Sara Tavares (Lisbon, 1 February 1978 - Lisbon, 19 November 2023) was a Por… Read Full Bio ↴Sara Tavares (Lisbon, 1 February 1978 - Lisbon, 19 November 2023) was a Portuguese singer-songwriter. Second-generation Portuguese of Cape Verdean descent, Sara was brought up by an elderly matriarch in her community after her father left for the States in search of a better life, her mother having traveled south in pursuit of the same ends. Sara showed great musical promise from a young age, a potential that was cultivated and bore fruit while Tavares was still in her teens. Winning the Endemol song contest Chuva de Estrelas, followed by a victory at the Portuguese Television Song Contest in 1994, earned Tavares a slot on the Eurovision Song Contest, all at the age of 16. Her winning song, "Chamar a Música," was featured on her debut single release, Sara Tavares & Shout (1996), where Tavares mixed gospel and funk with her native Portuguese influences. Performing and writing songs in a mix of Portuguese, Cape Verdean Creole, and English, Tavares spoke to her own lost generation of Cape Verdeans and Afro-European immigrants who searched to define their unique culture. Her sophomore effort, Mi Ma Bô, released by RCA in 1999, marked a noticeable change in direction toward Afro-pop. The record went gold in Portugal, announcing Tavares' arrival as a national star. After a five-year wait, eager fans were treated to Tavares' third album, released independently in 2006. On Balancê, Tavares penned all of the repertoire and added percussion to her list of credits, in addition to guitar and voice. Full of messages of hope and self-worth, Tavares' Balancê established her as one of the diaspora's most distinct and influential artistic voices.

Eurovision Song Contest 1994 - Dublin
Entry for Portugal

Performer: Sara Tavares
Song title: Chamar A Música
Song writer(s): Rosa Lobato Faria
Song composer(s): João Carlos Mota Oliveira

Sang in Position: 8
Final Position: 8
Total Points: 73

For the second consecutive time, Ireland hosted the Eurovision Song Contest, this time in its capital Dublin. Due to the fact that so many countries wished to participate in the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, the European Broadcasting Union decided to adopt a relegation system. For the 1994 contest, it would mean that the seven countries that finished at the bottom of the 1993 Eurovision Song Contest were relegated and couldn't participate in the 1994 edition of the show. Instead, Estonia, Lithuania, Russia, Poland, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia made their debut. However, Italy and Luxembourg withdrew voluntarily, so only the bottom five countries of the 1993 contest in Millstreet - Turkey, Slovenia, Israel, Denmark and Belgium - were relegated. That meant that the total amount of participating countries was 25, just as in the preceding year.

Poland's debut at the Eurovision Song Contest was very successful when their representative Edyta Gorniak came in second with 166 points. However, the Polish song was almost disqualified as Edyta sang her song To Nie Ja! half in English in one of the dress rehearsal which violated the rule that every entry had to be sung in the native language. Nevertheless, even the talented Gorniak wasn't even near to this year's winner, which once again, was Ireland.
About the winner

Never before in the history of the song contest, a country had won three times in a row. The Irish entrants Paul Harrington and Charlie McGettigan sang Rock 'n Roll Kids, which in the end was 60 points ahead of the runner-up and was the highest score ever at a Eurovision Song Contest to date. This overwhelming victory for Ireland would not be the last in this century, as just two years later in 1996, Ireland would win again.
Facts & figures

The biggest commercial success of the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest was none of the songs though, but the interval act Riverdance. The Irish dance sensation went on to be a world famous stage show, which would be seen by millions of people all around the world.

Tavares died in 2023, after a 14-year battle with cancer.

Caminhanti
Sara Tavares Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Caminhanti é caminho
caminho di caminhanti
No verso e inverso
verbo ser é verbo nascer
Pé na tchon, homi na caminho
Distancia é miragem
distancia é poesia
Bloqueio inflama cansera inclina ladeira sima água

ta disagua sima mar ta agita
Cês fundura na maré sima ponta dedo
ta dispentia cabelo
na kukuruto kenti cafuné
Mundo é movimento
Vida viva remexida
Pa pura tamperu
e aguça paladar na bico di sereia
na ponta di lingua
Di alma, Sabor,

Dor Amor,
Cor, Beleza em Flor

Overall Meaning

In Sara Tavares's song Caminhanti, she reflects on the journey of life, comparing it to the path of a traveler. She sings, "Caminhanti é caminho, caminho di caminhanti," which means "traveler is the path, path of the traveler." She highlights the cyclical nature of life, stating that the verb "to be" is the verb "to be born" when placed in reverse. Tavares emphasizes the importance of having a forward momentum, keeping your feet on the ground, and moving towards your goals. She also acknowledges that the distance between yourself and your goals can feel like a mirage or a poem, something that is hard to grasp or put into words.

Tavares then delves into the struggles that can come with traveling, both literally and metaphorically. She mentions that the obstacles we face can lead to exhaustion and can make it difficult to continue on our journey. But she also recognizes that even though the journey may be tough, it can lead to something beautiful. She uses the metaphor of a river flowing to the ocean to show that the struggles we face can lead to growth and change. The last part of the song talks about the beauty and complexity of life, the variety of emotions that come with it, and the need to savor every moment.

Line by Line Meaning

Caminhanti é caminho
The wayfarer is the path itself

caminho di caminhanti
The path of the wayfarers

No verso e inverso
In the reverse and the inverse

verbo ser é verbo nascer
The verb 'to be' is the verb 'to be born'

Pé na tchon, homi na caminho
Feet on the ground, man on the path

Distancia é miragem
Distance is a mirage

distancia é poesia
Distance is poetry

Bloqueio inflama cansera inclina ladeira sima água
Blockage inflames tiredness, inclines uphill like water

ta disagua sima mar ta agita
It overflows like the sea and stirs like it too

Cês fundura na maré sima ponta dedo
You sink into the tide like the tip of a finger

ta dispentia cabelo na kukuruto kenti cafuné
It disperses the hair on the nape of the neck like a gentle caress