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
Se Eu Adivinhasse Que Sem Ti
Joana Amendoeira Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Faria o dia de palha arder
Secar o maior rio da vila
E por fim os teus sonhos prever
- afundava todos os barcos, todos os navios
Todos os cais, todas as pontes
Todas as flores, serpentes e frutos
Os teus ciúmes todos os meus fados
Faria do mar pedras e sal
Abria as portas ao silêncio
Da planície branca de cal
- se fosse verdade o que eu canto
Ancorava para sempre no teu país
Se adivinhasse que sem ti - porto seguro -
Seria possível ter um país
The lyrics of Joana Amendoeira's song Se Eu Adivinhasse Que Sem Ti (If I Guessed That Without You) express the idea that the singer would be capable of doing incredible things if only she could predict the future and avoid losing her beloved. The first verse mentions the possibility of causing destruction if the person she loves leaves her, suggesting that her life would be meaningless without him or her. She describes in hyperbolic language how she would burn everything in sight and dry up rivers to show how powerful her emotions are.
The second verse continues with the same theme, but the singer takes a more yearning tone. She mentions how she would be willing to stay in her lover's country forever if she knew for sure that they would not leave her. The phrase "porto seguro" (safe harbor) appears, emphasizing the emotional security that she associates with being near the person she loves. Overall, the message of the song is that the singer is deeply in love and afraid of losing her partner, and the lyrics use dramatic language to convey this sentiment.
Line by Line Meaning
Se eu adivinhasse que sem ti
If only I had known that without you
Faria o dia de palha arder
I would have set fire to hay during the day
Secar o maior rio da vila
I would have dried up the biggest river in the town
E por fim os teus sonhos prever
And finally, I would have predicted your dreams
Afundava todos os barcos, todos os navios
I would have sunk all the boats and ships
Todos os cais, todas as pontes
All the docks and bridges too
Todas as flores, serpentes e frutos
Even the flowers, snakes, and fruits
Os teus ciúmes todos os meus fados
Your jealousy would have been my destiny
Se eu adivinhasse que sem ti
If only I had known that without you
Faria do mar pedras e sal
I would have turned the sea into stones and salt
Abria as portas ao silêncio
I would have opened the doors to silence
Da planície branca de cal
From the white chalk plain
Se fosse verdade o que eu canto
If what I sing were true
Ancorava para sempre no teu país
I would have anchored in your country forever
Se adivinhasse que sem ti - porto seguro -
If only I had known that without you - a safe harbor -
Seria possível ter um país
It would have been possible to have a country
Contributed by Charlotte Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.