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“The New Fado”

Ana Moura

Sunday, November 12 • 7pm

  • $58
  • $38
  • $32
  • $25
    • “Brings a sultry, smoke-tinged voice to fado’s dramatic arcs.” – The New York Times

    Program Notes

    Midway through her 20’s, Ana Moura is already considered one of the most important young fadistas in the world. Akin to American blues or folk music, fado is the music of the Portuguese people, a delicate blend of acoustic guitars and poetic lyrics about lost love, the hardships of the poor, and life at sea.

     

    Moura found her way to fado almost by accident. Though her parents sang the traditional songs at home, Moura was fronting a rock band when friends prompted her to take the stage at a Lisbon fado club. The crowd was impressed, and soon Moura was working with Jorge Fernando, guitarist for the storied “Queen of Fado” Amália Rodrigues. Marked by her “husky contralto that is softer and darker than most”(Time Out NY) interpreters of the form, Moura’s two albums, Guarda-me a Vida na Mão and Aconteceu—both produced by Fernando who appears with herthis evening—have been acclaimed by the press, with the latter nominated for the prestigious Dutch Edison prize.

     

    Though the music is traditional, by no means is it tradition-bound, as Moura explains: “Today there’s a new generation that sings lyrics related to our time. There are some older fado songs that we, the younger singers, cannot perform, because the lyrics are about a time and themes we don’t identify with. We don’t feel it, and fado is all about feelings.”

    Personnel:
    • Ana Moura, vocals
    • Jorge Fernando, guitar
    • Jose Manuel Neto, Portuguese guitar
    • Daniel Pinto, bass
    • Jan Visser, sound engineer