The Fado
Portuguese music is still primarily associated with fado. Derived from the Latin word for "fate"(fatum), this melancholic song with its rough poetry expresses a variety of feelings related to love, death and exile. Its origins are still debatable and no one knows exactly where it comes from: goualante of ports, in a city where sailors discovered the whole world, local evolution of Moorish song, gypsy lament and vocal modulations from brought back Brazilian rhythms? Probably a bit of all of this. The most famous fadista, Amália Rodrigues, died in 2000 and was immediately buried in the national pantheon. When she was alive, she could move an audience to tears, as her singing, full of humanity, underlined the subtle timbre of her voice. But Fado has evolved and new artists have appeared in a scene full of dynamism and vitality. If Madredeus, and the moving voice of its fantastic singer Teresa Salgueiro, knew how to propagate an excellent folk and world music reinterpretation on the whole planet, the very elegant Cristina Branco or Mariza rediscover and make revive the genre with a certain grace. But we can also mention Camané, Dulce Pontes, Bevinda, Mísia, António Zambujo, Anabela Duarte, Ana Moura, whom Prince launched and who collaborated with the Rolling Stones, or Antonio Zambujo, as famous in Brazil as in his country.
Fado is heard in fado houses. The musical renewal of the genre has also generated a new generation of fado houses. If the place is still suitable for tourists, the quality has improved and the folkloric experience has become more playful, so that these places are now sometimes also frequented by Lisboners, looking for a bit of the soul of their country. In Lisbon, fado singer Ana Marina and guitarist Duarte Santos have created Senhor Fado, a welcoming place, typical of what you would expect from a modern fado house. More classic, Fado in Chiado offers a one-hour show every day. You can also check the cultural agenda of the city of Lisbon where the concerts of fado singers are announced. In summer, it is not uncommon to find free concerts organized by the Lisbon City Council. Many tascas and restaurants where it is possible to have dinner or just a drink are the best places to discover it. Don't hesitate to ask the locals, who will be your best advisors.
Fado is not exclusive to Lisbon. The old city of Coimbra has also developed its own style: only men are allowed to sing. You will find them outside the bars, under the old arches and in the squares of the city.
Classical music and theater
Portugal first shone during the Baroque period with composers such as Manuel Rodrigues Coelho, Duarte Lobo and especially Carlos de Seixas. A major musical figure and the greatest Portuguese composer for harpsichord of the 18th century, the latter became a talented organist and an outstanding teacher at an early age. He was very prolific and wrote more than 700 toccatas. Today, his works can be admired in the National Library of Lisbon. At the turn of the 20th century, a new wave of composers emerged in the footsteps of pianist and composer José Vianna da Motta. Luis Freitas de Branco, who contributed to the recognition of Portuguese art music, but also Fernando Lopes-Graça, Francisco de Lacerda, Ruy Coelho: all of them participated in the influence of the music of their country. A student of Luis de Freitas Branco, Joly Braga Santos is the greatest composer of his generation with the creation of six symphonies, several operas and chamber music, but also film music.
For music lovers, Lisbon has several major venues dedicated to classical music. The Teatro Nacional de São Carlos, the city's main theater, had its heyday with the famous performances of La Traviata with Callas in 1958. Located in the historical center on a small square full of charm, it offers mostly quality shows at a low cost, compared to other opera houses elsewhere in Europe. Take advantage of it, you can make great discoveries. Two other important theaters mark the life of Lisbon: the Teatro Nacional Dona Maria II, a neoclassical theater located on Praça do Rossio, and the Teatro São Luíz, a municipal theater that develops more varied cultural activities. The Coliseu dos Recreios is a magnificent concert hall dating from 1890 that offers Lisboners recitals by great local and international classical musicians. The new Centro Cultural de Belém is home to the city's symphony orchestra and offers a rich and varied program, as does the renowned Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and its top-notch Gulbenkian Orchestra. Fans of classical and contemporary dance will flock to the Teatro de Camões, which houses the Companhia Nacional de Bailado. The artistic proposals of the National Ballet, the Belém Cultural Center and the Gulbenkian Foundation are world-class and offer quality performances.
In Porto, the Casa da Música (House of Music) is a concert hall, whose construction was entrusted to Rem Koolhaas, and which was opened in 2005. Located in the Boavista district, this building with its oblique lines and large volumes has become one of the city's icons. In its two auditoriums with excellent acoustics, the Casa da Música offers classical, folk and jazz concerts.
Jazz in Portugal
Although it is often reserved for an elite group, there is no shortage of jazz lovers in Portugal. If you're looking for a classic jazz experience, Hot Clube Portugal is a Lisbon institution. Founded in 1948, the club has remained authentic. In this place, next to the historical club that burned down in 2009, the greatest jazz musicians have been programmed. The club is associated with the Luiz Villas-Boas School of Jazz, from which talented Portuguese musicians such as Ricardo Jacinto and Luís Vicente have emerged. Another classic club, with a jazz program from the 1930s to the 1950s, Páginas Tantas has established itself as a comfortable and select club. You will come here to listen to music and relax in a subdued atmosphere. Another atmosphere, the Alface Hall, also in Bairro Alto, only a minute's walk from the previous club, is a lively club that offers live jazz music every night. If this café-concert doesn't look like much, go there for the particularly warm atmosphere. You'll be amazed by the excellent musicians who interact with the audience. On the outskirts of Lisbon, in the town of Parede, the SMUP (for Sociedade Musical União Paredense) also offers interesting concerts. The cellist Ricardo Jacinto is in charge of the programming.
Since 2006, the Out Jazz festival offers free jazz concerts every Sunday from May to mid-September. Jazz em Agosto, or Jazz in August, is a festival for jazz lovers, held near the Calouste Gulbenkian Garden. Finally, if you're looking for something a little more alternative, head to Damas, located in the rua da Voz do Operário. Very trendy, Damas offers live music all week, with a focus on experimental jazz. During the day, the place is a restaurant. Near Lisbon, in the city of Cascais, the EDP Cool Jazz offers several evenings between jazz, soul and pop, in beautiful environments such as the Parque Marechal Carmona and the Hipódromo Manuel Possolo.
In the fall, the Jazz ao Centro-Encontros Internacionais festival is organized in Coimbra, by a local association that also runs the Salão Brazil jazz club. This student city, located halfway between Lisbon and Porto, is particularly active in the diffusion of jazz in Portugal. In summer, the Quebra Jazz Festival is also organized by the managers of the bar of the same name.
In February, you should go to Porto to attend jazz concerts at the Porta Jazz Festival. Then, in the spring, you can go to the center of Portugal, to Portalegre, for the JazzFest, which presents every year an innovative and eclectic program, highlighting the young Portuguese scene.
The rock and the song
Beyond fado, Portugal has produced many interesting artists! One is, of course, the singer Rui Veloso, whose lyrical and intelligent lyrics have accompanied the Portuguese in their daily lives for three decades. The militant singer Zeca Afonso also offered his audience songs of revolt that, in their own way, promoted the Carnation Revolution. Also noteworthy is the Gaiteiros de Lisboa, a collective that draws on folklore for a most poignant result. Danças Ocultas is an original quartet of diatonic accordionists whose artistic director is none other than Gabriel Gomes, a former Madredeus, as well as Rodrigo Leão, who has a solo career as a composer of inspired contemporary music. Also to be followed, the relevant discography of Maria João and Mario Laginha, the first one has an exceptional voice, the second one accompanies her with finesse.
On the rock side, the legendary Xutos e Pontapés with their fiery stage performances, Santos & Pecadores, recognizable by the hoarse voice of its singer Olavo Bilac, or UHF, from the 1970's scene, have been dominating the scene for more than thirty years... GNR (Grupo Novo Rock) comes from the new wave scene of the 1980s. While lately the pop-rock of A Naifa, Blasted Mechanism and its otherworldly costumes, the instrumental music group Dead Combo, or The Legendary Tigerman and the Wraygunn and their atypical universes are making news, as did António Variações, an original and unclassifiable character, a meteorite of the 1980s. The scene in Porto is alive and active thanks to Papercutz, First Breath After Coma, Best Youth Coma or Holy Nothing.
To listen to live music in Lisbon, head to Galeria Zé dos Bois. Both a contemporary art gallery and a concert hall with a club in the basement, the ZDB has a good international program. Big names like Thurston Moore from Sonic Youth and Animal Collective have played there. Lisbon is one of the best places in Portugal to attend outdoor music festivals. The famous Rock in Rio Lisboa, inspired by the festival of the same name in Brazil, takes place every two years. The Super Bock Super Rock also programs the biggest international artists on the beach of Meco, south of Lisbon. On the other hand, the NOS Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona invites the same artists to Porto, in a large green park. The selection oscillates between indie music and hip-hop or electro stars.
Hip-hop, kuduro and kizomba, influences from Africa
From the second half of the 1990s, Lisbon suburbs such as Cova da Moura or Chelas, where the majority of working-class African immigrants reside, began to make themselves heard, with the hip-hop of Da Weasel, Boss AC or Conjunto Ngonguenha, while Mind Da Gap emerged in Porto. Then in the early 2000s, the new generation adopted kuduro, a musical genre from Angola that draws its influences from rap. The lyrics of the songs are simple and full of humor and derision. The lyrics are simple, humorous and derisive, and they challenge the dancers' legs as well as their heads, since kuduro is also a social protest from the slums. The group Buraka Som Sistema embodies with efficiency the kuduro Portuguese version since 2006.
Afro-house, kuduro, kizomba, baile funk, fado...: the music you hear when you go out in Lisbon makes the experience totally new. If you go to Lisbon clubs like Dock's Club, you can't avoid Afro-house, house music with African rhythms. This is not a purely Lusophone musical style, as it can be found in South Africa and other English-speaking African countries. A real African electronic music scene has emerged in recent years in the capital of Portugal. For an original and totally different experience, go to the Mwangolé or the Chiado Club in the Alcantara neighborhood, two places that invite you to dance the night away. Havana Soul, a small but authentic bar located along the Tejo River, also offers excellent kizomba in a relaxed setting. Barrio Latino is one of Lisbon's most popular dance venues. Located in Santos, along the Tagus River, one of the liveliest nightlife areas, the atmosphere is guaranteed. Barrio Latino has two dance floors and the music varies every night. On Thursdays, the club often offers Kizomba nights. For an introduction, Jazzy Dance Studios, one of the city's most popular dance schools, also offers its Sunday Jazzy Sessions, salsa and African dance classes, every Sunday from 5pm.
Electronic music
Fans of jet-setting, glitter and electronic music can explore the capital's nightclubs. MusicBox and Lux Frágil are two popular spots offering a mix of international electronic hits. The latter's fame lies in the fact that it is co-owned by American actor John Malkovich. Located in the Nova do Carvalho street, in the Cais do Sodré district, MusicBox is a nightclub, a music scene, a lounge and a bar all in one. To be able to pass its wooden door, you will have to wait in a long queue. The trick is then to come first to the concert of the beginning of the evening. This club offers an eclectic program, but quite sharp. Another place that offers interesting music is Titanic Sur Mer, which hosts live music as well as DJ sets that can last until late at night. The place is known for its samba (for which it offers classes) and for its musical workshops.
In Porto, PLAN B is the epicenter of the nightlife. This former textile factory in the Baixa district, with its retro decor, has been converted into a multipurpose cultural center. You will find concerts, but also exhibitions or artistic projections.
In summer, Portugal hosts some of the biggest electronic music events in Europe. In this genre, Tomorrowland is one of the most famous festivals in the world. This festival born in Belgium has been exported to the Parque Oriental da Cidade in Porto in 2019. In Portimão, The BPM Festival has a rich program of underground house and techno. Organized by the radio of the same name, RFM Somnii takes place on the beach of Figueira da Foz and offers three days of house, drum'n'bass and rap. In Viana do Castelo, the Neopop Festival has also become a reference with artists of the caliber of Underworld, Richie Hawtin or Jeff Mills.
