Fado form. Unpretentious but spellbinding.

Mísia "Tive um curação, perdi-o"

Mísia "Tive um curação, perdi-o" (I had a heart, but I lost it)

Portuguese guitar: Luís Guerreiro

This isn't entirely typical of Lisbon Fado, but it is representative of Mísia, who as a performer is never under-dramatic! The song is again from the repertoire of Fado legend Amália Rodrigues, who wrote the words.

After the revolution in 1974–1975, and the opening up of Portugal to modern western music and culture after the censorship of the dictatorship, Fado fell out of fashion. Mísia has played a key role as a bridge between Amália and the Fado stars of today, convincing record companies Fado could still have a market and popularising it around the world.

Mariza "Medo"

Mariza "Medo" (Fear)

Portuguese guitar: Luís Guerreiro (plus an entire orchestra - which usually gets in the way with Fado but in this