She grew up far from the fado houses of Lisbon and nothing suggested that she was predestined for the fado. Like almost all young Portuguese born after the revolution of 1974, she was interested in folk music, jazz, blues, bossa nova but not in fado. She regarded it as a genre for a different generation. This lasted until her 18th birthday, when her grandfather gave her the album Rara e Inédita by Amália Rodrigues. Suddenly, Cristina Branco discovered all the emotions that the genre could offer in the close connections that arose among voice, poetry and music. The amateur singer - then studying communication sciences and still full of her ambition to become a journalist - began to develop her vocal technique and to take her new vocation seriously.
After that, Cristina studied the poems from which major fado lyrics are taken.
Since then, Cristina has worked on her fado repertory, accompanied by Custódio Castelo on guitar and as composer.
Halfway through the nineties, other young musicians also found a new means of expression in the fado and this contributed to a surprising renaissance. Just as they did, Cristina Branco began to make clear choices in which respect for the tradition went hand in hand with the desire for renewal.
There can be no doubt that Cristina Branco is developing her own style from a number of primary components. She employs a traditional group (voice, Portuguese guitar, guitar and bass guitar) and offers us concurrently a light, warm and experienced voice; she mixes the traditional fado with themes and folk songs that are personal favourites and seems always to choose the words of the best Portuguese, or even Dutch poets with discretion.
Miriam
Cristina Branco Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Camisa, calça de ganga
Colarzinho de missanga
E quase sempre sozinha
Mas chegando a madrugada
Montavas a bicicleta
De t-shirt e calça preta
Uma argola na orelha
E uma mochila vermelha
Quem havia de dizer
O que andavas a fazer
Ai Miriam
Quem te visse
A passear no Chiado
Com um ar muito aprumado
De repente tão reguila
E o que era mais estranho
É que essa tua mochila
Parecia sem tamanho
Lá cabia o que tiravas
De toda a parte onde andavas
Sem que ninguém te apanhasse
E sem que ninguém te visse
Qual Robin que se inspirasse
Nas aventuras de Alice
Quem havia de dizer
O que tu ias trazer
Ai Miriam
Quem te visse
De dia, uma boa menina
E à noite super-heroína
As coisas que tu trazias!
Um grande queijo da serra
Um dicionário, um colchão
Um bom pedaço de terra
Um comboio, um avião
Estacionamento sem multa
Um posto de gasolina
Um bilhete pró Teatro
Umas férias em Berlim
Uma casa e um jardim
Um alvará e um contrato
Um bife, uma sopa quente
Uma visita a Foz Coa
Uns patins, uma meloa
O Expresso do Oriente
Até ao raiar da aurora
Como se fosse um festim
Que nunca mais tinha fim
Como se todos os dias
Tudo fosse sempre assim
E muito mais…muito mais…
As coisas essenciais
P'ra se poder escolher
A vida que se quer ter
E de toda a parte vêm
Os que nunca nada têm
Fazer um grande festim
Com tudo o que tu trazias
Como se todos os dias
Tudo fosse sempre assim
Quem é que pode saber
O que vai acontecer
Ai Miriam
Quem te visse
Se muitos fossem capazes
De fazer o que tu fazes.
The song "Miriam" by Cristina Branco tells the story of a girl named Miriam who appears well-behaved and put-together during the day but transforms into a rebellious, adventurous "superheroine" by night. The first verse describes her daytime appearance, with a collared shirt, jeans, and a small beaded necklace, often wandering alone. However, as the night goes on, she dons a black t-shirt, black pants, a large golden cape, and a hoop earring, riding around on her bicycle with her red backpack. The second verse details the contents of her backpack, which seem impossible to fit inside but include everything from a wheel of cheese to a train and airplane. The final verse speaks to the notion of freedom and the ability to choose one's life, with Miriam seemingly living every day as a celebration, as if everything is always available to her.
The lyrics paint a picture of a woman who hides her true self during the day, but who is fully alive at night, embracing adventure and the joyfulness of life. The song suggests that, if more people were able to have the freedom to live their lives as they wanted, they could be just as happy as Miriam, indulging in the simple pleasures of life.
Line by Line Meaning
Quem te visse aprumadinha
If anyone had seen you prim and proper
Camisa, calça de ganga
In your shirt and blue jeans
Colarzinho de missanga
Wearing a beaded necklace
E quase sempre sozinha
And almost always alone
Mas chegando a madrugada
But as midnight hit
Montavas a bicicleta
You hopped on your bike
De t-shirt e calça preta
Wearing a black shirt and pants
E grande capa doirada
And a big golden cape
Uma argola na orelha
With a hoop earring in your ear
E uma mochila vermelha
Carrying a red backpack
Quem havia de dizer
Who would have guessed
O que andavas a fazer
What you were up to
Ai Miriam
Oh Miriam
Quem te visse
If anyone had seen you
A passear no Chiado
Strolling through Chiado
Com um ar muito aprumado
With such a proper demeanor
De repente tão reguila
Yet suddenly so mischievous
E o que era mais estranho
And what was even stranger
É que essa tua mochila
Is that your backpack
Parecia sem tamanho
Appeared to have no size limit
Lá cabia o que tiravas
It held everything you took
De toda a parte onde andavas
From everywhere you went
Sem que ninguém te apanhasse
Without anyone catching you
E sem que ninguém te visse
And without anyone seeing you
Qual Robin que se inspirasse
Like Robin getting inspired
Nas aventuras de Alice
By Alice's adventures
As coisas que tu trazias!
The things you brought!
Um grande queijo da serra
A big block of Serra cheese
Um dicionário, um colchão
A dictionary, a mattress
Um bom pedaço de terra
A good piece of land
Um comboio, um avião
A train, a plane
Estacionamento sem multa
Parking without a fine
Um posto de gasolina
A gas station
Um bilhete pró Teatro
A theater ticket
Umas férias em Berlim
A vacation in Berlin
Uma casa e um jardim
A house and a garden
Um alvará e um contrato
A license and a contract
Um bife, uma sopa quente
A steak, a hot soup
Uma visita a Foz Coa
A visit to Foz Coa
Uns patins, uma meloa
Some skates, a melon
O Expresso do Oriente
The Orient Express
Até ao raiar da aurora
Until dawn
Como se fosse um festim
As if it were a feast
Que nunca mais tinha fim
That never seemed to end
Como se todos os dias
As if every day
Tudo fosse sempre assim
Everything would always be like this
E muito mais…muito mais…
And much more… much more…
As coisas essenciais
The essential things
P'ra se poder escolher
To be able to choose
A vida que se quer ter
The life one wants to have
E de toda a parte vêm
And from everywhere they come
Os que nunca nada têm
Those who never have anything
Fazer um grande festim
To make a big feast
Com tudo o que tu trazias
With everything you brought
Quem é que pode saber
Who can know
O que vai acontecer
What will happen
Ai Miriam
Oh Miriam
Quem te visse
If anyone saw you
Se muitos fossem capazes
If many were capable
De fazer o que tu fazes.
Of doing what you do.
Contributed by Landon C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Roberto Medeiros
What a beautiful voice!!!
Teresa Marreiros
Excelente disco com óptimas composições. A voz desta rapariga é belíssima. Vai ser um sucesso. Obrigada Cristima por representares tão bem a nossa música.
58guidapires
Que espectáculo dentro doutro espectáculo! Cristina Branco cantando um poema de Jorge Palma. Gostooooooooooooooooooooo!... :)