I’ve yet to complete my research on Portuguese Fado Music, but a few things I have learned  are,  it is a Portuguese traditional music style, It can be sung by men or women, the tunes , or melodies, are all very similar to each other and the words are about broken hearts, love lost, lost souls,  torn emotions,  you get the picture.   Memphis has the blues,  which as it’s own “rules”, and American Country music, has its own woes with eventually  someone in jail, the wife angry and the girlfriend leaving. Oh wait, that’s the blues. No, it’s Fado! 

The musicality of Fado is melodic and  a bit sad, and often mostly in minor keys but ending in major keys. The  guitar playing is essential. The guitars are weird in themselves. The bodies are rounder than “normal” guitars, have 12 strings, and the neck and top of the neck are sculpted like art. This part I haven’t learned about but they are very cool guitars indeed.  The guitar work is comparable to flamenco, or gypsy in character. The overall sound is a little comparable to tango. And I realize there is a lot more history to this tradition that I now yearn to know!!!

At a Fado House, or a restaurant with Fado music, they have a couple of guitar players.  People come a bit early to eat and talk and drink wine. “All the wine you can drink” for one price, including food and music. Simply amazing.  Then the lights will dim and the Fado begins. There isn’t a set schedule, at least not at the Fado we experienced. There was an MC of sorts, a Fado singer herself, dressed in sparkly black, with a shawl around her shoulders. Typical.  She hushed the audience, and introduced the first singer. He approached the guitar players, said something, they started and then he started singing. We couldn’t understand a single word. But we got the jist of the hurt feelings, sorrowful emotions and all that. Then as the music went to the major key, the audience stated to clap and the singer reached his last line!  The guys that sang were I’d guess over 55 on average. But there was one guy who looked about 25, and half way through his song, a 35 yr oldish guy stood and the two had a “Fado Conversation” Singing guys, buff guys! Cool dudes!!  live, in a local pub / restaurant!!  Would you ever find this in Annapolis?  It was so great!!!!

A couple of younger ladies sang too! We were told  the audience was mostly “older” but we saw enough young people to realize that Fado has a cool factor that hopefully will continue!!

Our new friend Theo sang 2 songs one night. He is Dutch and Portuguese is not his first language. He had written notes in his hand. And he chose lighter hearted songs. And he was wonderful. So much charisma, you could not tell that he was not a native to Portugal!!!

So, now I can now  muster a Fado tune in my head at will. And I can plug in any words I want. I can even plug American Blues words, or American Country words into Fado tunes and make it work. In my head.

I wonder if I am following the rules!  But I’ll never know because singing is one thing I cannot do. And good thing. I think the locals would leave quickly and close the Fado House if I did!

But I know I like it!  And I hope it continues. And I intend to learn more!!