Ana Moura has become a leading exponent of this poetic, deeply expressive idiom which personifies the Portuguese psyche as it explores such universal themes as lost love, separation, and longing.
As Ana explains, "It's very special because it's all about emotions and feelings. It needs no translation."
Ana was born in 1980, in Santarém, the bustling capital of the Ribatejo province in the center of Portugal's heartland on the Tejo River northeast of Lisbon.
The city of half a million souls is also one of Portugal's most historic cities -- an ideal place to develop an appreciation for fado. "I've been singing fado since I was little, because grew up listening to it at home," she recalls of her early home life. "My parents sang well, and at family gatherings, we all would sing."
Like young people everywhere, she soon developed an appreciation for other styles of music. The lure of singing fado, however, never waned. In her late teens, while sing pop and rock music with a local band, Ana always included at least one fado in each performance. Then, one night on a whim, about five years ago, she and some friends went to one of Lisbon's storied fado houses -- small performance venues where singers, guitarists and aficionados gather to worship the affecting style that's become Portugal's most important music export.
At the urging of her companions, she sang. "People liked me," she recalls of her first foray into a venerated bastion of the fado culture. Later that year, at a Christmas party that was attended by a lot of fadistas (fado singers) and guitarists, she sang again and, as fate would have it, noted fado vocalist Maria de Fe was in the audience and was duly impressed. "She asked me to sing at her fado house," Ana recalls of the fortuitous moment that launched her career.
"My life changed when I began going to the fado houses," Ana states today. "There's no microphone -- it's very intimate. New singers learn through a kind of apprenticeship, learning the intricacies of the style from the older, more established singers."
Before long, word of Ana's rich contralto, stunning looks and innate affinity for the demanding style spread, winning airtime on local television programs devoted to fado and rave reviews in Lisbon newspapers.
Ana has emerged as a leading voice of traditional fado just as the venerable idiom is enjoying a renaissance of popularity. "Today," she explains, "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. We must feel what we sing, and there are many older fados that don't belong to our generation. Younger singers use lyrics that speak of today, so young people have begun to get more interested in the music again."
As with jazz and country music in the U.S., tango in Argentina, samba in Brazil, fado sprang from the culture of working class people. And, as with the aforementioned examples, over the years the style evolved from humble origins to win broad appeal. Today, as Ana proudly proclaims, "In Portugal, fado is for everyone."
Like virtually every aspiring fadista, Ana drew early inspiration from the example of Amalia Rodrigues, the revered singer who most personified the style. "It was her soul and her voice," she comments of the late vocalist's singular imprint on the music. "She had everything in her. Some singers have a great voice by no soul, no intensity. Others have feeling but not a suitable voice. She had it all, and, she was a very good improviser."
Improvising is an under-appreciated part of the fado tradition. One technique, which Ana uses to great effect on the song "Lavava no rio lavava" (I Went to the River to Wash), is what the Portuguese term vocalisos -- the expression of words and effects through use of vocal trills. The practice is believed to have been absorbed over centuries of exposure to Spanish flamenco and Moorish styles.
A key track from her album exquisitely sums up the magnetic pull fado has exerted on Ana. "Sou do fado, sou fadista" (I belong to fado, I am a fadista) by her mentor and primary collaborator, guitarist Jorge Fernando, eloquently explains Ana's total surrender to the style:
"I know my soul has surrendered, taken my voice in hand, twisted in my chest and shown it to the world. And I have closed my eyes in a wistful longing to sing, to sing. And a voice sings to me softly, and a voice enchants me softly, I belong to fado, I belong to fado, I am a fadista."
Today, Ana Moura still thinks of how and where it all began, and of the importance of keeping those vital ties alive. "Before," she muses, "I used to sing in the fado house every day. Today, because of my concert schedule and travel, it's impossible. But, when time permits, I like to return. Sometimes I feel that I must go there. I need that."
(Adapted from a text by Cindy Byram)
Quando O Sol Espreitar De Novo
Ana Moura Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Eu sei que eu sempre quis alguma coisa
E jamais eu fui capaz de perder com o silêncio
Depressa mudo e só depois dou conta
De arrasto na verdade que me pega
E só passado o tempo
Depois de guerras minhas
Encontro o chão deserto
Não é
Não é
Não é nada
Sou apenas eu não entendendo tudo
Meu amor não é mesmo nada
Não há razão
Um não já é razão de sobra
E eu nem vou sequer tentar lutar com o desejo
Depressa o tempo passa e algo muda
Escondido nos segundos mais discretos
E só chegado o tempo
Depois de coisas minhas
Encontro o céu aberto
Não é
Não é
Não é nada
Sou apenas eu não entendendo tudo
Meu amor não é mesmo nada
Ainda espero ver-te a meu lado
Quando o sol espreitar de novo
Ainda espero ver-te a meu lado
Quando o sol espreitar de novo
In "Quando O Sol Espreitar De Novo," Ana Moura sings about the desire for happiness and the struggle to find it. The lyrics express the idea that the singer has always wanted something but has never been able to find it through silence. The song speaks to the difficulty in figuring out one's own desires and the fight to understand them. For the singer, time has passed and they have gone through personal battles to finally understand themselves and find a sense of clarity. The chorus repeats the phrase that "it's nothing" and "my love is nothing," suggesting that the singer has come to terms with the fact that their desires may not be as important as they once believed.
The final lines of the song express the hope that the singer will once again see their love interest when the sun shines again. This could be interpreted as a hope for a future reconciliation or a desire for a new beginning. The song as a whole is introspective and speaks to the universal experience of searching for happiness and understanding oneself.
Line by Line Meaning
Quis ser feliz
I always wanted something that could make me happy
Eu sei que eu sempre quis alguma coisa
I know that I always wanted something
E jamais eu fui capaz de perder com o silêncio
I could never deal with silence
Depressa mudo e só depois dou conta
I change quickly without realizing it at first
De arrasto na verdade que me pega
I am dragged by the truth that catches up with me
E só passado o tempo
Only after some time
Depois de guerras minhas
After my own battles
Encontro o chão deserto
I find an empty ground
Não é
It's not
Não é nada
It's nothing
Sou apenas eu não entendendo tudo
It's just me not understanding everything
Meu amor não é mesmo nada
My love is really nothing
Não há razão
There is no reason
Um não já é razão de sobra
One 'no' is enough reason
E eu nem vou sequer tentar lutar com o desejo
And I won't even try to fight the desire
Depressa o tempo passa e algo muda
Time passes quickly and something changes
Escondido nos segundos mais discretos
Hidden in the most discreet seconds
E só chegado o tempo
Only when the time comes
Depois de coisas minhas
After my own things
Encontro o céu aberto
I find the open sky
Ainda espero ver-te a meu lado
I still hope to see you by my side
Quando o sol espreitar de novo
When the sun peeks again
Ainda espero ver-te a meu lado
I still hope to see you by my side
Quando o sol espreitar de novo
When the sun peeks again
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind