Mariza is a young (thirty something) Fadista and follower of Amália Rodrigues. For those unfamiliar with the genre, fado is Portugal's melancholy folk music that incorporates elements of Argentine tango, Spanish flamenco, and Greek rebetika, all expressed with the gut wrenching lament of the blues.
Mariza's music honors the deep tradition of Fado Português while breathing new life into the art form and gently pushing it in new directions. Her 2003 album Fado Curvo (curved fado) expressed her philosophy that fado, like fate, isn't a straight line and should not be enclosed by limits.
Born in Mozambique to a Portuguese father and a Mozambican mother, Mariza grew up in Lisbon's Mouraria quarter, where the family moved when she was three. Her parents owned a cafe where Mariza began singing fado at age five (her father drew cartoons to help her remember the lyrics).
Although Mariza sings in Portuguese, no worries for those who don't understand the language. As her myspace page notes: "with her heartbreakingly beautiful voice," Mariza sings fado in a way that "communicates directly to the soul and the emotions, tugging at the heart with a performance that speaks of longing, love and nostalgia."
Mariza is touring in support of her latest album, Transparente, the title track to which is a tribute to her African grandmother. Lift a glass of vino verde to your own grandmother and catch this new fado legend in-the-making this Saturday at Berklee.
Berklee Performace Center, all ages, $28 - $40, 8:15pm
Mariza: website | myspace | Ó Gente Da Minha Terra.mp3 | purchase
Post contributed by Matt Durutti
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