Tejo

Born in Lisbon of Italian parentage, Pedro António Avondano was employed at the court of Joseph I, becoming Portugal’s leading composer of instrumental music and dances for the royal ballet. Il mondo della luna (‘The World on the Moon’) was a hugely successful libretto by Carlo Goldoni and was set by the likes of Haydn—its comic tale seeing the social climber and strict moralist Buona Fede duped into thinking that he is on the moon. This narrative of illusion in collision with love, jealousy and power struggles is set with sublime lyrical and dramatic transparency by Avondano in this, his only opera.

Madredeus - Faluas Do Tejo (2005) {EMI Music Portugal 7243 8 74938 2 7}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 216 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 103 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 108 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2005 Capitol / EMI Music Portugal | 7243 8 74938 2 7
World Music / Fado / Western European Traditions / European Folk

There is a unique pleasure in listening to music in an unfamiliar language. While much meaning is lost, there are nuances in the sounds that would be forsaken if one could translate every word. For those unfamiliar with Portuguese, listening to Faluas Do Tejo provides an acute example of this contradictory experience.

Little is known about the life of Francisco António de Almeida, but he occupied a central position in Portuguese life in the first half of the 18th century and was able to learn the Italian style in Rome thanks to the ambitions of King João V. The rarely recorded La Spinalba ovvero Il vecchio matto (Spinalba, or the Mad Old Man) is a comic opera which follows the buffa tradition of intrigue and romantic complexities, and is filled with superb cantabile arias as well as a rich variety of original and dramatic orchestral effects. The cast is led by Ana Quintans, a much-in-demand soloist on the early music scene, and the highly regarded Portuguese ensemble Os Músicos do Tejo is directed by its co-founder Marcos Magalhães.

The music on Ainda was the soundtrack for the film Lisbon Story by the German director Wim Wenders. Wenders had known the band before and appreciated their music very much, so he decided that they should not only write the soundtrack but also appear and act as themselves in the film. The songs on this album are of a deep tranquility and beauty; they make one want to board the next plane to Lisbon and roam the steep, narrow streets of the Portuguese capital in search of the essence of life…