Born in Lisbon, Portugal, official documents have her date of birth as the 23rd July, but Rodrigues always said her birthday was the 1st July 1920. She was born in the rua Martim Vaz (Martim Vaz Street), freguesia of Pena, Lisbon. Her father was a trumpet player and cobbler from Fundão who returned there when Amália was just over a year old, leaving her to live in Lisbon with her maternal grandmother in a deeply Catholic environment until she was fourteen, when her parents returned to the capital and she moved back in with them.
She was known as the "Rainha do Fado" ("Queen of Fado"), and was most influential in popularising fado worldwide. She was unquestionably the most important figure in the genre’s development, by virtue of an innate interpretive talent carefully nurtured throughout a forty-year recording and stage career. Rodrigues' performances and choice of repertoire pushed fado’s boundaries and helped redefine it and reconfigure it for her and subsequent generations. In effect, Rodrigues wrote the rulebook on what fado could be and on how a female singer - or fadista - should perform it, to the extent that she remains an unsurpassable model and an unending source of repertoire for all those who came afterwards.
After a few years of amateur performances, Rodrigues’ first professional engagement in a fado venue took place in 1939, and she quickly became a regular guest star in stage revues. There she met Frederico Valério, a classically-trained composer who, recognising the potential in such a voice, wrote expansive melodies custom-designed for Rodrigues’ voice, breaking the rules of fado by adding orchestral accompaniment.
Her Portuguese popularity began to extend abroad with trips to Spain, a lengthy stay in Brazil (where, in 1945, she made her first recordings on Brazilian label Continental) and Paris (in 1949). In 1950, while performing at the Marshall Plan international benefit shows, she introduced "April in Portugal" to international audiences (under its original title "Coimbra"). In the early fifties, the patronage of the acclaimed Portuguese poet David Mourão-Ferreira marked the beginning of a new phase; Rodrigues sang many of the country's greatest poets, and some wrote lyrics specifically for her.
In 1954, Rodrigues' international career skyrocketed through her presence in Henri Verneuil’s film The Lovers of Lisbon, where she had a supporting role and performed on-screen. By the late 1950s the USA, England, and France had become her major international markets (Japan and Italy followed in the 1970s); in France especially, her popularity rivalled her Portuguese success, and she graduated to headliner at the prestigious Olympia theatre within a matter of months. Over the years, she performed nearly all over the world, going as far as the Soviet Union and Israel.
At the end of the 1950s, Rodrigues took a year off. She returned in 1962 with a richer voice, concentrating on recording and performing live at a slower pace. Her comeback album, 1962's Amália Rodrigues, was her first collaboration with French composer Alain Oulman, her main songwriter and musical producer throughout the decade. As Valério had before him, Oulman wrote melodies for her that transcended the conventions of fado. Rodrigues did not shy away from controversy: her performance in Carlos Vilardebó’s 1964 arthouse film The Enchanted Islands was better received than the film, based on a short story by Herman Melville, and her 1965 recording of poems by 16th century poet Luís de Camões generated acres of newspaper polemics. Yet her popularity remained untouched. Her 1968 single "Vou Dar de Beber à Dor" broke all sales records, and her 1970 album Com que Voz, considered by many her definitive recording, won a number of international awards.
During the 1970s, Rodrigues concentrated on live work, and embarked upon a heavy schedule of worldwide concert performances. During the frenetic period after the 25th April 1974 she was falsely accused of being a covert agent of the PIDE, causing some trauma to her public life and career. (In fact, during the Salazar years, Rodrigues had been an occasional financial supporter of some communists in need.) Her return to the recording studio in 1977 with Cantigas numa Língua Antiga was received as a triumph. The 1980s and 1990s brought her enthronement as a living legend. Her last all-new studio recording, Lágrima, was released in 1983. It was followed by a series of previously lost or unreleased recordings, and the smash success of two greatest hits collections that sold over 200,000 copies combined.
Despite a series of illnesses involving her voice, Rodrigues continued recording as late as 1990. She eventually retreated from public performance, although her career gained in stature with an official biography by historian and journalist Vítor Pavão dos Santos, and a five-hour television series documenting her fifty-year career, featuring rare archival footage (later distilled into the ninety-minute film documentary, The Art of Amália). Its director, Bruno de Almeida, has also produced Amália, Live in New York City (a concert film of her 1990 performance at New York City Hall).
Rodrigues died on the 6th October 1999 at the age of seventy-nine in her home in Lisbon. Portugal's government promptly declared a period of national mourning. Her house (in Rua de São Bento) is now a museum. She is now buried at the National Pantheon alongside other Portuguese notables.
1946.
Aranjuez Mon Amour
Amália Rodrigues Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴
Ou le vent les amènent, mon amour
Le soir tombé, qu'on voit flotté
Des pétales de roses
Mon amour et des murs se gercent, mon amour
Au soleil au vent à l'averse et
Aux années qui vont passant
Et quand chantant
Soudain ils ont écrit sur les murs
Du bout de leur fusil
De bien étranges choses
Mon amour
Le rosier suit les traces, mon amour
Sur le mur et enlace, mon amour
Leurs noms gravés et chaque été
D'un beau rouge sont les roses
Mon amour sèche les fontaines, mon amour
Au soleil au vent de la plaine
Et aux années qui vont passant
Depuis le matin de mai qu'il sont venus
La fleur au cœur, les pieds nus, le pas lent
Et les yeux éclairés d'un étrange sourire
Et sur ce mur
Lorsque le soir descend on croirait
Voir des taches de sang
Ce ne sont que des roses
Aranjuez, mon amour
"Mon amour sur l'eau des fontaines, mon amour
Ou le vent les amènent, mon amour
Le soir tombé, qu'on voit flotté
Des pétales de roses"
These opening lyrics describe a setting where the singer's love is present near a fountain. The wind carries the love to this place, and as the evening falls, they see rose petals floating in the air. This imagery suggests a romantic atmosphere and the presence of strong emotions.
"Mon amour et des murs se gercent, mon amour
Au soleil au vent à l'averse et
Aux années qui vont passant
Depuis le matin de mai qu'ils sont venus
Et quand chantant
Soudain ils ont écrit sur les murs
Du bout de leur fusil
De bien étranges choses"
In this verse, the lyrics convey the image of cracked walls as a metaphor for the passing of time. The singer's love endures through various weather conditions and the years that pass since that May morning they arrived. The mention of "chanting" and "writing on the walls" implies that this love carries a rebellious or unconventional spirit. The use of a rifle to write "strange things" on the walls suggests a form of expression that defies expectation or societal norms.
"Mon amour
Le rosier suit les traces, mon amour
Sur le mur et enlace, mon amour
Leurs noms gravés et chaque été
D'un beau rouge sont les roses"
Here, the lyrics depict a romantic gesture where the rose bush follows the traces of the lovers on the wall. The roses that bloom every summer are described as being a beautiful red color. This symbolizes the lasting presence of love and the passion that continues to flourish over time, even when the physical lovers may not be present. The act of engraving their names on the wall further emphasizes the idea of eternal love.
"Mon amour sèche les fontaines, mon amour
Au soleil au vent de la plaine
Et aux années qui vont passant
Depuis le matin de mai qu'il sont venus
La fleur au cœur, les pieds nus, le pas lent
Et les yeux éclairés d'un étrange sourire
Et sur ce mur
Lorsque le soir descend on croirait
Voir des taches de sang
Ce ne sont que des roses"
In this final verse, the lyrics describe the transformative power of love. It is said to dry up fountains and be exposed to the elements of the plains, enduring the passing years. The loving couple is depicted as arriving in May with flowers in their hearts, walking barefoot with a slow pace, and their eyes illuminated by a mysterious smile. As evening falls, the lyrics metaphorically compare the sight of roses on the wall to spots of blood. This juxtaposition creates an intriguing contrast where love is both beautiful and potentially accompanied by pain or sacrifice. Ultimately, the portrayal of roses suggests that love can leave a lasting impression, even when it may appear to be lost or forgotten.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@refikozdemir
Моя любовь,
В воде фонтана, моя любовь,
Куда ветер принес их, моя любовь,
Опавшие вечером, они плавают теперь,
Лепестки роз.
Моя любовь,
А стены трескаются, моя любовь,
От солнца, от ветра, от ливня,
И от лет, что прошли с тех пор,
С того майского утра, как они пришли
И с песней вдруг написали
На стенах, острием ножа
Такие странные слова...
Моя любовь,
Розовый куст разрастается, моя любовь
По стене, и обнимает, моя любовь,
Их вырезанные имена, и каждое лето
Красные розы прекрасны.
Моя любовь,
Фонтаны высыхают, моя любовь,
От солнца, от ветра равнины
И от лет, что прошли с тех пор,
С того майского утра, как они пришли
С цветком на сердце, с босыми ногами,
Их шаги были медленными, а глаза сияли
Странной улыбкой...
И на этой стене, когда спускается вечер,
Как будто видны пятна крови,
Но это только розы...
Аранхуэс, моя любовь...
@MariaM-xv2uf
My love, on the water of the fountains, my love
Where the wind takes them, my love
The fallen evening, that one sees floating
Rose petals
My love and walls chafe against my love
In the sun, in the wind, in a sudden rainstorm
And in the years that pass by
Since the morning in May that they came
And when, singing, suddenly they wrote on the walls with the end of their rifles
Such very strange things
My love, the rosebush follows the traces, my love
On the wall and wraps around, my love
Their engraved names and each summer
From a beautiful red are the roses
My love, dry the fountains, my love
In the sun, in the wind of the plain
And in the years that pass by
Since the morning in May that they came
Flower on the heart, the naked feet, the light step
And eyes brightened by a strange smile
And on this wall when the evening descends
One would think they saw bloodstains
It’s nothing but roses!
Aranjuez, my love
@Marcus.464
Nasıl daha önce keşfetmedim? Bu harika bir eserdi.
@slowly2022
Rodrigonun aranjuezini 27yildir bıkmadan dinlerim. A. Rodriguesi yeni keşfettim. Çok etkileyici.....
@lyslebel8577
C'est une chanson à la mélodie si forte, je l'ai découverte en 1995 après un voyage au Portugal, je l'écoute toujours avec autant d'émotion et le souvenir est intact
@danieviola9697
Quelle puissance dans la voix ! Magnifique ,Amalia ,j'en ai des frissons! Bellissima Amalia !
@danieviola9697
Sensationnelle interprétation de la très grande et regrettée , Amalia Rodriguez
@odilecadiou18
Merci ! si belle , .je vous écoute depuis des années.
@MarieKrantz
Toujours aussi émue par cette musique de Rodrigo et merci pour les paroles qui m'ont faire peindre un tableau il y a 15 ans déjà ! Belle et profonde la voix de Amalia Rodrigues que j'adore ....
@bifani6764
Öperim yaşanmışlıklarından kadın ,ne güzelsin..🌸
@nadiaghalem1780
Toute l'Espagne et le Portugal dans la voix. Grande émotion. Merci pour le partage.
@gloriagoncalves4212
Pourquoi de l'Espagne?