Tribute to the Queen of Fado

Amalia Rodrigues was to Portugal what Umm-e-Kulsum was to Egypt, the greatest ambassador her country ever had.

Most people in Pakistan have never heard of her or come across her name. And they probably never will. Only a dozen or so in this beleaguered land have heard her songs. But in Portugal, she was an icon, a national treasure, an institution, a queen. In fact, she was referred to as the Queen of Fado, a genre of Iberian music which originated in Lisbon, spread to other parts of the country and expressed the characteristic sentiment of resignation, fatefulness and melancholia. Her name is Amalia Rodrigues. She was to Portugal what Umm-e-Kulsum was to Egypt, the greatest ambassador her country ever had, who spread more goodwill abroad than a hundred official envoys and emissaries.

She sang both, Fado Corrido, where the tempo is fast and Fado Menors, which has a slow pace. She performed in Spain, Italy, Romania, China, Japan, Russia, Israel, Venezuela, Mozambique, Canada, Luxembourg, Germany, Angola and Brazil — to name just a few countries and was given the Key to Paris. When she finally crossed the River Styx on October 6, 1999 at the age of 79, the Portuguese nation was in a state of shock. It was a national tragedy. I don’t know if government buildings flew the national flag at half-mast. But I know that people in Lisbon and Coimbra and Oporto and other cities openly wept in the streets. And there were also editorials in the Brazilian and Angolan newspapers.



Today, in spite of the fact that a new crop of Fado singers has cropped up like ripened corn, there are still quite a few people in Portugal, Brazil, Mozambique and Goa, who will be observing the fourteenth death anniversary of this incredible singer, who many fans consider to be one of the greatest vocalists that ever lived. I will also be listening to a recording of the very first Fado that I ever heard — an old Rodrigues classic — Lisboa Antiga. Since listening to his evocative melody, I have been an incorrigible fan of both Fado and Amalia and have hunted for her recordings during all my travels.

Fado is to Portugal what flamenco once was to Spain, the waltz to Austria, the rumba to Cuba, the tzigane to Hungary and the tango to Argentina. The precise origin of Fado is not known, though historians believe the genre developed in Lisbon two or three hundred years ago or perhaps, even earlier in medieval times. The essence of Fado is saudade — a bittersweet sense of longing. Many of the songs are about lost or unrequited love, death and a sense of sorrow, nostalgia or homesickness. Initially, Fado was frowned upon as it was the staple diet of prostitutes, but the public gradually overcame its prejudice. Lisboa Fado is invariably sung by females; while Coimbra Fado is the natural preserve of the males. In the Fado Marinheiro, fishermen yearn to return to the shore, to their wives and their children. Old folks yearn to return to their roots. Musical accompaniment in the Fado is provided by a Portuguese guitar and a Spanish guitar, the kind used in the flamenco, also referred to a Guitarra Classica or acoustic guitar.

Amalia often sang to the poems of the 16^th century poet, Luis Camoes, for which she was at first criticised. But in the fullness of time, there was considerable appreciation for her efforts. Amalia’s death spawned a whole new crop of Fadistas — Ana Moura, Mariza, Katia Guerrero and Christina Branco. The greatest compliment that can be paid to them is that they are keeping alive the spirit of Amalia Rodrigues — the Queen of Fado.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 6^th, 2013.

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