Amália began performing in the United States in 1952, at the La Vie en Rose nightclub in New York, whose lineup also included Edith Piaf and Marlene Dietrich. Amália’s performances in America continued at the Hollywood Bowl, Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and on television.
The show “Amália na América” brought “home” to hundreds of Portuguese emigrants in New York, who were able to listen and remember on Saturday the same popular songs and the North American songbook that the renowned fado singer sang and recorded.
Still emotional after a two-hour concert at New York’s mythical Carnegie Hall, fado singers Cristina Branco, Raquel Tavares and Ricardo Ribeiro spoke of a “memorable, “very happy” night in which the “stars all aligned”.
“It was home. It doesn’t sound pretentious, but being able to say that Carnegie Hall was home is the greatest achievement. Being able to make this show happen, this repertoire, with these people…it’s a set of factors that worked very well. The stars all aligned”, said Raquel Tavares to Portuguese journalists at the end of the show.
“For this type of show to happen, the way it did, there is a lucky factor which is being surrounded by the right people, for the right reasons. And I think we all came for the right reasons. Orchestra, conductor, my dear friends and colleagues. And, therefore, it really is a very happy night”, highlighted the artist.
At 8pm on Saturday (local time, 1am in Lisbon), “Amália na América – Além do Fado” began in one of the largest venues in the world, a tribute to Amália Rodrigues (1920-1999), as part of the closing celebrations for the 40th anniversary of the Luso-American Development Foundation (FLAD).
In front of a mostly Portuguese and Portuguese-descendant audience, who cheered with each song, the voices of Cristina Branco, Raquel Tavares and Ricardo Ribeiro joined the Portuguese Symphony Orchestra which, under the direction of maestro Jan Wierzba, took to a North American stage for the first time.
The lineup fused traditional fado with Broadway songs, which Amália recorded in the United States, crossing several musical genres.
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Raquel Tavares sang songs such as “Senhora do Livramento”, “Rosa Branca ao Peito” or “Tirana”, while Ricardo Ribeiro performed, among others, “Quando Eu Era Pequenina”, “Ai Mouraria” or “Solidão”.
Cristina Branco was responsible for the repertoire in English, singing, for example, “Summertime”, “Who Will Buy” or “I Can’t Begin to Tell You”.
But the most applauded moment of the night came at the end, when the three fado singers came together on stage to sing “Gaivota”.
“It was an extraordinary moment to be able to step on this stage and no one can take it away from me. I think no one can take it away from us. It’s a privilege”, said Ricardo Ribeiro, who was emotional during the performance.
“I was moved for two reasons: the first is because I am a convinced Amalian. And when she sings, there is something that…there are no words to explain. And secondly because, deep down, it is because of her that I am here. This has a huge weight on my heart. […] I really like her and she is a very profound reference”, explained the artist.
Asked whether Amália would have liked this tribute, Cristina Branco says she has no doubts.
“I’m absolutely sure that I would love it. I think it’s a beautiful tribute”, said the fado singer.
“It was incredible. It was really beautiful. We are very satisfied. I think I can speak for all three”, added Cristina Branco.
Upon leaving the show, architect João Quinas, 35 years old, shared with Lusa the feeling of “home” he experienced when listening to the tribute to Amália Rodrigues.
“I think it was a very important night, especially for Portuguese people outside of Portugal. It’s always good to remember our origins, our culture and, above all, our history”, said the Portuguese, admitting that the spectacle reminded him of the family and friends he left behind in Portugal.
The president of the Luso-American Development Foundation, Nuno Morais Sarmento, spoke of “mission accomplished”.
“I think it’s mission accomplished for a reason: because there are a few more bridges left – some new, others reinforced – which are so many paths of work forward”, he assessed.
One of the highlights of the night was precisely when Nuno Morais Sarmento, moments before the concert began, asked the Portuguese or Portuguese descendants who were at Carnegie Hall to stand up.
Asked about what he felt, seeing practically the entire audience standing, the president of FLAD explained that he wanted to convey a “message of community, that it is not every man for himself, that they have the strength of that room, so they know how to cherish and develop it”.
The concert “Amália na América – Além do Fado” is a production by Égide – Associação Portuguesa das Artes, co-organized with FLAD.
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The arrangements were created by five prominent Portuguese composers and orchestrators: Carlos Azevedo, Daniel Bernardes, Filipe Raposo, Pedro Duarte and Pedro Moreira.
Amália began performing in the United States in 1952, at the La Vie en Rose nightclub in New York, whose lineup also included Edith Piaf and Marlene Dietrich. Amália’s performances in America continued at the Hollywood Bowl, Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and on television.
In 1966, he was a soloist in symphonic concerts with the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestras, performing traditional Portuguese songs and fados.
