Many of us are familiar with Fado, the destination and all the cultural surroundings of our origins, and many can even understand that there may be a connection with Flamenco, from our Spanish brothers. But does it really exist?
Come with us and see for yourself.
Flamenco originates from our neighboring Spain, more associated with the region of Andalusia, Murcia and Extremadura, and is to the Spanish what fado is to the Portuguese. When we listen to flamenco we can distinguish some of its influences, such as gypsy and Moorish influences. Not so easy to identify will be the Jewish and Arab influence that is an integral part of the music, singing and dancing. It was only on November 16, 2010 that flamenco was declared intangible cultural heritage of humanity by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
In its original form, Flamenco consisted only of singing, without accompaniment, and later it began to be accompanied by acoustic guitar, clapping, tap dancing and dancing. The Baile and the touch can appear without cante, that is, without the singing, although the singing is the heart of the Flamenco tradition. As time progressed, other instruments were introduced such as the cajón, from Peru, introduced by the great guitar maestro, Paco de Lúcia, a wooden box used as percussion, castanets, the violin, the cello and the flute; which came to enhance the musical nuances beyond the traditional guitar.
In Spain as in Portugal, there have been turbulent moments in history in the different social, economic panoramas, and so on. But there was some similarity in the events, both in one country and in the other. Two extremely Catholic countries could not tolerate smaller and promiscuous cultures, therefore, Moors, Gypsies, Jews and other religions, as well as less favored people in their eyes, were persecuted by the Spanish and Portuguese Inquisition. The gypsies did not have the habit of written culture, so they passed on their culture orally, with no great records about it, and the culture was passed from generation to generation through community actions, losing details and transforming depending on times and desires. It was in this socially and economically difficult situation that the musical cultures of Jews, Moors and especially Gypsies began to merge into what would become the basic form of flamenco: the singing style of the Moors, which expressed their difficult life in Andalusia, the different " compás " (rhythmic styles), claps rhythms and dance movements basic. Flamenco music still reflects the desperate spirit, struggle, hope, pride and nightly parties.
Fado deals with life, destiny, longing, and has its origins in the Latin fatum, which means destiny, the same word that gave rise to fairy, fadario and running the fado. The popular explanation refers the origin of Lisbon's fado to the songs of the Moors, such as flamenco, due to the last stronghold of the Arabs in Portugal in 1249, and in Andalusia where the Arabs remained until the end of the 15th century.
It appears again in the second half of the 19th century, wrapped in the currents of romanticism: melopeia expressing the sadness of a people, their bitterness for the difficulties they experience, but capable of inducing hope. Later contaminating the salons of aristocrats, it would quickly become a typically Portuguese musical expression. Fado began to be sung in the so-called "Casas de Fado", such as Alfama, Castelo, Mouraria, Bairro Alto and Madragoa. Its bohemian and ordinary origins come from taverns and brothels, from environments of orgy and violence in the poorest neighborhoods of the capital. This made fado reprehensible in the eyes of the Church, which tried to prevent its evolution from an early age.
The most sung themes are longing, nostalgia, jealousy, small stories about everyday life in typical neighborhoods, and bullfighting, as in flamenco. These were the themes allowed by the Estado Novo, which also allowed tragic fate, of jealousy and passion resolved violently, with blood and regret. Lyrics that spoke about social and political problems were repressed by censorship. There is a difference here, as Flamenco had some difficulty in being recognized as a traditional and cultural symbol, and was a fashionable one. Unlike Fado, which quickly became the entertainment of the aristocracy and therefore also a national symbol to be referenced across borders.