Fado - The magic of Portuguese melancholy

Editor Kyros Kikos

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Cristina Branco, one of the defining voices of the new fado, is coming to Zurich as part of the "Female Voices of the Mediterranean" concert series.

For ten years now, the "Mediterranean Music Festival" has been inviting outstanding musicians from Southern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East to bring the musical traditions of the Mediterranean region to Zurich.

In March and April, the festival is now presenting a four-part series with charismatic singers and instrumentalists from Spain, Greece and Portugal. For example, the critically acclaimed fado artist Cristina Branco will be a guest on 22 March.

Those counting peas may now object in three ways: "The mmf is not so much a festival in the usual sense, but organises concerts throughout the year. Portugal is not on the Mediterranean, but on the Atlantic. Cristina Branco is not a purely traditional fadista, but an exceptional artist who makes something very special out of Portugal's world cultural heritage."

"Who cares," I reply, because whether it's a festival or a series of concerts, the programme of the mmf is characterised by a level of quality that is unparalleled in Switzerland in the field of world music and folklore. And culturally, Portugal is very much on the Mediterranean, especially as the roots of southern folk music from Lisboa to the Middle East are closely linked. And finally, Cristina Branko's affinity for jazz, blues, soul, rock and Latin American rhythms is an enrichment for the wistfully languorous fado. She lends the bittersweet melancholy an additional element of lightness and allows the traditional musical style to merge with the present. Her contemporary lyrics and the use of various musical instruments also contribute to this. While the classic fado line-up consists of guitar, viola and bass, Cristina Branco adds accordion, violin and piano to the sound.

I suspect that the other three no less exciting concerts in the series will be less geographically diverse: Alkistis Protopsalti from Greece will be playing on 21 March. Ioulia Karapataki will also be visiting from Hellas on 17 April. Las Migas from Spain will conclude the female line-up on 18 April.