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Fado: Lisbon Journal

Image Copyright Michael Barrientos/NY Times
I haven't been to Portugal yet, but the fado, the closest it has to a national form of song, is one of my favorite music genres. The New York Times brings us a multimedia feature about fado, with the voice of Misi, the current fado diva, and voices of other fado singers in a Lisbon cafe. Misi's voice and status in Portugal reminds me of the late Edith Piaf...the quintessential voice of Paris.

Fado, or fate in Portugese, is characterized by mournful tunes and lyrics, often about the sea or the life of the poor. The music and the songs speak to home-sickness, longing and nostalgia. Some musicologists believe it has its roots in Africa, and is influenced by Arabic music.

In the "Lisbon Journal" multimedia (slideshow) feature, don't miss frame #11. Photographer Michael Barrientos has perfectly captured the expressions of the restaurant's cooks as they watch the ongoing fado performance.

I'm curious as to why the New York Times hasn't graduated to more advanced slideshow viewers, and is still stuck to the rather dorky 'frame-by-frame' model. The "Lisbon Journal" would have been so much more effective had the NYT used Soundslides or similar software, and it would have been really a 'multimedia' experience. The audio edit could've been done better since the sound track stops almost abruptly.

Here's the slideshow Fado Feature

Here's the accompanying Article