When the gymnasium where she worked as a swimming teacher closed, a friend suggested that she attend the Hot Club of Lisbon Jazz School. Maria João knew nothing about jazz but she decided to go to an audition at the Hot Club out of curiosity.
Despite having no musical background, and no knowledge of written music, Maria João's audition was successful and from then on she began to learn how to sing.
In 1983 João learnt to "listen" and progressed rapidly. She sang songs by Billie Holiday, Elis Regina, Ella Fitzgerald and Betty Carter.
She soon began performing with a band of her own. Her debut was at the opening of a restaurant where she forgot everything she had rehearsed and had toimprovise.
The gig was a huge success, and her career began to take off. She recorded a record with Jorge Palma before going on to work on solo projects.
In 1984 she became the presenter of the Portuguese Television Jazz Show, thanks to which she was given the "Revelation of the Year" award. In 1985 she performed at the Cascais Jazz Festival and to great acclaim.
She then recorded her first albums, Quinteto Maria João e Cem Caminhos, and went on to tour Germany, where one of the concerts was broadcast on radio and television. After winning 1st prize at the San Sebastian Jazz Festival, completing a European tour and receiving "Nova Gente" award for best female artist of the year she recorded her third album, Conversa (1986).
In the same year she was "discovered" by free-jazz pianist Aki Takase who invited her to sing with her. Their musical relationship lasted five years. They toured Europe regularly, often supported by bass player Niels Henning Orsted-Pedersen. They released two live albums Looking for Love and Alice, recorded at the festivals of Leverkusen (1987) and Nuremberg (1990). After giving birth to her son, João Carlos, she decided to get involved with different projects and different people.
In 1991 she released the album Sol with the band Cal Viva, featuring renowned musicians such as José Peixoto, Carlos Bica and Mário Laginha. On this album Maria João mixes Jazz with traditional Portuguese music. With the release of the record she toured again with Cal Viva. In 1992 she worked with Lauren Newton and with Christof Lauer, Bobo Stenson and Mário Laginha.
Finally, in 1994 she signed a contract with the prestigious jazz label Verve. In that same year she released another great album, Danças, featuring her loyal and long-time music companion and friend Mário Laginha. This one was produced by German brothers Reinhard and Wolf-Dieter Karwatky (who produced all of Maria João's Verve records). In 1995 she was the guest singer on an album by António Pinho Vargas also featuring saxophonist José Nogueira.
Two years after Danças, she released her second Verve album, Fábula, featuring Ralph Towner, Dino Saluzzi, Manu Katché and Mário Laginha amongst others.
In 1998 Maria João and Mário Laginha released the album Cor, commissioned to mark the commemoration of 500 years since the arrival of Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama in India. The album was inspired by and dedicated to the Indic cultures, especially those of India and Mozambique (where Maria João has roots).
The album featured Indian percussionist Trilok Gurtu and guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel. The artists involved performed a series of concerts at Expo98 in Lisbon and were again acclaimed by critics and audiences. In November 1999 they released the record Lobos, Raposas e Coiotes, recorded with the Radio-Philharmonic Orchestra of Hanover. This is considered by many to be their best record so far.
2000 saw the release of another album for Maria João. Chorinho Feliz was commissioned to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the "Discovery" of Brazil. The recording features Brazilian singers Gilberto Gil and Lenine and other artists including Helge A. Norbakken, Toninho Ferragutti and Nico Assumpção.
In 2001, Maria João, Mário Laginha, Helge Norbakken and Toninho Ferragutti formed the Mumadji quartet. Mumadji means "Portuguese-European" in Xangana, a language from Mozambique. The group recently released a live album.
(this is a copy from http://mariajoao.oninet.pt/english/bio.html, 2007-10-26)
Retrato Em Branco E Preto
Maria João Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sei que não vai dar em nada
Seus segredos sei de cor
Já conheço as pedras do caminho
E sei também que ali sozinho
Eu vou ficar, tanto pior
O que é que eu posso contra o encanto
Desse amor que eu nego tanto
E que no entanto
Volta sempre a enfeitiçar
Com seus mesmos tristes velhos fatos
Que num álbum de retrato
Eu teimo em colecionar
Lá vou eu de novo como um tolo
Procurar o desconsolo
Que cansei de conhecer
Novos dias tristes, noites claras
Versos, cartas, minha cara
Ainda volto a lhe escrever
Pra lhe dizer que isso é pecado
Eu trago o peito tão marcado
De lembranças do passado
E você sabe a razão
Vou colecionar mais um soneto
Outro retrato em branco e preto
A maltratar meu coração
The song Retrato Em Branco E Preto, which translates to "Portrait in Black and White," is a beautiful and melancholic piece by Brazilian singer Maria João. The song tells the story of a love affair that is doomed to fail but still holds a powerful grip over the singer's heart. The lyrics are deeply emotional and convey the sense of helplessness and resignation that comes from knowing that a relationship is not meant to be.
The first verse sets the tone for the song, with the singer acknowledging that they already know the road they are on and that it will lead nowhere. They are intimately familiar with the twists and turns of the journey, having traveled it before. The second verse speaks to the power that this doomed relationship holds over the singer, despite their attempts to deny and avoid it. They know that they will always be enchanted by this love, even though it brings them nothing but sadness and heartbreak.
The chorus is perhaps the most poignant part of the song, as the singer reflects on their own helplessness in the face of this love. They are doomed to collect painful memories and mementos of a lost relationship, unable to let go even as they suffer. The final verse brings the song full circle, with the singer acknowledging that they are doomed to repeat the same patterns of heartbreak, over and over again.
Line by Line Meaning
Já conheço os passos dessa estrada
I am familiar with the steps of this road
Sei que não vai dar em nada
I know it will lead to nothing
Seus segredos sei de cor
I know your secrets by heart
Já conheço as pedras do caminho
I am familiar with the obstacles on the path
E sei também que ali sozinho
And I know that there, alone
Eu vou ficar, tanto pior
I will stay, even worse
O que é que eu posso contra o encanto
What can I do against the charm
Desse amor que eu nego tanto
Of this love that I deny so much
Evito tanto
I avoid so much
E que no entanto
And yet
Volta sempre a enfeitiçar
It always comes back to enchant
Com seus mesmos tristes velhos fatos
With its same sad old facts
Que num álbum de retrato
That in a photo album
Eu teimo em colecionar
I stubbornly continue to collect
Lá vou eu de novo como um tolo
There I go again, like a fool
Procurar o desconsolo
Searching for the discomfort
Que cansei de conhecer
That I am tired of knowing
Novos dias tristes, noites claras
New sad days, clear nights
Versos, cartas, minha cara
Verses, letters, my dear
Ainda volto a lhe escrever
I still write to you
Pra lhe dizer que isso é pecado
To tell you that this is a sin
Eu trago o peito tão marcado
I carry such a marked chest
De lembranças do passado
From memories of the past
E você sabe a razão
And you know the reason
Vou colecionar mais um soneto
I will collect another sonnet
Outro retrato em branco e preto
Another black and white portrait
A maltratar meu coração
To torment my heart
Contributed by Aiden Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
João Nunez
Encatadora!
gjp
Portugal's Grande Dame of Vocal Acrobacy
'It is difficult to find a category for Portuguese singer Maria Joao... Avantgarde, modern jazz, Latinamerican music, Portuguese folclore - Maria Joao plays with the most different genres and embraces them through her personal style of interpretation.
She presents her songs as mini dramas full of grace and explosive passion, accompanied by dramatic body language, gestures and dancing steps.'
Source: WOMEX
Tiago Elias
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