Amara quartet, the female expression of Fado
the Elegance, Strength and Beauty
Porto(PT)
Amara quartet is the female expression of Fado and stands out for their elegance, strength and beauty. The purpose of their music is to carry on the Fado tradition from a contemporary perspective, exploring a new tales of poetry.
The music of Amara quartet blends the heritage of the broad world of Fado “tradicional” with subtle elements of contemporary classical music, and the rich Portuguese folk music, presenting a singular repertoire with original compositions and singular arrangements, using a unique instrumentation.
Each of the musicians of Amara has a profound musical background and experience in those different styles and worked over the years at the “Casas de Fado" collaborating with many great musicians in the field, where they developed as “fadistas”.
Amara in Portuguese means the original love. Fado music was the first love and passion that connected these four ladies. Since the 19th century, Fado is a manifestation of the of Portuguese people’s voice and identity. Fado music transmits the joys and sorrows of the Portuguese soul.
Amara quartet was founded in July 2020 in the city of Porto, Portugal by Joana Almeida and it is the first female Fado quartet in the history of Portugal.
Laura Rui - voice
Sónia Sobral – accordion
Joana Almeida – classical guitar
Susana Castro Santos – cello
With over 25 national concerts and international performances, including collaborations with the Aga Khan Master Musicians and appearances at prestigious festivals such as the Ethnos Festival (Naples, Italy), She Arts Festival (Cairo, Egypt), and Visa For Music Festival (Rabat, Morocco), Amara presents its new concert: “DESAMOR” (heartache).
With soundscapes that evoke the vastness of the sea, the quartet invites the audience to immerse themselves in the depths of longing and the echoes of broken loves. In addition to their original compositions, the quartet performs a repertoire of traditional fado.
The concert also includes a special segment in tribute to Luís Vaz de Camões (1524–1580) in celebration of the 500th anniversary of the birth of the illustrious poet.
Amara
Amara, my heart, cold tormentor
Soul of the Sun that lands in other lands
Brought a tear loose on my face
Willingness to put an end to the sad bond
Amara joyful life, joyful dream
Joyful sound sounded in my mind
I loved fado and found it without delay
Closed pain, past experiences
I love the art of being feminine
“Perfect Morals” Policy
That the grace of courage had enchanted me
Amara's fated birth
Joana Almeida
Laura Rui Vocal
Born in 1992, in Ova. Laura holds a degree in music with a specialization in Conducting, Theory, and Music Education from the University of Aveiro. She supplemented her academic journey with lessons in vocal technique, jazz singing, harmony, and improvisation. She participated in workshops with renowned musicians such as Stefano Battaglia, Elisabete Matos, and Dora Rodrigues.
She stood out as Papageno in Mozart's opera "The Magic Flute" at the Rivoli Theatre in Porto. She was part of the Essemble Vocal Pro Music choir, with which she performed works such as Mozart's Requiem, Brahms' Requiem, and Bach and Pergolesi's Magnificat. She has taught at various musical institutions and currently teaches singing and stage performance in the Teatrúsica Course and at the GroovArt School, in addition to teaching at the Music Academy of Orfeão de Ovar. She was the conductor of the “Corpo de Vozes” choir in Águeda and the choir for Rodrigo Leão's concert at the Centro de Artes de Ovar (2022).
She created the duo Modulatus, with which she released the EP "Inquietação" in 2022. She participated in the album "Outra Margem" by the group Vila Navio and shared the stage with renowned musicians both nationally and internationally, including Sérgio Godinho, Vitorino, Ana Bacalhau, Jorge Bemvinda, Stefano Battaglia, Iury Matias, Riccelly Guimarães, Edinho Vilas-Boas, Ricardo Baya, and Klênio Barros. She has participated in projects with the Banda Sinfónica Ovarense and the Portuguese Air Force Band.
She has performed in prestigious national venues including Europarque, Rivoli, Ala Magma, Casa da Música, Casa das Artes do Porto, Centro de Arte de Ovar, Centro de Arte de Oliveira do Bairro, Teatro Aveirense, Casa do Povo de Ovar, and Museu Júlio Dinis, as well as in international venues and festivals such as Pithiviers (France), "Made in Mato" in Ceará (Brazil, 2019), Fira B! in Palma de Mallorca (Spain), and a tour in Italy (2021).
Sónia Sobral Accordion
Sónia was born in 1993 in Viseu, Portugal. Her connection with accordion begins at the age of 7, at the Távora and Douro Sul’s accordionists association, where she started to study the instrument. Sónia finished her master in Music Education (Accordion), at the Aveiro University. She also attended the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, in Tallinn and the Creative World Music Workshop by Pedro Madaleno.
During her route she participated in various music projects as: Reportório Osório and dois,pois (d’Orfeu AC). Sónia performed several times in orchestras with the conductors Carlo Goldstein and Jan Wierzba and in the present she integrates the Pinóquio show, in Casa da Música.
Sónia teaches at the Távora and Douro Sul’s Accordionists Association, at the Music Conservatory of Seia and at the Professional School of Serra da Estrela. She is also co-author of the podcast pontos nos mis, about musical performance.
With more than one hundred concerts in many different Portuguese concerts halls, included Casa da Música and Coliseu do Porto and in highly regarded music festivals Sónia performed in Santiago Island (Cabo Verde, 2015 and 2019), in Rio de Janeiro and in various cities in Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil, 2016 and 2018), where she integrated the Brazilian show Sbornia Kontratacka and latest the Mercat de Música Viva de VIC in the Fira Trovam (Spain, 2020).
Joana Almeida Classic Guitar
Joana was born in 1993 on the Portuguese northern coast in Vila do Conde. The responsible for the artistic direction of Amara quartet, Joana is one of the very first women working as a Fado classical guitarist “viola de Fado”. She started to study classic guitar in Fado at the age of 11 and slowly she was accepted in the professional Fado scene in Porto. In 2015, Joana attended the Jazz Course in Valentim de Carvalho Academy, where she studied for 5 years. At the same time, she improved her study with particular teachers as Bruno Brás, Eurico Costa, Nuno Campos and Ricardo Passos. Beyond Lisbon Fado, Joana is exploring different music genres like: Coimbra Fado, Portuguese folk music, bossa nova, jazz and konnakol.
In 2019, after to become a present musician in fado scene of Porto, she was invited to join the cast of the oldest “Casa de Fado” of the city, the Casa da Mariquinhas.
In 2020, developing her work as performer, composer and artistic director, Joana founded her first group of Portuguese original songs Cacha Mundinho, with Maripepa Contreras (Spain) on oboe, Sjahin During (Turky and Netherlands) on percussion and Felix Hildenbrand (Germany) on doble bass, in the same year she founded Amara Quartet, the first female Fado quartet and in 2022 she starts Miras Trio, a new fado group based in Amsterdam (Netherlands) with Juan S. Blanco (Colombia) on harp and Sofia Pedro (Portugal) on vocals.
In her path Joana played in several national and international concert halls as: Baltazar Dias Theater, Madeira (Portugal); Sá de Miranda Theater, Viana do Castelo (Portugal); Zorrilla Theater, Valladolid (Spain); Tivoli Vredenburg, Utrecht (Netherlands). Joana also performed in various music festivals as: in Sharq Taronalari Folk Music Festival in Samarkand (Uzbekistan, 2019); Ethnos Festival (Italy, 2021); Pas Festival (Netherlands, 2021); Hidden Kingdom World Music Festival (Bhutan, 2021); OuTonalidades Festival (Portugal, 2022); World Music Forum, Tivoli Vredenburg, Utrecht (Netherlands, 2022).
Vocals
Ana Ferreira
Susana Castro Santos Cello
Born in 1971 in Santa Maria da Feira, Susana began her musical studies at the age of 2 at the Santa Maria Music Academy, where she completed the Complementary Music Training Course with a score of 19 out of 20 and achieved the 5th grade in Cello under the guidance of Professor Paula Almeida. She was a scholarship recipient of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. She continued her cello studies with various teachers, including Ana Paula Góis, Luís Sá Pessoa, Miguel Zaparolli, and Miguel Rocha.
She was selected at a national level to join the Orchestra of Private Music Schools as a cellist, under the direction of Maestro Leonardo de Barros. At the University of Évora, she studied Landscape Architecture and joined the Choir as a first soprano. She began her journey in Fado in 2000 with a concert featuring Mário Pacheco, a musical style that became her great passion. In Fado, she has found her place, developing as a performing and accompanying cellist.
Throughout her career, she has taken on various roles, such as rebec player, singer, multi-instrumentalist, composer, teacher, actress, director, and music producer, among others. As a rebec player, she worked with theater companies and early music orchestras. She is currently also a music instructor.
Some singers she has worked with include Cape Verdean Ildo Lobo, Paulo Flores, Brazilian Zé Renato, José Cid, António Zambujo, Rui Veloso, Pedro Barroso, Nuno Barroso, Carlos Zel, Teresa Siqueira, Lina Rodrigues, Carminho, Carlos Leitão, Diogo Carapinha, Joana Amendoeira, Margarida Guerreiro, Duarte Coxo, Teresa Tapadas, António Pinto Basto, António Laranjeira, Francisco Moreira, NOA, Zé Manel (vocalist of the band “Fingertips”), Pedro Moutinho, João Chora, LOOKALIKE, Italian Neapolitan singer Mónica Pinto, and others.
Some of the musical projects she has been involved in include “The Vein” (Rock Band); “Modas À Margem do Tempo” (Traditional Alentejo Music); “Histórias de Paixão” (Music Poetry); “Trinadus” (Instrumental Fado Group) – she recorded the CD “Zé Renato e Trinadus – Navegantes” with Brazilian singer Zé Renato and Portuguese Rui Veloso, under the musical direction of Zé Nogueira, saxophonist for Brazilian singer Ney Matogrosso; “Archybak” (from House to Folk); “Alma Plana” (Portuguese Light Music); “Projecto Fuga.01” (Alternative Music, by musician Pedro Pereira); founder and musical director of the fado duo “A Simbiose” (Cello and Voice, with António Laranjeira); “Alma - Over The Love Project” (Chillout, Pop); guest of the group “Fado Trio” (Instrumental Fado Group); cellist collaborator with “Fado Inverso” - Ana Roque and João David Almeida (Fado); founder, cellist, and musical director of the String Quartet “Romã” (Classical Music) – notably participating in the Luso-Brazilian production film “Biscoito da Fortuna,” directed by Raphael Vieira; with violinist Nuno Flores; with Celina da Piedade; with Luís Martins (guitarist of the rock band “Silence 4”); “Amara Quartet” (first female fado quartet) – cellist/composer in the quartet, with performances in numerous concert halls, national and international festivals, music fairs, and concerts in partnership with the Aga Khan Master Musicians (from the AGA KHAN Foundation), and others.
She participated as a guest cellist in Episode 15 of Season 5 of the RTP1 program “Em Casa d’Amália,” presented in prime time by José Gonçalez and aired on January 26, 2024. Some Fado musicians she has played with include: Portuguese Guitar - Mário Pacheco, Luis Petisca, Ricardo Rocha, Paulo Parreira, Ricardo Parreira, Luis Guerreiro, Samuel Cabral, Armindo Fernandes, Eduardo Jorge, Miguel Amaral, João Martins, Mário Henriques, Henrique Leitão, Pedro Castro, Pedro Amendoeira, Bruno Mira, Eurico Machado, José Elmiro, Fernando Silva, Gaspar Varela, Hugo Daniel Lourenço, Luís Coelho, and others; Fado Guitar - Carlos Manuel Proença, Mário Estorninho, Jaime Santos, Pedro Pinhal, João Mário Veiga, Rogério Ferreira, Miguel Gonçalves, Paulo Faria de Carvalho, Carlos Leitão, Pedro Martins, André Teixeira, Carlos Garcia, and others; Bass Guitar and Double Bass - Paulo Paz, Rodrigo Serrão (also with Chapman Stick), Carlos Barreto, Marino Freitas, Miguel Menezes, Carlos Menezes, Ricardo Cruz, Tó Moliças, Filipe Vaz da Silva, Filipe Larsen, Filipe Teixeira, Sérgio Marques, and others.
Theater Companies with which Susana has collaborated: "A bruxa TEATRO" with Actor Figueira Cid – musical accompaniment with cello for Theater Pieces; "Teatro em Caixa" – with this company, it's worth noting that, as a rabelista, Susana participated in the Portuguese film "Pedro e Inês" (recorded audio and video), written and directed by António Ferreira, inspired by the novel "A Trança de Inês" by Rosa Lobato Faria, also composing several soundtracks for Theater Pieces, conducting musical direction, acting, singing, and playing cello in the accompaniment of the theater pieces; "A Trincheira" – worked as an extra; Jeanneth Vieira – composed soundtracks, directed music, and performed as a cellist in the accompaniment of the action; Theater and Performing Arts Company "Orla" – composed soundtracks, directed music, performed as a cellist and actress in the Theater Pieces; "CIA Ventoinha" – composed soundtracks and performed as a multi-instrumentalist in the accompaniment of Theater Pieces.
Susana regularly performs solo and has been a resident cellist in venues such as "Pousada dos Lóios" in Évora.She has performed in various Fado houses across the country, such as "Bacalhau de Molho," "Sr. Vinho," "À Capella," "Jardim da Cerveja," “Casa da Mariquinhas,” and is currently the resident cellist at “Restaurante Típico O Fado” in Porto, where she performs every night alongside guitarist Samuel Cabral, fado guitarist Paulo Faria de Carvalho, and fado singers Patrícia Costa, Vânia Leal, Pedro Ferreira, and Bruno Alves.
She has recorded numerous CDs with various artists, television programs, radio shows, films, documentaries – notably the documentary series about the life of Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa titled “Senhor Presidente – O Campeonato de uma Vida,” by Amazon Prime – and has performed at music festivals and music competitions such as the legendary “Termómetro unplugged” promoted by Rádio Comercial, where she finished in the top three with the band “The Vein,” among others.
Her career highlights include concerts in multiple iconic venues in Portugal, such as Coliseu do Porto, Coliseu de Lisboa, Teatro Sá da Bandeira, Teatro Rivoli, Teatro Tivoli BBVA, Theatro Circo, Teatro S. Luís, Teatro da Trindade, Teatro Baltazar Dias (Funchal), Teatro Diogo Bernardes, Teatro Garcia de Resende, Teatro José Lúcio da Silva, Teatro Lethes, Teatro Viriato, Casa da Cultura de Ílhavo, Casa da Música (Porto), Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, Reservatório da Mãe d’Água das Amoreiras (Lisbon), Centro Cultural de Belém, and others. Additionally, she has performed in other countries such as Russia, Brazil, Canada, Spain, Bosnia and Herzegovina, France, Italy, Poland, Egypt, Morocco, and others.
Vocals
Ana Ferreira
AMARA
QUARTET