Cristina Madeira

Cristina Madeira is a Portuguese singer and songwriter and Fado is her main reference. For some years now, she has been a promising voice of Fado, that collective current which represents the essence of the Portuguese identity and soul, recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Heritage of Humanity. Her intimacy with Fado came very early. When listening to Amália Rodrigues, Cristina felt a mix of both joy and sadness, but could not discern what had prevailed in this emotional outbreak. This little girl born in the heart of Bairro Alto has always been aware that music was her destiny. Owner of a voice that stood out at an early age, she did her professional debut in 1978, at 8 years old. She sang for the first time at Santos Populares folk shows, in Lisbon, for the City Festivals until she was invited to sing Fado for the elderly at parties organized by Bairro Alto Parish in 1979. At the same time, she was also involved in classical singing, in the Nossa Senhora de Bonança Chapel Choir, in Largo do Rato. When she sings she joins another universe because, for Cristina, Fado means in-depth and very special engagement born from the inner purity of the soul, involving her facial and gestural expression with the audience, who despite not understanding Portuguese, feel her Fado melody. Actually, the richness of these two languages, verbal and non-verbal, manage to deeply penetrate into Cristina Madeira's audience.