Amália Rodrigues

At 79 years old, Amália Rodrigues has this physical status:

Amália da Piedade Rebordo Rodrigues, GCSE, GCIH (23 July 1920 – 6 October 1999), also known as Amália Rodrigues or commonly as Amália, was a Portuguese fado singer) and actress.

Rodrigues, nicknamed "Rainha do Fado" ("Queen of Fado"), was instrumental in popularizing fado around the world and travelled extensively throughout her career.

Amália is the best-selling Portuguese artist in history.

Early years

Despite official reports indicating her date of birth as July 23, Amália herself maintained that her birthday was actually 1 July 1920. Rodrigues' baptism certificate is in the Parish Church of Funds, and the paper was published in the Journal of Funds following the singer's death after it was discovered in an investigation by Salvado J. Travassos.

She was born in Pena, Portugal's little sister. Albertino de Jesus Rodrigues, a native of Castelo Branco, Portugal, and her mother, Lucinda da Piedade Rebordo, was born in Fondo, Portugal, and she was also in the Castelo Branco district. Her maternal family traces her roots in Souto da Casa, a parish in Fundo, where Rodrigues' grandfather worked as a blacksmith. José Filipe Duarte Gonçalves, Celeste's sister, was born in Lisbon (in comparison to another child who died). Rodrigues grew up in poverty and began doing odd jobs such as selling fruit on Lisbon's quays.

Rodrigues began singing in 1935. In 1939, she was the first female celebrity to work in a fado venue, and she was a participant in stage revues. Frederico Valério, a classically trained composer who admired Amália's talent and created many melodies specifically created for her- adding orchestral accompaniments, was around that time. 'Fado do Cime', 'Ai Mouraria,'Que Deus Me Perdoe, 'Que Deus Me Perdoe,' etc., and 'No Sei Porque Te Foste Embora' are among the many titles on the 'No Sei Porque'.

Amália had become a well-known singer in Portugal by the early 1940s. Rodrigues' debut film, 'Capas Negras,' followed by her most well-known film, 'Fado' (1947), in 1946.

She gained fame in Spain and Brazil (where she made her first recordings on Brazilian label Continental), where she spent some time in Paris (1949) where she resided. She performed at the Marshall Plan international benefit shows in 1950, and she performed the song "April in Portugal" to international audiences under the name "Coimbra."

The participation of Portuguese poet David Mouro-Ferreira in the early 1950s marked a new phase in her career, when leading poets were writing specifically about her.

Source

Civil awards and decorations

• Dame of the Military Order of Saint James of the Sword, Portugal (16 July 1958)
• Officer of the Military Order of Saint James of the Sword, Portugal (16 February 1971)
• Grand Officer of the Order of Prince Henry, Portugal (9 April 1981)
• Grand-Cross of the Military Order of Saint James of the Sword, Portugal (4 January 1990)
• Grand-Cross of the Order of Prince Henry, Portugal (27 July 1998)