Ana Sofía Varela was born in Lisbon, although she grew up in the countrysid… Read Full Bio ↴Ana Sofía Varela was born in Lisbon, although she grew up in the countryside (Serpa, Alentejo), where she lived until a few years ago, when she returned to the capital.

Her first contact with fados came as she listened to songs by Amália, at the age of 10. By the time she was 14 years old, she had become an increasingly popular fixture at local fado clubs and schools.

Her commitment to and contact with traditional Alentejo music has been a constant factor since her childhood. She created her own repertoire from fados by Amália and Nuno de Câmara Pereira and the lyrics of Rui Veloso, Vitorino and Resistência.

She then took part in a number of local fado competitions, and reached the finals of the Portuguese TV programme "Selecçao Nacional" as “the most beautiful and interesting voice of the Music Festival 95”. In 1997 she was invited to sing at a fado club in Lisbon, and on that occasion Carlos Zei introduced her to the famous Portuguese guitarist Mário Pacheco, with whom she later sang at many concerts (Macao, Japan, Italy etc.). She was subsequently invited to join the team of permanent artistes at "Clube de Fado", where she is a regular fixture.

Another important connection was her relationship with António Chaínho, who invited her to guest on a CD, " A guitarra e Outras Mulheres", with Marta Dias, Teresa Salgueiro (Madredeus) and Filipa Pais. This subsequently evolved into a European tour.

At Expo 98 she took part in "De Sol a Lua- Flamenco & Fado", a tour of Spain, Germany, Holland and Switzerland. In 1999 she accepted João Braga’s invitation to sing at a number of concerts, and this produced another CD, "Cem Anos de Fado".

The launch of the "Ana Sofía Varela" CD in 2002 marked the beginning of a new direction in her career: the public discovered “the fado they had been waiting for for so long”. This album arose from the "De Sol a Lua- Flamenco & Fado" tour, during which two of the composers, João Monge and João Gil, introduced her to Manuel Paulo Felgueiras de Alas dos Namorados, who produced the CD.

"I was given the chance to sing what I wanted to sing, all the songs I love to sing: classical fados, new songs, experimental songs influenced by flamenco … of course, everything I sing sounds like a fado, because that’s what I am – a fado singer."

Nor did she forsake her origins: "My childhood in Serpa gave me so much contact with music in Alentejo and Spanish music. João Monje is from the same area, and while we were working on the CD we would chat about local traditions, and I asked him to write a poem about all these things ("Ducados"). Manuel Paulo was then inspired by flamenco and Alentejo music for the musical arrangements with Pedro J'oia on flamenco guitar ... this became a homage to my musical and personal relationship with Serpa.”

On the poetry side, the great Vasco Graça Moura heard her singing "Las Letras do Fado Vulgar" live, and offered her a book of poems based on the fado. Mário Pacheco also features on two songs in the album.

She claims that "Ana Sofía Varela" is a dream come true, at the right time, with the right people. Songs about Love, Passion, Hope – these are the deepest emotions that anyone can ever feel ..."

Conhecimento
Ana Sofia Varela Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Fiz no teu corpo à noite a travessia
De mares e céus e terras e vulcões
E em breve rodopio as estações
Detinham-se esquecidas e foi dia

A memória das praias e florestas
Perpassou-me na pele e entranhou-se
Como um suave afago que assim fosse

Espuma que ficou de iras honestas

E ao despertar de tanta sonolência
Formou-se devagar esta canção
Para entreter de novo o coração
Tão paciente em sua impaciência

Até que sendo noite eu atravesso
Uma outra vez o mundo, o mar, o vento,

Amar é sempre mais conhecimento
E conhecer é tudo o que eu te peço

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Ana Sofia Varela's Conhecimento describe the singer's journey through their lover's body, experiencing a whirlwind of landscapes and sensations. The line "Fiz no teu corpo à noite a travessia" ("At night, I made the crossing through your body") sets the tone for the entire song, as the singer uses their lover's body as a vessel for their journey. The images of the sea, sky, land, and volcanoes suggest that this journey is a metaphor for the ups and downs of a relationship, with its unpredictable and powerful forces.

The second verse, "A memória das praias e florestas / Perpassou-me na pele e entranhou-se / Como um suave afago que assim fosse / Espuma que ficou de iras honestas," highlights the aftermath of the journey, with the singer reminiscing on the memories that have been imprinted on their skin. The use of "iras honestas" ("honest wrath") suggests that the journey was not without its difficulties or conflicts, but that these experiences have left a lasting impression on the singer.

The final lines of the song, "Até que sendo noite eu atravesso / Uma outra vez o mundo, o mar, o vento, / Amar é sempre mais conhecimento / E conhecer é tudo o que eu te peço" ("Until night falls, I cross / Once again the world, the sea, the wind, / To love is always more knowledge / And to know is all I ask of you"), emphasize the cyclical nature of the journey of love, as the singer prepares to embark on the journey once again, with a renewed sense of understanding and appreciation for their lover.

Overall, Ana Sofia Varela's Conhecimento is a beautiful and poetic ode to the journey of love, with its highs and lows, its challenges and rewards, and the knowledge and understanding that comes with it.

Line by Line Meaning

Fiz no teu corpo à noite a travessia
I traveled through your body at night

De mares e céus e terras e vulcões
Across seas, skies, lands, and volcanoes

E em breve rodopio as estações
Soon, the seasons will spin

Detinham-se esquecidas e foi dia
They stopped, forgotten, and it was day

A memória das praias e florestas
The memory of beaches and forests

Perpassou-me na pele e entranhou-se
Passed through my skin and settled in

Como um suave afago que assim fosse
Like a gentle hug, if only it could be

Espuma que ficou de iras honestas
Foam left by honest anger

E ao despertar de tanta sonolência
And upon waking from such drowsiness

Formou-se devagar esta canção
This song formed slowly

Para entreter de novo o coração
To entertain my heart once again