Born on the 27th August 1941 in the port town of Mindelo, Cape Verde, on the island of São Vicente. Long known as the queen of the morna, a soulful genre (related to the Portuguese fado) sung in Creole-Portuguese, she mixed her sentimental folk tunes filled with longing and sadness with the acoustic sounds of guitar, cavaquinho, violin, accordion, and clarinet. Évora's Cape Verdean blues often spoke of the country's history of isolation and slave trade, as well as emigration; almost two-thirds of the million Cape Verdeans alive live abroad.
Évora's voice, a finely-tuned, melancholy instrument with a touch of hoarseness, highlighted her emotional phrasing by accenting a word or phrase. Even audiences who do not understand her language could be held spell-bound by the emotions evident in her performances.
In 2004 she won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album.
A heavy smoker for decades, Évora was diagnosed with heart problems in 2005. She suffered strokes in 2008 and in September 2011, when she announced she was retiring. She died at the age of seventy in São Vicente, Cape Verde on the 17th December 2011 from respiratory failure and hypertension. A Spanish newspaper reported that forty-eight hours before her death she was still receiving people in her home in Mindelo, popular for always having its doors open.
Barbincor
Cesária Évora Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Morrê na sombra dum jardim
Nha fê nha esperança
Esvai' num mar cheio d'tarafim
Nha fê nha esperança na bô Cabo Verde
Morrê na curva de nha sodade
Na lembrança de nha mocidade
Nha fê nha esperança ja morrê
Num sociedade
Qu'tudo gente conchê bandido ma sport
Barbincor qu'rê finta'm
Qu'ré p'tà sônaize cinza na ôje
Ma ness travessa ca ta passode
Sem bô esfrega'l tê tcherê òie
Oià c'ma mim la disiludide
Nha fê nha esperança ja morrê
The lyrics of Cesária Évora's song Barbincor speak of a person's faith and hope dying in the shadow of a garden, evaporating into a sea full of turmoil. The song is set in Cape Verde, the singer's homeland, and they reminisce about their memories of youth and love. Unfortunately, their hope dies, and it seems that societal corruption and violence have a part in that. The person mentions the Barbincor, a group of people who want to remain hidden and refuse to be identified by society. The singer wishes to join them and escape the pain that comes with living in this world. The song ends with a feeling of disappointment and betrayal, as the person's faith and hope have perished.
The song Barbincor is a reflection of the struggles and experiences of the people of Cape Verde, who often suffer from poverty and political corruption. Cesária Évora's voice adds a soulful quality to the song, bringing forth the powerful emotions expressed in the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
Nha fê nha esperança
My faith, my hope
Morrê na sombra dum jardim
Dies in the shadow of a garden
Nha fê nha esperança
My faith, my hope
Esvai' num mar cheio d'tarafim
Fades away in a sea full of devils
Nha fê nha esperança na bô Cabo Verde
My faith, my hope in your Cape Verde
Morrê na curva de nha sodade
Dies at the corner of my nostalgia
Na lembrança de nha mocidade
In the memory of my youth
Naquel neva escura qui ca tchobè
In that dark snow that doesn't melt
Nha fê nha esperança ja morrê
My faith, my hope is already dead
Num sociedade
In a society
Qu'tudo gente conchê bandido ma sport
Where everyone knows the thieves but applauds the sportsmen
Barbincor qu'rê finta'm
The barber wants to deceive me
Qu'ré p'tà sônaize cinza na ôje
He wants to put grey on my hair
Ma ness travessa ca ta passode
But that street won't be crossed
Sem bô esfrega'l tê tcherê òie
Without you rubbing your cheek on mine
Oià c'ma mim la disiludide
Look at me, disillusioned
Nha fê nha esperança ja morrê
My faith, my hope is already dead
Contributed by Kaitlyn W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Luis Peñaloza Jimenez
Voz inigualable...
Manuela Grillo
Cesárea es un lujo. Pena que ya no esté con nosotros pero tenemos su voz y su música.
Furkan Aydoğmuş
Beautiful. :') <3
Kévina Cardoso
❤❤❤
Laiz Soares
❤️
Marinha Teixeira da Silva Brito
Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!!