Mariza
Waltons World Masters in association with Improvised Music Company presents
From Portugal
MARIZA
Thursday, 11 February 2010, 8 pm
National Concert Hall, Main Auditorium, Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin 2
Tickets €35, €40, €45 available from nch.ie (no booking fee)
Mariza • vocals | Simon Wadsworth • trumpet, piano | Diogo Clemente • acoustic guitar
Ângelo Freire • Portuguese guitar | José Marino de Freitas • double bass | Hugo Marques • drums
‘When Mariza sings, time stands still. Every word is sung with intense concentration, every note hit flawlessly. When she pauses for dramatic effect, we are all with her, caught in her trap.'
– Charlie Gillett, BBC Radio 3
‘With her mahogany-rich voice, impassioned performances and striking beauty, Portuguese singer Mariza has, in a few short years, became a reigning diva of world music charts and sold out concert halls around the globe. She has won this worldwide acclaim by blowing the cobwebs off Portugal's traditional fado music, bringing it an exciting new edge.’
– The Observer
Having seduced audiences worldwide with her spellbinding performances and charismatic stage presence, Mariza stands today as the undisputed queen of fado, the evocative Portuguese blues music that emerged from the brothels and taverns of Lisbon. Fado is an emotional music fraught with drama, sadness, yearning and joy, and the extraordinary Mariza projects these qualities both on stage and on her much-loved recordings. Fado’s literal definition is ‘fate’, and it has been Mariza’s fate to uphold the music’s rich traditions while simultaneously bringing fado into the present.
Born in Mozambique, Mariza Reis Nunes grew up in Lisbon among the fado tavernas, steeped in the cultural and historical atmosphere that gave birth to the music centuries ago, and she credits her own mixed African-Portuguese heritage with drawing her to fado and inspiring her unique contemporary slant on the style. With her magnetic presence, effortless stage manner and spine-tingling vocal gift, Mariza is a fadista queen for the 21st century.
Mariza in concert is supported by RTÉ lyric fm, The Irish Times, and Conrad Hotel.