Throughout her career, in which it is clearly traced and expressed a deep respect, understanding and humbleness before Fado, Mísia developed a new style: she stripped the Fado off the shawl of the "amalian" type, and adds to the traditional instruments (bass guitar, classical guitar and Portuguese guitar) the sensuality of the accordion and the violin, and borrows from the best Portuguese poets their finest verses. The piano was often used in fado before, and this she also uses.
Her 2003 album "Canto" may be considered her masterpiece. Mixing pieces of the best works of the Portuguese guitarist Carlos Paredes with poems of Vasco Graça Moura (and some of Sérgio Godinho and Pedro Tamen), Mísia has built a piece of music that she would describe as belonging to her "gallery of impossible things". Mísia is also known for covering other artists' songs in a very "fadoish" way. The classic "As time goes by", and some of the songs of Luis Eduardo Aute ("De Alguna Manera", for instance) are some of the examples.
Mísia is a polyglot. Despite singing mostly fado (which is sung in Portuguese), she sings some of her themes in Spanish, French, Catalan or even English. One of the examples is her last album "Drama Box", a collection of tangos, boleros and fados, sung in Portuguese and Spanish. In "Drama Box", Mísia depicts herself as a cabaret dancer living in the "Drama Box Hotel" with her musicians. It's a very personal album, simultaneously a tribute to her mother and a real description of her life: travelling through the world, taking fado everywhere.
In spite of being famous in Portugal, her music has from the beginning been greatly appreciated in foreign countries: France and Japan for example.
Discography
1991 — Mísia
1993 — Fado
1995 — Tanto menos, tanto mais
1998 — Garras dos Sentidos
1999 — Paixões Diagonais
2001 — Ritual
2003 — Canto (music by Carlos Paredes)
2005 — Drama Box
2009 — Ruas
Fado Adivinha II
Mísia Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Quem se dá quem se recusa / Quem procura quem alcanza / Quem defende quem acusa / Quem se gasta quem
Descansa / Quem faz nós quem os desata / Quem morre quem resucita / Quem dá a vida quem mata / Quem duvida e
Acredita / Quem afirma quem desdiz / Quem se arrepende quem não / Quem é feliz infeliz / Quem é quem é coração
The lyrics to Mísia's "Fado Adivinha II" are a series of questions that explore the different contradictions of life. The first verse asks who gives and who refuses, who seeks and who achieves, who defends and who accuses, who expends energy and who rests. This series of questions highlights the dichotomies of our actions and how we can easily find ourselves on either end of the spectrum.
The second verse continues by asking who creates problems and who solves them, who dies and who rises again, who gives life and who takes it away, who doubts and who believes. These questions delve into the complexities of human existence and the opposing forces that shape our experiences.
Finally, the last verse questions who affirms and who denies, who regrets and who does not, who is happy and who is unhappy, and ultimately, who is the heart. The final question serves as a reminder that despite all of our contradictions and complexities, we are all connected by the universal experience of the heart.
Overall, "Fado Adivinha II" is a thoughtful and reflective exploration of the paradoxes that make up the human experience.
Line by Line Meaning
Quem se dá quem se recusa
Who gives, who refuses
Quem procura quem alcanza
Who seeks, who achieves
Quem defende quem acusa
Who defends, who accuses
Quem se gasta quem Descansa
Who exhausts, who rests
Quem faz nós quem os desata
Who creates knots, who unties them
Quem morre quem resucita
Who dies, who resurrects
Quem dá a vida quem mata
Who gives life, who takes it
Quem duvida e Acredita
Who doubts and believes
Quem afirma quem desdiz
Who affirms, who contradicts
Quem se arrepende quem não
Who regrets, who does not
Quem é feliz infeliz
Who is happy, who is unhappy
Quem é quem é coração
Who is who, is the heart
Contributed by Hannah E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.