Amendoeira was born in Santarém, Portugal in 1982, making her the youngest singer from Portugal performing fado around the world today. Her singing style is classic and traditional, yet her unique vocals bring a bright, new glow to fado.
In 1994, a young Amendoeira participated in the Lisbon Grand Fado Gala, where she received enthusiastic praise from the jury and the audience. In the following year, she won the “Female Interpreter Award” at the Oporto Gala. From that date on, she has been performing non-stop around Portugal and the world. Some of her favourite experiences include travelling to Budapest to perform in front of a remote Portuguese community, performing with fado legend Carlos do Carmo at the Radio Alpha Auditorium in Paris, and her first time in the Americas as a headliner at the Commemorations of the 500th Anniversary of the Discovery of Brazil.
Four years later her first album was released: 1998’s Olhos Garotos (Playful Eyes), thereby giving her the honour of being the youngest fado singer with a published CD. Her second CD followed shortly thereafter in 2000, when Aquela Rua (That Street) was released to outstanding reviews. This was also the year that Amendoeira began singing regularly at Clube de Fado (The Fado Club), one of most renowned fado houses in Lisbon.
Her growing international acclaim brought the fadista to more corners of the world, receiving invitations to sing in Japan, Moscow and Holland (at the prestigious Muziekcentrum Vredenburg). Meanwhile, back in her homeland of Portugal, Amendoeira was asked to take part in some of the top fado anthologies, such as Novas Vozes, Novos Fados (New Voices, New Fados) and Nova Biografia do Fado (Fado’s New Biography). She also contributed to the Moniz Pereira homage album, as well as the soundtrack to the TV series Jóia de África (African Jewel).
In 2003, her third CD, the self-titled Joana Amendoeira, received enthusiastic praise from fado devotees, reviewers and audiences alike. The album’s promotional tour sent Amendoeira once again through Europe, this time performing in Spain, France and Austria, to name a few. The tour also brought her to Canada for the first time, where she performed at Montreal’s Strictly Mundial.
Amendoeira achieved further success when she received the 2004 Revelation Award from Casa da Imprensa (The Portuguese Press Association). That same year she presented her first solo show at one of Lisbon’s oldest and most illustrious stages—The São Luiz Theatre. This performance would later be turned into her first live album, Ao Vivo Em Lisboa (Live in Lisbon), released in July 2005.
The complete biography and more info about this singer can be found on www.joanaamendoeira.com
Fadista Louco
Joana Amendoeira Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Que o maestro dos meus fados é quem lhes dá o condão
E assim não olho p'ra outros lados
E canto de olhos fechados p'ra olhar pro coração
Meu coração é fadista d'outras eras
Que sonha viver quimeras em loucura desabrida
Meu coração, se canto quase me mata
E ele e eu, cá vamos sofrendo os dois
Talvez um dia depois dele parar pouco a pouco
Talvez alguém se lembre ainda de nós
E sinta na minha voz o que sentiu este louco
E ele e eu, cá vamos sofrendo os dois
Talvez um dia depois dele parar pouco a pouco
Talvez alguém se lembre ainda de nós
E sinta na minha voz o que sentiu este louco
The lyrics of "Fadista Louco" convey the emotional depth and passion that is characteristic of Fado music. The singer declares that while performing, she closes her eyes and surrenders to the power of the music, allowing it to control her emotions and movements. She believes that the maestro of her fados (portuguese songs) is the one who imbues them with their enchantment, and by singing with her eyes closed, she is better able to connect with her heart and convey its emotions.
The singer describes her heart as belonging to another era, dreaming of fantastical scenarios that exist only in her mind. She acknowledges that singing almost kills her, but the experience is so intense that it makes her forget the hardship it causes. Her heart and she are "suffering together," with the possibility that they will both stop beating one day. However, the singer seems content with the possibility that someone may remember them and the passion they shared, even if only through the echoes of her voice.
Line by Line Meaning
Eu canto com os olhos bem fechados
I sing with my eyes tightly shut
Que o maestro dos meus fados é quem lhes dá o condão
For it is the director of my fate who gives them their charm
E assim não olho p'ra outros lados
Thus, I do not look towards other paths
E canto de olhos fechados p'ra olhar pro coração
And I sing with closed eyes, in order to look into my heart
Meu coração é fadista d'outras eras
My heart is a fado singer from another time
Que sonha viver quimeras em loucura desabrida
Who dreams of living fantasies in reckless madness
Meu coração, se canto quase me mata
My heart, if I sing, nearly kills me
Pois por cada vez que bata, rouba um pouco a minha vida
For with each beat, it steals a little of my life
E ele e eu, cá vamos sofrendo os dois
And he and I, we suffer together
Talvez um dia depois dele parar pouco a pouco
Perhaps one day, after he slowly stops
Talvez alguém se lembre ainda de nós
Perhaps someone will still remember us
E sinta na minha voz o que sentiu este louco
And feel in my voice what this crazy person felt
Contributed by Layla T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.