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 ..."
Lágrima
Ana Sofia Varela Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
E com mais penas, com mais penas me levanto
No meu peito já me ficou no meu peito
Este jeito, o jeito de te querer tanto
Desespero, tenho pra meu desespero
Dentro de mim, dentro de mim um castigo
Não te quero, eu digo que te não quero
Se considero que um dia hei de morrer
No desespero que tenho de te não ver
Estendo o meu xaile, estendo o meu xaile no chão
Estendo o meu xaile e deixo-me adormecer
Se eu soubesse, se eu soubesse que morrendo
Tu me havias, tu me havias de chorar
Por uma lágrima, por uma lágrima tua
Que alegria me deixaria matar
The lyrics of Ana Sofia Varela's song Lágrima express a deep longing and pain for a lost love. The first and second lines say "Full of feathers, full of feathers I lie down," which can be interpreted as feeling weighed down by the pain and sadness of the lost love. The third and fourth lines express the persistence of this feeling, "And with more feathers, with more feathers, I rise up." The singer then reveals that this longing has become a permanent feature of her being, "In my heart, this way of wanting you so much has stayed with me."
The next verse expresses the desperation and punishment of this unfulfilled longing. The singer says, "Despair, I have for my despair, inside of me, inside of me a punishment." She tries to deny her feelings stating, "I don't want you," but even in her dreams, she cannot escape his presence. The final verse reveals the depth of her feeling, even in death. The singer says that if she knew that he would cry a tear for her, it would bring her joy and make it easier for her to die.
Overall, the song Lágrima is a powerful expression of the pain and longing experienced after a lost love. It is a reminder of the depth of the human heart and the power of love to endure even after the relationship has ended.
Line by Line Meaning
Cheia de penas, cheia de penas me deito
I go to bed full of sorrow, burdened with difficulties and hardships.
E com mais penas, com mais penas me levanto
The next day, I wake up with even more pain and sorrow than the previous day.
No meu peito já me ficou no meu peito
I carry in my heart, deeply ingrained, a burning desire to love and be loved.
Este jeito, o jeito de te querer tanto
My heart has learned to love you in a way that it cannot let go, no matter how hard I try.
Desespero, tenho pra meu desespero
I am filled with desperation, which only adds to my misery.
Dentro de mim, dentro de mim um castigo
I punish myself with the constant longing for you that I cannot escape from.
Não te quero, eu digo que te não quero
I tell myself that I don't want you, but my heart knows the truth.
E de noite, de noite sonho contigo
At night, I dream of you, despite my efforts to block you out.
Se considero que um dia hei de morrer
When I think about the fact that one day I will die.
No desespero que tenho de te não ver
The desperation I feel at the thought of never seeing you again.
Estendo o meu xaile, estendo o meu xaile no chão
I lay my shawl down on the ground.
Estendo o meu xaile e deixo-me adormecer
I lay down and allow myself to fall asleep.
Se eu soubesse, se eu soubesse que morrendo
If only I knew, if only I knew that when I die.
Tu me havias, tu me havias de chorar
You would cry for me and my passing.
Por uma lágrima, por uma lágrima tua
But one of your tears shed in my memory.
Que alegria me deixaria matar
Would bring me joy even in my dying moments.
Writer(s): Amalia Rodrigues, Carlos Gonclaves
Contributed by Gabriel E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.