Fado

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Fado

Fado (translated as destiny or fate) is a music genre which most likely originated in the 1820s in Portugal, but probably with much earlier origins. It is characterized by mournful tunes and lyrics, often about the sea or the life of the poor. The music is usually linked to the Portuguese word saudade, a word with no accurate English translation. (It is a kind of longing, and conveys a complex mixture of mainly nostalgia, but also sadness, pain, happiness and love). Some enthusiasts claim that Fado's origins are a mixture of African slave rhythms with the traditional music of Portuguese sailors and Arabic influence.

There are two main varieties of fado, namely those of the cities of Lisbon and Coimbra. The Lisbon style is the most popular, while Coimbra's is the more refined style. Modern fado is popular in Portugal, and has produced many renowned musicians.

Main stream fado performances during the 20th century included only a singer, a Portuguese guitar player and a classical guitar player but more recent settings range from singer and string quartet to full orchestra.

History

One theory states that Fado would have its origin in Moorish songs, that remained in the quarter of Mouraria in Lisbon. The melancholy of those songs and the referral in many fado lyrics to this part of Lisbon would strengthen that theory. Anyway, musicological research links first fado performances to modinhas, a kind of Brazilian hall music that was successful among middle-class gatherings in the later 18th century in Lisbon and Porto. Brazilian students were also a strong presence in the University of Coimbra. Some suggest that Portuguese guitar originated as a development of cittern in the English expatriate colony in Porto.

The first great fado singer that is still known was Maria Severa, living in the first half of the 19th century. Recorded fado did not appear until the next century, however. In the 1920s and 1930s, a series of fado de Coimbra (a version born in Coimbra) recordings were very popular. Guitarists Carlos Paredes and his father Artur Paredes, were the masters and the great pioneers of this genre and the Portuguese guitar.

Amália Rodrigues introduced the most well-known variety of fado. After her disappearance, a new wave of performers added stylistic changes and brought more international popularity to the traditional Portuguese music. There are also some successful experiences with fado, namely mixing it with electronic music. Carlos do Carmo, Mariza, Mafalda Arnauth, Camané, Kátia Guerreiro and Mísia brought with them a new look to the traditional song, occasionally reviving 19th century fado. While Dulce Pontes mixed it with popular and traditional Portuguese music, Madredeus and Cristina Branco added with new instruments and themes - all that they kept from the original Fado is its looks and the concept of saudade. The fado is almost universally sorrowful; although some can also be joyful songs.

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Fado | Music genres | Portuguese styles of music

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