Director Selects: Global phenom Mariza and Portugal’s beloved musical traditions

Fado is a Portuguese musical form that is powerful and poetic. With influences from Portugal’s colonies, especially Brazil, fado first became popular in the mid-19th century as the music of working people and was even considered, at times, to be subversive.

Today it is Portugal’s foremost cultural asset — popular with tourists and also in concert halls worldwide, especially when performed by global phenom Mariza. Her vocals are searing as they are soaring; often sweet and sometimes plaintive. She is an artist of the highest order.

Personally, I am a big fan of fado, and couldn’t imagine ending my tenure without it coming to The Soraya. Realizing that many Soraya patrons may not be familiar, we have created this week’s video as an educational opportunity, with clips excerpted from director Simon Broughton for we2 Productions, available on YouTube, here.

We’ve also provided a Spotify playlist, linked here, to acquaint you with Mariza and fado’s beauty. You’ll see instantly that it transcends language. Please do not miss Mariza on November 6.

Gratefully,

Thor Steingraber Signature