Mafalda Arnauth, born in Lisbon, Portugal, in October of 1974, was at the t… Read Full Bio ↴Mafalda Arnauth, born in Lisbon, Portugal, in October of 1974, was at the time one of the latest revelations in fado. She started her career in 1995 when invited by João Braga (an important fado singer) to participate in a concert at S. Luis's Theater. What initially seemed to be a single experience, turned out to be a way of life.

Today her value is recognized, not only in Portugal but also in many foreign countries, where her presence is regularly requested.

Mafalda Arnauth, her first album released in 1999, was immediately acclaimed by specialists and won the Prize for Best Upcoming Voice by the weekly magazine Blitz, a sign that new generations are back into fado.

After a year filled with concerts and important invitations, that took her to the most important concert halls in The Netherlands, the Louisiana Centre (Denmark) and to Italy, to perform in the festival Sete-Sois, Sete-Luas, an important Mediterranean folk event, she sang at Centro Cultural de Belém (Lisbon), where she was warmly acclaimed by the press.

Mafalda's second album, Esta voz que me atravessa (This voice that goes through me) was reelased in 2001 and it was produced by Amélia Muge and José Martins. Her album Encantamento was self-produced. She feels it "leaves fatality, disgrace, and nostalgia behind. Hope is fed on sadness; inspiration on suffering; strength and courage on diffculties."

O Instante Dos Sentidos
Mafalda Arnauth Lyrics

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Aqui mora o instante dos sentidos
Aqui somos momento abençoado
Em que a vida revela a cada ouvido
Um sentido que nos sabe mais a fado.

Aqui cada palavra é oração
É reza da coragem de sentir
O quanto é divino o coração

Que agora faz chorar, logo mais rir.

E, que nunca em nós este condão
Que nos transforma a alma poesia
Varina, no eterno de um pregão
Assim como é eterna a maresia.

Aqui cantando ao fado despertamos
Novo corpo, nova alma nesta hora
Brindando em cada copo que tomamos
A vida que acontece aqui e agora.

Aqui se acordam notas que mantêm
A rima entre a dor e alegria

Pois se ontem houve fado e hoje há também
É porque o fado vem do dia-a-dia.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Mafalda Arnauth's "O Instante Dos Sentidos" speak about the powerful moment of senses and how it allows us to fully experience life. The first line, "Aqui mora o instante dos sentidos" translates to "Here resides the instant of senses" and sets the tone for the rest of the lyrics, where Arnauth describes the moment as a blessed one where life reveals a deeper meaning to us. She goes on to say that every word spoken becomes a prayer and is a testament to our courage to feel deeply.

Arnauth notes that this moment is timeless and transcends us, comparing it to the eternal tide of the ocean. She sings about the power of the Portuguese fado, an emotional genre of music, in waking up our bodies and souls to the present moment. The last few lines speak to the balance between joy and pain in life, and how fado is a result of our daily experiences.

Overall, the lyrics convey a deep reverence for the present moment and the power of our senses to fully experience life, through the medium of music.

Line by Line Meaning

Aqui mora o instante dos sentidos
This is where the moment of senses resides

Aqui somos momento abençoado
Here we are a blessed moment

Em que a vida revela a cada ouvido
Where life reveals to each ear

Um sentido que nos sabe mais a fado.
A sense that feels more like fado to us.

Aqui cada palavra é oração
Here, every word is a prayer

É reza da coragem de sentir
It is the prayer of the courage to feel

O quanto é divino o coração
How divine the heart is

Que agora faz chorar, logo mais rir.
That now makes us cry, but soon will make us laugh.

E, que nunca em nós este condão
And, may this gift never leave us

Que nos transforma a alma poesia
That transforms our soul into poetry